How To Brew Better Dark Roasts

[@maxpower8460]

Love how James needs to put more time into defending the concept of drinking dark roasts than drinking donuts in coffee.

[@ondank]

Does James think we are coffee snobs? James thinks we're coffee snobs who laugh at dark roasts doesn't he !? I mean I am. But I'm also an addict so I'll drink anything.

[@danielsoukup5734]

XD XD XD

[@ophelianervosa]

@@ondank I think anyone who looks into improving their coffee skills has looked down on a dark roast, at least once in their life. Also, the coffee James used would seem light to the average person, buying coffee from the supermarket

[@slothc]

@@ondank if taste is subjective and so many "peasants" prefer the taste of dark roast, why would it be fine to look down on dark roast? Just because nerds discovered the complexity of various coffee beans doesn't mean there's anything wrong with the straightforwardness of dark roasts.

[@ondank]

@@slothc it's entirely a joke mate. I love dark roast. I love light roast. Loosen up.

[@ashleyjholding6350]

Hi James - I'm a chemist and I do a lot of work on extraction and solubility. If I were to hypothesise, the reason this works is because you will first extract more of the low molecular weight compounds: the carboxylic acids, esters which give the bright, fruity and sweet flavours, which are "easier" to extract, because they are smaller. With more heat you will extract more of these initially. With increasing time, you will be extracting more of the bitter, high molecular weight compounds formed, and reducing the temperature here means you will slow the extraction of the more undesirable compounds.

[@Heroniak]

This is extremely fascinating. Thank you

[@chaquator]

this lines up with a lot of the research going over tea, mainly originating from china where the culture of tea is bigger. teas are more finicky with temperature because certain compounds are extracted faster at higher temps so the game is to get the temperature and steep time right to avoid too much bitterness

[@gwynethsoria8807]

Got into coffee because of James and I am constantly amazed he never runs out of coffee knowledge to share!

[@TeodorOlteanu]

Maybe read his books then ;)

[@mihirpotnis7933]

Ifkr

[@sup2320]

Same, I was drinking nescafe everyday until the KZbin algorithm led me here.

[@toasterboy708]

He just invents new shït to wow you with.

[@kivzzzz]

Welcome! 🎉

[@humphreychiu]

I think what you call darker roast in the video is more like a medium roast for common supermarket beans. The ones labelled ‘french style’ or ‘Italian style’ are scarily shiny black beans. Those are expected to be served with dairy. Really appreciate the video, we consume a lot of coffee and a lot of the time we just have to buy from supermarket which tends to be the darker roast. I notice the boiling water bloom, it is exactly like when I bloom with just boiled water! I’ll definitely try 80C brew with my v60!

[@christianelbertbudiman5247]

I really appreciate what James done for coffee. His experiment, his eagerness, his explanation is superb, even for the type of coffee he personally said does not prefer (this time, about darker roasted coffee). I salute you James! Hope this video really broadens the view of many people around the world.

[@gino7460]

@Danielle Anderson Yeah and I believe they have a term for it. They call it "tainting" lmao

[@Mark13376]

No kidding. I've learned alot about what to look for when I'm trying to make myself a cup of joe. Everyone knows Folgers is bad, but to know WHY, and how to do it better, is why I keep coming back to James. That being said, his palette is much more finely tuned than mine. I did his Aeropress method, along with one of the most aggressive methods, and could barely taste the difference.

[@komkwam]

@Danielle Anderson Isn't that just normal behaviour, to accept and respect other peoples preferences and taste in foods and drinks? Imo that should always be the way to go anyway. I can't take people who are telling me how i should eat or drink my food/drinks really serious.

[@happyotakumanmike]

@@komkwam Yeah, Its more that an expert in the field is stating that its okay and not horrible when the usual coffee snob, well you would expect to hear them from a high horse talking down to you or calling you a heathen when they see you add sugar to coffee.

[@ximono]

@Danielle Anderson Well, once you've put donuts in your coffee how could you possibly be snobbish about people using cream and sugar.

[@DaveCalx]

I am often impressed by the depth of James' knowledge and how he consistently articulates the concepts in an interesting and compelling manor without sounding pompous.

[@TrizzaW]

Thanks for sending some love to those of us that prefer the dark side! I'm one of those that *hates* acidic coffee. Less about the flavour and more because it feels very unpleasant in my stomach. The roasty, toasty flavours of dark coffee are very warm and comforting too.

[@TheAkANIMAL907]

Never really thought why I prefer darker roasts until this comment. I can remember light/blonde roasts giving me a very unpleasant and uncomfortable stomach feeling afterwards too

[@TrizzaW]

@@TheAkANIMAL907 yes! I had a similar moment some years back. I find that light roasts of the type heavily consumed here in Finland give me a painful stomach, and far more of the coffee induced bathroom visits than dark roasts do. I'm originally from Australia so I'm more accustomed to darker roasts and espresso drinks, so the ultra light roast filter coffee here was a real shock to my system.

[@omersiddiqui4371]

@@TheAkANIMAL907 could be due to the higher caffeine content in lighter roasts

[@TrizzaW]

As far as technique goes, when dialing in my V60 brews I found that I had to go to a very coarse grind to get a good result. I must test out the ratio and temperature tweaks :) I still usually prefer a splash of milk/oat milk but thats mostly because I enjoy the thicker mouthfeel it gives.

[@jamesrael9557]

Ironically, I’m the opposite. I love dark roast for the flavor rather than the difference in acidity with lighter roasts. But I definitely agree that our pour dark roast community are the wallflowers of the coffee-nerddom dance. I’m glad to see us get some attention, too.

