Bad Brew

20th Oct, 2025

Everything that could go wrong, went wrong today! 🥲

First off, I forgot to account for the cup weight. And that threw off my coffee-to-water ratio.

Then came the temperature problem. I tried using a body temperature gun to measure water temp. And it didn't work at all!

With those two variables already messed up, brew time and agitation went downhill too.

The only thing I got right? The grind size.

And here's the irony: My whole experiment was about keeping everything constant except grind size, and I did the exact opposite. 😂

But reflecting on this disaster, I realized a few things:

1. I gotta practice, practice, and practice! Though there are only a few steps in Aeropress brewing, I sometimes get confused.

2. I need to brew alone! At least, for the first few cups. There should be no one around, especially my sis, who bombarded me with a ton of questions today. And I got lost in answering them, not focusing on what I was doing.

3. The temperature gun doesn't work. I need to get a proper thermometer.

With these things in mind, here's the change of plans:

This week, I'll just focus on the process itself—getting the steps right, in the right order, without distractions. The grind size experiment? I'll pick it up next week once I've nailed the basics.

BUT......how was the coffee today?

Since I set the grind size to six (fine-grind) and overheated the water, the coffee turned out to be very bitter, probably due to over-extraction.

My tongue felt dry for almost an hour afterward, like all the saliva had evaporated and my throat turned into a desert.

So basically, a bad brew today!

But that's okay, I'll brew better tomorrow! 💪