My Slow Weekend Coffee Ritual with a Chemex

There is something lovely about being able to see the whole process. The coffee does not simply appear in a cup: I can watch the water pass through the filter and the brewed coffee drip into the glass underneath.

That is the part I enjoy most. I am not making a comparison between machines or trying to find one method that everyone ought to use. I am a coffee lover, and different kinds of coffee have their place in my day.

I also genuinely enjoy Nespresso. When I am in a hurry, it is a convenient choice that I like drinking. At the weekend, the Chemex gives me a different pleasure: a little time spent making the coffee itself.

My usual setup is simple: my Chemex coffeemaker, the white filters made for the Chemex, coarsely ground coffee, an ordinary tablespoon for the coffee, water brought to the boil and left to cool slightly, and small cups for serving.

I do not measure the water as part of my usual routine, so I cannot give an exact coffee-to-water ratio for this particular brew. Nor do I have a measured temperature or a timed drawdown to share. Describing it that way is more useful than making the routine sound more precise than it is.

If you want a repeatable measured recipe, follow the guidance for your brewer and chosen coffee. My version here is a personal ritual, with a few manufacturer tips set out separately below.

I use a white Chemex filter and add around 2½–3 tablespoons of ground coffee. That is the amount I normally use for what becomes approximately four small cups in my own kitchen.

Tablespoons and small cups are not exact measures of coffee weight and brewed volume. If your cups are bigger, or your coffee is ground differently, do not assume the same spoonfuls will give the same result.

I bring the water to the boil and leave it to cool slightly before pouring. I do this by feel, without checking a particular temperature.

Set the brewer on a stable surface and give yourself room to pour carefully. The water, filter and glass can be hot.

I add water over the coffee and watch it work its way through. When it has run through, I pour in another round. That is how I continue until I have the amount I want.

The pauses are part of what I enjoy. Watching the dripping through the glass is a lovely reason to stay beside the coffee for a moment rather than immediately finding something else to do.

Once the coffee has finished filtering, remove the used filter carefully and serve. My usual brew gives me around four small cups, but that describes my own serving habit, not the capacity printed on a Chemex model.

Then take the coffee somewhere you want to sit. The making is part of the pleasure; drinking it deserves a little time too.

These are manufacturer recommendations, separate from the way I have described my own routine. In its official brewing guidance, Chemex recommends a medium-coarse grind. For the folded filter, the thicker, three-layer side sits over the pouring spout.

Its guidance also includes an initial small pour to wet the grounds, followed by a pause of about 30 seconds before continuing. This is called the bloom. During pouring, leave space below the brewer's rim rather than filling the filter to the top.

Use the instructions for your own model and compatible filters. These tips are a useful place to begin if you are new to the brewer; they are not a claim that I already measure or perform every part of the manufacturer's method.

I like sitting on the sofa under a blanket, or on our white bouclé dining bench at the table with my coffee. In summer, I enjoy the large table outside or the space under our covered patio.

The setting can change with the day. Sometimes a book belongs beside the coffee. Sometimes it is enough just to sit with it.

Music is another part of home for me. I enjoy Italian or classical music in the kitchen, and when I read I often put on something quiet, such as Rain on Church Lane. You can keep the coffee-making just as simple without music; choose what you enjoy having around you.

This is usually a weekend ritual because that is when the slower process fits my life. I would not want the idea of a lovely coffee morning to become something I have to perform every day.

A quick Nespresso can be thoroughly enjoyable. A Chemex can be enjoyable for the making as well as the drinking. There is room for both in the same kitchen.

If you want to turn the morning into a little home café, add a good croissant and choose your favourite place to sit. You do not have to bake something before the coffee can feel special.