The Art of the Better Brew
Like Duolingo, but for The Art of the Better Brew. Tomo turns the whole topic into a game you play five minutes a day, until it actually sticks.
For the part of you with thirty open tabs that never became anything.
21 levels across 4 sections, about 42 minutes end to end, roughly 8 days at five minutes a day. It moves through Dialing In Your Technique, Developing a Professional Palate, Sourcing and Selection, and The Science of the Bean. It assumes you already know the basics.
Free forever · No credit card · iPhone & Android
Key ideas in The Art of the Better Brew
- A lower ratio like 1:15 uses less water per gram of coffee than 1:17
- Finer grinds create more surface area for water to contact the coffee oils
- Decreasing the water-to-coffee ratio increases the concentration of dissolved solids
- Coarser grinds slow down extraction to prevent bitterness in long-steep methods
- Brew ratio primarily scales intensity rather than changing which flavors are extracted
- Grind size must match the resistance needed for the specific brewer's filter type
- Using brew ratio to adjust the intensity of the final cup
- Matching grind size to the specific brewing equipment and surface area needs
- Acids are the most soluble and extract first in the brewing cycle
- Agitation physically moves saturated water away from the grounds to be replaced by fresh water
- Sugars require more energy and time to dissolve than bright acids
- Mechanical energy from stirring acts as a catalyst to speed up the dissolving of solids
- The sequence of flavor extraction based on solubility and temperature
- Bitter plant fibers and tannins are the last to extract, often at higher temperatures
- Excessive agitation can lead to 'channeling' or over-extraction if not balanced
- Understanding how agitation affects the speed of the brewing process
You've tried the other tabs
Thirty open tabs. Four facts you actually kept.
You watched. You nodded. By Sunday it was gone.
One answer, then back to scrolling.
Eight weeks. You meant to finish. You didn't.
Tomo gives The Art of the Better Brew the Duolingo treatment: levels, streaks, and quick quizzes that test what you just learned. That game loop is what the tabs above never had, so it's the one you actually finish.
Here's what playing it feels like
A real question from this course. Take your best guess.
Why does a finer grind typically lead to a faster extraction of coffee oils and flavors?
Get it right to open this lesson and 20 more in the app.
Where The Art of the Better Brew takes you
Move beyond the morning jolt and learn to manipulate extraction, identify complex flavor profiles, and source beans like a professional roaster.
- 1
Dialing In Your Technique
- The Variables of Extraction
- Immersion vs. Percolation
- 2
Developing a Professional Palate
- Navigating the Flavor Wheel
- Troubleshooting by Taste
- 3
Sourcing and Selection
- Decoding the Coffee Label
- The Impact of Processing Methods
- 4
The Science of the Bean
- Water Chemistry and Heat
4 sections · 7 units · 21 levels. Built to play, not to enroll.
You pick the voice
The Art of the Better Brew is taught in the The Professor style: clear, structured, thorough. Want a different feel? In the app you can spin up the same topic in any of Tomo's teaching styles. Same facts, totally different vibe.
More Food & Drink on Tomo
The Craft of the Cup
Move beyond the morning jolt to understand the science of extraction, the nuances of regional terroir, and the professional techniques used to evaluate world-class coffee.
Dialing In Your Coffee
Move beyond the recipe and learn to manipulate extraction, water chemistry, and bean processing to craft the perfect cup every morning.
The Science of Better Coffee
Move beyond the basics of brewing to master the variables that define a perfect cup. Learn to manipulate water chemistry, extraction theory, and sensory analysis like a professional barista.
Dialing In Your Coffee
Move beyond the recipe and learn to manipulate variables like a professional barista to find the 'sweet spot' in every bean.
Better Coffee at Home
Stop settling for mediocre mornings. Learn to brew cafe-quality coffee by mastering the variables that actually matter, from bean selection to extraction science.
The Craft of Better Coffee
Move beyond the morning caffeine hit to understand the variables that define a perfect cup. Learn to manipulate extraction, analyze flavor profiles, and source beans like a professional.
Start The Art of the Better Brew today.
Download Tomo, search The Art of the Better Brew, and play your first lesson in under a minute.