[@wizendwizard]

James: "You really wanna be using it within 2-3 weeks." Me: *cries with my 3-month old dark roast beans*

[@vijfenhalfhoek]

I've still got a bag from March I don't want to throw away.. God help me

[@sourdoughhome2571]

In another video James has started supporting freezing beans, or at least has stopped condemning the practice. Freezing extends the shelf life dramatically. (The video where he talk about liquid nitrogen and super-cooling beans.)

[@ropro9817]

I just bought a 2.5 lbs bag of French Roast from Costco yesterday and I live alone... 😭

[@ropro9817]

@Account number 7 lol Ummm, what? 😆

[@paul_om4822]

@@ropro9817 hemm I brought a 1kg bag from Lidl and threw it in the bin ... After tasting it I must add

[@lucasmunoz7413]

These intros are seriously KZbin hall of fame.

[@MelvinHughesatp]

James, your video inspired me to experiment with two dark roast today. First, I do not care at all for acidity or bitterness. At 70, I've had too much bad coffee in my life to want more. So I am one of those you describe as using sweetener (in my case, honey,) to mask bitterness. So trying out your formula, 35 grams of coarser ground coffee for 500 ml of water, doing a 100 degree C bloom, followed by 80 degrees C for the remainder, I used a blend this morning. Peet's Major Dickason was indeed much less bitter and completely drinkable without anything added. But adding a little less than a teaspoon of honey made it superb for me. This afternoon, I repeated the experiment with a single-source Columbian coffee which had been problematic for me before with its higher rates of acidity. The coarser grind, 100 degree/80 degree C brewing did tame some of the acidity as well as the bitterness. For me, it was drinkable without anything but I didn't love it. Again, a bit less than a teaspoon of honey made it much more palatable for my tastes. The only two downsides for me are juggling the temperatures of the water and the fact that you end up with a much cooler cup of coffee. Even served in a pre-warmed Yeti cup, it seems (my perception is?) that the cup cools down from 80 degrees C much faster. Will I continue? I do like the the Major Dickason and will probably do it this way occasionally. I think the acidity of the Columbian doomed it from the beginning. That said, it is much better done in this fashion for me.

[@defeqel6537]

I despise sweeteners as a principle, but I do admit that a lot of the time my coffee is missing a "front" taste which a dash of sweet could rectify

[@mdc47]

This is so interesting Melvin! Thank you!

[@stewartesmith]

I've found that the Ember mug is an essential for me when drinking brewed coffee that was brewed at a lower temperature. Since it keeps the drink warm with a heating element (rather than just insulation), I can enjoy the drink at the optimal temperature over a leisurely amount of time. Yes, the Ember mug seems like possibly the silliest thing ever. An expensive mug with bluetooth and an app. But honestly it's possibly one of the best things I've ever bought. Bought one (after James' video), lent it to my (rather skeptical) wife the next day, next morning, we had two.

[@danielsoukup5734]

I love that you’re super into specially coffee but you want to help people enjoy what they like. You don’t try to convince people that your preferences are the correct way to brew coffee.

[@mattzechman4408]

Exactly. He’s not a typical coffee snob, which is what we love about him.

[@aclonymous]

he doesn’t try to, but he does

[@PippetWhippet]

@@mattzechman4408 I find most "snobs" in any walk of life are "snobby" to hide a lack of true expertise. They know only one way to make - in this instance a great cup of coffee, and will not brook that they don't know something that someone they believe they should know more than, knows. So they use snobbishness to cover their insecurity. James on the other had is a true expert, it comes across in every video that he genuinely understands and has a great desire to improve his understanding. He doesn't need to hide anything, but I bet if you asked him, when he was learning in his earlier years, he had a snobbish reaction to certain subjects.

[@Tastewithnewdrinks]

Me too🥰🥰

[@BruceWalkerPhotography]

I really like dark roasts for a change and to get that special rich, chocolatey, syrupy combination of flavours and body that seems to come only with something like a dark roasted quality Brazilian bean. But one additional technique for getting the best from dark roasts that I feel you missed mentioning here is to pour gently. After the bloom pour while starting each additional pour I use the bowl of a long handled spoon held under the kettle spout, and close to the coffee surface, to moderate the agitation of the grounds. I remove the spoon after there's enough hot water on the grounds bed. I also pour from closer to the water surface then I do for light/medium roasts. By doing this I avoid a lot of bitterness and a kind of nasty stridency or harshness I'd get otherwise. Thank you for all the great tips and research you do, James!

[@cl5619]

Dark roast coffee taste like charcoal

[@desertrainfrog1691]

I have a feeling you're talking about over-roasted coffee, not a proper dark roast from a quality company. But tastes vary, drink what you like.

[@srikaran1306]

Dark roasts are criminally underrated. I've followed the exact trajectory that James described, I began my coffee journey with darker roasts since I wasn't used to the acidity. Today my daily is always a medium/light, but I always have a dark roast packet in my kitchen. I'll make a cup once in a while and the palette change ALWAYS blows my mind. Just get a good dark roast obviously lol

[@DerFeindmarkierer]

They are only underrated in third wave circles.

[@ggarethoy]

James, I recently found your channel and have been enjoying it immensely. I'm one of those dark roast devotees thanks to meeting Alfred Peet in his original shop in 1969. I've been drinking Peets dark roast coffees for more than 50 years now and as an old timer, I haven't changed much but I have evolved a bit and now use a Hario scale, Fellow EKG, and Ode Grinder. Your ideas for brewing dark roasts proved to be very helpful. I just got a V60 Switch, V60 filters and have been using 96 degrees for a bloom (to hang my nose over), then refill the kettle with cold water to bring it down to 90 degrees for the slurry. I use 18 grams of grounds with 220 grams water. I pour 40 grams for the bloom, wait 45 seconds, then add 180 grams for the slurry and stir/swirl the mix. I let it sit for 2:00 minutes including the bloom and then break the crust with a spoon, and at 2:15 flip the switch and swirl it as it drains in about 1:15. This results in 180 grams (6 oz.) of coffee. It’s sweeter now, a more mellow but still full bodied and satisfying. Now I'm going to start toying with the grind size, dialing the Ode down from 3 to a little finer and see what happens. Who knows maybe I’ll even try a lighter roast.

