Every Way the World Makes Coffee (And Which Ones You Should Try)

Written by Marc Narrie, founder of Buddha Beans Coffee Co. and specialty coffee roaster since 2019. We have tested every method on this list with our own beans to find what works best for CBD and CBG-infused coffee.

Most coffee drinkers pick one method and never look back

French press people stay French press people. Espresso drinkers look down on everything else. Pour-over fans build entire personality traits around their Chemex.

But coffee has been brewed on every continent for centuries, and some of the best methods never made it to your local cafe. As a roaster, I have pulled shots, pressed plungers, and boiled cowboy pots with the same bag of beans, and I can tell you: the brewing method changes the cup more than most people realize.

Here are 18 brewing traditions worth knowing, with the specific parameters that actually matter for each one.

1. Turkish coffee (Turkey, Middle East, North Africa)

The oldest continuously practiced brewing method in the world, dating to the 15th century Ottoman Empire. UNESCO added Turkish coffee culture to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2013.

Ultra-fine coffee grounds (finer than espresso, almost powder) go into a small brass pot called a cezve with water and sugar. Heat slowly until it foams, pull off the heat, let it settle, repeat two or three times. The grounds stay in the cup. You drink around them.

Parameters: 7-10g coffee per 65ml water. Grind: extra fine (Turkish setting). Water temp: bring to just below boiling (195-200°F). Brew time: 3-4 minutes total with 2-3 foam cycles. No filter.

Turkish coffee is thick, intense, and nothing like what most Americans consider "strong." The texture alone sets it apart. Some families read fortunes in the grounds left at the bottom of the cup. A single-origin bean like our Colombian Antigua ground ultra-fine works well here.

Try it if: You want coffee that feels like a ritual, not a habit.

2. Ethiopian coffee ceremony (jebena)

Coffee originated in Ethiopia. The most widely accepted origin story traces it to a goat herder named Kaldi in the 9th century, though documented cultivation dates to the 15th century. Ethiopians treat their coffee accordingly.

A full ceremony takes 30 to 60 minutes. Green beans are roasted in a pan over coals, ground by hand with a mortar and pestle, then brewed in a clay pot called a jebena. The coffee is poured from height into small handleless cups called sini, and guests drink three rounds: abol (first, strongest), tona (second), and baraka (third, mildest, considered a blessing).

Parameters: Medium-fine grind. Ratio varies by ceremony. Water is brought to a full boil in the jebena. The clay pot itself affects flavor through mineral absorption. No paper or metal filter; the jebena's narrow spout traps grounds.

This is not about caffeine. This is about community. The ceremony happens multiple times a day in many Ethiopian households. Our Ethiopia Kochere beans are sourced from this same growing region in the Yirgacheffe zone.

Try it if: You want to experience coffee the way it was meant to be shared.

3. Espresso (Italy)

Invented by Angelo Moriondo in 1884 and refined by Luigi Bezzera and Desiderio Pavoni in the early 1900s. The Specialty Coffee Association defines espresso as 25-35ml of liquid extracted from 7-9g of finely ground coffee at 9 bars (130 psi) of pressure in 20-30 seconds.

What most people get wrong: espresso is not a roast level. It is a brewing method. You can pull a shot with light-roast single origin and get something completely different from the dark, bitter shots at chain shops. In our roasting lab, we have found that medium-roast CBG coffee produces a balanced espresso with clean crema. Our Black Label CBG Coffee pulls an excellent shot with 300mg CBG and 300mg CBD per bag.

Parameters: 7-9g single, 14-18g double. Grind: fine. Water temp: 195-205°F. Pressure: 9 bars. Extraction time: 25-30 seconds. Yield: 1:2 ratio (18g in, 36g out).

Try it if: You want concentrated flavor in 25 seconds.

4. Moka pot (Italy, Latin America, Southern Europe)

Alfonso Bialetti designed the iconic octagonal Moka Express in 1933. The design has barely changed since. Over 300 million units have been sold worldwide, according to the Bialetti company.

