For as long as I’ve been into coffee, I’ve been chasing the perfect technique for pour over coffee. Over time, I’ve started to dislike and call most coffee I brew at home “bad coffee.”

Over 15 years ago, I started brewing with the V60, maybe one of the most visual iconic brewing methods for coffee. This also happens to be one of the most temperamental brewing devices. It can extract the most wonderful and clean cup of coffee but if not dialed in precisely, the brew can swing wildly to over or under extracted.

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Making coffee is part of my morning ritual. It’s meditative in practice to open the bag of beans, smell the aroma when grinding, get the filter paper out and fold it just right, the sound of the heating kettle creaking and cracking in my quiet house, and the steady hand required for that perfect clockwise spiral pour into the coffee bed. The fact that the V60 requires skill to get a good cup is part of what makes this fulfilling. Being skilled makes a better cup of coffee.

Key point: I love brewing coffee, that part is always enjoyable.

Chasing the perfectly brewed pour over each day has driven me to dislike most coffee I brew at home. “I’ve had a better at …” or “This is slightly under-extracted and I would really enjoy this if it had brightness or acidity here…” Saying these things makes me hate my coffee. I don’t want to hate my coffee, it’s my inner critic that is always searching for ways to improve everything. It’s been an asset to me in business but for this, it’s poisoning my passion.

Is all bad coffee good coffee? No, there is a line of “undrinkable”. But most coffee IS good. I expect great coffee, and honestly that is a rare thing. It’s a special thing.

So I’m just not saying those critiques out loud any more. I own a coffee shop, if I want great coffee I have a nearly unlimited supply. Talking down to my coffee at home only makes me sad and enjoy things less. My wife pointed out to me she genuinely enjoys most if not every single cup I brew for her. It’s when I comment on how “this one is slightly under-extracted” that it ruins it for her.

By focusing on my desire for better, it ruins the current fruits of my labor.

I’m going to be grateful for the opportunity to create something and enjoy what I’ve created. I will enjoy it for the fact that I created it, for the fact that I have the means to create it, and time to enjoy it. I won’t stop improving my craft, but I will be mindful to separate doing, enjoying, and improving to their own lanes.

Cheers and go drink some good coffee