Coffee By Hand Benefits Charity

Caffeine addicts who find themselves in downtown Fredericksburg during tomorrow's First Friday will be able to enjoy coffees brewed using a variety of different hand-brewed techniques. The folks at 25 30 Espresso, located near the Fredericksburg Train Station on Princess Anne Street, will be operating a pop-up coffee shop, CUP, at 724 Caroline Street beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, June 3.

Visitors will be able to sip on coffees created from four hand brewing techniques. There's the familiar French press, which strains the coffee grounds through hot water in a cylindrical jar using a plunging filter. More exotic varieties of the hand-brewed joe will be used as well, including the Chemex, the beehive dripper and the siphon. 

The Chemex and the beehive dripper resemble a primitive Mr. Coffee. Both are simply a coffee pot with a funnel which supports a thick filter into which the grounds are placed for hand-poured hot water to strain through at a measured rate.

The siphon resembles a piece of a mad scientists laboratory. A glass sphere sits below an inverted funnel supported by an elegant chrome and wood trimmed stand. Fresh, hot water is poured into the globe and brought to a boil with a small flame. Gradually, as the pressure inside the globe increases, the water defies gravity and is forced up into the filtered funnel. From there coffee grounds are mixed in and the flame is removed. The coffee drains back through the funnel, re-entering the sphere as filtered, delicious coffee. 

These techniques are admittedly pretty geeky, says Maureen Bartosh, owner of 25 30 Espresso, and normally only found in cities with an established coffee culture like Seattle and Portland. But among coffee geeks, the differences in the final product between the techniques generate fierce debates. Advocates for hand brewing say the processes bring out richer flavors than one could get from the average plug-in brewer. 

For the novice coffee aficionado who may want to try their hand at hand-brewing, Bartosh recommends starting with a French press. 

"It leaves the coffee a bit grainy, but it's pretty easy to get a good cup out of it," says Bartosh. 

All of the proceeds generated at CUP will be donated to the Salvation Army of Fredericksburg's Youth Music Program, which provides economically disadvantaged children with opportunities to learn music.