Water in the bottom chamber heats up, builds steam pressure (about 1.5 bars, far less than espresso's 9), and forces water through a basket of ground coffee into the top chamber. It does not produce true espresso, but it makes strong, rich coffee that millions of households across Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Latin America drink every day. Try it with our Black Label 600mg CBD Coffee for a strong, full-bodied pull.

Parameters: Fill the basket level (do not tamp). Grind: medium-fine, slightly coarser than espresso. Start with hot water in the base to reduce metallic taste. Remove from heat the moment coffee begins to sputter. Brew time: 4-5 minutes total.

Try it if: You want strong coffee without spending $800 on a machine.

5. French press (France, everywhere)

Patented by Italian designer Attilio Calimani in 1929, though the French had been using similar devices since the 1850s. The James Hoffmann method (2008) refined the technique with a longer steep and no plunge pressure, which reduces sediment.

Coarse grounds steep in hot water for four minutes, then you push a metal mesh plunger down to separate the grounds from the liquid. Simple. No filters to buy. The metal mesh lets oils and fine particles through, giving French press coffee a heavier body than filtered methods. According to a Harvard Health study, unfiltered coffee contains diterpenes (cafestol and kahweol) that can raise LDL cholesterol, something to know if you drink multiple cups daily.

A full-bodied bean like our Brazil Anaerobic CBD Coffee shines in a French press. The anaerobic processing adds fruit-forward notes that the full immersion brings out.

Parameters: 30g coffee per 500ml water (1:15-1:17 ratio). Grind: coarse. Water temp: 200°F. Steep: 4 minutes. Single slow press.

Try it if: You want full-bodied coffee with zero technique required.

6. Pour-over (Japan, specialty coffee worldwide)

Japan refined pour-over brewing into an art form decades before the third-wave coffee movement adopted it. Kissaten (Japanese coffee shops) have been doing single-cup pour-overs since the 1950s. The Hario V60 was introduced in 2004, the Chemex was invented by Peter Schlumbohm in 1941, and the Kalita Wave uses a flat-bottom design with three drain holes for more even extraction.

Hot water poured slowly in concentric circles over a bed of ground coffee in a cone-shaped dripper. Each device produces a slightly different cup depending on filter shape, flow rate, and pour technique. Our Costa Rica Tarrazu CBD Coffee produces a bright, clean pour-over with excellent clarity.

Parameters (V60): 15g coffee per 250ml water. Grind: medium-fine. Water temp: 200-205°F. Bloom: 30-45 seconds with 2x coffee weight in water. Total brew: 2:30-3:30. Pour in slow concentric circles, never hit the filter walls directly.

Try it if: You want clean, bright, nuanced coffee and do not mind a learning curve.

7. Vietnamese coffee (phin filter)

Vietnam is the world's second-largest coffee producer (after Brazil), responsible for roughly 20% of global output, according to the International Coffee Organization. The country primarily grows robusta, which shaped this brewing tradition.

A small metal filter (phin) sits on top of your cup. You add dark-roast coffee, press down the internal screen, pour hot water in, and wait 4 to 5 minutes while it drips through. Serve over ice with sweetened condensed milk at the bottom.

Vietnamese iced coffee (ca phe sua da) is one of the most satisfying drinks on the planet. The condensed milk cuts the bitterness of the dark roast, and the slow drip extracts flavors that faster methods miss.

Parameters: 25g coffee per phin. Grind: medium-coarse. Water temp: boiling (212°F). Drip time: 4-6 minutes. 2-3 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk per cup. Serve over a full glass of ice.

Try it if: You like your coffee sweet, strong, and ice cold.

8. Cafe de olla (Mexico)

Cafe de olla translates to "pot coffee" and has been part of Mexican culture since at least the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920), when soldaderas brewed it in clay pots for troops. The clay pot (olla de barro) itself contributes a subtle earthy minerality that metal and glass cannot replicate.

Coffee brewed with cinnamon (canela), piloncillo (unrefined whole cane sugar), and sometimes cloves or orange peel. Our USDA Organic Mexico CBD Coffee from Chiapas is the natural match here, since it comes from the same growing region where this tradition thrives.

Parameters: 60g coffee per liter of water. Add 1 cinnamon stick and 50g piloncillo per liter. Bring to a boil, remove from heat, steep 5 minutes, strain through a fine mesh. The clay pot is traditional but a saucepan works.

