This argument needs settling!?

Question

I have a disagreement with my wife that has been going on for a while.
When she makes a coffee, she boils the kettle and potters about (possibly making a snack or whatever) then pours out the coffee which is then cooler than i prefer.
I always reboil it to make it hotter.
She says that reboiling takes a little more oxygen out of the water and affects the taste of the coffee, I say it makes no difference except to the temperature.
Which of us is right?

Answer 1

wow!!!!! Used to know someone who knew by taste if milk went in first or last but this is a new one on me.Why not just make coffee for yourselves? Doesnt matter who is right on this one, if your wife can taste the difference she can taste the difference.

Answer 2

The answer is this:

If you boil a kettle it removes gases from the water. The more you boil the more is removed.

To explain a bit more I need to talk about tea making before going on to coffee

For Tea making this is really important as it is the gas bubbles in the water that help to brew the tea. Reboiling leads to a poorer cuppa! Tea should be made with boiling water.

Coffee on the other hand should be made with water that is at about 80°C as boiling water will scold the coffee. However I guess that she is mainly making instant coffee which does not suffer from boiling water. Also instant coffee is not effected by bubbles in the water...so you can boil the water as long as you like :)

So you are both right in a way. :)

Hope that helps

Answer 3

If you pour boiling water onto coffee it burns it and affects the quality of flavour. So your wife is right. However you can still pour it out when it's hot or if you have milk, put the milk onto the coffee first which will prevent the scorching.

I have black coffe and always put a little drop of cold water onto the coffee before the boiling water.

Hope that helps.

Ps. So you are right as well you don't need to make snacks and do jobs round the house while you wait! (hee hee), sorry Mrs. Wife!

Answer 4

i'm not sure of the tech reason but i'm with your wife on this one. just found this
Everyone likes to drink a fresh cup coffee in the morning, but does one possess the expertise of making freshly brewed coffee. Brewing coffee is a method in which water is being flavored with roasted, ground coffee beans. The different types of brewing methods are filter cones, electric drip machines, plunger pots, and percolators.

One third of a liter for every 170 grams is the standard measurement for making good coffee. If coffee is brewed for too long it will taste bitter. The best level of extraction of coffee is 20% of the solids in the grind. This is achieved by keeping the brew water temperature between 88°C and 93°C. If the temperature of the water is too low, underextraction will occur and the coffee will be too weak. Underextraction will cause the coffee to have a sour flavor, since the acids from the beans are the first substances to dissolve. If the brew water temperature is too high then over extraction will occur and the coffee will taste bitter. Increasing the amount of coffee used can decrease over extraction of coffee. The entire brewing process should about four to six minutes. If the brewing process takes less than four minutes, the ground particles have to be smaller and more powdery. If the brewing process takes longer than six minutes, than the ground particles have to larger.

Brewed coffee is about 98% water, so it is important to have good quality water. Filtering tools are used in order to filter out chemicals that may cause the coffee to taste bad. If softened water is used for brewing coffee it will slow down the extraction and dilution process, which will result in the over extraction of coffee. The flavor of coffee will deteriorate if it is held in an open container for longer than 20 or 30 minutes. Fresh coffee is best because once the coffee gets warmer the organic materials of the coffee will start to break down and the coffee will develop a bitter taste. If you need to keep brewed coffee warm for a longer period of time use a thermal container that will keep the coffee warm without heating. Coffee can be held in a container for up to 45 minutes before the flavor will start to deteriorate.

Diana Gendler -- 2003

Answer 5

When making Tea or Coffee you should always use freshly drawn water. With Tea you should pore the water on as soon as the kettle stops. When making coffee you should allow the water to cool slightly (wait 30 secs) before poring onto the coffee. Using water that is too hot will burn the coffee affecting the taste.

Answer 6

Reboiling doesnt take oxygen out of the water... That just make me say What? and shake my head. Maybe you mean that some of the water evaporates?? And if you like your coffee hotter then just pour your cup first... Obvisouly you cant tell the difference in taste even if maybe she can.

Answer 7

Your wife is right in saying you shouldn't use boiling water but this is because if you pour boiling water straight onto coffee it will burn the coffee. The compromise is that you could put the milk in the cup first and pour the boiling water after. Voila you have hot coffee!

Answer 8

Your wife. You should always use fresh water for tea or coffee. Tea needs boiling water. But coffee needs water just off the boil. Boiling coffee beans spoils the flavour.
Perhaps she leaves it a bit too long so try to reach a compromise!

Answer 9

Im afraid you are BOTH wrong!

Coffee should be brewed just off the boil, between 95-98'C. If the coffee is brewed with boiling water, delicate flavours will be lost. If the water is not hot enough you will not extract all the flavour from the coffee!

Answer 10

Hmm. I believe that re-boiling can reduce the amount of Oxygen in the water - this is why it os essential to use freshly boiled water when making a pot of tea.

However, if you prefer it like that, then you're right, naturally!

I have a similar on-going discussion with my wife about whether milk goes in first..