Good Coffee Made Simple – the Chemex

Some guys invest a lot of time in learning the arts of mixing drinks as a way to impress the ladies. But honestly, women impressed by prowess in handling alcohol are probably too easily impressed to begin with. If you really want to lay the love mojo upon your special overnight guests, its all about serving up a hot cup of awesome the morning after.

The Chemex is a brutally simple piece of laboratory quality glass in the shape of an hourglass. A folded square of paper filter sits on the top, you lay in some coffee and pour just-off-the-boil water from your kettle over the grounds, stirring the fresh coffee “bloom”. The result: a great clean brew with no mess and minimal fuss, yet you come off looking like a coffee god. A Chemex, a burr grinder, and a steady supply of good, fresh roasted coffee will take you light years further than any froufrou drip machine or dribbling coffee pods. Like any other piece of new coffee gear, spending the time figuring out your dose and grind when you unwrap the box pays off down the road.

Prices start at $30 with a variety of sizes and styles. Filters run about $7 for a pack of 100 (I’d recommend the bleached paper as imparting less of a papery taste to the cup). You can buy direct from Chemex or use the convenience of Amazon.