Great Coffee Comes Down to One Number. Here’s What It Is

Most home coffee drinkers chase consistency by upgrading equipment. These things can definitely contribute to cup quality, but none of them close the gap between a good cup and a great one as directly as simply measuring correctly.

The coffee-to-water ratio is the variable that most reliably determines whether a cup tastes balanced, flat or bitter, and getting it right requires a kitchen scale rather than a better machine. The number that coffee professionals start with, roughly one gram of coffee for every 15 to 18 grams of water, is the same one any home brewer can apply tomorrow morning without spending a single cent.

The golden ratio — roughly one gram of coffee for every 15 to 18 grams of water — is the number coffee professionals use as a starting point, and applying it at home requires nothing more than a kitchen scale. That means it’s actually a...

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