bodum vac pot

[ada]

I've been craving a richer cup of coffee lately, so I've been using my Bodum vac pot for the last week or so. I haven't used one in years.

I have a few questions.

What kind of grind should you use? I've been using coarse.

How long should you allow the coffee and water to brew before taking it off of the heat?

Sometimes it boils, and sometimes it simmers. Does it matter?

Thanks

[phaelon56]

My short version....

I use a grind that's a trifle coarser than I use for manual pour-over drip (Melitta) but finer than what one would use for press pot coffee.

It's not requisite but I wait until the water is almost to the boil before I put the top part of the pot on.

Also optional but I stir the grounds a bit to fully moisten them once the water rises to the top - as suggested by OCG (Original Coffee Geek) Mark Prince in his excellent Coffeekid.com Vac Pot Brewing Instructions

It's worth noting that the water should be at a rolling or steady boil in the bottom of the pot but the bubbling you see in the top is the steam and heated water causing circulation of air and water. The brewing coffee in the upper chamber is closer to the ideal 203 - 205 range rather than being at boiling (which would ruin good coffee).

I let mine stay in the upper chamber for about 4 to 4.5 minutes before removing the heat and letting the trip south start. Some folks use a shorter brew time and the electric vac pots seem to dictate a shorter brew time automatically.

[ada]

Thanks. I'm getting better at it. The coffee is excellent. That rolling on top sure looks like boiling to me though.

It is so much better that my Melitta Drip. Someone suggested that Melitta made a decent electric drip. It was cheap enough, so I bought one. It was a mistake.

[phaelon56]

The water has to be boiling to get to the upper pot but once the bulk of water has moved north (which happens quickly) you just have tiny amounts of boiling water and steam moving up the tube. This keeps the pressure and temp just high enough to prevent the coffee from traveling south but you're really NOT "boiling the coffee". If you were it would taste horrible and no one (very few) would bother with vac pots.

The miniscule amount of water that enters adds just enough steam and movement to agitate the coffee in the upper pot and aid brewing. And Melitta makes a good cheap manual pour-over system. That's the only one of their products I see any value in.

[ada]

Thanks for your help. What I'm doing now is lowering the flame from medium to very low once the water is on top. That stops the rolling. Do you have any problems with the plastic handle? It sure gets hot, and I'm a little concerned about it melting.

[phaelon56]

I use mine (which is the "mini" - makes four cups or about 25 ounces of brew at max) on the largest burner of my gas range and have never had a heat issue with the handle. I do lower the heat as soon as the water has moved north. And I keep it just high enough to keep the brew up top - no higher. The handle on mine doesn't even get hot.