[@morgandrinkscoffee]

You might just convince me to go try another dark roast with this video...

[@mrperson5443]

Nice seeing you here, Morgan!

[@michaelkartman3543]

Well hello, Ms. SpillsCoffee :)

[@rajrishiparmar1362]

Wait a minute morgan, you use light roast in milk based drinks? I have never tried that...damn

[@HerSrd]

@@rajrishiparmar1362 You should try!

[@fargoflagrant7796]

collab when

[@PhantomPhoton]

Thank you for finally covering dark roasts! Please continue to include dark roasts in your reviews and guides!

[@hikuwai]

Really appreciate this, thank you! I'm a medium/dark roast fiend, because I prefer deeper coffee flavors to acidity, but I often feel snobbed-out (is that a word? It's a word now) for it. Thanks for giving us plebes some support. :)

[@TrizzaW]

Yep. I've been sneered at mockingly by more than one coffee snob/hipster for saying that I prefer darker roasts. "Might as well just drink instant", apparently...

[@spirit__fox]

@@TrizzaW Same, which is really not fun.

[@sebaba001]

@@TrizzaW I can't stomach dark roasts (or at least very dark roasts, when they start feeling ashy) but I can definitely understand why some people like them. Snobbery sucks.

[@Keykey70]

@@TrizzaW retort with "if you like your coffee so bright and dainty you might as well drink tea" lmao I'm fine with whatever people's preferences are, but biting back at snobbery feels good

[@Juleszzzzz]

@@Keykey70Hmm.. that might not work. That light roast snob is very likely a tea snob too (example: me) lol

[@sunayanib]

I've been a fan of darker roasts for a long time, and it's great to see James talking about them here! And so much yes to lower brew temps for darker roasts!

[@lisakaramba3251]

I never considered myself as a nerd. Then I discoverd James Hoffmann's KZbin-Channel... well, here we are.

[@matthewweaver1123]

I will say this, getting a good dark roast from a local roaster is completely different than getting a cheap dark roast from the supermarket. I thought I didn't like dark roast, but I got a dark roast Sumatra from a local roaster, and holy moly is it good. As I brewed it, I was met with scents of chocolate and caramel, and it had a depth that I didn't think coffee had. Zero acidity, but not really that bitter either. Because of your 'ultimate aeropress method', I went from someone who didn't like coffee to someone who can't wait to taste it in the morning in about a month.

[@beforedawn]

Sumatran beans when done well are absolute bangers. They can be outstanding.

[@yumyumhungry]

Thanks for making this, people snob over this saying dark roasts are like a well-done steak. There are some wonderful earthy chocolaty notes in something like a nice Sumatra.

[@landenew]

just don't get starbucks Sumatra

[@broado1]

@@landenew just don't get Starbucks anything. 🤢 Actually that's not quite true, astonishingly they brew quite reasonable tea these days. (well, reasonable for a teabag tea in a motorway service station.)

[@nycbearff]

I love dark roasts, and I have no patience with people who claim that they have superior tastes and that everyone should like the same things. One of James' big attractions is that he's clear that his preferences are just his preferences, and that everyone should experiment and find what they like.

[@ropro9817]

Wow, this totally works! Following these instructions, I was able to brew some French Roast which was much smoother and less bitter. Thanks, James!

[@saamenerve1869]

James' all black sweater is just too suiting to today's video

[@arthurb8436]

@@svgPhoenix my first thoughts haha

[@hgld]

Just tried it at 80C and the difference is night and day. I enjoy decaf in the afternoon but find the beans fit the same profile as these darker roasts and seem to be very porous too. The change in the way the coffee blooms at 80C is so different. Very grateful for learning about this. I had previously always held the belief that water temp for pour over was just not something to fiddle with and routinely used water that had just come off the boil.

[@MrLiguinii]

We are having a glimpse on the mid range espresso machine review in the background. I can't wait!

[@jack_mitchell01]

1000$ Espresso machine range is next

[@oussamasaidi5836]

"because i want everyone to enjoy coffee a little bit more" thank you James ^_^ how sweet of you

[@nbougeard]

"I want everyone to enjoy coffee a little bit more." Not a haiku but still

[@ollie6563]

Add "drinking" to the second line and we're all the way there :)

[@davidmarshall2399]

Is damn close: I want every (e-ver-y) One to enjoy coffee a Little bit more...... (Just need one more syllable)

[@trzynasty909]

I want everyone To enjoy coffee a bit More than they do now

[@lachlanhoughton9501]

Your production quality has just gone through the roof in the last 12 months. So glad to have been along for the ride for all of this

[@XxxxJammyxxxX]

Perfect timing! I mostly drink decaf, as I don't like the feeling I get from too much caffeine, and I have found that it's not nearly as easy to get good light roasted decaf as it is to find good dark roast decaf. So recently I've been trying to get the best out of the dark roasted beans that I've been buying, and I couldn't be happier to see this video! I have tried to adapt the famous JH Aeropress technique to a darker roast, and have had some success doing pretty much all the things you mentioned in this video. I don't have a temperature controlled kettle, so I have been boiling the water then pouring it into a pyrex jug, and taking the temperature with a digital cooking thermometer. Usually the temperature is around 85c in the jug straight away which seems to be about right. Grinding a LOT coarser, almost to the lower limit of my grinder, and steeping for less time helped a great deal with taking out the bitterness. With regards to decaf; I am very much looking forward to the, hopefully still planned, video on the subject in the future. There are a lot of conflicting opinions on the various methods of decaffeination, and I would love to see someone dive into the subject with a more comparative view.

