How to Make Chemex Brew: Complete Guide

The Chemex is a manual coffee brewing method that combines design, impeccable taste and ease of use. Here is our little guide to getting the most out of it!

What you need:

• Freshly roasted coffee
• Brewista Hourglass Brewer
• Paper filter
• Rhino Bench Scale
• Grinder
• Kettle

STEP 1

Heat at least 600 ml of water to 94 degrees (in the absence of a thermostatically controlled kettle, wait for the water to simmer). Fold your special Chemex filter using the following asymmetric method: three layers of paper on the spout side, one layer on the other. Position it on the Chemex.

STEP 2

Prepare the filter -  the pre-folded Chemex filter has 3 layers on one side and one layer on the other. The thicker side (three-ply) goes towards the side of the spout. To prevent the filter paper from giving a cardboard aftertaste to the coffee, it must be rinsed with hot water.

STEP 3

Place the Chemex on the scale and weigh 30g of ground coffee. Reset the scale to zero.

STEP 4

Start your stopwatch. Start with a pre-infusion to wet the coffee: pour around 50ml of water over the entire grind and wait about 30 seconds. You will see bubbles forming, this step is called blooming.

STEP 5

Then go up to 250ml of water in a circular fashion as if you were forming a spiral: go from the center to the edges and from the edges to the center, taking care to maintain a constant flow and to wet the whole of the grind but without that water does not pass under the edges of the filter. Wait about 1 minute for the coffee to flow.

STEP 6

Pour again so as to reach 500ml. Keep in mind that you must have finished pouring your water before 2 minutes 30.

STEP 7

Once the infusion is complete, remove the filter and stir the coffee in the Chemex in order to mix the oils well. Always wait for the coffee to drop a little in temperature to better perceive the aromas, then taste!

The total extraction time for a Chemex extraction should be between 3.30 and 4.30 minutes. If it is shorter the grind must have been too coarse, if it is longer the grind must be too fine.