I grew up on a dairy farm in rural Minnesota, drinking healthy and great-tasting water from our farm’s well. I remember very clearly, as a kid, every time our parents took us to visit relatives or friends in the “Cities,” we would always make sure to drink lots of water before we left home because we could not stand to drink the “city water.” At a young age, I learned that not all water is created equal.
Fast forward to the post-college years. Volunteering in Asia, we faced the same problem of trying to find good drinking water. Fortunately, while in Taiwan, my wife met the owner of Puricom, an international manufacturer of reverse osmosis water filters, and he agreed to donate RO filter systems for the three schools we were helping.
Little did I realize at that time that this friendship, along with my biology major background, would lead me to representing Puricom at Water Industry trade shows around the world.
In 2015, while visiting a friend who was roasting coffee beans for distribution to a network of offices in our city, he asked me, “Matthew, what is the best water for making coffee?” By this time, I had quite a bit of experience talking with coffee equipment manufacturers at water trade shows, so I had a pretty good idea of filtration standards, mineral and scaling issues, etc. However, I hadn’t paid much attention to what water would create the best-tasting cup of coffee.
During our nearly two-year journey of research and development, we were fortunate to have access to the Water Quality Laboratory at Puricom Water Industrial Corp. (https://www.puricom.com/en), where we conducted extensive testing using spectrometer analysis, as well as hardness and alkalinity titration analysis, to ensure precise mineral concentrations in our coffee water formulations.
Throughout this process, we tested a wide range of coffees from various origins, and experimented with a full spectrum of roast levels. We experimented with different mineral combinations and concentrations, meticulously documenting every nuance. Initially, most of our testing was conducted using the siphon brewing method to ensure consistency, but later on, we also conducted parallel experiments using pour-over, espresso, and various coffee machines.
In addition to scientific analysis, we drew upon the expertise of individuals with keen senses of taste and smell, such as my daughter, who is a wine and culinary connoisseur, and “Mr. Coffee,” our in-house roaster who has over forty years of experience roasting coffee. Their input was invaluable in our pursuit of excellence.
After almost two years of experimenting with various coffee water compositions on a diverse selection of coffees, each with distinct origins, roasting profiles, and brewing techniques—and thoroughly enjoying the process of exploring different combinations—we settled on a “solution” that we believed was perfect for any type of coffee.
We are delighted to have had the opportunity to connect with numerous fantastic individuals in the coffee industry.
If you share a passion for coffee, we sincerely hope that you will experience the same level of enjoyment that we have in uncovering the extraordinary coffees sourced from various corners of the world. And, by utilizing COFFEE WATER, we believe you’ll unlock their full potential and savor their richness to the fullest.
We sincerely hope that the dedication and effort we invested in developing COFFEE WATER will eliminate the guesswork for you and help you achieve consistently outstanding coffee results.
As a member of the Specialty Coffee Association, Matthew works with coffee professionals globally.
Matthew is a Water Quality Association certified Master Water Specialist (WQA-MWS) and has designed water filtration systems for use in multiple countries worldwide.
WATER
1998 Matthew joined Puricom to design water filtrations systems for international use.
2008 Matthew certified as WQA-CWS.
2013 Matthew certified as WQA-MWS.
KofeSolutions (pronounced Coffee Solutions) was founded, and COFFEE WATER® was launched at the Specialty Coffee Expo in Seoul, Korea.
In 2019, KofeSolutions showcased COFFEE WATER® at the Specialty Coffee Expo in Boston
