Coffee is arguably the world’s most popular addictive substance of choice. Consumers are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and as a result, many baristas are using scientific instruments to ensure the perfect brew!
It turns out that the Brix percentage indicates the typical strength of a coffee. This measurement provides a well-trained barista insights into the solubility of a roast, how to setup up their equipment, even how to achieve the perfect roast of coffee beans.
Are you interested in taking coffee brewing to the next level? The Atago IC-PAL-Coffee is a device Instrument Choice recommends to baristas, principally because the instrument is capable of determining a subtle difference in a coffee brew’s concentration to a high resolution of 0.01%! What's more, stable readings are possible, even at high temperatures, which is a result of the Atago’s continuous measurement feature.
How to measure Coffee Brix using the Atago IC-PAL-Coffee Refractometer
You will need;
- Water (distilled, tap or deionised)
- A plastic pipette
- Atago IC-PAL-Coffee Refractometer
- Coffee sample(s)
- Tissues
At the beginning of each day, before taking a measurement or after changing the Atago meters batteries, you must perform a zero-set calibration. Here’s how:
- (0:39) Take approximately 0.3mL of water and place it on the device’s prism, ensuring it is covered.
- (0:46) Press the ‘START’ button and wait for the reading to stabilise.
- (0:52) Once stable press ‘START’ again to stop continuous measuring.
- (0:55) Press ‘ZERO’ while the water is still on the prism. ‘000’ will blink twice, and the zero setting is now complete.
- (1:07) Wipe the water off the prism using a clean tissue.
To measure coffee;
- (1:15) Use the pipette to pick up and apply around 0.3mL of coffee onto the prism.
- (1:24) Press ‘START’.
- (1:34) Wait for the reading to stabilise. Once the first reading appears on the screen, the IC-PAL-Coffee will continuously measure and adjust readings. You can be sure your device is in continuous measurement mode when you see the results blinking and adjusting on the screen.
- (1:51) To stop the continuous measurement at any time, press the ‘START’ button a second time. The last result will now remain on the screen.
- (1:56) Once recorded, wipe the prism clean.
NOTE: Once testing has finished, or at the end of each day, it’s good practice to wash down the refractometer prism with warm water and a mild detergent then dry using tissues.
CONCLUSION
The Atago IC-PAL-Coffee makes determining the subtle differences in coffee strength a straightforward task enabling baristas to test the solubility of a roast, setup brewing parameters and ensure consistent roast development. Contact us or follow the additional links for more information on the IC-PAL-Coffee refractometer.
Additional Links
- View the full product features and specifications here.
- Watch ‘How to Measure Coffee Using the IC-PAL-Coffee Digital Handheld Brix Refractometer’ again.
- Want to see what comes with this device? Watch a video on Instrument Choice scientist Unboxing the IC-PAL-Coffee Digital Handheld Pocket Refractometer.