How to make a better coffee? According to a very short piece in Scientific American, a new study in Physics of Fluids has brought high-speed footage and transparent silica gel to the table, revealing how water really flows through your morning ritual.

According to some Physicists, stronger coffee doesn’t necessarily mean more beans. It’s all about how we pour. To maximize extraction, we want the water to spend more time mingling with the grounds and to stir things up—literally. The trick is to pour slowly, and from higher up. This creates a longer contact time and promotes mixing. Use a thin stream from a gooseneck kettle, and you might just brew a more potent cup with fewer grounds.

But let’s be honest: the best coffee isn’t just about the coffee. It’s the flaky croissant on the side, the sunlight on the worn wooden counter, the familiar face behind the machine. It’s the tiny rituals and fleeting melancholies. Because sometimes, the perfect cup is about the whole café-shaped moment it comes wrapped in.

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