From Plant to Cup: Brew an Amazing Cup of Coffee
Michael Phillips · Director of Training, Blue Bottle Coffee
A world-class barista's exact recipe, measured by weight, ready in under an hour
What you will learn
- How to calculate extraction ratio and dial in a recipe by grams instead of guesswork
- How to read a coffee bag for roast date, origin, and variety to buy fresher beans
- How to execute the four-pour bloom-and-spiral technique with a Bonmac dripper
- How to diagnose over- and under-extraction from taste and correct it via grind size
- How to run a basic five-category tasting evaluation (sweetness, body, finish, acidity, flavour)
Standout ideas
- The bloom weight formula: dose x2 plus a small buffer for water lost to the trough, held for 45-55 seconds before the first real pour
- A ratio-based recipe system (1:11 for blends, 1:14-1:16 for single origins) instead of fixed scoops, so strength scales with any batch size
- Grind size, not pour technique, should be the main lever adjusted between brews to fix bitterness or sourness
Best for: Home coffee drinkers who already own basic pour-over gear and want a repeatable, precise method rather than a general appreciation overview.
This is a tightly structured, practitioner-led walkthrough of the exact weight-and-ratio method a professional training director uses, and the brewing section in particular gives a level of measurable precision most home coffee content skips. Its limit is scope: it assumes access to a scale, burr grinder and pour-over kettle, and viewers wanting espresso, French press, or budget no-equipment guidance will need to look elsewhere. For the stated audience it delivers real, usable technique rather than lifestyle filler.