Hanging ear coffee is the first step for many coffee novices to enter the world of single-origin coffee! There are no complicated tools, and you don't need to be as "cautious" when brewing as you would with hand brewing. With a pack of hanging ears, a pot of hot water, and a cup, you can easily get a cup of single-origin coffee with an elegant aroma and a mellow taste.
What are ear-hung coffee pods?
The design concept of the ear-hanging coffee bag comes from the lanyard tea bag, whose real name is "a cup of pull-out coffee". However, coffee powder cannot be soaked directly in water like tea bags, so the inventor tried every means to simulate drip coffee in a filter cup, suspending a non-woven filter bag containing coffee powder in the center of the cup.
After continuous research, two stretchable pieces of paper were finally added to both sides of the filter bag. After being pulled apart, the filter bag can be suspended in the center of the cup. Because it sticks to both sides of the cup like little ears, people also affectionately call it "ear-hung coffee."
Hanging ear coffee can be understood as a simple version of hand brewing, so all single-origin beans can be used to make hanging ear bags. Front Street believes that novices are not familiar with the flavor of the production area, so they can start with the basic Front Street seasonal hanging ear series. Friends who can tolerate acidity should buy the Front Street Yirgacheffe ear hanging ear. If you want to drink refreshing and not bitter coffee, buy the Front Street Costa Rica Tara Bead hanging ear. Friends who like a little more taste can try the Front Street Brazilian seasonal hanging ear, Front Street Colombian seasonal hanging ear, and Front Street Mandheling seasonal ear hanging.
Wrong ways to brew coffee with earphones
Mistake 1: When instant coffee is brewed
Hanging ear coffee is not instant coffee, hanging ear coffee is not instant coffee, hanging ear coffee is not instant coffee! Instant coffee is made by drying the extracted coffee liquid into powder, so that hot water can be poured in to restore a cup of coffee.
When Front Street makes hanging coffee bags, they grind fresh coffee beans directly into medium-fine coffee powder. Only 30% of the flavor substances in these coffee powder are soluble in water, and the remaining 70% is wood fiber (that is, coffee grounds) that is insoluble in water. So if you open the ear-hanging bag and pour the coffee powder into the cup for brewing, you will not only get a cup of black coffee, but also a sip of coffee grounds~
Mistake 2: Direct soaking
Hanging ear coffee is not a tea bag, and the coffee liquid cannot be produced by directly soaking it in water! Because the coffee powder used to make hanging coffee bags is finely ground, the weight of each bag is about 10 grams. When the ear-hanging coffee is hung in the cup, the coffee powder will accumulate in the center of the filter bag, forming a thick powder layer.
At this time, instead of tearing off the seal and pouring water into the center of the coffee powder layer, water is poured directly on the surface of the filter bag to soak. The center of the coffee powder layer cannot be wetted/or it will take a long time to soak. Then the coffee powder close to the filter bag will release a woody flavor after releasing the flavor. Since not all the ground coffee participates in the entire extraction process, we will end up with coffee water that is tasteless and has a woody, papery taste (the hot water soaks the paper holder with hanging ears at the same time).
Mistake 3: Injecting too much water at once
Many friends use a kettle to fill water directly when brewing ear-mounted coffee pods. Since the diameter of the water outlet of the kettle is large, it is easy to fill the coffee filter bag all at once, and the coffee powder leaks out along the surface of the liquid, which greatly reduces the taste of the coffee when tasting it.
Mistake 4: The container for brewing coffee is too small/too short
Front Street recommends injecting 150g of hot water into a 10g bag of ear-hanging coffee, which can extract about 140-145g of coffee liquid. At this time, if the container is too small/too short, the liquid surface will soak the bottom of the ear-hanging bag while the coffee is brewing. The coffee powder at the bottom is constantly being extracted to extract the coffee flavor, which can easily lead to a bitter taste in the coffee.
The correct way to brew coffee with hanging ears
Correct one: Choose a taller brewing container
Try to choose a taller cup/pot for brewing to ensure there is a certain distance between the ear-mounted coffee bag and the extracted coffee liquid level.
Correct 2: The water temperature for brewing ear-mounted coffee should not exceed 92°C and should not be lower than 88°C.
The soluble flavor molecules in medium-fine ground coffee require a suitable temperature to be better released. Front Street recommends that medium-light roasted (with floral/berry/citrus) coffee pods be brewed at a water temperature of 90°C-92°C; medium roasted (with nutty/cocoa notes) hanging-ear coffee should be brewed with 89°C-90°C water; medium-dark roasted (with herbal/spice/dark chocolate notes) hanging-ear coffee should be brewed with 88°C-89°C water.
Correct three: Inject hot water in small amounts and multiple times
At this time, it is best if you have a small coffee kettle, because it can control the water flow to inject the coffee powder, ensuring that the coffee powder can be evenly moistened and extracted. It doesn't matter if it doesn't exist. Just inject water in small amounts and many times. Don't fill the filter bag all at once.
Correct four: The brewing ratio of hanging ear coffee is 1:15
Front Street recommends that the brewing ratio of hanging ear coffee pods is 1:15. For example, a pack of Front Street's hanging ear coffee is 10g. If brewed at a ratio of 1:15, 150g of hot water should be added.
You can now buy the above coffee beans online at the Taobao store “FrontStreet Coffee” (前街咖啡). FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou, China, and its Guangzhou retail shop sells coffee beans only. The shop carries dozens of coffee beans from different origins around the world, including carefully selected single-origin beans for V60 pour-over and espresso. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers.
The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan coffee beans sold in the store come from the Typica variety grown at FrontStreet Coffee’s own plantation in Yunnan. The name comes from the year the brand and the plantation were founded. You can buy these beans from China’s Yunnan origin at the Guangzhou shop and at FrontStreet’s Taobao store.
FrontStreet coffee beans are freshly roasted within 5 days and deliver consistently excellent quality and great value. Orders placed before 17:00 are shipped the same day, and most areas within Guangdong Province receive them the next day.
FrontStreet Coffee Taobao store: https://qianjiecoffee.taobao.com
Or search for “前街咖啡” (FrontStreet Coffee) on Taobao
Important Notice: FrontStreet Coffee has moved to a new address: 315, Donghua East Road, Guangzhou (coffee beans only)
Tel: 020 38364473
