How to Make Black Coffee

How to Make Black Coffee

Black coffee is often the coffee connoisseur’s beverage of choice. There’s certainly something a little sophisticated about sipping on a single shot of espresso or filtered café noir. Rich, distinguished, and deeply satisfying, it lets the complex coffee flavours sing without the weight of milk and other additives. But how to make black coffee for the best results? And what are the benefits?

In this blog, we bring to light all the best ways to make black coffee, including:

• How to Make Black Coffee: The Basics 
• With an Espresso Machine
• With a Filter
• With an Aeropress
• With a Cafetière
• Benefits of Black Coffee

How to Make Black Coffee: The Basics

Before you can begin brewing up a storm, you need to have the basic ingredients and equipment to hand. First, choose your weapon of choice. 

For high-tech brewing, an all-singing espresso machine is a popular piece of kit. There are lots of different options available depending on your coffee preferences, and you can adjust the settings to create every type of coffee imaginable. These barista-style machines will often put their nose to the grind, so you can simply add whole coffee beans for that freshly ground flavour. While some models can be expensive, espresso machines are often worth it for long-term brew enthusiasts.

If you love making coffee for your family and friends then a simple drip decanter could be a more affordable option. You’ll also need filters and ground coffee at the ready. 

If you take your black coffee one cup at a time, an AeroPress is a nifty little tool for simple, streamlined brewing. You can even get a travel version for high-quality coffee on the go. Just add AeroPress filters and a scoop of your favourite ground coffee. 

Finally, you can’t go wrong with a classic cafetière coffee maker. Also known as a French press, these beauties have been brewing coffee since the 1850s, and make for a quick and cost-effective way to brew a cup or two at once. You’ll just need quality ground coffee to get started. 

With an Espresso Machine

Making black coffee with an espresso machine will often depend on the make and model of your machine. Don’t forget to read the instructions for your machine thoroughly and follow those first. Espresso machines are generally best for coffee pros who love to try lots of different coffee drinks and enjoy shop-quality coffee inside the home. 

As a general guide, the following instructions refer to an all-singing, all-dancing barista-style beast, with an integrated grinding function. This means you’ll start with whole coffee beans. 

1. Turn your machine on.
2. Make sure the water tank (usually located at the back) is full. 
3. Put some beans into the grinder (usually located at the top). 
4. Grind enough beans to fill the portafilter (the detachable device with the handle). 
5. Pull the portafilter sideways to detach it from the machine and dust away any excess ground coffee. 
6. Tamp the coffee down with a tamper (included accessory with stamp-like handle). 
7. Re-attach the portafilter to the machine in the appropriate position. 
8. Position your cup underneath and press the button to brew.

Voila! You should be left with a dreamy, double espresso shot. For a weaker, longer coffee, you can simply add more hot water to turn your espresso into a black Americano.

With a Filter

Using a filter and drip decanter is generally simpler than using an espresso machine. Here’s how it usually goes down:

1. Grab a paper filter and put it into the brewing cone.
2. Take the brewing cone with the filter inside to rinse it thoroughly with water.
3. Set the brewing cone back on top of the carafe or heatproof decanter.
4. Spoon some ground coffee into the filter. We recommended about 22g or 2.5 tablespoons per single cup of brewed coffee.
5. Boil water in the kettle, and let it rest for about a minute. 
6. Pour hot water over the grounds until they appear to expand and release a caramel-coloured crema. Let this sit for about 30 seconds. 
7. Continue pouring water slowly until the decanter reaches your desired fullness.
8. Remove the brewing cone and pour the freshly brewed coffee into cups. 

Simple yet strangely satisfying, this method is perfect for entertaining. Once the coffee is brewed you can simply place the decanter down for guests to help themselves. 

With an AeroPress

Invented and patented by Alan Adler in 2005, the AeroPress is incredibly popular for drinking black coffee at home or on the go. Lightweight and portable, it’s also affordable and easy to use, and ideal when you just need a single cup of black coffee. There are actually multiple ways to brew with it, but we’ll stick to the standard method below:

1. Boil water and let it rest for about a minute. 
2. Put a filter inside the filter cap and rinse it with warm water. 
3. Place the filter cap on top of your mug or cup, and then assemble the chamber and plunger on top. 
4. Use the included scoop to measure out the right amount of coffee for one cup and use the funnel to pour it into the chamber. 
5. Pour in hot water up to the water line. 
6. Press down the plunger firmly until you hear a hissing noise.
7. Remove the AeroPress to enjoy a freshly brewed cup of black coffee!

With a Cafetière

Using a cafetière is a tried and tested method for making coffee, hailing from 19th century France. This classic piece of kit makes it easy to serve hot coffee when you have visitors, while you can also get smaller pots for a solo cup of joe. This black coffee recipe is especially suited to full-bodied blends with notes of chocolate and caramel, and you should start with coarsely ground coffee for the best results.

1. Spoon ground coffee into the cafetière, about 1 tablespoon per serving.
2. Pour a little hot water over the coffee and allow it to bloom. You should see a toffee-coloured crema begin to emerge. 
3. Wait for 30 seconds and then carry on pouring water to the desired amount. Some cafetières have serving lines to help you know where to stop.
4. Put the plunger lid on top, and allow the coffee to sit for another three minutes. 
5. Finally, press down the plunger, and pour your black coffee into cups. 

Benefits of Black Coffee

Did you know, a coffee a day actually could keep the doctor away? Drinking coffee has lots of health benefits, from antioxidants to fight free radicals to metabolism-boosting weight loss benefits. This is especially true when you take it black, so if that’s how you like it, get brewing! 

Our speciality coffee blends are available in whole bean form or a variety of different grinds, so you can easily choose the brewing method to suit you.