Las Brumas, Washed Pacamara

The V60's open cone and fast flow rate create a demanding environment for a light washed Pacamara — and the recipe responds by stepping down 40μm from default grind. That finer setting (460μm) compensates for two challenges specific to this bean: Pacamara's very large bean size produces a wider particle size distribution when ground, meaning coarser settings risk underextraction in the boulders; and light roasting means reduced solubility relative to a medium. At 94°C, you're hitting the upper-ideal range to drive more diffusion through those dense, high-altitude seeds. The result is that the V60 pulls out apricot and cider without needing the thick filter of a Chemex — you'll get slightly more mouthfeel from oils passing through the thinner paper, which rounds out the Pacamara's naturally assertive acidity into something closer to stone-fruit balance.

The Kalita Wave's flat bed and three-hole drain distribute extraction evenly across the puck — a meaningful advantage with Pacamara, whose oversized beans produce particle distributions that tend toward bimodal peaks when ground. Even with a consistent burr grinder, Pacamara throws more coarse outliers than smaller-bean varieties like Caturra; the flat bed means every part of the coffee bed sees similar flow, reducing the channeling risk those outliers create. The recipe sits at 490μm (40μm below default), balanced against a 1:16.5 ratio — slightly leaner than V60 to match the Wave's typically slower draw-down. At 94°C, this hits the middle of the ideal extraction window for a dense, high-altitude washed bean. The Wave won't showcase apricot and cider with the same clarity as the Chemex, but it delivers them with better body and balance.

The AeroPress at 85°C produces a denser, more balanced expression of this Pacamara. The concentrated format (1:12.5 ratio) and short steep time naturally compress the bright acidity that Pacamara carries from its high-altitude origin, letting the roast-developed sweetness — the almond and cider range — come through with more presence. The 360μm grind (40μm finer than default, adjusted for light roast density) ensures adequate surface area for extraction in the 1-2 minute brew window. The pressure plunge drives the final extraction through the fine grind efficiently, capturing sweetness compounds that need mechanical assistance to fully extract from this dense bean in such a short time. The result is a concentrated cup where apricot and cider character read with more body and sweetness than a pour-over achieves — a different expression rather than a lesser one.

The Clever Dripper combines immersion steeping with a paper filter drain — it shares French press's contact-time advantage and Chemex's oil-stripping clarity, landing somewhere between them. For a washed Pacamara, that hybrid character is more useful than it might sound: the immersion phase gives the large Pacamara beans extended contact time to fully dissolve their solubles, while the paper filter drain clears the oils that would muddy the washed character. The recipe at 490μm and 94°C is identical to the Kalita Wave in grind and temperature, reflecting that both brewers handle similar dose sizes with comparable extraction mechanics. The key difference is the 3-4 minute immersion before drain — this extra contact time slightly increases the risk of over-extraction in fines, but Pacamara's coarser particle outliers benefit from that extended window.

Light-roast espresso demands attention here for a specific reason: washed Pacamara at 1,730m is among the most difficult light-roast espresso assignments a grinder can face. High altitude means high density; washed processing means dense structure that resists water penetration; light roast means limited degassing and minimum solubility reduction from caramelization. The recipe responds with a 1:2.4 ratio (longer than a typical 1:2 ristretto), which gives more water contact time to extract through that resistance. At 210μm grind (40μm below default for light roast), the puck resistance is high enough to slow the shot appropriately. Expect the bright acidity — orange and cider from the flavor profile — to dominate in the finish; the shot will be bright and fruit-forward rather than the caramel-heavy espresso character you'd get from a darker roast.

Moka pot runs at ~1.5 bar — far below espresso's 9 bar — but enough pressure to extract more efficiently than immersion or pour-over. The 310μm grind (40μm below default, reflecting the light roast's lower solubility) is medium-fine rather than espresso-fine; tamping is never appropriate for moka, which would create channeling under the lower pressure. Using pre-boiled water in the base is especially important with this washed Pacamara: starting with cold water means the grounds sit in the rising steam before extraction begins, which cooks the coffee and amplifies the astringent bitter compounds that are already elevated in light roast washed beans from their higher acidity. The 1:9.5 ratio concentrates the brew, which is appropriate — moka's efficiency means you get more soluble extraction per gram, so dilution is part of the drinking experience.

French press scores 76/100 for Las Brumas washed Pacamara, and the mismatch is mechanical: metal mesh filtration passes oils and fines that paper would catch, adding body and texture to a coffee whose washed-process character is specifically built for clarity. That said, the recipe accounts for this — 960μm grind (40μm below the already-coarse French press baseline) reduces the fine particles that cause bitter, gritty extraction in immersion. At 96°C (2°C above pour-over temps), the press compensates for light roast's reduced solubility with additional thermal energy. The extended steep window (4-8 minutes) lets Pacamara's dense high-altitude seeds fully hydrate at coarse grind. You'll lose the bright cider clarity, gaining a heavier, slightly fuller expression of the stone-fruit notes — plum reads more clearly here than it does through paper.