I Was Wrong About Flat Bottom Filters

We spend so much time listening to other people about coffee.

Someone tells us cone filters are better for clarity. Someone else says water chemistry is overrated. We watch videos, read reviews, listen to experts explain why this works and that doesn't.

And we absorb it all. We build our systems around what other people say works.

But here's the thing nobody talks about: we also dismiss things without ever actually testing them.

I've been doing this for years.

Flat bottom filters? Not for me. I couldn't tell you exactly why. Just that somewhere along the way, I decided they weren't my thing.

Third Wave Water? Gave up on that a long time ago. Water chemistry, minerals, all that stuff. I decided it wasn't that big of a deal.

And for months, maybe even a year now, I've been disappointed with my coffee. Frustrated. Wondering why things weren't tasting the way they should.

I thought it was the roast. I thought it was the beans. I thought it was me losing my palate.

Turns out, I was just ignorant.

The First Wake-Up Call

A couple of days ago, I did something I swore I wouldn't do again.

I tried Third Wave Water.

I'd dismissed it. I'd given up on the whole water chemistry thing. I brew with filtered water from my fridge filter. That's how I've been drinking coffee. That's how I've been mad at coffee. That's how I've been, at times, enjoying coffee.

And throughout this whole process, one of the things that until a couple of days ago I didn't think was a big deal is that I haven't been putting everything together.

Because all of it truly really matters.

When I tasted that coffee with Third Wave Water, I was shocked. I was amazed at how different coffee can be when you put all the pieces together.

The clarity. The sweetness. Things I wasn't tasting before suddenly showed up. Flavors I thought were lost in the roast were actually there all along.

I realized I'd been in an ignorant state of mind. I'd been naive with the whole process of truly getting the best cup of coffee out of all the stuff that I have.

And I was pissed at myself. Because how something so simple, buying a package of minerals and getting distilled water to make sure my whole coffee experience is truly magical, truly amazing... how did I dismiss that for so long?

I was doing a disservice to myself. And I was doing a disservice to you.

The Second Wake-Up Call

Then yesterday, another dose of humble pie.

I'm getting ready to give away some coffee. Kenyan and Colombian, both washed coffees. I roasted them myself a while back, let them rest, gave the beans enough time to develop.

I had all these expectations running in my head. Mostly from the smell. Because that's the thing about coffee, it always smells better than it tastes. That aroma gives you this rush of anticipation, this promise of something magical.

So I dialed in my usual recipe. 1:15 ratio (that's about 2 tablespoons per cup if you're using scoops). My go-to Hario V60 with cone filters. Everything I know works. Everything everyone says works best.

I took my first sip.

And it was instant disappointment.

Both coffees, highly acidic. Grapefruit muddy taste. Truly something I don’t really like in a coffee.

I absolutely hated it.

No dimension. No complexity, even as it cooled.

And I'm sitting there thinking: what did I do wrong? Did I mess up the roast? The beans have had plenty of time to rest. I'm using Third Wave Water now. The recipe is solid. This is exactly what I'm supposed to do.

But nothing made sense.

The One Variable That Changed Everything

Then I told myself: you need to try something different.

Not something someone recommended. Not something I saw in a video. Just... change one variable. See if the coffee comes alive.

And it did.

I switched to a flat bottom filter.

The thing I'd avoided for years because I "knew" it didn't work for me. The thing I'd dismissed without ever really testing properly.

And suddenly, the coffees came alive. Fruity. Balanced. The flavors enhanced as they cooled, which is totally my vibe.

I was clueless at first. Wondering why this thing I'd been avoiding for so long was exactly what these coffees needed.

And then it hit me.

The Real Problem

Ignorance.

Not the kind where you don't know something exists. The kind where you dismiss something without actually testing it. The kind where you decide something doesn't work before you've given it a real chance.

I dismissed Third Wave Water. For months, I was frustrated with my coffee, and the whole time, one of the biggest variables in the entire chain was off.

I dismissed flat bottom filters. For years, I avoided them based on... what? A feeling? Something someone said once? I don't even know.

And both times, when I actually tested them, when I actually gave them a real shot, they completely changed my coffee.

That's ignorance. And it's been holding me back.

What We Don't Know We Don't Know

Here's what I've been thinking about since these breakthroughs:

We all know what ignorance means. You don't know. You're not privy to it. You're not aware of situations and things.

But there's another kind of ignorance that's even more dangerous. It's when we think we know, but we actually don't. When we've decided something doesn't work without ever really testing it ourselves.

We talk a lot about the coffee chain, right? The tree, the climate, the farmer, the processing, the importer, the roaster.

But we stop there.

And I think it's extremely important that we understand we can make sure our coffee, no matter which coffee we have, tastes the best that it can, especially when it's in our hands.

Because once the coffee leaves the roaster, once it's in your place, that coffee is yours. And you're responsible for giving it the best chance to shine.

The water matters. The filter shape matters. The kettle matters. The way you stir matters. The grinder matters.

All these little pieces of the pie that we already know about, but at times we get in a rut of just doing the same thing over and over again and not realizing what we're ignorant about when it comes to this coffee making thing.

The Foundation Nobody Talks About

We can judge coffee objectively. We can troubleshoot recipes. We can talk about technique all day long.

But if we're not talking about the foundation, the real true foundation, we're missing the point.

Good beans. Decent equipment that allows us to replicate brews. Great grinders that give us uniform grounds. And the water. Don't forget about the water. It's a big deal. It's truly a real big deal.

We have to make sure we give the coffee the best chance possible in order to wow us.

If it sucks then, it sucks then.

But the coffee we're probably drinking is actually pretty good. And we're doing it a disservice by dismissing variables we haven't actually tested.

I've been naive. I've been ignorant. And for months, I was mad at coffee when really, I should have been mad at myself for not testing everything.

Your Turn

So here's what I'm asking you:

What have you dismissed without actually testing?

Maybe it's Third Wave Water. Maybe it's a different filter shape. Maybe it's a brewing method you decided wasn't for you. Maybe it's a temperature you think is "wrong."

Pick one thing you've been avoiding or dismissing. And actually test it. Not because I'm telling you it'll work. Not because someone else swears by it.

But because you don't actually know until you test it yourself.

You might discover, like I did, that the thing you've been dismissing for years is exactly what your coffee needed.

Or you might confirm that it really doesn't work for you. Which is valuable too. Because then you actually know. Not because someone told you. Not because you decided without testing. But because you tried it yourself.

That's the only way out of ignorance. Testing. Exploring. Being willing to be wrong about something you thought you knew.

I thought I knew cone filters were better. I was wrong.

I thought I knew water chemistry didn't matter that much. I was wrong.

And my coffee has been tasting sublime since I admitted I was wrong and actually tested these things properly.

What are you wrong about? What have you been dismissing? What don't you know that you don't know?

Let's uncover the ignorance together. Let's give our coffee the best chance possible. Let's stop assuming and start testing.

If you want to dive deeper into brewing techniques, discuss what's actually working (and what's not), and explore coffee without all the assumptions, join the conversation in the Newsletter community.

Or hit reply and tell me: What's one thing you've dismissed in coffee that you've never actually tested properly?

Because I just found two of mine. And it changed everything.

Oke