What’s the worst part of waking up? The first sip of your morning cup of coffee, obviously! Whether you like your coffee black or with milk and sugar, it is an essential part of our day. But what if this perfect cup of coffee doesn’t taste as good as it should? Instead of that rich and aromatic taste, your favorite drink just tastes watery… icky! There are so many things that can go wrong when brewing a beverage at home. Your water might not be suitable for making coffee, the grind size may not be right, or maybe you are using the wrong kind of filter. However, there is nothing to worry about because we have got you covered in this blog post with everything you need to know about why my coffee taste watery and what you can do about it.
Why Does My Coffee Taste Watery?
There are a few reasons why your coffee might taste watery, but on the bright side, there are some easy fixes that can help. For one, if you are using a Keurig machine, make sure the water settings are not on high. If the settings are too high, the coffee will taste watery and weak.
What Is The Reason My Coffee Taste Watery?
1. The Water
The water you are using is probably not suitable for making coffee. If you are using tap water, your coffee will taste weak and watery. If you are using bottled water, make sure the temperature is between 60°F and 80°F. If it is too cold, your coffee will taste bitter and overly strong. If it is too hot, your coffee will be weak and overly acidic.
2. The Grind Size
The size of the grind also affects how strong the coffee tastes. If you grind too fine, your coffee will be weak and overly acidic. However, if you grind too coarsely or over-grind, your coffee may taste bitter or burnt because of over-extraction of the beans by grinding them too fine.
3. The Filter
Your filter might not be doing its job either! Make sure that the filter is clean enough to let all the flavors pass through it so that it can extract all the goodness from your coffee beans. If you are using a paper filter, make sure that it is not too wet so it won’t absorb all the flavors and aromas from your coffee.
4. The Beans
The beans you are using might not be fresh or the quality of your beans might be poor. This can affect how strong the coffee tastes and how acidic or bitter it tastes as well.
5. Your Water Temperature
This is another thing that can affect how strong your coffee tastes, but this time, it is about temperature! Sometimes, your water may be too hot for making a good cup of coffee as it could result in over-extraction of certain flavors in your coffee. It will also make the water taste overly acidic and bitter if the temperature is too high for an extended period of time because of over-extraction by heating up the water too much to boil it before you brew your coffee. If you want to increase the strength of your coffee, we recommend brewing at a lower temperature for a shorter period of time.
6. Your Roast Profile
A wrong roast profile can also affect how strong your coffee tastes as well. If you are not careful in choosing the right roast profile for your coffee beans, there is a risk that the coffee can taste overly acidic or bitter due to over-extraction of certain flavors in the beans by heating them too much before roasting them at high temperatures for an extended period of time.
7. The Brewing Method
The brewing method might also affect how strong your coffee tastes, but this time, it is about temperature! Using cold water for brewing can greatly affect how strong your coffee tastes as the cold water will cool down the temperature of your coffee and make it taste overly bitter or acidic.
How To Fix Watery Coffee
Use More Beans
If your coffee is becoming watery, the first thing you should do is measure the amount of beans you use. If you’re using less coffee than you should, try adding more. Using more coffee beans will make your coffee stronger, so the liquid will be less diluted. If you don’t want to use more beans because you don’t have enough, try using less water. If you have added more coffee, but the brew is still weak, try a smaller ratio of coffee to water.
Don’t Use Hot Water
If you’ve been using hot water to make your coffee and it’s becoming watery, this could be the reason why. Hot water extracts only a small amount of flavor from coffee beans, so if you make your coffee with hot water, you’re basically making weak coffee. Brewing coffee with cold water instead of hot will extract more flavor from the beans, making your coffee stronger.
Grind Your Own Beans
There are many advantages to grinding your own beans, one of them being a stronger brew. If you’re using beans that are too finely ground, they will be over-extracted when making coffee. This means that your coffee will not be as strong as it should be. If your coffee is becoming watery, try grinding your own beans. This way, you’ll be able to control how finely the beans are ground.
Add more coffee
If you’ve been adding too little coffee, your brew will be weak. If this is the reason why your coffee is becoming watery, increase the amount of coffee you add.
Add more time and water
If your coffee is becoming watery because it’s being over-extracted, try adding more time and water. When making coffee, you have to find the perfect balance between extraction and dilution. If your brew is becoming too watery, try adding more time. Extraction happens in two stages. The first phase happens immediately after adding the grounds to the water. The second phase takes place after the coffee and water have been in contact for a few minutes. During the second phase, the water has already been absorbed by the coffee grounds, so it’s being drawn back out. If your coffee is too watery, try adding more time in the brewing process.
Try a new brew method
If your coffee is becoming watery because you’re using one brew method while you should be using another, try a different brew method. For example, if you’re using a French press to make your coffee, but the brew is becoming watery, try a drip coffee maker. Using the right brew method will help you get the most out of your beans, so your coffee won’t become watery.
Add heavy cream and/or sugar
If your coffee is becoming watery because it’s too strong, try adding more cream and sugar. Adding these two ingredients to your coffee will help cut through the bitterness and make it less strong. However, don’t add too much sugar or cream because you might end up with an even more watery brew.
Use a French press to make your coffee less watery
If your coffee is becoming watery because the brew is too strong for your taste, the French press is an ideal way to make your coffee less watery. The French press is a manual coffee press that’s been around for a long time. This method of coffee brewing requires you to plunge a metal mesh filter into a pot containing ground coffee and hot water and then press down to extract the coffee. Once your coffee has brewed, you can add cream and sugar to make it less strong and more watery. The French press is a great way to make less watery coffee because the grounds are left in the water for a longer time. This means more flavor will be extracted from the coffee and less water will end up in your cup.
Make a darker roast of coffee next time
If your coffee is becoming watery because it’s been over-roasted, there isn’t much you can do about it. However, if your beans are just not fresh enough, a darker roast will make your coffee less watery.
Conclusion
Coffee is an essential part of our lives, and it tastes even better when it is made right. Unfortunately, it is easy to make a mistake while brewing a perfect cup of coffee, and this can result in a watery brew. Luckily, we have covered why does my coffee taste watery and how to fix it. So, read this blog post now and let us know how far you have come.