You already have enough coffee gear

Hey,

I recently bought a new camera tripod.

Saw it online, been curious about it for a while, pulled the trigger. When it arrived, there was a manual telling me exactly what to do with it. But instead of reading the manual, I just started playing with it. Moving the legs around. Understanding what it could do. Finding the limitations.

And it got me thinking about coffee gear.

How we buy coffee gear all the time. New brewers, new grinders, new filters. We watch videos, read reviews, see someone make an incredible cup with some device and think maybe that's what I need.

And look, there's nothing wrong with buying coffee gear. I'm the crazy person who buys this stuff so you don't have to rush out and make an impulse buy. I get it. You worked hard for your money. You want to make the right decision.

So you watch someone tell you what they're tasting in the cup. The recipes they're using. How this particular brewer changed everything for them.

And then you buy it. And then you try to understand it for yourself.

But here's what I realized while playing with that camera gear, and what I need to tell you about coffee gear.

We depend too much on other people for our understanding of what we're trying to do.

See. Here’s a good example…

The Brutal Truth About the Mugen Switch

I'm looking at the Hario V60 Mugen Switch right now. Bought it about a month ago. And I'm torn.

I've been doing this series about things I recommend and don't recommend in coffee. And when I look at the Mugen Switch, I keep asking myself. Do I recommend this? Or don't I?

Because if you already have a Hario V60 Switch, the regular one, the answer is no. Absolutely not.

They do the exact same thing.

I know that sounds harsh. But let me show you why.

The Mugen Switch has a completely flat interior. No grooves. The regular V60 Switch has those classic ribbed grooves, but they're pretty subtle. The difference? So minimal it's almost meaningless.

I just brewed on the Mugen. Did a 50 to 60 gram bloom, that's about 3 to 4 tablespoons if you're using scoops, for 45 seconds to a minute. Let it drip through. One pour after that.

You know what? I can do the exact same technique on the regular V60 Switch. Same result. The bed looks the same. The cup tastes the same.

Now compare that to something like the Origami dripper. Look at those grooves. They're exaggerated, irregular, protruding way out. That actually creates maximum airflow. That's a real difference. You get faster flows, supposedly sweeter cups because of how the filter sits against those ribs.

But the Mugen versus the regular Switch? Hario just decided to go to the other extreme and make it completely flat. Does it slow the drawdown a tiny bit because of how the filter fits? Sure. A little bit.

Does it matter enough to spend another 30 to 40 bucks if you already own a V60 Switch?

No. Not even close.

The Specialty Coffee Trap

Here's the thing about specialty coffee that makes me a little crazy. Money doesn't seem to matter.

People are out here spending 30, 40 bucks for a bag of coffee. Which is why I got into roasting, but that's a story for another day. We'll drop money on minor variations of gear that fundamentally do the same thing.

And I'm not trying to bash Hario here. I have Hario products all over my setup. I use them all the time. I have the ceramic version, the regular switch, the version three, version one. Hell, I even have the Pegasus somewhere in a cupboard. Don't recommend that one either.

But these companies know what they're doing. They make variations. They market them as different, as better, as solving some problem you didn't know you had.

And we buy them. We watch hours of videos with people telling us yes or no, recommend or don't recommend. Maybe they throw an affiliate link in there hoping you'll click.

I don't care what you buy. I really don't.

But what I do care about is this. After you buy it, after you bring it home and unbox it, do you actually understand what you're doing with it?

What Actually Matters

When I got that camera tripod, I didn't read the manual. I played with it. I moved things around. I figured out what it could do and what it couldn't do.

Same thing needs to happen with coffee gear.

You get a new brewer. Great. Now look at it. Really look at it.

Look at how it's shaped. Look at those concaves in the Origami. Look at the grooves, or lack of grooves, in whatever V60 version you have. Look at the size of the hole at the bottom.

Does that big hole matter as much as we think it does? Is your brew going to take the same amount of time regardless? What does it actually taste like when you use it?

Because here's what we have to understand. This brewer, any brewer, it's just a tool. We have to understand why it's shaped this way. What we can do with it. The limitations.

Try a fast filter like a Cafec or Sibarist. See how that changes things. Then try a slow filter like a standard Hario or Kalita Wave. Notice the difference?