[@benmoore8723]

TL;DR: James, you have done it again. I really appreciate this video, you've helped me improve the quality of my coffee experience. Longer story for those who want to follow my experience: My coffee journey started many years ago and I preferred darker roasts. As I began enjoying exploring different coffees from different locations and different methods of brewing, I found myself appreciating lighter roasts coffee much more. This was accentuated by a particular trend in some coffee shops that seem to roast their beans frankly too dark (while still selling at a premium price) roasting the region out of the coffee. Almost as a personal statement, I've intentionally stayed away from darker roasts since. I've been roasting my own beans at home for quite a while too. This started from an thrift store air popper, moving to some Frankensteined abomination of a convection oven and a flatbed popcorn popper, to now using a much more efficient yet affordable drum roaster...my roasting habits reflected my flavor interests and definitely grew more on the light end of the spectrum. Literally 3 weeks ago I began trying to roast more dark to explore my "roots". I've tried 3 different kinds of coffee and kept my brew process consistent with the lighter roast profiles and while not bad, I thought: "why would I do this over a lighter roast"? I found myself putting creamer back in my coffee (though I did make some homemade Irish Cream and that didn't disappoint). I had just a little bit left (enough for 3 cups) as I watched this yesterday and followed the process (all of it) and that 'meh' coffee came to life (my wife agreed). I went out and roasted a Costa Rican coffee (one of my favorites) and took it a good bit darker than usual. I sit here typing this drinking it (I should have let it rest longer, but I'm weak and couldn't wait), again following the process as you've indicated - dang if it isn't a terrific cup of coffee. Again, I thank you!

[@MrArmlicker1]

It's like every new video is exactly what I want to know. Christmas comes every week

[@BradyPatterson]

I endlessly appreciate your love of coffee James and seemingly unending content you generate. Your methodical approach to all things coffee is amazing and thanks for sharing your wisdom with the interwebs!

[@bitsandbytes16]

This is excellent, since I'm currently in Japan and they love their dark roast filter coffee. I've been struggling to achieve a good brew like the traditional cafes do over here, and James' tips may just be what I need to crack the code on this one.

[@Agos226]

Same! I’ve never liked acidic coffee which was all the cafes over seemed to serve. When I moved to Japan I fell in love with the dark roast filter coffee the serve at fancy cafes but still was unable to replicate it at home

[@edoardofrezza9950]

So I tried this method. It revitalized my older dark roast. It tastes similar to when I first got it. The initial extraction with boiling water helped bring out the flavor of the beans and the remainder of the brew blended it out. Before it would be very "heavy," difficult to drink a full cup or without something to offset the bitterness. I tried 25grams to ~360ml of water. Thank you James!

[@MrApex-se1qe]

James: My Ultimate AeroPress recipe is so simple a child can do it. Also James: Today we'll be brewing a V60 with water at 2 different temperatures.

[@val26874]

Set some boiled water aside in a jug before you bloom. Then bloom with water from the kettle, and brew with water from the jug. The water in the jug should be cooler by the time it gets to the coffee, because it's been poured twice instead of once.

[@daveculturegames7819]

Tasting V60 paper was more hardcore

[@briangray851]

Single origin Sumatra is my favorite coffee. I love it because it has a full body with low acidity and when you get that chocolate and earthy flavors from the Sumatra beans, I don't know how it gets much better in a cup of coffee. I exclusively use the Aeropress to make those amazing cups of Sumatra.

[@shoppster300]

This actually shines a light on an interesting phenomena I've been noticing about the bloom and specifically agitation in the bloom. I feel that this 45 second part of coffee brewing in a pour over has much more impact on the flavour profile than the remaining 2 minutes or so. I feel there's definitely some interesting science lurking in this phase. Especially that instant 100c water hits the coffee, and the swirl is made. There's some complex extraction taking place in this moment that has a drastic affect on the end result. In doing my own experimentation I've noticed that even milliseconds in swirl time with 100c water can make a big difference the final brew. An even bigger difference than grind size with all other variables kept the same. There's a thing happening here that no one has actually scienced yet.

[@desertrainfrog1691]

I have a feeling this could very well be a placebo effect, but I hope James looks into it regardless.

[@Greenkrieg]

Its very nice seeing some love for dark roasts. I hate the sour flavor that tends to come with specialty light roast coffee. I like the bitterness of dark roasts and I usually put a small amount of cream in just for texture. I tried this method and I think it came out better. But I think next time I have some time on my hands I'll have to do a side by side comparison of my usual method and this one.

[@agabrielhegartygaby9203]

I suspect from the 14 other replies here that we are not alone.

[@javirebeld]

Did you compare both methods?

[@alexgoforth3684]

Really helpful for us decaficionados, as decaf tends to 'appear' more darkly roasted (which surely means it is). It certainly tends towards tasting that way so I'm excited to mod my filter brewing approach.

[@DenisLevchenko]

a roaster told me that decaf coffee looks a lot darker even before the roasting, just something to do with the decaf process itself. So when they say it just appears more darkly roasted but actually isn't, they mean it

[@aanmaaklimonade]

My mom used to do pour over coffee on our boat with a melita pour over filter over a thermos, lots of people with fancy automatic coffee machines would frown upon that style of coffee as it was so old fashioned. Right now, i know why i loved her coffee so much... and she was basically pouring as a 2021 hipster 25 year ago. The roasts were quite dark, but this is something common in the Netherlands where we would drink fairly strong coffee. I personally love a bit of bitterness in the cup, and if it’s well balanced it goes a long way. Not with milk or sugar though.. Thanks for also including darker roasts in your videos :)

[@etatsopa]

I love both light and dark roasts, but to me a really excellent dark roast espresso is almost like a different drink entirely to a light roast espresso, the flavours are just so different.

