Drip Coffee – A Coffee Lovers Guide To Drip Coffee

Drip coffee is undoubtedly the coffee beverage that Americans grow up with. It is more difficult to find a home in the United States that does not have a drip coffee maker!

This article serves as a guide to what Americans call brewed coffee.

Keep reading for a coffee lovers guide to drip coffee.

What Is Drip Coffee?

Drip coffee is one of the most popular forms of brewed coffee in America with most homes owning one. It was popularized in the 1970s and 80s movies and TV shows as the typical coffee seen being served in Roadhouses and TV shows like Happy Days.

It is a process of brewing coffee that requires the use of a coffee maker that is purposely designed for making this style of coffee beverage.

The brewing process heats the water, which then gets sprayed over the coffee grounds and then drips down through the grounds and into the cup or carafe below.

Read: Pour over Vs drip coffee 

What Does Drip Coffee Taste Like?

Drip coffee method gives you a good quality crisp, clean and light bodied coffee. It is a good tasty and savory coffee that there is no doubt about but lacks the bold flavor and fuller body that other methods can provide.

It is a simple and smooth coffee.

This method does not extract the vivid and vibrant complex flavors, or the intricate and delicate ones that pour over coffee does.

Why Is It Called Drip Coffee?

The name drip coffee is derived from the way in which the coffee is brewed. The water is heated and then slowly releases the water dripping (Sprayed) over the ground coffee which then, thanks to gravity, passes through the grounds, dissolving some coffee solubles and coffee oils in the process and passes through the filter, dripping into the carafe below.

Why Is Drip Coffee So Good?

Drip coffee machines taste so good due to the advances in technology over the past few decades which give a better and more precise control over the temperature and flow rate.

Also,

some modern machines have a cross-shaped faucet (shower head) that sprays the hot water over the grounds, ensuring an even distribution.

The improved manufacturing techniques for the coffee basket and filter have a positive effect on the result of the brewed coffee.

What Makes Drip Coffee Different?

Drip coffee uses thermal induced pressure to direct the water up and to the faucet (shower head).

Gravity then takes over as the water falls through the coffee grounds where it dissolves some of the coffee grounds’ soluble mass.

Notable, this method does not dissolve as much of the soluble mass as other brewing techniques, which is the reason behind the light flavor.

One way you can get more soluble mass and coffee oils in to your brew is to change the paper filter for a cotton or metal one and get more flavor and body into your beverage.

Brewing coffee with a drip coffee maker is uncomplicated, easy, affordable and very convenient. Drip coffee, to many Americans, is brewed coffee or just coffee as they, unlike the British, do not use instant coffee.

Drip Coffee Vs Pour Over

Pour over coffee is a much-loved brewing method that coffee enthusiasts, coffee experts and coffee lovers enjoy using to get all the best flavors out of their specialty coffee beans and single origin beans.

It is a method of coffee preparation that is very much a manual method of brewing drip coffee.

With pour over you have full control over all the variables associated with coffee brewing and extracting the flavors for the bean.

Maintaining a hot water temperature within the ideal temperature range of 195F to 205F (92C to 96C) is something you can control with an electric gooseneck kettle that has digital temperature control.

The grind size, and fliter type are also variables that you can control. You can also, with great technique and good equipment, control the flow rate and thus the amount of time that the water is in contact with your coffee.

It is the method that coffee geeks and nerds love.

Similar to drip coffee, hot water is poured over the coffee grounds, which then, via gravity passes through the grounds and filter and into a carafe or coffee mug below.

Even though the sound very similar, they are very different as one is manual and gives you full control and the other is a device of convenience that is very much automated.

How To Make Drip Coffee

Making drip coffee is easy, very easy. Answers like “half a scoop per cup of coffee” is non-exact, unspecific and just not scientific at all.

At Latte Love Brew we give you exact numbers and details.

The ideal coffee to water ratio for this type of coffee brewing method is 1:16.

With that we can measure exactly. What we can measure we can control. This allows us to make a process that is repeatable and get predictable results, every single time.

(For any and all brewing methods).

To make an 8 ounce (240 ml) cup of coffee, you will need 8/16 = 0.5 Oz (15 grams) of coffee per cup of 8 oz (240 ml) coffee brewed.

Using a medium grind size, add 15 grams per 8 oz (240 ml) cup of coffee that you wish to brew. Add 240 ml (8 oz) of water per cup of coffee to the water reservoir. Switch your machine on and press brew, or the appropriate button to brew your coffee.

How Much Caffeine And Calories Does Drip Coffee Have?

The caffeine content of this beverage is one that I can only give as an average. It is not possible to give 100% accurate results as the variable of which coffee beans that you use is unknown.

