The first Starbucks Reserve in Western Canada opened in Vancouver in May 2017. Besides their normal menu, you can also get affogatos and cold brew floats which are unique to this location. But it was the experience bar that drew us to visit. This is where you can watch the Coffee Masters brew coffee using methods such as Siphon and Clover brewing techniques. Sounds interesting right?! Let’s take a look the Siphon Brewing method!
Wait, but what is Siphon Brewing?
In a nutshell, the Siphon brewing method uses a vacuum process to brew coffee. The two glass chambers used for Siphon brewing look like items from the science lab. First, heat the water in the lower chamber and bring it to a boil. Next, vapor pressure forces the boiling water to rise from the lower to the upper chamber. Coffee grounds are then stirred into the water. When the heat is removed from the lower chamber, the water gets “sucked” back to the lower chamber due to a drop in air pressure. There is a filter in the upper chamber to catch the coffee grounds. The vacuum effect brews the coffee that is now in the lower chamber.
Too complicated to imagine? Read more about the Siphon Brewing method on the Starbucks website or watch the video below!
Siphon Brewing At Starbucks Reserve
On the day we visited, Mr. Chau and I were lucky to get seats at the Experience bar. And even luckier that the couple next to us ordered coffee using the Siphon brewing technique! We sat patiently with our lattes while we listened to the Coffee Masters explain how the Siphon brewing works. It’s such a mesmerizing way of brewing coffee! Take a look at my “Siphon Brewing at Starbucks Reserve” video to see how it’s done:
We will get the Siphon brewed coffee next time to do a coffee comparison. I also want to try their cold brew floats.
Have you been to Starbucks Reserve in Vancouver? Let me know in the comments! 🙂
