I find it ironic that of all the things that contribute to making a great cup of coffee, the most important ingredient is the one most people tend to overlook: water.

Yep, water. Everyone likes to obsess over roast or grind or even brewing method, however, if your water isn’t good, then adjusting your grind, changing your roast, or upgrading your machine isn’t going to help you brew a better cup of coffee.

So what kind of water should you use? General consensus is filtered water because chlorine is the archnemesis of coffee. The only exception is espresso, where distilled is preferred as even small amounts of chlorine can bleach the crema (ewwww….no thank you!). Espresso aside, if your water is too soft, the coffee will be less flavorful and if it’s too hard, your coffee will taste minerally and bitter (and also your coffee machine will get clogged up quickly with build-up and scaling).

Of course taste is subjective, but if you never seem able to make that perfect tasting cup of coffee, try switching up your water. In fact, try several different types of water. Regardless of whether it’s distilled, purified, mineral, or even tap that you prefer, you’ll definitely taste the difference!