Article: This Is The World's Best Cup Of Coffee

By Sarah Hagi for EATER  Editor: Kat Odell

Norway’s Odd-Steinar T?llefsen brews the best cup of coffee in the world. It’s a claim that’s said so often, it’s almost meaningless—but, technically, he does. Last year, T?llefsen won the World Brewers Cup, which is basically like the olympics of coffee brewing. And next month he’s going for it, again.

Online customer reviews of Supreme Roastworks—the Oslo-based cafe and roastery which T?llefsen co-owns with partners Joar Christoffersen and Magnus Lindskog—all mention the unique experience of having a world champion barista brew their coffee, making the accolade a sort of tourist attraction. And after tasting a cup—served black, and prepared one cup at a time—I am inclined to agree.

Surprisingly for a World Brewers Cup champ, T?llefsen only began working with speciality coffee full-time in 2013, falling in love with the craft after working locally part-time as a barista. Prior, he spent years traveling throughout the world as a professional photographer. "I cannot work in an office where you never see anyone other than the people you work with," he says, while seamlessly balancing impeccable customer service—another element that’s judged during the competition.

Outside Supreme Roastworks, Oslo, Norway. [All photos courtesy of Odd-Steinar T?llefsen]

As for the World Brewers Cup, it’s an annual competition that focuses only on preparing and serving filtered coffee using the competitor’s chosen method of hand brewing, which the World Brewers cup defines as devices that "do not include or involve mechanical action powered by supplemental forces like electricity." Employing a simple manual pour-over device, the Hario V60, T?llefsen ranked third in his first national competition, the Norwegian Brewers Cup, in 2013, and this early feat inspired him to compete again the next year to qualify for the World Brewers Cup. "I was overwhelmed, it was the best thing ever. So I just started preparing for the next year, and the next year I won nationals."

Despite his success at placing fourth in 2014’s World Brewers Cup, T?llefsen never expected to become the best: "I was thinking in my head that being a world champion would be impossible." To qualify for the World Brewers Cup, contestants first must win regional competitions before moving on to their national championship. For countries larger than Norway, this means competing against 30-40 regional winners and then facing the rest of the world.

Competing against some of the planet’s best brewers, T?llefsen won the 2015 World Brewers Cup using a Hario v60 and, with the same device, plans to compete for the title again this year—a feat that’s never before been done. "Usually after the world championship people stop because you’ll always be the world champion. I just want to try being first for a second time," says T?llefsen.

While speaking to T?llefsen as he works four different Hario V60s, I drink several cups of coffee brewed with beans from around the world. Watching him prepare each cup, I wait for him to pull a rabbit out of a hat—there has to be more than his simple method of pouring hot water over a filter filled with ground coffee—but that’s it. "It’s really straightforward, there’s no real secret. It’s probably the simplest way of brewing coffee. It’s just pouring hot water over freshly ground coffee through a filter," he states. It looks so easy, that even a McDonald’s coffee fiend could probably do it properly. He adds, "It’s really easy to make good, and it’s also easy to make it really bad. You need focus and accuracy. You need to attend to what you’re doing, and do it right." Precise measurements are key. T?llefsen suggests 20 grams of coffee per 300 gram cup of water.

For the winning cup, each component must be perfect. When it comes to beans, T?llefsen points out that a positive aspect of the rise of speciality coffee is that high quality beans are often nearby: "I would start off with good quality coffee beans from a small roastery. It will always be better than the stuff from the grocery store." From there, he suggests a grind that looks slightly coarser than kosher salt to take a cup to the next level.

Though he has brewed using many different devices, T?llefsen always goes back to Hario V60, choosing it over the more ubiquitous AeroPress. "AeroPress gives more body, but it also gives you some undesirable components like sediments. It all depends on if you like a fuller body or prefer a cleaner, lighter one," he says. Preferring a lighter, but flavorful taste, T?llefsen admits it’s difficult for some to get used to the Hario, "People are used to drinking black coffee from their automatic machine, so when they drink this it’s like a tea." T?llefsen explains that because his method of brewing uses a longer extraction time with lower temperature, it also yields a slighter less bitter cup.

Water temperature should fall between 194° to 198° F, and one should pour in a smooth, circular motion to ensure even and thorough extraction. T?llefsen explains that when water is too hot, it speeds up the extraction, resulting in a more bitter brew. Meanwhile, when water is too cool, grinds won’t release enough flavor. Though, depending on the roast, one can experiment, give or take a few degrees, depending on the coffee’s origins. For example, "Ethiopian (specifically) is more elegant at a lower temperature, whereas South American has more of a punch," he continues.

A longer extraction time is key for a flavorful cup, no longer than three minutes. Any longer will make the coffee too bitter, and any less will render it less flavorful. Overall, brewing should take no longer than five minutes. By the time the cup is ready to drink, it won’t be piping hot—but hot enough to drink without burning your tongue.

Though seemingly simple, precision—be it bean grind size, water temperature, or water to bean ratio—is vital to nail a T?llefsen-approved cup of coffee. The bottom line, "Keep it simple, and as good as possible, so it’s easy to make the same perfect brew over and over again," he says. Of course, a cup of coffee is a matter of taste in the end. T?llefsen warns that after drinking a quality mug, it might be challenging for some to drink an average brew thereafter. And he could be right. After visiting Supreme Roastworks, every other cup of coffee feels like a step away from what the drink should be. Still, it’s comforting to know that with the right tools, perfection isn’t too far away.