Drip coffee is a method of making coffee by letting the coffee drip little by little from the device used. The drip coffee method is often used by baristas in cafes to get a delicious coffee flavor in large quantities.

Making it is not too difficult because it is enough with manual tools, the coffee will start dripping on its own after the coffee grounds placed on the filter are poured with hot water. In general, the tools needed for drip coffee or coffee drippers consist of a coffee filter, gram scale, drip, and kettle.

History of Drip Coffee

Initially, the drip coffee method was invented by a German housewife, Melitta Benz. In 1908, he made the first drip coffee because he was dissatisfied with the coffee grounds that were always left after drinking coffee.

Melitta also experimented with using a paper filter to separate the coffee grounds. Hence, Mellita is considered the inventor of the coffee filter. As is known, the filter is one of the main components in drip coffee.

Meanwhile, the more sophisticated innovation was invented by Gottlob Widmann in 1954. His innovation is the first electronic coffee machine that can work automatically, eliminating the need to manually pour and heat water.

Drip Coffee Process

The process itself depends on the manufacturing style chosen. Different styles of making, different tools are used. For example, there are drip methods using coffee cones and also using chemex.

Drip Coffee Cone

This is a method that utilizes cones and filter paper. For the cone, it is available with various materials, such as glass, stainless steel, or ceramic. You need to be smart in choosing them as the shape and filter can affect the flavor.

Later, hot water is poured evenly over the coffee powder that has been placed on the filter paper. Then, the coffee will drip slowly and into the container provided.

One of the advantages of using these cones is that the equipment is easier to clean. Other than that, the price is around US$8-71. In using this tool, a paper filter that matches the cone is required.

Chemex Drip Coffee

Chemex is a tool that looks like an hourglass made of glass. The method of making it is almost similar to the drip coffee cone. Hot water is poured over the coffee grounds. Then, the coffee will drip little by little into the bottom of the chemex which also serves as a carafe.

Chemex drip coffee is more difficult to clean than cones. Also, the tools are much more fragile even though they are easy to carry around. However, the resulting flavor of coffee made with this tool is more balanced and less sour.

Drip Coffee and Immersion

Drip coffee is a manual brew method of brewing coffee. This means that the coffee is made manually. In addition to the term drip coffee, there is also the term immersion for the manual brew method. For drip coffee, you have to slowly pour water over the coffee grounds on top of the filter. After that, the coffee will slowly drip out little by little.

Meanwhile, immersion is a method of brewing coffee by soaking coffee grounds with water. After soaking for a while, to get the coffee, you can press it using a coffee plunger.

The difference lies in the utilization of water. While drip coffee continuously pours in new water, immersion simply pours in water for the purpose of soaking the coffee grounds.

Drip Coffee with Simple Tools

Now that you know about drip coffee, it’s time for you to try making your own coffee with this method at home. Nowadays, there are many drip coffee devices that make it easier for you to make coffee. However, if you want to make it even simpler, all you have to do is prepare a glass, hot water, a small filter and your preferred coffee grounds.

Prepare a glass. Try to keep the glass at the right width and height to make it easy to place the strainer. Then, place the strainer in the glass. Pour your preferred coffee grounds on top.

After that, pour hot water over the strainer. Wait a few moments for the coffee to slowly drip through the filter into the glass. Afterward, remove the filter and the coffee is ready to enjoy.


Are you a coffee lover? It’s time to visit the KopiKita platform to find coffee from various regions in Indonesia at the best price.