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Eyeballs are great – I have two. I also like spoons. But if you want a consistent dose of coffee for a great espresso or pour-over, an accurate scale is the true, slightly inconvenient way.
I still remember a time when, to weigh my coffee beans each morning, I would place a small measuring cup on top of a digital scale, then press a button on the scale, and then wait about a second for the scale’s display to read zero before pouring the coffee beans into the measuring cup. Back in the sands of time (I think it was October 2024), I didn’t consider this a serious drawback. This is how coffee scales work.
But maybe it’s not necessary. Over the past year, some coffee brands have embraced the simple idea that a measuring cup and scale could be combined into a single device. Shine light bulbs on your forehead and bluebirds on your shoulders. Perhaps the most elegant of these is the Subscale, new from Singapore coffee brand Subminimal (also maker of our favorite milk frother).
The subscale is a black-on-black cup containing approximately 60 grams of coffee and whose base contains a scale accurate to one-tenth of a gram. Since purchasing it, the device has not left my countertop and has made me enjoy my morning coffee ritual a little more.
Keep it simple
The key to the Subscale’s appeal is its stubborn simplicity. The world of craft coffee is now filled with new, complicated and sometimes confusing conveniences. Once a humble tool, the coffee scale has become a foundation for all kinds of coffee wonders. Fellow Tally Pro (8/10, recommended by WIRED) will do the math for you, simultaneously tabulating recommended water weights for ideal brewing ratios. Bluetooth enabled Acaia Pearl S It will track brewing time and water flow, while playing music.
The Subscale does none of this.
It’s a cup. It’s a lightweight, minimalist mug with a feather-sensitive scale on its bottom that measures the precise weight of what’s inside. There’s no Bluetooth, no apps, and no particular learning curve. It takes up very little space on my counter and looks great there.
