Immersion Brewing: What It Is and How To Do It For Beginners

Immersion brewing leads to a never-ending battle with pour-over coffee, over which method is best or which gives the best results. These things depend a lot on what you want your final product to be and, well, what method you enjoy most. We have put together the basic principles for immersion brewing, so you can test it out and decide for yourself. The name really gives it out: the key to this method is immersing the grounds in water and leaving them until you have the extraction level you want. Therefore, the main thing you need to focus on is time, rather than the pour. 

There are a few different methods for immersion brewing, and one of them is cupping. For a beginner, this may seem a little excessive, because the whole point of this method is to measure the quality of the coffee, and for that, you need some experience with the grind level, aroma, taste, the level of acidity, in order to be able to evaluate. The process involves gathering different types of coffee grounds in separate cups, pouring hot water over them, waiting about a minute, then breaking the ”crust” (a layer of coffee that settled at the top of the glass) and removing it, then tasting the coffee. As we said, if you think you have enough knowledge and experience with coffee, you can give this a try, but if not, you might not feel much of a difference between brews.

If you ever heard about the famous french press, this is the place where you learn about it. It is a pot in the form of a cylinder with a plunger and an attached filter screen, that makes it possible for the hot water and grounds to meet, through pressing. The preferred level of grind for the grounds is medium, because if they are too coarse, they might clog the filter, while if they are too fine, they will just go through it and your final result won't be too satisfying. Then, here is how to use the press: first, you need to take out the plunger, make sure you hold the pot tight when you do so. Then, add about 7 to 8 grams of coffee for 200 ml of water that needs to be hot, but not boiling. After you've poured both, gently stir them together then put but back the plunger, but don't press yet! Leave it just above the mix of water and grinds, for approximately 3-4 minutes. Only after that, you can press the plunger, slow and steady, and voilà! Pretty simple, right? Don't forget to wash and dry your press after each use.

Another method you might have heard about is the aeropress. It is pretty similar to the french press, but it is more convenient and even fit for travelling. Also, you can use either a medium grind or fine, as it is extremely versatile. This also applies when it comes to the technique: first, you need to assemble the filter, its cap, and the main body, pointing the filter to your mug. You then add the grounds and start a timer while you pour the hot water. After stirring a bit, you attach the plunger and after 45 seconds, you press steadily, revealing a syrupy body with an intense flavor.

Now, a bit more complicated technique, the siphon. Not only is it eye-catching, but it is also an interesting experience. The grind situation is the same as the aeropress, as a good starting point are grounds a bit finer than the ones used for drip coffee. You start by adding hot water to the sphere-shaped lower chamber where you can also see the siphon and providing it with a heat source from below, like a butane burner. While the water boils, set up your filter in the top chamber and when it reaches a 100 degrees Celsius, attach the parts as tight as possible, so there are no air leaks. The water from the bottom chamber will begin to rise to the top one, until just a little bit is left. After this happens, start your timer and add the grounds, then gently give it a little stir. You leave it like that for some time between 90 seconds and 3 minutes (depending on your grind) and then you take away the siphon from the lower chamber and the coffee should start pouring through the filter. When this is happening, you can stir the top so you create a whirlpool effect and even out the coffee bed. Even though a little complicated to use, some time and practice is all you need in order to master it.

If you need something simple, let us introduce you to cafe solo. A glass body with a 1 liter volume, with a neoprene cover that traps in heat, protects the glass from shock and your hands from getting burned, and a stainless steel filter is all that the cafe solo is. The best grind that will work with it is the medium coarse one. Add hot water and coffee in the body, and after 30 seconds, stir it a bit and seal it with the filter for 4 minutes. After that, the coffee is ready to decant, but make sure you slowly rotate the cafe solo, so that the filter doesn't clog. 

The final method we will be talking about you most likely saw for the first time at your grandma's house. The cezve, or an ibrik, is  made of copper, silver and brass and is perfect for an even extraction. For this you will need a really fine grind, like the espresso one, otherwise you will find yourself in a lot of trouble. Add 7g of it and 70 ml of warm water, stir them together so that you won't have any clumps, place the cezve over the stovetop, and leave it there for about 2 minutes. Before reaching the boiling point, once you see the coffee starting to make a foam, remove it from the heat source and serve. Just make sure to let the coffee sit for a few minutes before enjoying, so that the grounds can settle. 

We hope that we got you hooked on immersion brewing and we wish you the best of luck in your attempts!