How to make the perfect cup of coffee

Photo Credit: Getty Images

With factors like climate change and recent tariffs on exports from big coffee producers like Brazil and Colombia all but ensuring higher future coffee prices, some coffee-loving scientists at the University of Pennsylvania have cooked up a way to make your coffee grounds go further. Led by physicist Arnold Mathijssen and PhD student Ernest Park, the team applied fluid mechanics to not only extract maximum flavor from fewer beans, but also to make the perfect cup o’ joe.

After determining that a pour over is the best method for a great brew, they got to work nerding out on the science of how water moves through coffee. Their findings, recently published in “Physics of Fluids,” use high-speed cameras, transparent filters, and even laser-illuminated particles to visualize how water interacts with coffee grounds. The result? A simple science-backed guide to making the most efficient and flavorful brew.

How to Brew Better Pour-Over Coffee (Scientifically Speaking):

• Pour slowly, but not too slowly — A longer pour increases extraction, but too slow and the grounds don’t mix evenly.
• Raise your pour height — A higher pour creates a faster water stream, stirring the grounds and boosting flavor.
• Keep the stream steady — Don’t let the water break into droplets, maintain a smooth, continuous stream (a "laminar flow").
• Use a gooseneck kettle if possible — It gives you better control over stream size and speed.
• Avoid streams that are too thin — If the stream is too weak, it won’t properly stir the grounds, leading to weak coffee.

In short, a strong, steady pour from a reasonable height helps your coffee grounds work harder. As Dr. Mathijssen puts it, kitchen experiments like this show “we can really learn something from both the chemistry and physics point of view.” And in this case, it just might make your morning cup a little better.

Source: USA Today