Background
Siphon coffee was invented in the 1840s more or less simultaneously by a French housewife and Scottish marine engineer. It’s been refined many times, but a few principles hold true: It produces a delicate, tea-like cup of coffee; it can be quite persnickety; and it is, for our money, one of the coolest brew methods available.
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Step 1
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After soaking your filter in a warm water bath for at least five minutes, drop it into the bottom of your siphon’s top component, or “hopper,” and hook to the bottom of the hopper’s glass tubing.
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Step 2
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Fill your siphon’s bottom component, or “bulb,” with 300 grams of hot water (about a 12-oz. cup’s worth).
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Step 3
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Insert the hopper, filter and all, into the bulb. You don't have to press too hard; just make sure it's securely and evenly in place. Position the entire assembly above your heat source.
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Step 4
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While the water is heating, measure out between 20-25 grams of coffee and grind it just a little bit finer than you would for regular drip coffee.
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Step 5
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Soon, the water in the bulb will begin boiling and rise up into the hopper. For some physics-related reason we don’t fully understand, a little bit will stay at the bottom. Don’t worry about this little bit.
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Step 6
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Once the water has moved into the hopper, turn your heat source down so that the water is between 185-195 degrees F.
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Step 7
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Add your coffee, and gently (but thoroughly) submerge it with a bamboo paddle or butter knife.
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Step 8
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Let the coffee brew, undisturbed, for one minute and 10 seconds.
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Step 9
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In one brisk motion, remove your siphon from its heat source and give it ten stirs with a bamboo paddle.
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Step 10
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Your coffee should take another minute or so to draw downward and finally rest in the bulb. You'll know it's ready when a dome of grounds has formed at the top of the filter, and when the coffee at the bottom has begun to bubble at approximately the pace and strength of a kitten’s heartbeat.
Remove the hopper and serve. In order to guarantee the most complex cup, give the coffee a few minutes to cool.