Brew Journal

Brewing tips, coffee storage advice, and prairie coffee stories from Autumn Prairie Pumpkins in Newton, Kansas.

Maggie brewing pour over coffee on a kitchen scale with an Autumn Prairie Pumpkins mug, pumpkin patch at sunrise through the window

How Much Coffee Per Cup? The Coffee to Water Ratio, Made Simple

The question came up at the kitchen counter this morning, the way it does in a lot of houses: how much coffee per cup, actually?...

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Illustration of a gardener on a porch step with a glass of iced coffee and a jar of cold brew beside a Kansas pumpkin patch

Cold Brew vs Iced Coffee: A July Morning on the Porch

The porch boards are already warm at six in the morning. July in Kansas does that. The sun comes up over the tree line, the...

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Kansas gardener holding a mug of decaf coffee on a farmhouse porch at golden hour overlooking a pumpkin patch

How Much Caffeine Is in Decaf Coffee? The Evening Cup in the Patch

By mid-July the Kansas heat does not really break until the sun gets low. The patch is quiet then. The vines have stopped complaining, the...

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Maggie the Autumn Prairie Pumpkins gardener enjoying coffee at sunrise beside pumpkin vines, dark roast vs light roast

Is Dark Roast Stronger Than Light Roast? A Kansas Morning Answer

The question came up on the porch this week, two bags of coffee on the step between us and the pumpkin vines already glowing in...

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Illustration of a gardener pouring pour over coffee on a Kansas farmhouse porch beside pumpkin vines at sunrise

Why Does My Coffee Taste Bitter? Fixes From a Kansas Garden Morning

The kettle clicks off at five forty. Outside, the patch is still gray and the vines are holding last night's dew like they are not...

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Maggie enjoying a fresh cup of coffee on an autumn prairie porch - Autumn Prairie Pumpkins

How Long Does Ground Coffee Last? A Kansas Kitchen Morning

There is a jar on my counter that has watched a lot of sunrises come up over the prairie. Some mornings, while the kettle ticks...

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Autumn Prairie Pumpkins, Maggie pouring fresh coffee in a Kansas kitchen with a grinder and whole beans

Whole Bean vs Ground Coffee: A Kansas Morning Choice

The kettle ticks toward a boil. Outside, the patch is still gray with dew, and the vines are waiting for the sun to find them....

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Maggie pouring whole coffee beans into a glass storage jar in a Kansas farmhouse kitchen at sunrise

How to Store Coffee Beans to Keep Them Fresh: Notes From a Kansas Kitchen

There is a moment every July morning, right after the garden walk and just before the day gets loud, when the whole kitchen smells like...

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Maggie with Autumn Prairie Pumpkins coffee beside a pail of used coffee grounds in a Kansas garden

What to Do With Used Coffee Grounds: A Kansas Gardener's Morning

There is a small ritual at the start of every Kansas morning here. The kettle ticks. The light comes up slow and gold over the...

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Maggie with coffee at the edge of a Kansas pumpkin patch with running vines at sunrise

Letting the Vines Run: How Much Room Pumpkins Need on a Late-June Kansas Morning

There is a morning in late June when you walk out to the patch and realize the pumpkins have stopped asking permission. Last week they...

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Maggie of Autumn Prairie Pumpkins holding a coffee mug at the edge of a late-June Kansas pumpkin patch at sunrise

The Hungry Month: Feeding the Pumpkin Patch on a Late-June Morning

There is a moment in late June when the patch stops being a row of hopeful little plants and becomes something with appetite. The vines...

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Maggie with morning coffee beside summer squash blossoms and winter squash on the vine in a Kansas garden

Summer Squash vs Winter Squash: A Slow Kansas Morning

There is a morning in late June when the garden splits in two. I noticed it again this week, coffee in hand, standing where the...

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