Is Your Water Ruining Your Coffee?

About this Video

• Video Title: Is Your Water Ruining Your Coffee?
• Channel: Espresso Hackers
• Speakers: The speaker's name is not mentioned in the transcript.
• Duration: 00:11:31

Introduction

This video explores how different water types impact coffee flavor. The speaker argues that water's mineral content significantly affects the taste, ranging from excellent to flat, bitter, or sour. The video presents a test using four types of water with varying mineral contents to demonstrate this impact.

Key Takeaways

• Water's mineral content drastically affects coffee taste. The balance of minerals like bicarbonates, carbonates, citrates, potassium, magnesium, sodium, and calcium influences the coffee's acidity, bitterness, and overall flavor profile.
• A simple home test can reveal the impact of water on coffee. By brewing the same coffee with soft and hard water, one can easily perceive the difference in taste, even without a highly developed palate.
• The Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) level is a key indicator. The TDS value on water labels signifies the mineral content—higher TDS means harder water, and vice versa.
• Using different waters can result in dramatically different coffee experiences. The speaker's experiment showed that coffees made with soft water were significantly better than those made with hard water, highlighting the importance of water quality.
• Resources for learning more about water and coffee are available. The speaker recommends a course by Asser (The Coffee Chronicler), the book "Physics of Filter Coffee," and the blog Coffee ad Astra for further information on the topic.