Chemex
The Chemex is a beautiful and iconic brewer.
It’s a pourover brewing method. Water passes manually through the coffee bed and filtered through paper. German chemist Peter J. Schlumbohm, holder of over 3000 patents, invented the Chemex in 1941. The chemex is made with heat-proof borosilicate glass. The chemex filter is very thick, resulting in a cup that is very clean, aromatic and delicate. It will feel almost tea-like in the mouth. We like this brewer because it makes multiple cups at a time. Look out for the thick filter stalling your drip flow and over-extracting. We generally recommend a coarser grind, similar to french press. Don’t be afraid to lift up the filter with your fingers at the end to help the water pass through the coffee bed.
What you’ll need
| Our whole coffee beans |
| Chemex |
| Chemex filter |
| A grinder |
| Tablespoon or scale |
| A kettle |
| Measuring cup or scale |
| Timer |
Quick Tips!
This brew should take between 4:30 to 5 minutes total. Brewed too fast? Try grinding slightly finer next time or pouring slower. Brewed too slow? Try grinding coarser or speeding up your pour.
Step 1
Measure 600 ml of water and bring it to a boil. Measure 40 g (5 tablespoons) of whole beans and grind them to a medium-coarse grind size (slightly larger than raw sugar)
Step 2
Insert paper filter into brewer with the thicker (double fold) side against the spout. Rinse paper filter with some water and empty rinse water from the Chemex.
Step 3
Put ground coffee into the filter and flatten the coffee bed.
Step 4
Pre-infuse. Start timer counting up. Quickly pour just enough water to coat all of the coffee. If you are using a scale, this would be about double the weight of your coffee: 75 - 80 g
Step 5
Pour the rest of your brew water in slow concentric circles, making sure to coat the entire coffee be evenly. No crust should form, and coffee bed should be a uniform colour. Pour until you reach 2:30 mins.
Step 6
Final pour. Allow the coffee to draw down a bit with gravity before emptying the rest of your brew water. Enjoy.