[@panmicrotones]

yes this is my experience as well.

[@sc51153826]

James, thank you so much for all your videos. I've tried your techniques several times. In general, they work very well for all kinds of coffees. The trick is to find a way to have hot waters at 2 different temperatures. I heat up a little more water than I need so the temp of the water doesn't drop very much as I take some of the brew-temp water to heat it up to boil either in the microwave or in another small pot for blooming. I tried this on some commercially pre-grounded dark roast coffee, it almost eliminated the bitterness. On freshly grounded dark or medium roasts, the hotter bloom does help to bring out more aromas and flavours. I must confess, I used to drink "over-roasted" or French roast (I didn't even add milk). I've switched to drinking Medium to Medium-Dark roasts since. It was truly a revelation to me, there are so many more nuances and notes to enjoy.

[@Yupppi]

This channel definitely taught me how to make coffee "the right way" and as a result I found out that even the coffee I regularly drank as ready ground and made by a moccamaster, didn't necessarily ask for sugar and milk or cream when it was ground and brewed right. I still use them because that's how I like it, but as they say, when you get the base right, it's easier to build on top of that and get even greater results.

[@HollandHillSpies]

Seen so many useful videos from JH and wondered how I missed this. Never liked dark roast till I tried this 100C bloom-85C pour over and was shocked at how much more enjoyable the cup was. Immediately the aromas was clearer, bitterness reduced significantly, unmasking the sweet notes. What a treat! Thanks James!

[@lukastreuer8121]

There's just nothing quite as relaxing as a nice cup of coffee and a James Hoffmann video on a sunny Saturday morning

[@ishmael4489]

Indeed. Or a Sunday morning in my case. I'm on my second cup!

[@lukastreuer8121]

@@ishmael4489 Nice! Enjoy!

[@stevemb0]

Tried this on a Gevi 4 in 1. Set up a recipe with 5 pulse pours at 1:14.3 ratio set at 85c. The bloom stage was not in the program. Instead poured the bloom water from a Stagg just off boil. The Gevi preheats to 80c so only takes about 30 secs to get to 85 which ties in well with end of bloom time. Just place the carafe under and it works seamlessly. Has reduced the bitterness and a much smoother cup. Roast level was 20 seconds into 2nd crack but no visible oils. 8 days post roast.

[@TZerot0]

"the coffee we are using today is dark" shows a pleasant medium, medium-dark roast 🤣

[@djentlover]

The camera exposure is pretty high

[@seedubhuntx]

"real" dark roasts vs supermarket/starbucks dark lol

[@deluxgaming6742]

Thought the same thing... it's really not that dark xD

[@andrewwdouglas]

light/medium/dark are relative terms and In the world of specialty, it is focused on the development of the bean between first and second crack. James looks like he's using a full city roast (just before second crack) thus a dark roast. many will claim medium roasts that are beyond second crack like grocery store coffee or SB but in a specialty vacuum, this has gone too far and is likely from a lower grade of coffee.

[@lfish21.]

Medium dark is pretty dark in specialty coffee though.

[@Sinnistering]

This is a freakin' miracle technique. I occasionally get stuck with using supermarket pre-ground stuff, and this technique changes it from "barely drinkable" to "almost passable." I hate the taste of creamers/milk in my coffee, so making the black actually borderline enjoyable is a lifesaver. A side note is that, since I don't have a temperature controlled, I use a 1/15 ratio of room temp water to add instead. This drops the temperature just enough to do the same thing, but I measure it out before starting the bloom (20g for my 300g standard brew). Works pretty well!

[@FlashGeiger]

I wanted the background music for this to be Leonard Cohen's "You Want It Darker"

[@skeetsmcgrew3282]

We'll kill the flame

[@TheErazar]

@@skeetsmcgrew3282 tu tu du du

[@mattnagler5521]

I'm convinced. What an incredible difference it makes using two different temperatures between the initial bloom and main pour. More complexity, great body and mouthfeel, less bitterness.... Great technique!

[@franekwojciechowicz3167]

Let's take a moment to appreciate how good James looks in the black sweater in that black, white and silver background

[@adammarcello9797]

Yes. Bloom with just off the boil…Take off the lid of the kettle and let that water cool down as you are brewing the rest of the cup. I do this with all coffees and I really like the results.

[@WesternRay]

I'm a Vietnamese native. In my country, we have a huge coffee culture, and the most common coffee beans are dark roast Robusta. Although specialty coffee is becoming much more popular, the regular way to brew it is a type of immersion drip, with hot boiling water and coffee beans grind as fine as possible. However, the coffee roasting process is a bit different - there are many addicitives put into the coffee, including butter, fish sauce and even egg sometime. The resulting cup is rich, heavy body and has an earthly taste, and we often drink it with a lot of condensed milk. Of course, there are tons of variants, but that result is usual. I'm experimenting with dark roast Robusta on Aeropress, using Fellow Prismo attachment and additional paper filter to get rid of the oil. Thank you for making these videos, it's very informative.

[@willcarlson2520]

The paper filter will help your cholesterol levels as well!

