The misuse of standard electric coffee makers, with improper settings, has given traditional filter coffee a bad reputation. Rest assured: it's entirely possible to make good coffee with this type of coffee maker!
You just need to follow some basic guidelines (such as correctly measuring the coffee/water ratio) and choose quality, freshly roasted, and properly ground coffee beans.
Don't underestimate the importance of carefully weighing the amount of coffee used to prepare the pot of filter coffee!
Most of the simple steps below apply at all times, regardless of the type of coffee maker you use:
- Use #4 paper filters (brown or unbleached)
- Add the correct amount of ground coffee to the filter, taking into account the number of cups of water you want to make (1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons of ground coffee per cup, which yields approximately 75g of coffee for a 10-cup coffee maker).
- Use good quality coffee, freshly roasted and ideally ground within the previous 3 days.
- Use coffee that has been ground specifically for a filter coffee maker (if the coffee is too fine, there will be over-extraction, which adds bitterness to the coffee, and there is a risk that the coffee will pass through the filter and end up in the cup).
- Use good quality water (preferably filtered) and ensure that the coffee maker does not heat above 94°C. Never leave the coffee pitcher on a stove, this overheats the coffee and will end up giving it a burnt taste (instead, opt for insulated carafes like Thermos, which will keep the coffee hot without cooking it further)
