Pour-over coffee is the way to go
The first time I tried coffee, I was probably 10 years old and took a sip of my mom's Folgers instant coffee — black (and she still drinks it like that).
I thought coffee was the worst thing ever, and other than the occasional super sugary, caramel-filled, whipped topping concoction at Starbucks, I didn't try a “plain” coffee again until my junior year of college. A new guy I was seeing drank Victor Allen's drip-style with vanilla caramel Coffee Mate. I've been hooked ever since. On coffee and the guy (whom I eventually married and now we have an 18-month-old).
I've been a consistent coffee drinker, but until a few months ago, I didn't think it got better than drip coffee from an automatic coffee maker. Then I discovered pour-over coffee. After doing a side-by-side taste test, I got rid of my automatic and won't ever go back.
In a world where tech is almost always seen as better, the less complicated, most basic invention is the way to go. Pour-over machines look like they're straight out of the 1970s.
But continuously adding water extracts more surface layers from the grounds, which makes the coffee taste cleaner, fresher and richer.
When you make coffee the right way, it tastes better and you don't need all that sugary, thick creamer. These days, I add only a splash of whole milk.
Because we use our ESPRO pour-over daily, I started grinding our own beans with an OXO Burr Coffee Grinder (you grind the beans to a different coarseness depending on what type of coffee you're making, automatic or drip or pour over, and whether you're using a paper filter).
Another game changer is a gooseneck kettle — and the Fellow Stagg EKG is the gold standard. With pour-over coffee, you want a slow, steady pour in a circular motion to get the coffee grounds evenly saturated, which is really hard to do with a regular tea kettle.
After putting only about 2 ounces of water in, you wait for the coffee to bloom, which means it'll bubble up a little to release carbon dioxide. From there, you want to pour in the rest of your water in even, slow circles, at which point the coffee drips down into the carafe and boom — you've got yourself pour-over coffee.
And for true coffee and tea connoisseurs, you need to get a very precise temperature depending on what you're brewing and how. The Fellow Stagg EKG model allows you to dial in a specific temperature. The ideal temperature is between 195 and 205 degrees.
The same science holds true with tea. Black tea has different steeping temperature than green tea, which has a different steeping temperature than herbal tea. When you use water that's too hot for the tea, you can actually burn it, whereas if you use water that's too cold, your tea won't reach its full flavor potential.
When in doubt, look at the package directions on your tea and coffee (or check that company's website).
In Milwaukee, we have tons of local options to shop for tea and coffee. Rishi Tea and Stone Creek are two of my gotos. Thankfully, they each have brewing guides on their websites so you can make the perfect cup.