The coffee has not been as good lately. I think it is getting over extracted. The strange thing to me is how the situation has got worse lately. Not sure what could have changed. This is what makes me think there might be an issue with the grind I am getting. I am sure the small hole on the Bonavita brew basket makes it worse because water can only go through that small hole so fast, nut I do not want to ruin a brew basket just o try enlarging the hole. Plus I have had brews in the past where the long drain downs were not an issue.
Intrepid510 Senior Member Joined: 30 Dec 2010 Posts: 303 Location: California Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sat Sep 8, 2012, 7:27pm Subject: Re: Bonavita Brew Basket Bed
Are you liking the coffee it's making?
I have been using the Bonavita for about six months now, and have found two things to make good coffee in it. I do a regular preinfusion with my hot water kettle just to let it bloom then place it under and turn it on. Also it likes a pretty coarse grind, somewhere between drip and press.
Don't open up the hole it's a melitta cone, they have been around for years.
mwright Senior Member Joined: 6 Sep 2010 Posts: 102 Location: Michigan Expertise: I like coffee
Posted Sun Sep 9, 2012, 5:57am Subject: Re: Bonavita Brew Basket Bed
Unfortunately the coffee has not been as good. I have been grinding pretty coarse. I even tries sifting out some of the chaff in case that was clogging the filter but no luck. What I did notice was a lot of dust on the paper towel I sifted on to after dumping the grounds. I now do not think this is Bonavita related because I got the same stalling / very slow drain in my Kalita dripper. I have tried all different grind settings but I am not sure what is happening.
Intrepid510 Senior Member Joined: 30 Dec 2010 Posts: 303 Location: California Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Sun Sep 9, 2012, 8:48am Subject: Re: Bonavita Brew Basket Bed
How long have you had your grinder? And is it with the updated burrs or the old ones? If you have a few hundred pounds through it, might be time to for some new burrs. Also is the coffee you are using something you are familiar with?
Back to your picture, my results this morning look a lot like yours. I did a bloom then tossed it in and I got about the same look. However, I am liking my cup this morning. So I don't think look at your spent filter is a good way to diagnose a problem.
mwright Senior Member Joined: 6 Sep 2010 Posts: 102 Location: Michigan Expertise: I like coffee
Posted Sun Sep 9, 2012, 10:47am Subject: Re: Bonavita Brew Basket Bed
I have had the grinder for less than a year. It has the new burrs. I have grown a little less concerned with how the brew bed is and more concerned with how long it is taking to drain after the water has all been dispersed. I tried a different coffee this morning that was roasted a little darker to see if it was any different and it was not. I took almost 2 minutes to drain. I used a setting of 25 this morning. Going coarser than that helps some but not as much as you would think. I am not sure where to go at this point. Since I am having the same problem with the Kalita it must be something else.
Posted Sun Sep 9, 2012, 8:53pm Subject: Re: Bonavita Brew Basket Bed
My Preciso was set to 22 (one click to the right from the middle) for this pot - a three day post roast bean from Panama with a very active bloom. The drain down time is very fast for me - much faster than you are reporting. I think you are on track checking your grinder since your Kalita Wave is draining slow as well.
(Click for larger image)
I chew coffee beans with my teeth while gargling with 195 F water to enjoy coffee. What is this "coffee brewing" device you speak of?
Matt, we have the identical problem. The photo you posted looks exactly what we have been experiencing. We, too, have a Baratza grinder, the trusty Maestro Plus.
For the first 20 or so brew cycles, the brew bed looked normal and fully saturated. The coffee flavor was terrific. On the Maestro Plus, I found ideal extraction and flavor with the second to coarsest setting.
Now, we see the identical weird brew bed shape and taste a bit of underextraction. Although the coffee is still smooth, it's not as rich. We use very high quality and typically single origin beans along with the Melitta white filters Bonavita recommends.
We have also tried experimenting with different grinds, stirring the grinds with the edge of my Thermopen thermometer, and even different coffees. We tried cleaning/descaling with Dezcal, too.
Finally, this morning I decided to try one of the Melitta brown filters that come with the coffeemaker as samples. They are thicker and we have avoided the brown ones since the Bonavita is so wonderful at bringing out the full varietal character of the coffee and we don't want the taste impeded by unwanted filter flavors.
Surprise. . . with the brown unbleached filter, the bed was again a normal shape, the coffee tasted richer--fantastic--and I truthfully could not detect any off flavors brought on by the filter.
By the way, we brew at the four cup 20 ounce fill line and use 34-36 grams of coffee, depending on varietal. For the occasional full pot, the ratio is slightly less coffee per cup.
I'm still a little weirded out by having to use the brown filter and saw above the suggestion of trying the Filtropa white filters. Is anyone using these with good success with the Bonavita? We may try those but honestly was very impressed with today's brew.
I'll report back to see if the unbleached Mellita's continue to solve this problem.
That's good that the filters worked. I have tried different filters without any luck. My problem at this time is more the very long draw down times. I gound on setting 40 this morning and it still took at least a minute to drain. With the problem I am having with the Kalita I am assuming it is a issue with the grind.
Symbols: = New Posts since your last visit = No New Posts since last visit = Newest post
Forum Rules: No profanity, illegal acts or personal attacks will be tolerated in these discussion boards. No commercial posting of any nature will be tolerated; only private sales by private individuals, in the "Buy and Sell" forum. No cross posting allowed - do not post your topic to more than one forum, nor repost a topic to the same forum. Who Can Read The Forum? Anyone can read posts in these discussion boards. Who Can Post New Topics? Any registered CoffeeGeek member can post new topics. Who Can Post Replies? Any registered CoffeeGeek member can post replies. Can Photos be posted? Anyone can post photos in their new topics or replies. Who can change or delete posts? Any CoffeeGeek member can edit their own posts. Only moderators can delete posts. Probationary Period: If you are a new signup for CoffeeGeek, you cannot promote, endorse, criticise or otherwise post an unsolicited endorsement for any company, product or service in your first five postings.
![EricBNC: IMG_1628 700.jpg](javascript:ImagePopup("/images/58551/IMG_1628700.jpg", 700, 525, "EricBNC: IMG_1628 700.jpg");)
= No New Posts since last visit 