How to Make Coffee at Home: A Guide to the Perfect Cup
How to Make Coffee at Home: A Guide to the Perfect Cup

By Team Fellow |

How to Make Coffee at Home: A Guide to the Perfect Cup

There's an art and a science to making coffee and espresso, and at Fellow, we believe that great drinks start with the right tools and techniques. Whether you’re dialing in a pour-over, pulling the perfect espresso shot, or setting up your Aiden Precision Coffee Maker for a seamless brew, we’ve got you covered

Here's a step-by-step guide to making the best coffee at home.

Step One: Choose Your Coffee Drink

Crafting the perfect cup at home starts here. Choose your drink—hot or iced. The classics include:

  • Espresso: A small, strong coffee serving that acts as the base for many beverages, such as cortados, macchiatos, lattes, and cappuccinos.
  • Macchiato: A shot of espresso with a small amount of steamed milk or foam, creating a strong coffee-forward drink with a hint of creaminess.
  • Cortado: Usually two shots of espresso in around a 4 oz vessel, with thin and cool steamed milk.
  • Cappuccino: An espresso-based drink comprising typically a double shot of espresso and 6 - 8 oz of thick textured steamed milk.
  • Flat white: Similar to a cappuccino in espresso content and milk volume, but slightly hotter and thinner in milk texture (less foamy).
  • Latte: A few shots of espresso served typically in a 10 - 12 oz vessel with milk steamed to a thin texture. This is the largest volume espresso-based drink, traditionally.
  • Americano: A few shots of espresso in hot water, resulting in a more diluted drink.
  • Cold brew: Brewed slowly over 12-24 hours for a smooth, low-acidity coffee—or in just ~2 hours with Aiden’s hot bloom method for faster, full-bodied results.
  • Iced coffee: Cold coffee served over ice. This is different from cold brew as iced coffee is often brewed hot, and “flash iced” aka poured over ice to cool, whereas cold brew is typically brewed at room temperature.
  • Pour-over: A brewing method that involves manually pouring hot water over coffee grounds in a controlled, steady stream. This allows for optimal extraction, aimed at bringing out the nuanced flavors of the coffee.
  • Drip coffee: A convenient brewing method using an automatic coffee maker that gradually drips hot water over coffee grounds, producing a balanced and smooth cup.
  • French press: A full-immersion brewing method where coarsely ground coffee is immersed in hot water before being filtered with a metal plunger, resulting in a rich and full-bodied cup.

Step Two: Choose the Brew Method

Now that you've narrowed down your favorite coffee drink, choose the brew method that best suits you.

Automatic drip - When we’re thinking about the traditional coffee maker that most people have on their countertops, we’re talking about automatic drip coffee, or “autodrip”/ “drip.” Drip coffee makers are among the most common methods because of their simplicity. Pour cold water into the brewer’s reservoir, add coffee to the filter basket, and hit the start button. The quality of this method can vary widely, depending on the beans you use, whether you grind them yourself, and the quality of the drip coffee brewer.

Pour-over - This is one of the most popular methods of making coffee, and it is sometimes referred to as filter coffee (it is also referred to as “drip,” not to be confused with “autodrip”). The taste relies heavily on the speed at which the water moves through the coffee grounds, therefore grind setting is very important. It also relies heavily on the way the water is poured over the grounds, with the goal being to get everything soaking evenly so as to extract flavor from every part of the bed of coffee grounds evenly. This method requires filter paper loaded with medium-ground coffee and water just off boil, which is poured over the coffee. The coffee filters into a carafe or other vessel below the dripper, delivering a smooth yet complex brew.

French press - The French press offers a simple brewing process that produces a bolder cup of coffee, as it uses a metal filter and does not soak up any of the coffee’s flavor-producing oils. You need a French press to make this style of coffee, which is a canister with a plunger. You fill the canister/chamber with coarse coffee grounds and hot water, waiting a few minutes before pushing the plunger down to allow the coffee’s flavors to extract. It’s helpful to agitate the grounds before plunging as well, or “stir” the grounds (a wooden spoon does the trick). Once the grounds settle, the plunger is pushed into the bottom to filter them out and allow the coffee to be poured from the press.

AeroPress - An AeroPress is a portable coffee kit that's great for travel. Brew times for AeroPress are quick, and it offers plenty of room to experiment in brew techniques. The mechanism uses air pressure to push  water through the coffee grounds and through the filter, into your vessel. The combination of filter, plunger, and chamber lets you experiment with and control the style of your brew.

Siphon - The vacuum pot is quite complex and involved. A heat vacuum pushes water into coffee grounds and soaks them. When brewed, the coffee draws back into one of the lower chambers. The siphon allows you to experiment with and physically observe the science at play in this style of coffee brewing.