[@usngunr]

OK. I know I'm late to the party, but......... I tried this today. Holy cow does it work great. So, I kicked my dose up 5g and ground it coarse medium in my 1Zpresso K-Max. First, I did my normal at a boil pour over. Bloom 30 seconds, dose in stages up to my 400g total pour. about a 2:30 brew time. It was a good cup of coffee. Then I went with Jame's method. I bloomed at a boil. Dropped the temp down to 175f and did my pour over. Other than the cooler temperature, everything else I did exactly the same as that first cup. The difference was immediately noticeable and significant. Holy cow folks, what a great cup of coffee. Far more nuance, less bitter, and far superior to my previous efforts. James, we are not worthy. ;) I can't wait to get the new book. Thank you for all you do sir. V

[@godithdadrag]

I literally converted my wife to being a coffee drinker because of little tips and tricks from videos like this. I have some fresh darker roast I wasn't excited to try but this is going to make me to load it up in my grinder once I'm home

[@ChristinaSwaters]

I tried this today and WOW, what a difference. I don't have the greatest grinder in the world (a Cuisinart) so even the finest setting is still pretty course. I left my grind size the same (one click from as fine as it goes) and left my water temp procedure the same (pour bloom right off the boil then let the kettle rest during bloom) but upped the dose by 5 grams. The increased dose definitely made a difference in flavor in coffee that I already loved. Great video!

[@Bjuffs]

I'm a light roast drinker but I care about my dark roast friends. Thank you James for helping me contribute slightly less to their suffering when they're visiting.

[@1808death]

Really like the information and explanations are meticulous, understanding other coffee drinkers preference and make them realize things they don't know about their drink so that the experience of drinking coffee jumps to another level

[@fergusmgraham]

Love the videos.... I come from a beer brewing background and find it interesting how many parallels there are between coffee and beer brewing. I was interested to note your technique here of using a high temp (i.e. boiling) for your bloom (in mashing that would be the strike water) and the lower temp for the main brew phase. From a beer brewing perspective the effect of a higher strike temperature is that you would require lower temperature (or volume) additions to hit the desired mash temperature. It therefore struck me that perhaps the difference you perceive from using high temp bloom is that the overall brew temperature is slightly higher given that the addition is the same volume and temperature for both. Just a thought.

[@teruphoto]

What a great way to start my Saturday; preparing my coffee while listening to James' dulcet tones

[@daeotlyit]

Being at high elevation, I've shifted more to medium and dark roasts since the lower boiling point here makes light roasts very difficult to extract unless you're brewing with pressure.

[@1pashok]

video suggestion. hope it gets your attention, James. modern or fast, efficient way to make Turkish inspired style coffee. here is how i do it. tea kettle to boil or 90C coffee in cezve hot water in, stir on stove, lowest take of heat when volume increased 1/4, no boil, stir let cool and settle 3min+ at an angle on towel carefully and slowly pour in cup on side, stop when coffee goes darker done, perfect temp to enjoy. *dark roasts works better for me. small grind size seems to settle better. this is the cheapest way to enjoy next to espresso kind of vibe with next to nothing. a lot of folks may have a cezve lying around and no filters needed. this is how I got interested in specialty coffee and still do it on occasion. would like to see you try this with experiments and new insights =)

[@fluidparadigms6719]

It feels like the specialty coffee community as a whole has adopted a sort of "Dark roasts are for plebs and if you like them, you should feel bad" mentality. I hope we see a shift to something more like "Light roasts and dark roasts are just different - neither is inherently better or worse."

[@jeancaldwell5391]

Beautifully said!

[@mwiz100]

I'd agree but I think a lot of that has come from that the large portion of mass produced darker roasts are, terrible. So the end result of saying "ALL dark roasts are bad" wherein it's more just that mass produced coffee is kinda crap. Specialty dark roasts are excellent too!

[@vladtepes9614]

@@mwiz100 Counter Culture's dark roast (Gradient) is pretty good. Classic flavors you would expect while maintaining slight hints of fruit-like acidity.

[@PippetWhippet]

It's just fashion, these things are highly cyclical! I guarantee you now, in 25 years time, most people will think light roasts are for plebs and people will be drinking such bitter brews, as dark as possible as the in thing, with flat white quantities of milk to blend it all together. I still remember when all the foodies used to scoff at the idea of eating rare steak, laughing at the "plebs" who can't keep a well done steak moist, so they have to cheat. Then the French fashion took over, and it reversed. Except now in France, the real steak loving foodies are cooking their steaks for as much as 50 hours plus to get the juiciest, most well done properly rendered steak. Even when you think a particular stance is so endemic to the subject - say politics. How could a right wing believer think capitalism is a problem, or a left wing not believe in social health care.... 40 years ago, both these stances were reversed. It's all just fashion.

[@fluidparadigms6719]

@@PippetWhippet That makes a lot of sense. I only been a "coffee enthusiast" for about 10 years, so I didn't really see the whole "second wave" thing that people talk about.

[@willnzsurf]

I thoroughly enjoy the product reviews, technique tutorials, and even the weird & wacky vid clips that pop up occasionally. My favourites are ones like this and the Yemenia episode which help me learn more about the coffee we are brewing. Many thanks!

[@simweimin3422]

U missed out the third group who just want to learn more about coffee! Thanks for teaching me so much! 🤎

[@Merril_39]

Following your advice I've been doing the basic technique with a drip coffee maker. Wash the filter paper, with warm water to heat up the machine a bit. Then start a bloom in the basket, it won't drain until you put your carafe underneath most cheap machines. Then run a full cycle. So far I've found it to definitely taste more clean, but kind of hollow. I've only done it for a week with different beans. I will be trying a more coarse grind next.

[@harrywhitby7144]

I usually prefer darker roasts when im out getting a coffe with friends or by myself but whenever i tried to do it at home it wasnt quite right. Did what was said in the video and had a little celebration. Thank you James, youre absolutely awesome

[@danielwheeler8257]

My 4 year old has been a fan of James Hoffmann (along with me and my wife) for over a year. These videos (and the resulting amazing coffee at home) helped get us through the worst of 2020. He would love it if you made a video about “milk steamers,”/steamed milk. I have had many a “great day” as a result of this channel. Thank you!