Try it if: You like warm spices and want coffee that feels like a hug.

9. AeroPress (invented 2005, used everywhere)

Alan Adler invented the AeroPress. He also invented the Aerobie Pro flying ring (Guinness World Record for farthest throw: 1,333 feet). The AeroPress World Championship, held annually since 2008, has seen competitors from over 60 countries create wildly inventive recipes.

A plastic tube, a plunger, and a paper filter. You add coffee and hot water, stir, wait about a minute, then press the plunger down. The whole process takes 90 seconds and produces clean, smooth coffee with low acidity. It costs about $40 and is nearly indestructible. Any of our CBD and CBG coffees work well in an AeroPress.

Parameters: 15-18g coffee per 200-220ml water. Grind: medium-fine. Water temp: 175-185°F (lower than most methods). Steep: 60-90 seconds. Press: 20-30 seconds of gentle pressure. Inverted method avoids premature dripping.

Try it if: You travel, camp, or want great coffee without any fuss.

10. Siphon / vacuum brewer (Japan, specialty cafes)

The vacuum coffee maker was invented in the 1830s in Germany, but Japanese kissaten coffee culture elevated siphon brewing into a precision craft. Some Tokyo kissaten have been using the same siphon setup daily for over 50 years.

Part chemistry lab, part performance art. Two glass chambers sit on a stand with a heat source underneath. Water in the bottom chamber heats up, rises into the top chamber where it mixes with coffee, then filters back down as the heat is removed and a vacuum forms. The result is an exceptionally clean cup with bright, tea-like clarity.

Try our Ethiopia Kochere in a siphon for fruit-forward flavors you will not get any other way.

Parameters: 22g coffee per 360ml water. Grind: medium. Water temp: full boil in lower chamber. Steep in upper chamber: 60-90 seconds with gentle stir. Total brew: about 6 minutes. Cloth filter is traditional; paper works too.

Try it if: You want to impress someone, or you genuinely care about clarity in the cup.

11. Cold brew (United States, now global)

Cold brew coffee dates to 17th-century Japan (Kyoto-style slow drip), but the modern immersion method exploded in the US around 2015. According to the National Coffee Association's 2024 survey, cold brew consumption among US adults has nearly tripled since 2015.

Coarse grounds steeped in cold or room temperature water for 12 to 24 hours, then filtered. No heat ever touches the coffee. The result is smooth, low-acid, naturally sweet, and highly caffeinated because of the long extraction time. We built our CBD Cold Brew Blend specifically for this method, with 300mg CBD that extracts evenly over the long steep.

Parameters: 100g coffee per 700ml water (1:7 ratio for concentrate, dilute 1:1 when serving). Grind: extra coarse. Water temp: cold or room temperature. Steep: 16-24 hours in the fridge. Filter through paper after straining. Concentrate keeps 7-10 days refrigerated.

Try it if: Acidity bothers your stomach, or you want something smooth over ice.

12. Indian filter coffee (South India)

South Indian filter coffee has been a daily ritual in states like Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala for over 300 years, tracing back to the Sufi saint Baba Budan, who smuggled seven coffee beans from Yemen to India in the 1600s.

A two-chamber stainless steel device. Coffee (usually an 80/20 blend of coffee and chicory) goes in the upper chamber with a perforated pressing disc. Hot water drips slowly through into the lower chamber over 10 to 15 minutes. The decoction is then mixed with hot, frothy boiled milk and sugar.

Served in a dabara set: a small steel cup inside a wider saucer. You pour it back and forth between the two to cool it and create froth. The chicory adds a roasted, slightly bitter depth that pure coffee does not have.

Parameters: 20-25g coffee-chicory blend per 200ml water. Grind: fine to medium-fine. Water temp: boiling. Drip time: 10-15 minutes (patience is required). Mix decoction with boiled milk 1:3 or to taste. Sugar to preference.

Try it if: You like milk-heavy coffee with character.

