How Bottled Water Can Amplify The Body And Flavor Of Coffee
Have you noticed that hotel coffee just tastes a little "off," sometimes? Even when you bring your favorite brand of coffee beans with you, they may not have the same flavor as the coffee you make at home. Of course, it could just be the different machine you're using. Most hotels have smaller coffee makers, so if you use your normal amount of coffee beans, the brew will end up stronger than you're used to. Plus, who knows how long those machines have sat there without a proper cleaning?
But even if you clean the machine, you might have coffee that is still not quite right. The only other option, then, may just be the water. At home, you get used to your tap water, or you may even have a filter to help improve your tap water's taste and quality. But when you are traveling, the water will be different and you may not have a filter to run it through. So, to elevate your coffee, you could use bottled water.
Bottled water to the rescue
In an interview with Food & Wine, Manuel Barsallo, founder of Coffeetologist Coffee Company and co-founder of Cruce Coffee Company, said that tap water (even the tap water you are used to at home) may have excess chloride or calcium, and that can impact the way your coffee tastes. That's why Barsallo suggests using bottled water, especially when you are traveling, to make your coffee. He advises using a bottled water that has higher amounts of magnesium, specifically, because it improves the sweetness of the coffee.
Per West Side Rag, it's quite common for the taste of tap water to change when the climate does. Furthermore, LiveScience states that dirt and other debris can settle into water supply lines, copper pipes can rust, and the water could have alga blooms, all causing a difference in taste. Of course, there are some occurrences when bacteria can be in the water supply, which also alters the taste and the safety of the water. If you aren't using a filter, you're likely to notice most of these changes.
Filtered water works well for coffee
Because of these possible changes to your tap water, Tyler Mountain Water says that bottled water is a great alternative to tap for making coffee. The company says that bottled water improves the flavor and consistency of coffee — specifically because the quality and mineral content of tap water will vary from each area (and even from day to day in the same region). In order to get flavor consistency with your coffee, using bottled water, even at home, is a great option.
Can't see yourself using bottled water for coffee every morning? That's ok. Pure Water Blog notes that Starbucks uses a triple filtration system to get its smooth-tasting coffee. You can buy your own triple filtration system, which is usually installed under your kitchen sink (per Lowe's). This can offer tap water that not only tastes great but also makes an amazing cup of coffee. Even just regularly filtered water can make a huge difference in the taste of your at-home brew. Invigorated Water says that even one pass of a filter to clean out the chlorine from your tap water will greatly improve the flavor of your coffee.