Brew Guide for Better Tasting Coffee



French press

Closest method to (professional) cupping coffee. Nothing is left behind in a paper filter, so you taste everything. Buy a Burr Grinder or French Press here.

1. Start with great quality water on the boil.

2. Grind your fresh roasted coffee to a uniform consistency similar to bread crumbs or kosher salt.

3. Add the grounds to the French Press.

4. When the water has rested off the boil for about 60 seconds (195F to 205F) pour it into the french press and stir well. Set he plunger just on top of the blooming coffee and let steep for about 4 minutes, then slowly push the press to the bottom.

5. Serve right away and enjoy. If you are not consuming the entire French Press of coffee right away, pour it into a carafe for later, so it doesn’t oversleep and get bitter.

automatic drip

It is nice to push a button, walk away and return to a good, consistent, cup of coffee every time. Better yet, have it waiting for you when you get up in the morning, brewed right into a thermal pot, so you can have several cups.

1. Grind your fresh roasted coffee to a uniform consistency similar to table salt. Place a filter (paper or metal) into the filter holder, then fill with the grounds to the recommended level.
2. Close filter holder into position.
3. Fill the reservoir (usually at back of machine) to desired amount with good quality water and press on button.
4. Preferably, you brew into a thermal pot, but if not, make sure you turn off the machine once the brew cycle is completed, otherwise the heating pad will ruin the coffee quickly.


pour over

This is Dark City’s favourite method of brewing at home and at the roastery. We have tried all the other methods and believe pour over gives the best result. That said, we acknowledge that pour-over for a group of people isn’t feasible. Buy pour over equipment here
1. Start some good quality water on the boil.
2. While that is on, grind your fresh roasted coffee to a uniform consistency similar to granulated white sugar.
3. If you are using a paper filter, you need to rinse it, in order to remove papery residue. We recommend the permanent stainless steel Kone brand filter (no rinsing necessary). Buy Kone here
4. Add the grounds and level them off. When the water has rested off the boil for about 60 seconds (195F to 205F) pour steadily over the grounds, starting in the middle working your way out in a circular motion. Stop before any coffee starts dripping through. This is called a bloom pour because the coffee puffs up with the release of CO2.
5. After the bloom has stopped expanding, slowly pour the remaining water over the coffee in the same manner as the bloom pour while keeping the level of water in the filter at about half to 3/4 full. This should take 3 to 4 minutes.
6. Finally, remove the filter, and pour yourself a delicious cup of Dark City Coffee.