[@austinonion]

As someone who really only drinks dark coffee for the flavors, and can't quite get used to the higher acidity of lighter roasts, I really appreciate this video. I have sort of built my methods for different brewing techniques off your videos, so I now have some new things to try. I already brew a little more coarse and at around 190F, but I need to try the 70g/1L since I have been doing 60g. Also the hotter bloom is intriguing to me as well. Thank you, James, as always.

[@TM4N]

I got a really dark roast 3 days ago. And now there is a video that kinda helps me tweek my French press. Ty for that. Tried the grinding a bit coarser thing and going down with temperature just a little bit (90°C in my cooking pot (I am using induction so I don't need a kettle)). the result is far better than what I had before! Always right on time james

[@abhayverma5314]

My guy is getting too comfy with the regular uploads.

[@ZainKhalid02]

Well we're not complaining

[@Rickybhz]

I used to drink creamer and sugar and add coffee haha, then i found your channel trying to figure out how to make a better cup of coffee with out using a keurig. Now i enjoy my coffee black or with abit of milk or creamer with no sugar. I enjoy dark roast but i gave some some light and medium roasted coffee from a few local roasters and i have learned to like different styles i try a different bean every week i have my favorite but i do enjoy having different styles and changing it up alot. I also grind my own beans now and use a V60 a french press and mokapot, and my collection is still growing am waiting on my aeropress and still growing my collection... keep up the great work and thank you for opening up ny eyes to world of coffee...

[@DziamxD]

I already bought fresh coffe which I hate because is too dark for my taste, now I’m saved, because of you Mister Hoffmann

[@Raymond.Caneta]

i have learned a lot from james since the lockdown started in our country, I was not a fan of coffee. the most popular in our country is instant coffee so I decided to watch about on how to make a real coffee or in a real way and I saw james on youtube i was so impressed with him. and that's where my journey in coffee brewing began i buy some brewing tools and from now i still watch james' videos and I really appreciate his love and dedication to coffee thankyou so much for your efforts and for the knowledge you have shared with us ! ❤️

[@george_collins_guitar]

It’s always a good day when James posts a video!

[@Martin_McFryy]

The first time I really focused on getting a good cup. Most of the time I was just taking too much coffee grind or was letting it sit for too long (French press). Now is the first time I try to understand the properties of making coffee. For that I want to thank you, you probably are my favourite Hoffmann ;) I'm glad I found your channel, so I can learn more about the art of coffee brewing

[@J86745]

Its midnight right now where I am, but James, you've just convinced me to brew a cuppa - 12:46. can't tell if it was a better brew or its just the caffeine kick at this ungodly hour.

[@felipeplata]

I was, in fact, having problems with a medium to dark coffee that I bought these days and I thought it was producing to much fines. I watched your video and realize i was thinking in the right direction and it made me feel great. So thank you for that James.

[@charlestwoo]

James dipping his toes into the Dark side, love it.

[@ximono]

Come… come to the Dark side. We have cookies.

[@MrRockso99]

James- today I am word for word the second group you described. Thank you.

[@paperpunchers]

This is such phenomenal content. Even though I’m never going to have this level of control (or time) this STILL gives me, as a very casual coffee lover something to think about and implement as I try to perfect my brewing techniques. Thanks you James for doing work that is both accessible and aspirational all at once.

[@rabidtick2206]

Have been obsessing on a great cup of coffee to enjoy in my mornings and by doing so, found this channel. I took this approach with my dark roasted coffee and truly found the formula of a boil rest to the cooler pour really made a difference. Thank you for your content. I look forward to furthering my knowledge of a great cup of coffee due to this channel and your clear and helpful approach. Cheers!

[@jspiro]

A video on dark roasts! In the same year as Aeropress! Thank you!

[@aminkazemi4579]

I tried for long and my favorite coffee is dark robusta Vietnam coffee which for me has a chocolate note and I like it so much, I use mokapot and recently thanks to dear James ultimate French press which tastes light and really enjoyable. Right now I use the same coffee mix with the lighter roast with the ratio of 60% dark with 40% light and I'm pretty happy with both moka pot and French press. Once again thanks to dear Mr Hoffman. I really love to taste a cup that you make for the reference of my taste for my life 👌

[@jameskenny3716]

I'm really looking forward to trying this technique when I get home on Monday. I have always preferred darker roasts because I'm not big on acidity in my coffee. I'm interested in seeing a separate walk through on lighter roasts, and perhaps how a dark roast drinker may bridge over to the lighter side, given what they look for in a cup of coffee. I know you mentioned most of your brewing videos are light-roast centric (which I noticed, and why I was particularly excited for this video!) But if you are continuing to break down roast specific methods, I'm excited to see if there are brewing tips for lighter roasts that may convert me!

[@jubnx2781]

I’m the opposite I really like that acidity like if I was drinking a lemonade and so the dark bitter notes are weird for me

[@rlopez14021]

I recommend you to cold brew your medium roast. Legend says you can also warm it up for a hot cup. Acidity is at the lowest with cold brewing

[@adamconkey2771]

I've always enjoyed straight black coffee, and that's evolved into bitter black dark roast from a french press. I recognize I'm missing a lot of nuance (based on watching your channel), but it's always consistently good to me.

[@FlorinBalanescu]

Mr. Hoffmann! It's evening here and I wouldn't normally drink coffee at this time, but now, after this video, I HAVE TO! For coffee, for science! Update: it's 10:40 PM, aaaannnd I think we really have something here! ☕🤓🙌🏻

[@alyciavanbeusekom8999]

Same! 9:12pm MUST try!!! It’s SO much better

[@20Shel]

I tried this brewing suggestion this morning. Wow! What a difference. It's such a relief to learn that I'm roasting the beans just fine. Just a little tweak in the brewing made all the difference.

