In this article, I discuss the brewing factors of auto-drip coffee brewers and auto-drip brew recommendations for our medium, medium-dark, and 456 dark roasts.
 
Of all the ways to brew a unique cup of coffee, the dominant technique and tool is the auto-drip system. I could no longer ignore this factor with my ethos firmly set to educate my customer base to create their best coffee experience. I set out to the lab at Pacific Coffee Research to learn and provide the best experience for those brewing Kona Love.

I learned some interesting things while testing on auto-drip equipment. I was informed that many auto-drip brewers don't bring the water above 200 degrees. SCA certified drip brewers get water temperatures within 200 degrees. We used a Mocca Master to find the brew recommendations. My brew recommendations may not be best for your machine due to factors such as heat, water flow, cleanliness, etc.
 
Taking that into account, the factors you have control over is the ground uniformity, coffee bed, ratio, roast profile, and water quality. 
 
Coffee Bed
If you're using a blade grinder that can't change the gradient, you must ensure that your grinds are uniform. Uniformity of grind will allow the water to flow through the bed of grounds at the same rate. Also, make sure to level the bed of ground coffee in your filter so that water will spread evenly. 
 
Ratio
You can play with a ratio between 1:15-1:19. The higher the ratio, the more watery your brew will become; however, the lower you go doesn't automatically mean "more coffee= better/stronger coffee." When playing with ratios, an essential measure of success is brew time. We found that brews ending between 2:45 and 3:15 long were the tastiest. The end of brewing is when there's about a drip per second coming out of the filter. 
 
Roast Profile
Dark roasts tend to extract quicker because the cells in the seeds expand considerably, and there is a higher amount of surface area to which water has access. Brewing time is increased for medium and light roasts because the seeds cells are not as expanded as in the darker roasts, therefore taking longer for the water to pull soluble materials out of the coffee. You'll notice our medium calls for a brewing time of 3 minutes and 15 seconds, whereas our medium calls for 3 minutes, and our 456 Dark is 2 minutes and 45 seconds.
 
Water Quality
Filter your water to your best capabilities. If your water isn't tasty enough to enjoy drinking, your coffee won't be much better. Coffee is chemistry, just as cooking is. It would be best if you acknowledged the output is only as good as the synergy of the inputs. SCA recommends a pH range between 6.5-and 7.5. Here are the other water quality specifics they use.

Auto-drip Brew Recommendations

Kona Love Medium

• The ratio is 1:16 (coffee: water), 30g.:480g (30 grams is about eight even, but not packed tablespoons of ground coffee).

• Grind- to uniformity in a regular blade grinder, about 13-15 seconds.

• Brew time- about 3 minutes and 15 seconds.

• Tasting notes- Cacao nib, hazelnut, dried apricot, cedar. Deeply sweet and syrupy body.

Kona Love Medium-Dark

• The ratio is 1:16 (coffee: water), 30 grams: 480 grams.

• Grind- to uniformity in a regular blade grinder, about 13-15 seconds.

• Brew Time - should be around 3 minutes.

• Tasting notes- Dark chocolate, date, gently scorched cedar, gardenia. Sweet-savory and creamy body.

Kona Love 456 Dark

• The ratio is 1:16 (coffee: water), 30 grams: 480 grams. 

• Grind- to uniformity in a regular blade grinder, about 13-15 seconds.

• Brew Time - should be around 2 minutes 45 seconds.

• Tasting notes- sweet spice, pipe tobacco, dark caramel, fresh blackberry.

Tips and tricks

• Clean your auto-drip machine! Your coffee's oils can build up in your machine and go rancid. The hot water kills microorganisms but is not adequate for purging oils. It's like if you don't clean out the excess oil in a cast-iron skillet between meals, it will get weird.

• Heat your mug with hot water before pouring your coffee into it. This action elongates the cooling of your coffee.

• Make Sure to swirl the coffee in the carafe before pouring it into your mug. Settling can occur within liquids.

• Don't grind your coffee until you are ready to brew. Just 10 minutes of coffee grounds exposure to air is enough time to taste a difference in our tests.