A Beginner’s Guide To Brewing Coffee Using A Chemex
The Chemex coffeemaker is both, a method and a brand, a brewer and a server, a classic and a design marvel. A coffee-brewing equipment that does more than just being a vessel, is why the world has been raving about Chemex. Brewing Specialty coffee with Chemex is simple – it’s a pour-over. It doesn’t have complicated steps, buttons or parts. However, the process does require patience but it is accompanied by a sense of achievement when it results in a light, clean and flawless extraction.
Chemex 6 available at Araku, brews coffee for 6 people and is loved and appreciated greatly for the consistent and nuanced flavours it extracts that can always be shared with friends or family. It creates a distinct flavourful coffee with its infusion method, similar to drip coffee in terms of body and taste. But unlike most coffee-brewing equipment, it is inherently a beautiful design piece for the kitchen as well.
A good brew from Chemex is not just because of its equipment though. It is a system and method foremost and then an apparatus – the credit must be shared with its unique Chemex filters as well; which is 20-30% thicker than those used by other pour-over methods. A cup of coffee created from Chemex shall always be sediment-free and light with a balanced set of floral notes.
Chemex was invented during the 1940s in a chemistry lab by Dr Peter Schlumbohm. It is termed as one of the best-designed products and is also placed at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City as a part of their collection. If you’re into pop culture, you might have also noticed Chemex being featured in movies such as Interstellar, Sabrina and TV shows such as Friends and Mad Men. If you have seen these and not noticed the brewer, you might want to rewatch them again (any excuse to brew coffee from the same coffee maker as your favourite characters, right? Or is it just us?)
The inventive design is essentially an hourglass-shaped glass with a fastened conical neck. With Araku, you can have the original Chemex design that has endured decades with its brilliance. It is undoubtedly a staple in every coffee enthusiast’s home. Moreover, the coffee-making equipment can be taken anywhere with its high-quality construction, heat resistance, sustainable rubberwood and its manual operation; no electrical outlet needed.
There is no doubt that Chemex is a true design marvel with its visual elegance matching its impeccable blending of design and function.
The funnel-like shape of its neck helps fit the Chemex filter which removes bitter notes and excess oils from the coffee beans. It also assists in easy handling while pouring hot coffee. These features of the glassware that always result in a perfect cup when blended with Araku’s promise of organically-grown and expertly-roasted coffee beans, make for the perfect brew. Araku’s Specialty coffee is 100% Arabica of unblended single-origin quality with each coffee bean processed in-house to ensure optimal selection and quality.
Our coffee beans brewed with Chemex are bound to make clear, pure, flavourful coffee every time. Because of both the apparatus and beans’ purity, the coffee brewed can also be reheated without any of its original flavours lost.
Brewing with Chemex
The beauty of Chemex, as coffee-brewing equipment, relies largely on how, after practice, it only requires coffee grounds, a paper filter, and water. For beginners though, you might need a little more tools. Don’t worry, we will take you through your first brewing experience with Chemex and Araku coffee beans. Read on for the simple steps and don’t worry if you take a leeway with the ratio.
Peter Schlumbohm designs have been called “a synthesis of logic and madness” and Chemex has been termed as a device with which anybody, absolutely anybody, can make a good cuppa.
With us at Araku, who introduced Coffeeology in India, on your side, know that you will definitely make a fine brew.
Here we go!
A good starting point for beginners is to grind the coffee beans to a medium-fine. For 30g of coffee, you will need 500ml of water or 60g of coffee for 1L of water. Start by heating a little more than 300ml of water until it is simmering. Then place your filter in the Chemex and rinse thoroughly with hot water. This will remove the taste of paper so that it is not transmitted to the coffee. It will also warm up the Chemex.
Empty the hot water from the equipment and place the Chemex with its filter and coffee on a kitchen scale. Reset the scale. Then you can make a pre-infusion of 40 seconds while pouring 60g of water. Do make sure to wet all the coffee. If bubbles are visible on the surface of the coffee, it means that your coffee is degassing – a sign of its freshness. With the spatula, rotate to submerge all the coffee.
Pour the rest of the water gradually from the centre outwards, without touching the filter paper until the scale reaches 500g. The extraction should last 3.5 to 4 minutes. If the extraction takes too long, it means that the grind is too fine. And if it’s too quick, the grind is too coarse. Don’t worry, you will eventually get the hang of it.
Now, you can remove the filter and stir the coffee in the Chemex to homogenize it.
You have now reached the final and the most important step; to serve and ENJOY!