[@winterflea8483]

Context: I got into coffee via my first job at Starbucks. I cut my teeth with French presses of their dark roasts with no milk or sugar. I may be a bizarre abhuman that loves bitter things. (I do like 90%+ dark chocolate, so there is a theme here.) Anyway, I tried the method in the video, specifically focusing on the coarser grind and only using boiling water for the bloom. I used a darker roast and my haario woodneck with a cloth filter and, in my opinion, produced one of the loveliest cups of coffee that I have ever made. Going to play around with feeding the grinds slowly next, but overall, cheers for the advice, it makes some delicious coffee! (I went on to become a black apron at Starbucks and then moved on career wise, and began enjoying the wider world of coffee. I try to enjoy the full coffee spectrum and all it has to offer. But dark roasts I think will always be my comfort roasts and my daily drivers. Light roasts feel very “special occasion” to me. And yes, from time to time I do still just take the darkest Starbucks roast I can find and brew it up in an oily French press. Somethings never change.)

[@katscafe]

❤

[@joyfuljaj]

The first big brand coffee I ventured into ( after the basic store brands like Folgers, etc) was Starbucks Sumatra. I like dark coffee as well as dark chocolate too. It was in a cheap drop machine. Since learning more about technique, I haven't tried that one again.

[@kevinziegenmier-larue992]

Glad to have this guidance for a reason no one seems to acknowledge. Two cups of light roast brew ruin the joy of my morning coffee with too much caffeine. I also don't like acidic coffee but that may be from years of becoming accustomed to dark. But I've enjoyed experimenting with medium roasts to get away from bitterness and just trying new taste profiles. I've been buying "nearly dark" artisan roasts lately and look forward to trying James' advice on the grind and bloom.

[@__a_4444]

Me, drinking Nescafé gold using water straight from the tap: Hmm, yes, indeed

[@xc43t]

Lidl Barista Origins here, instant goodness. A person needs to broaden his or her horizons. How else does a person know how much pain is still possible to live through?

[@michaelkartman3543]

I don’t know how you can watch his videos and not get the basic tools to brew real coffee! I can’t even bring myself to drink pre found coffee these days.

[@zomerkoninkjes]

Me drinking Douwe Egberts pre-ground coffee that’s actually half milk: hmmm yes I definitely agree

[@xc43t]

@@michaelkartman3543 I actually have a good coffee shop around the corner that is supplied by Square Mile. I have been using aeropress for ages but there are mornings when I am too lazy. Also, instant coffee makes you appreciate good stuff more... well, it makes me appreciate it anyway.

[@Krytern]

@@michaelkartman3543 You should watch James's video about what they don't tell about about learning to taste.. He talks about how limiting yourself to ONLY top quality is counter productive and just a bad thing to do

[@IconcentrationI]

I have tried out this recipe twice recently, and it resulted in a very smooth cup. However, the fruity notes were quite shallow. I think it is a much better use of beans like this is to brew with the moka pot instead which many have at home. I added a filter paper and I get really nice clarity with it.

[@Lucy-io7pt]

I love both dark and lighter roasts, but I feel they have their own moments. Nothing beats a beautiful, rich, chocolatey dark roast with a generous splash of milk and maybe even as a mocha on a cold day shopping or at a nice restaurant with a cooked breakfast. But also nothing beats a light roast brewed with a V60 as you nibble some toast with some avocado, mushrooms and a poached egg and wash it down with a punchy vibrant light roast that wakes you up whilst refreshing you in a very tea like way, but with an extra kick to get you off to work, or on a warm day chilled down whilst reading a book on a hammock whilst sat in the sun. Dark roasts to me feel like a hug, they're comforting and often nostalgic in flavour. Whereas light roasts feel like a pat on the back, a well done or a you can do it. And both have a take a moment quality that really draws me to speciality coffee in particular, sure, you can still get speciality fairly fast, but the taste itself, their individual depth really draws you into taking a breath and stopping for literally just a moment. And that's why speciality is- special from a consumer point of view.

[@SteveFullerBikes]

Really looking forward to trying this technique out. The coffee shop a mile from my house roasts their own beans, but they definitely tend towards the lighter side and I can detect that acidity. I've gotten used to it, but I still love the smell and mouthfeel of some of the darker roasts I get from another shop in town. Thank you for this!

[@doctormoobbc]

I see James Hoffmann, I click.

[@merP.-YT]

A truly cultured individual.

[@rodrigodepazos3771]

I tried it in a French press, with some modifications and it worked very well. Softer, silky and very little bitterness.

[@CraigBrideau]

It's interesting how some coffees can give a great cup at various roast levels, while others really need to be either lighter or darker to give the best taste.

[@ximono]

I love this method for quality dark roasts! I grew up with the smell of dark roasted coffee in the house, so to me this is the _real_ coffee. This method really works. It brings out the strengths of darker roasts, without the bitterness you want to avoid. And it's not as difficult as it sounds at first, no need to stress with getting the temperature down to 80°, the slurry can wait a bit.

[@hiramvidal4369]

I always used to drink coffee with sugar or milk. Everything changed when I was gifted a pour-over kit and tasted that even my first few attempts with microwaved hot water and eyeballing the ratios were miles above anything I had ever tasted. I've learned a lot since and channels like James' helped a lot in embracing and trying different methods all the time.

[@stevewilcox6375]

I suppose I drink a lot of medium-dark to dark roasts which I enjoy but with some coffees, the roast level produces a coffee that is a bit too much on the over roast side. So I ground coarser, used 18g to 250g of water, used BOILING water for my bloom, and because I am away from home i didn't have a digital thermometer. so to get vaguely somewhere near 70% I pour the water I need into a ceramic jug to cool before I bloom. I use Hoffmann's V60 Technique and I have found a significant difference in the flavour profile. I get a much enhanced and enjoyable cup. This technique, even without accurate temperature measurement really works! I'm looking forward to trying it on my Clever at home.......