Are coffee drip bags the Next Big Thing, or simply a classic finally coming into its own?

Aug 26, 2023

COMMENTARY, Aug 22 — I was on vacation in South Korea earlier this year when I hankered for some coffee.

We were in our hotel room on Jeju Island and there was a rainstorm outside. (The first thing they tell you when you visit Jeju is how the weather can change on a dime, from blazing sun one minute to moody clouds the next.)

So while Jeju has its fair share of cafés, many of them offering specialty coffee so you can get anything from a flat white to a filter brew here easily, we weren’t about to head out when it’s pouring.

Fortunately, every hotel room has its own coffee pod machine these days. Or do they?

We searched high and low, but couldn’t locate anything that looked like a coffee pod or its corresponding machine. Instead, we found a couple of sealed packets with the name Paul Bassett emblazoned on the front, plus the names of different countries.

Single origin coffee drip bags?

Now for those who haven’t encountered them before, coffee drip bags are squarish pouches of ground coffee. You tear off the top portion to open up the filter bag, then fold out the paper handles on the side so you can place them over a cup.

Next, pour hot water slowly over the coffee grounds, allowing the resultant liquid to drip into the cup below. That’s it!

Quite honestly though, we didn’t expect to come across them (Paul Bassett markets these as "barista pouches”) in a hotel room, and featuring single origin coffee beans at that.

Names of coffee-producing countries with flavour profiles to match: the Colombia Jairo Murillro promises bright juicy grapes and syrupy sweet plums; the Ethiopia Guji G1 a more familiar floral scent and the fresh acidity of berries and floral scent.

Here’s a little confession: I have never had a good experience with coffee inside hotel rooms, especially the fancy coffee pod machines. In fact, I’d go as far as to say the instant coffee sachets would satisfy where coffee pod machines do not.

Don’t get me wrong, there is always a thrill whenever I spot a coffee pod machine in my hotel room and I always try it out, eternally optimistic and forgiving... and always disappointed.

You could say I never learn.

So it wasn’t without some trepidation and a fair amount of dread that I tore open one of the coffee drip bags and proceeded to brew a cuppa for us to share.

Our coffee tasted divine.

To say we were surprised would be an understatement; we were shocked. The floral aroma, the fruity notes - this could have been freshly brewed by a barista in a hipster café, the temperature of the water measured just so, the beans freshly ground and some sleek dripper of choice being employed.

Here all we had was a hotel room kettle and a porcelain mug.

When did coffee drip bags get so much better?

I put this question to Ang Yeesiang of Sweet Blossom Coffee Roasters when I visited his café some time later, after our return from South Korea. He shared that coffee drip bags now employ nitrogen infusion packaging to maintain the taste and aroma of the coffee beans at the moment they are roasted.

He adds, "Coffee drip bags produce a brew that is better tasting than instant coffees, yet at the same time you don’t have to invest in a lot of gadgets such as digital scales, goose-neck kettles or even hand-held grinders. But you still enjoy the ‘craft’ and fun of hand pouring.”

This means home "baristas” can make coffee without learning complicated brewing techniques. Being pre-ground, there is no issue with the grind size. Without needing a scale, there is a consistent dose (quantity of beans used).

It’s so convenient! You can brew coffee at home and at the office or on the go, such as when you’re travelling (or indeed, staying at a hotel).

This isn’t entirely a new thing, however.

A patent for an early version of the coffee drip bags was originally filed by Shimizu Kimiaki in Tokyo in 1983, though the more complete and recognisable renditions with the foldable side handles only took off in Japan in the 1990s.

The first time I saw coffee drip bags in its current incarnation was at Await Café in Taman Desa, almost a decade ago. Owner Jane Lee wanted to bring this style of coffee brewing at home that she first experienced when studying in Taiwan back to Malaysia.

She explained, "When we first opened Await Café in 2012, specialty coffee wasn’t as widespread as it is now, particularly hand poured filter coffee. So by making coffee drip bags available for customers to bring home and try brewing on their own, it was one way we could introduce our coffee to them.”

Others have followed suit in the ensuing years. Local coffee roasters such as Bear Coffee Roaster (by the founder of Wild Sheep Home), JWC Roastery, Ghostbird Coffee Co. and Ground Coffee Roasters now offer coffee drip bags too, from house blends to single origin beans.

Even three-time Malaysia Barista Champion Keith Koay of One Half Coffee is thinking of adding coffee drip bags to his repertoire. When I visited their new roastery in Section 11, PJ recently, he shared that he is considering making it even simpler with coffee infusion bags, which resemble tea bags in that they utilise an immersion approach rather than hand pouring.

He recalls, "I first sampled specialty coffee in drip bags when I stayed at a hotel in Taipei. These drip bags were by Fika Fika Café, a reputable Taiwanese roaster. It was excellent, honestly better than what some of my baristas have brewed!”

That’s high praise indeed.

Clearly coffee drip bags are here to stay and, with all the fine people behind them, they will keep getting better. So, what are you waiting for? If you haven’t already, try making your own cuppa with a coffee drip bag today.

For more coffee and café stories, visit coffeeforbeginners.com.

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