Coffee and Caffeine FAQ

I won't argue your comment except to say:

You mention people grinding too find and clogging filters causing overflows. That's not a quantity of coffee issue. That's a fines clogging the filter issue. Grind courser.

You mention coffee manufacturers using a 5 oz cup instead of a 6 oz cup. That's a manufacturers issue. You should take in into consideration but that does not make 2 tbsp per cup wrong. It makes 2 tbsp for 5 oz of water wrong. French presses often use a 4 oz cup. You have to take that into consideration also.

If you have a pot that is overflowing what a proper grind and quantity of coffee (small cups taken into consideration) then you should probably consider a different pot not just use less coffee. If you love the pot and it overflows just make fewer cups of coffee at a time.

I have never had overflow issues using proper amounts of water and coffee in a good coffee pot. On the other hand I have seen cheap pots that would not even hold the correct amount of coffee when the coffee was dry. To some extent you get what you pay for.

Two tbsp of coffee per six oz of water is a strong cup of coffee but it also means you get a cup of coffee that is smooth with less undesirable flavors extracted. If you wand something weaker I would recommend adding water. If you must brew weak coffee and you like it feel free. But don't claim that using less is categorically better.

Having said all that you do have to tweak the ratios a little bit (say +/- a scoop per pot) according to the pot you are using. For half pots I add a little coffee. I suppose if I was making giant pots I might add a little less. Some people might like the coffee better with a little less coffee included but when you start talking about 1 tbsp per cup (5 or 6 oz cups) you are talking about weak off flavored coffee.