Bean-to-cup coffee: choosing beans and adjusting the flavour

A bean-to-cup machine is meant to make daily coffee easier. Yet it is worth exploring its settings: the factory defaults do not know your beans or your favourite cup. Our suggestion is a small comparison in which you change just one setting at a time.

Start with the beans

First choose a flavour profile that appeals to you. For a traditional espresso, descriptions such as chocolatey, nutty or bold can be useful starting points. If you enjoy fruity flavours, try a coffee described that way. “100% Arabica” alone does not answer this question of taste.

Follow your machine's instructions. JURA, for example, excludes beans treated with sugar or other additives. Ground coffee belongs only in a dedicated ground-coffee chute, never in the bean hopper.

Four steps towards your own settings

1. Record your starting point. Choose a drink you make often and note the beans, drink volume, strength setting and grind size. Use the same cup for comparisons.
2. Check the drink volume. If the coffee tastes watery, try a smaller volume first. If you want a large cup, prepare a shorter coffee and add hot water separately, then compare the two approaches.
3. Adjust coffee strength. Try the next setting up or down. Consult the manual to find out exactly what this changes on your machine. Start by comparing without milk or sugar.
4. Change the grind carefully. A finer grind can slow the flow; a coarser grind often speeds it up. If coffee only drips out, going finer again is not a useful next step. Adjust the grinder only as instructed by the manufacturer.

Make the comparison useful

Do not change the beans, strength and grind at the same time. Also check how many drinks your machine needs before a new setting takes effect: previously ground coffee may remain in the system. Then record just three things: too light or about right, pleasantly or unpleasantly bitter, and your next small adjustment.

Finally, test the result in your usual drink, perhaps with milk. If several different coffees suddenly taste unpleasant, check cleaning and maintenance according to the manual before changing more settings.

Explore further

Explore coffee beans · Freshness and storage · Understanding flavour problems

Sources

• JURA: suitable coffee beans
• JURA: grind adjustment

Photo: Matti Blume · CC BY-SA 4.0.

Technical editorial: Stefan Anzinger, SCA AST