Cold brew - Cold brew may be the easiest type of coffee to make. So, how do you make cold brew coffee at home? Soak your fresh grounds in water for up to a day and store the mixture in the fridge after brewing, where it'll keep for a while.

If you'd like to learn more about brewing methods, check out our brewing techniques article.

Step Three: Choose Your Supplies

Temperature, coffee type, grind setting/consistency, brew method, and length of extraction time (aka total brew time) can all affect the flavor profile of your coffee. You can control these factors by using high-quality equipment and additional supplies to enhance the flavor of your brew.

Automatic drip - For an easy, consistent brew with a push of a button, Aiden Precision Coffee Maker takes care of every variable for you. To get the best results, pair it with:

Pour-over - Additional supplies for the pour-over method include:

French press - or a full-bodied, flavorful brew, Clara French Press makes pressing easy with heat retention, an all-directional pour lid, and a cleaner cup. For the best results, use:

  • A measuring device to ensure you measure the amount of coffee in as well as the amount of water in (Tally Pro Precision Scale)
  • A grinder for fresh, coarse grounds (Opus Conical Burr Grinder)
  • A stirring tool to agitate the coffee and release more flavor (non-metallic recommended)
  • A timer to remind you to plunge and pour your brew, since a French press is completely manual

AeroPress - The AeroPress requires very few supplies. Coffee beans aside, you only need:

Siphon - Additional supplies you may find useful for this brewing process include:

  • A wooden stirring spoon to agitate grounds
  • A cloth or paper filter
  • A scale to measure your amount of coffee in and water out (Tally Pro Precision Scale)
  • A glass jar or beaker for the coffee to drip into

Cold brew - Cold brew is a smooth, refreshing alternative to hot coffee. Whether you're steeping overnight or using a rapid cold brew method, here’s what you’ll need:

Whichever method you choose, freshly roasted, quality coffee beans will always produce the best brewed result.

Step Four: Choose Your Coffee

Choosing a coffee type depends on your preference. Some people prefer a heavier bodied coffee with weightier notes (i.e. chocolate, caramel, roast) while others favor a lighter body with brighter characteristics (i.e. pronounced acidity, fruit-forward, floral), and of course there are many other flavor profiles available out there. Flavors are affected by country/region of origin, species and variety of the coffee itself, the method in which the coffee was processed (i.e. how the fruit was removed from the seed), roast level, and brewing method. Climate at origin, topography, soil type, and altitude also affects flavor. We refer to the effect that environment has on the flavor of coffee when we talk about “terroir.”

There are two main species of coffee bean: Arabica (acidic, sweet and complex, but harder to grow) and Robusta (very caffeinated, more bitter than Arabica, easier to grow). A coffee's flavor profile can be determined by terroir, process, and roast level, and manipulated to bring out specific characteristics depending on the brew method chosen.

If you'd like to learn more about picking the right coffee, check out our guide on how to choose coffee beans.

Step Five: Choose Your Grind

Sure, you can buy pre-ground coffee—but if you really want to unlock the full flavor potential of your beans, grinding fresh is the way to go. Once coffee is ground, it starts releasing the aromatic gases trapped inside during roasting. These gases help create the complexity and depth of flavor in your cup. Grinding right before you brew ensures you’re getting maximum freshness, aroma, and taste.

Finding the Right Grind Size

Different brew methods require different grind sizes. Espresso calls for an ultra-fine, powdery grind that offers resistance to high pressure. French press and cold brew need a coarser grind to prevent over-extraction during long brew times. A finer grind increases water-to-coffee contact time, while a coarser grind allows for a faster flow and lighter extraction.

Choosing the Right Grinder: Ode vs Opus

Not all grinders are built the same, and that’s where Fellow’s lineup comes in.

  • Ode Brew Grinder Gen 2 is designed for drip coffee lovers—think pour-over, French press, and automatic drip. It features 64 mm flat burrs for exceptional clarity and consistency, 31 grind settings, and an anti-static design that minimizes mess.
  • Opus Conical Burr Grinder is built for versatility—handling everything from espresso to cold brew. It features 40 mm conical burrs, a grind guide dial, and a low-retention design to keep every dose precise.

If you only brew filter coffee, Ode is your precision-focused workhorse. If you want to cover all brew styles, Opus is your go-to for a full range of grind sizes. No matter your method, a quality coffee grinder is the foundation of a great cup.

Step Six: Experiment

If you’re on a quest for better coffee at home, the secret is simple: play around. Try beans from different corners of the world, test out new brew methods, and tweak your recipe until it sings. Some experiments might be a bust (we’ve all been there), but others? Pure magic. Keep chasing that perfect cup—because the best part of home brewing is making it yours