In the intricate world of coffee, where every element contributes to the consistency of your cup, water often takes centre stage. Whether you’re a homebrew enthusiast or a professional barista crafting cups in a bustling café, the quality of the water you use plays a pivotal role in the outcome of your coffee. Let’s dive into the depths of water quality and its profound impact on the elixir we all love.
Understanding the Significance: The Battle Against Scale
Water constitutes the majority of your coffee, making its quality an influential factor in the final brew. Beyond taste, it’s also a key player in the longevity of your coffee machine. One formidable foe that often lurks in water is scale, the nemesis of coffee machine mechanics.
Hard water, rich in scale, can wreak havoc on delicate coffee machine components. It gradually clogs fine jets and fills machine boilers, demanding a time-consuming and expensive descaling process involving dismantling and acid soaking.
Homebrewer's Solution
For those with home machines boasting a dedicated reservoir, the remedy lies in choosing the right water. Filtered or spring water proves ideal, but with a caveat – avoid mineral water (too many minerals) or distilled water (not enough minerals for things like boiler probes to work properly). Tank water, especially in rural areas, often comes to the rescue. A simple sink filter eliminates impurities, leaving you with soft, low-scale water that enhances your coffee's taste.
Café Challenges and Solutions
In a café, where machines are often plumbed into the mains, battling scale takes a different approach. Water filters become the unsung heroes. However, not all filters are born equal. After rigorous testing, we've decided to make a shift to Brita filters. Why? Because they excel at reducing scale, ensuring our machines keep humming along smoothly.
For our valued café partners, this upgrade comes at no extra cost. It’s seamlessly covered by our existing supply agreements and will be part of the regular six-monthly service.
In the pursuit of coffee perfection, every detail matters, and water quality stands tall among them. Whether you’re brewing at home or crafting masterpieces in a bustling café, the water you choose shapes the essence of your coffee. So, let’s raise our cups to the unsung hero – water – and achieve consistent coffee every time!