13. Swedish egg coffee (Scandinavia, American Midwest)

This sounds wrong until you try it. You mix a raw egg (shell included) into the coffee grounds before boiling them in water. The egg proteins bind to the bitter compounds and tannins, then coagulate and float to the top as a raft. You skim off the egg-ground mass and pour the clearest, smoothest coffee you have ever tasted.

Scandinavian immigrants brought this method to Minnesota and the Dakotas in the late 1800s. Church basements and Lutheran potlucks across the Upper Midwest still serve it today.

Parameters: 75g coffee and 1 whole egg per liter of water. Mix egg into dry grounds. Add to boiling water, boil 3 minutes, remove from heat. Add 1 cup cold water to settle the raft. Let sit 10 minutes. Strain and serve.

Try it if: You are open-minded and want the smoothest cup possible.

14. Cowboy coffee (American West, camping tradition)

Grounds go directly into a pot of boiling water over a campfire. Let it boil, take it off the heat, wait for the grounds to settle. Some people add cold water or crushed eggshells to help the grounds sink faster. Pour carefully.

No filter, no equipment, no technique. Just coffee, water, fire. It will be strong, it will have sediment, and it will taste better at 6 a.m. in the mountains than any pour-over you have ever made at home.

Parameters: 60g coffee per liter of water. Grind: coarse. Bring to a rolling boil, then remove from heat immediately. Wait 4 minutes for grounds to settle. Pour slowly.

Try it if: You are outdoors and want coffee that matches the setting.

15. Cuban cafecito (Cuba, Miami)

The cafecito is the social glue of Cuban culture. In Miami, the ventanita (walk-up coffee window) is a neighborhood institution. You order a cafecito or a colada (a larger serving meant to be shared from small plastic cups) and drink it standing on the sidewalk.

Espresso brewed in a moka pot, but the first few drops of coffee are whipped vigorously with demerara or white sugar to create espumita, a thick, caramel-colored foam. The rest of the coffee is poured over this foam. Our Colombian Antigua has the body to stand up to the sugar.

Parameters: Brew a full moka pot. While brewing, add 1 tablespoon sugar per serving to a measuring cup. When the first drops appear, pour about 1 tablespoon of coffee onto the sugar. Whip vigorously until you get a light tan paste. Pour remaining coffee over the espumita.

Try it if: You want espresso-strength coffee with built-in sweetness.

16. Greek/Arabic coffee

Nearly identical to Turkish coffee in method: fine grounds, a small pot (called a briki in Greece, dallah in Arabic countries), slow heating until it foams. The main differences are cultural. Greeks typically use a medium roast and may add less sugar. Arabic coffee (qahwa) often includes cardamom (hel) and is served unsweetened or lightly sweetened in small cups called finjan.

In many Arab countries, offering coffee to a guest is a sign of hospitality governed by specific social protocols. UNESCO recognized Arabic coffee culture (gahwa) as Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2015.

Parameters: Same as Turkish (7-10g per 65ml), but Arabic qahwa uses a lighter roast and adds 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom per cup. Some variations add saffron or cloves.

Try it if: You tried Turkish coffee and want to explore the regional variations.

17. Scandinavian kaffeost (Finland, Northern Sweden)

Hot black coffee poured over cubes of leipajuusto (also called Finnish squeaky cheese), a baked cheese similar to halloumi. The cheese absorbs the coffee, softens, and you eat it with a spoon after drinking. The combination of salty cheese and black coffee works better than it has any right to.

This is a Sami tradition from northern Scandinavia, where both reindeer milk cheese and strong coffee have been dietary staples for centuries.

Parameters: Brew strong black coffee by any method. Cut leipajuusto into 1-inch cubes. Place in a cup, pour coffee over. Wait 1-2 minutes for the cheese to absorb. Eat the coffee-soaked cheese with a spoon.

Try it if: You want to tell people you put cheese in your coffee and watch their reaction.

18. Singapore/Malaysian kopi

Coffee beans roasted with sugar and butter (or margarine), giving them a dark, caramelized coating. Brewed through a cloth sock filter (the sock is a flannel bag on a metal ring) and served with sweetened condensed milk or evaporated milk. The butter roasting creates a flavor profile that no other method can replicate.