Maybe you realize you like a slower drawdown. Which means you don't need another dripper. You just need to play with the paper you're using.

This is a cone shape brewer. You can use cone filters. But you can also use flat bed filters like Kalita Wave papers. Best of both worlds. So test them. See what you like.

Change the water temperature. Does hotter water make it better or worse for your palate? Change the grind size. Go finer, go coarser. See what happens.

Maybe you don't like that coffee at all. That's perfectly fine. Find and seek the coffees you do like. Ask yourself, is this something I want to drink a lot? Or just try it anyway. Get a small bag. Explore. Go on that journey.

But here's the key. Stay with ONE brewer long enough to actually understand it.

The Challenge and Why It Matters

Use one brewer for a week. Use it for two weeks. Challenge yourself to use it for a month.

80 to 90 percent of the time, we're making coffee for ourselves. Not at a cafe. Not for a crowd. Just us. Which means we need to get consistent with our craft. And the only way to be consistent is to understand what we're doing.

You don't need a journal. Though you can keep one if you want. You just need to stay there long enough to understand exactly what this thing can do for you. How magical your coffees can be. Or not. Maybe you're not jelling with it. Maybe it's the coffee, not the brewer.

Maybe you're a dark roast person but everyone's telling you to drink lightly roasted Ethiopian naturals that don't work for you.

Find YOUR coffee. Use YOUR brewer. But stay there long enough to understand everything you can do with it.

Because to my detriment, I have 15 different brewers. I have four or five different grinders. I'm always changing things up.

And you know what that gets me? Inconsistency. Frustration. Wondering why I can't make my coffee better when the real answer is I'm not staying with anything long enough to master it.

It's like weightlifting. Which I do a lot. You keep the same routine for a while. See how it operates with the body. See how it works for you.

Same thing here. There's no difference.

It's About You

Here's what nobody wants to admit. It doesn't matter what the perfect ultimate recipe is.

It doesn't matter what whoever else you're listening to says you should do when you're drinking your cup of coffee.

It's about you.

Maybe you like a one pour brew and you like to grind fine to bring out maximum sweetness. Maybe you don't even taste sweetness in your coffee. Maybe you're an acidity person. Maybe you like your coffee tea-like and delicate.

It doesn't matter what I say. It comes back to you. That's it. You.

If I give you a recipe, three pulses, 35 second bloom, 205 degree water, question it. Ask yourself what does this person like? Is it similar to what I like?

And even if it is, you still need to test it for yourself. Because you may like a 10 or 15 second bloom instead of 35. You may like six or seven pours. You may like completely different temperatures.

Coffee is about you. Your palate. Your preferences. Your experience.

When you understand that, when you're deep into the craft, when you're trying to understand exactly what your gear can do for you, that's all that matters.

Master this and you'll be totally fine.

What I'm Really Saying

You already have enough coffee gear. You do.

The problem isn't that you need more stuff. The problem is you haven't mastered what you already own.

And I'm saying this as someone who keeps buying stuff, keeps testing stuff, keeps trying to figure out what makes a difference and what doesn't.

The Mugen Switch doesn't make a difference if you already have a V60 Switch. They do the same thing. If you don't have any switch-style brewer and you want to get into that? Sure, get the Mugen. Same price as the regular switch anyway.

But if you're wondering whether you need the next thing, the upgraded version, the slightly different variation, the answer is probably no.

What you need is to understand what you already have. To play with it. To test it. To master it.

Because at the end of the day, it's about the coffee. It's not about this brewer or that brewer or the thing I just showed you.

It's about the coffee and how it makes you feel.

And if you can produce that out of a sock, so be it.

Your Assignment

This week, pick one brewer. The one you use most, or the one collecting dust in your cupboard that you never figured out.

Use it every day for the next week. Try different filters. Try different temperatures. Try different grind sizes. Try different coffees.

Stop looking at reviews. Stop wondering if you need something else. Just stay with this one thing long enough to understand it.

And then come tell me what you discovered. What worked? What didn't? What surprised you?

Hit reply and tell me what's the piece of gear you keep reaching for? And what's the piece collecting dust?

Because I bet you already have everything you need. You just need to understand it.

Oke