The amount of caffeine in drip coffee will vary depending on which beans you use and the type of coffee bean.

A fine example of this being the amount of caffeine in Robusta beans is 2.2x that of Arabica beans and a blend will have more than Arabica but less than Robusta.

On the bright side, I can tell you that drip coffee is not high in caffeine but does have enough “wake up power” to get you out the door bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and ready to face the world.

The number of calories I can thankfully say is low with only 2 calories for an 8 oz (240 ml), and 4 calories for a large 16 oz (480 ml) cup.

Consult the table below as a guide for the calorie and caffeine content of drip coffee.

Frequently Asked Questions About Drip Coffee

Is Drip Coffee The Same As Filter Coffee?

Drip coffee is a form of filter coffee. The two main coffee brewing methods that are considered as filter coffee are drip coffee and pour over coffee.

Can You Add Milk To Drip Coffee?

Coffee is a very personal thing and can be enjoyed how you personally like it. You can add milk to drip coffee if this is how you enjoy it. Some like it black, some like it with milk. How much milk is entirely your choice, be it a splash, a dash or a lot of it for a very milky coffee.

There is no great difference if you heat your milk using a steamer, frother or simply use cold milk.

What Kind Of Coffee Is Good For Drip?

For a good cup of coffee from your drip coffee maker you should use a medium grind size. The best roast profile should be medium-dark roast.

Any coffee beans can be used, including specialty grade. However, there are better brewing methods for your expensive coffee beans, pour over and French press being two.

Does Drip Coffee Taste Better?

Drip coffee does taste great, which is thanks to improvements in technology and the precision in which water is sprayed evenly over your coffee grounds and improved temperature control.

Drip due to the coffee preparation method does not make a better tasting coffee than pour over or French press coffee. This is due to you having full control over the brewing method, and important variables like the water temperature, flow rate, grind size and brew time.

The result of having control over these variables is that you can and will extract all the intricate, complex and delicate flavors from the coffee beans.

Unfortunately, due to the lack of control and setting on a drip coffee maker you cannot get those flavors in a cup of drip coffee.

Is Drip Coffee Same As Espresso?

No, drip coffee and espresso coffee are two very different brewing techniques. Espresso, like drip coffee, needs the use of its own coffee brewing machine to make it.

You simply can’t make a shot of espresso without an espresso machine as you need the 9 bars (130 PSI) of pressure to produce the rich thick crema on top.

Both coffees are very different, have different brewing methods, taste very different and are served in very different sizes. An espresso is more focused and concentrated and served as a single or double shot in a small 1 ounce or 2 ounces (30 or 60 ml) serving.

A drip coffee beverage is brewed using a drip coffee machine and tastes crisp, clean and a lot lighter than an espresso and is typically served in 8 Oz (240 ml) to 12 Oz (360 ml) servings.

Is Drip Coffee Stronger Than Espresso?

In terms of flavor, espresso has a deeper, stronger flavor than a drip. When it comes to total caffeine content, a drip has more caffeine than an espresso.

An espresso has 75 mg of caffeine in a single ounce while a drip coffee has 85 mg of caffeine in an 8 oz (240 ml) serving.

What Is The Difference Between Drip Coffee And Brewed Coffee?

Drip coffee is a form of brewed coffee that uses gravity to allow your hot water to pass through your coffee grounds. 

French press, siphon coffee, percolated coffee, moka pot, and some other examples of brewed coffee.

Is Drip Coffee Just Regular Coffee?

Drip coffee from a manual or automatic drip coffee machine is often referred to as regular coffee. 

Final Thoughts – Drip Coffee

If you have any questions about drip coffee, or if I have missed anything out simply ask me personally or our online coffee community of Facebook/Meta, we are delighted to answer all questions.

Join us and share your own coffee experience, thoughts and amazing photos of your own coffee creations.

Derek Marshall

Derek Marshall, a certified barista by the Specialty Coffee Association possesses over two decades of experience in specialty coffee shops. He holds professional certifications for coffee brewing and barista skills. Derek is also an author with authoritative books covering various coffee topics including specialty coffee, sustainability and coffee, coffee brewing, coffee recipes, coffee cocktails and books focusing on Brazilian coffee, Vietnamese coffee, Indonesian coffee and Malaysian coffee. As a barista for over two decades, Derek Marshall has worked in specialty coffee shops across the United Kingdom, Spain, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Vietnam. His expertise extends to the distinct coffee cultures, specialty beverages, and brewing techniques of each nation. Functioning as a coffee consultant, Derek charges US$50 per hour. To learn more about Derek Marshall and Latte Love Brew, visit his About Me Page. For coffee inquiries, contact him at +34-639-410-375 or Derek@LatteLoveBrew.com, mentioning your name and location