Ordering kopi in Singapore involves a specific vocabulary: kopi (with condensed milk), kopi-o (black with sugar), kopi-c (with evaporated milk), kopi-gao (extra strong), kopi-peng (iced), kopi-o-kosong (black, no sugar).

Parameters: The sock filter steeps for 3-5 minutes. Water temp: boiling. Traditionally pulled (poured from height between two containers) to mix and cool. Use dark-roast beans. Condensed milk goes in first, coffee on top.

Try it if: You want coffee that tastes like caramel without adding any syrup.

Brewing methods at a glance

Method	Origin	Brew Time	Grind Size	Best For
Turkish coffee	Turkey, Middle East	3-5 minutes	Extra fine (powder)	Strong, thick, ceremonial
Espresso	Italy	25-30 seconds	Fine	Concentrated shots, milk drinks
Pour-over	Japan, global specialty	3-4 minutes	Medium-fine	Clean, bright, single-origin
French press	France	4 minutes	Coarse	Full-bodied, rich, everyday
Moka pot	Italy, Latin America	5-7 minutes	Fine to medium	Stovetop espresso-style, no machine needed
Vietnamese phin	Vietnam	4-6 minutes	Medium-coarse	Condensed milk, strong, sweet
AeroPress	USA (2005)	1-2 minutes	Medium-fine	Travel, quick, versatile
Cold brew	USA, now global	12-24 hours	Coarse	Smooth, low-acid, iced

No matter how you brew it

The best method is the one you enjoy drinking. But if you have been using the same one for years, pick something from this list and try it this week. Coffee is one of those rare things where changing how you make it completely changes what it tastes like, even with the same beans.

Every Buddha Beans coffee is roasted to perform across brewing methods. And if you want to add CBG to any of these preparations, our Water-Soluble CBG Tincture uses nano-emulsion technology to dissolve completely in hot or cold liquid with 4 to 5 times better absorption than oil-based alternatives. A few drops in your Turkish coffee, cold brew, phin filter, or whatever you are making that morning.

Browse the full Buddha Beans lineup here.

Frequently asked questions about coffee brewing methods

What is the healthiest way to brew coffee?

Filtered methods (pour-over, AeroPress, drip) are generally considered the healthiest. A 2020 study published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology found that filtered coffee was associated with lower mortality risk compared to unfiltered methods like French press or Turkish coffee, because paper filters remove cafestol and kahweol, two compounds that can raise LDL cholesterol.

Which brewing method produces the strongest coffee?

Turkish coffee and espresso produce the most concentrated cups by volume. However, cold brew concentrate and cowboy coffee often contain more total caffeine per serving because of longer contact time between water and grounds. Strength depends on both the brew ratio (how much coffee per water) and the extraction time.

What is the best brewing method for beginners?

French press is the most forgiving brewing method for beginners. It requires no special technique, uses a simple ratio (1:15 coffee to water), has a fixed steep time (4 minutes), and produces consistent results. AeroPress is the second easiest, with the added benefit of being nearly impossible to break.

Can you brew CBD or CBG coffee with any method?

CBD and CBG infused coffee beans can be brewed with any method. The cannabinoids are infused during roasting and extract into water the same way caffeine and flavor compounds do. For adding CBG separately, water-soluble tinctures dissolve in both hot and cold liquid, while oil-based tinctures float and do not mix evenly. Buddha Beans Water-Soluble CBG Tincture uses nano-emulsion to integrate completely into any brew method.

How many coffee brewing methods exist?

There are at least 18 widely practiced coffee brewing methods around the world, spanning immersion (French press, cold brew), pressure (espresso, moka pot, AeroPress), gravity/drip (pour-over, Vietnamese phin, Indian filter), decoction (Turkish, cowboy), and hybrid methods (siphon). Regional variations and specialty techniques push the total higher.

What is the oldest coffee brewing method?

The Ethiopian jebena ceremony is the oldest continuous coffee tradition, originating in the birthplace of coffee itself. Turkish coffee, formalized in the 15th century Ottoman Empire, is the oldest standardized brewing method. UNESCO recognized both Turkish coffee culture (2013) and Arabic coffee culture (2015) as Intangible Cultural Heritage.