The Lab
The tasting notes on each bag are what we pull on our specific setup. If your cup doesn't land on the exact same notes, there is no need to worry. Those notes are a map of what the coffee can do, not an absolute score you have to hit.
Coffee is sensitive. Water chemistry, grind, temperature, equipment, and many other variables affect the final cup. Here's the environment we brew in, so you can see how far your setup might sit from ours and dial with confidence.
Water
Water is the largest ingredient in your coffee. We brew with reverse-osmosis water remineralized to a clean, repeatable baseline at 60–70 ppm TDS with a mineral balance designed for balanced extraction, sweetness, and clarity. Our commercial water system allows us to maintain this profile consistently, but most home brewers don't need to replicate that level of equipment. We recommend brewing with quality bottled water that contains moderate mineral content, or using distilled water with a remineralization packet or concentrate. Because mineral composition varies significantly by location, we generally advise against using untreated tap water if you're looking for the most consistent results.
Temperature
We generally brew between 90–93°C (195–200°F) depending on the coffee. Washed coffees generally benefit from higher temperatures, while naturally processed coffees often shine at slightly lower temperatures. As a starting point, we cup at 92°C (198°F). Small adjustments of just 1–2°C can noticeably change the balance of acidity, sweetness, and body.
- Water
- Reverse osmosis, remineralized
- Target TDS
- 60–70 ppm
- Brew temperature
- 90–93°C · 195–200°F
- Cupping standard
- 92°C · 198°F
- Cupping ratio
- 15 g : 225 g water · 1:15
- Ambient temp
- 70°F · 21°C, constant
- Relative humidity
- ~50%, near-constant
Espresso
We dial in on a La Marzocco Linea paired with a Fiorenzato F83 grinder using standard brew temperature and pressure. Grounds are distributed and tamped with a PUQpress to ensure consistent puck preparation from shot to shot.
While many of our coffees perform well with espresso shot times in the 25–30 second range, every coffee and every grinder is different. Use our recipes as a starting point, then adjust your grind size to achieve a balanced cup rather than chasing an exact extraction time.
- Machine
- La Marzocco Linea
- Grinder
- Fiorenzato F83
- Puck prep
- PUQpress
Filter
Our primary QC grinder is a Fellow Ode Gen 2 with stock burrs, brewed on a Hario V60 with Cafe Abaca papers using a Fellow Stagg EKG kettle and a Timemore scale.
Our brewing approach emphasizes strong extraction early in the brew, followed by gentle pours in later stages. This helps increase sweetness and clarity while minimizing harshness. Small differences in grinders, filters, kettles, and pouring technique will naturally produce different results, so we encourage using our recipes as a foundation and adjusting to suit your own equipment.
We do use some higher-end equipment in the shop, but we like to test on standardized equipment for filter. That higher-end gear is very nice to have, but it's not absolutely necessary to enjoy the coffee. A well-built home setup with a consistent, dialed technique will get you a beautiful cup.
- Grinder
- Fellow Ode Gen 2 · stock burrs
- Brewer
- Hario V60
- Papers
- Cafec Abaca
- Kettle
- Fellow Stagg EKG
- Scale
- Timemore
New to dialing in?
Start with our brewing guide, change one variable at a time, and trust your taste over the label. Stuck on a particular coffee? Reach out and we're happy to talk you through it.