Reusable Filter Coffee Brewing 101

Drinking Coffee has its Benefits

Aside from the obvious benefits of being a pick-me-up, a belly-warmer, and a tasty treat, coffee offers some important health benefits you may not be aware of.

A recent study of coffee conducted by Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) researchers raised some intriguing possibilities. In a nutshell:

• Moderate coffee consumption may help reduce some disease risks.
• Women who consume higher amounts of caffeine may have a lower risk of developing tinnitus (a steady ringing in the ear) than those who don't.
• Increasing daily coffee consumption may reduce the risk for Type 2 diabetes. Coffee consumption lowered women’s risk of Type 2 diabetes by eight percent. Men lowered their risk four percent by drinking regular coffee and seven percent with decaf.
• Drinking coffee may reduce the risk of suicide in adults by as much as 50%.
• Coffee may reduce the risk of lethal prostate cancer in men.
• It's OK to drink up, but watch the cream and sugar!

Perfect Pod Brewing Guidelines

Any cup of coffee you make with your favorite coffee and a Perfect Pod capsule is going to be good. The instructions are fool-proof. Regardless, you'll want to experiment with different coffee beans, grind coarseness and coffee amounts in the capsule. When you get it perfect, you'll know. It will taste better than any K-Cup® you've ever had, and you'll say Ahhhh with that first sip every time!

Disposable Paper Filtration Solutions

Though there is a minimal cost involved, paper filters offer tangible benefits for coffee connoisseurs. The Perfect Pod™ paper filter eliminates all coffee sediments, along with most of the coffee's oils that can cause bitterness and make the brew less smooth. Perfect Pod disposable paper filters are 100% biodegradable, have no harmful chemicals, and when your brew is completed, all you have to do is throw the used filter that fully contains all of the spent grounds away and brew the next cup.

How to use a Perfect Pod capsule with disposable paper filters:

1. Select your favorite ground coffee. See our Grind Consistency section for more information on the best grind for your taste.
2. Place a paper filter in the Perfect Pod capsule.
3. Add about two tablespoons of ground coffee into the paper filter. Do not compress the coffee in the capsule. Of course, you can use any scoop you like, but using the EZ-Scoop™ makes it fast, neat and consistent.
4. Fold the lid of the paper filter over to cover the coffee and wrap the edges around the rim of the capsule.
5. Press down on the edge of the capsule lid firmly and make sure it is tightly closed.
6. Insert the filled capsule into your brewing machine and hit brew!
7. After brewing is complete, just open the lid a throw away the filter and the coffee grounds, and you're ready to brew again.

CAUTION: The paper filter and grounds can be very hot after the brewing cycle has been completed. To avoid burns, be careful when handling.

Permanent Filter Solutions

Even though most coffee lovers prefer brewing with a paper filter, permanent filter solutions offer advantages too. The main advantage, of course, is avoiding the cost (even though it's minimal) of the filters. For some, the downside is that even with the finest-mesh filtering screens, coffee capsules using permanent filters allow some sediment and most of the oils to seep into the brew. And permanent capsules need to be cleaned out after each use.

How to use a Perfect Pod capsule with a permanent filter:

1. Select your favorite ground coffee. See our Grind Consistency section for more information on the best grind for your taste.
2. Add about two tablespoons of ground coffee into the capsule. Do not compress the coffee in the filter. Of course, you can use any scoop you like, but using the EZ-Scoop™ makes it fast, neat and consistent.
3. Close the capsule lid and make sure it is tightly closed.
4. Depending on the Perfect Pod Capsule you are using, and your particular brewer, the hinge of the capsule will be positioned in different locations as indicated by the yellow arrows in the Step 4 illustration below. It is critical that the relief on the bottom of the capsule aligns with the piercing needle located on the bottom of the K-Cup holder. The filter must lay flat in the holder; if it doesn’t, rotate the filter in 90ᴼ increments until it lays flush with the top of the K-Cup holder and hit brew!
5. When you're finished brewing, dump the grounds in the trash, and rinse out any remaining grounds into the sink.
   
   Hint: A couple of firm taps on a hard surface will loosen the grounds and make it easier to empty the capsule.
   
   CAUTION: The filter and grounds can be very hot after the brewing cycle has completed. To avoid burns, be careful when handling.
   
   
6. Clean the capsule when required using hot water and dishwashing liquid. You may want to pre-soak it from time to time. If you prefer, the Perfect Pod capsule is dishwasher safe.

The Best Grind Consistency - It's a Matter of Preference

Aside from the actual coffee blend you use, the coarseness of the grind has the most significant impact on the strength, flavor and overall brewing experience.

Different brewing methods deliver wildly different results based upon the coffee grind. For example, a grind that works well for a French press would not be appropriate for use in an espresso machine. In this discussion, we will focus on brewing coffee in a low-pressure, single-serve coffee machine (such as a Keurig® brewer) with either a Perfect Pod permanent filter capsule or a Perfect Pod paper filter capsule.

Since the terminology for grind coarseness is at best subjective, you can use the grind photos below as a reference when using the Brew Strength chart that follows.

At Perfect Pod, we have conducted an extensive amount of testing using different grinds and different refillable capsules to arrive at a Brew Strength chart to help our customers better understand the results they can expect based upon the grind and filtration method they choose. 

To help eliminate the subjective nature of how strong a brew tastes, we use a scientific instrument known as a Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) meter to arrive at objective values that are generally accepted as being directly related to brewing strength.

By reviewing the Brew Strength chart above, the most obvious observation is that using our paper filter solutions, such as the EZ-Cup or EZ-Carafe, will consistently create a stronger brew. This is mainly due to our patented self-tamping spring which is integrated into those products. However, our metal filter products can produce a similar strength with a slightly finer grind.

The shaded areas of the chart identify the grinds that are not recommended for use. A coarse grind is never suggested because water passes through the grounds too easily and minimal extraction is achieved. We also don’t recommend the use of Fine or Extra Fine grind in any of our permanent filter products because a high level of sediments will pass through the filter and wind up in your cup of coffee. Finally, an Extra Fine grind is never recommended in any of our refillable capsules as there is not enough pressure produced by the brewer to effectively wet the grinds and produce a reasonable extraction. An extra-fine grind can also clog the needles and other small passages found in most single-serve coffee brewers.