My default coffee making is to heat milk, add coffee and steep it for a couple of minutes before I sieve it and voila.
This does not seem to work for this coffee. I have tried water, boiling it with the water or milk and it simply will not mix. What am I missing?
Edit: I know about grinding, I have a burr grinder, a French press and I know the various ways to make coffee. None of the methods I know, work.
Burr grinder = bar grinder. I made that mistake.
Looks like you've only been using instant coffee before and are now trying to use normal coffee the same way.
No. I grind my beans with a burr grinder. I used to use a French press but I did not like how it tasted. So, I experimented with heating milk, putting in the grinds, and then sieving it. It has always worked out well. This is the only coffee that has not done what I anticipated.
I've never heard of a bar grinder. Do you mean a burr grinder? The two most common styles are conical and flat.
Very fresh coffee will have a bloom due to CO~2~ that's still trapped. When I do a pour over with coffee that's <2 weeks after roasting, it has a very large bloom. While coffee that's been sitting for months tends to have no bloom.
If you're using a press pot, one thing you can do is to only press down to where the filter is just below the surface of the coffee then do a slow pour into your cup or carafe. This will keep most of the fines and sludge in the press pot.
My basic press pot recipe is to use water that's 206° F to 208° F (96.6° C to 97.7° C). 1:16 ratio coffee to water by weight. (You can lower that ratio if you like it stronger) Pour the hot water into the grounds and let it steep for 4 minutes. Stir the grounds to break the crust, spoon off the foam, and let everything settle for another 5 minutes. Finally, put the filter just below the surface of the coffee, do not press any further, then do a slow pour into a carafe. The pour usually takes 1 to 2 minutes. This is a slow method but makes a very good cup.
Edit: I usually grind slightly coarser than I would use for pour over.
I've heard that brewing with super fresh grinds can be problematic due to excessive amounts of CO~2~ bubbles forming a layer between the solid and liquid phases. if that happens, you might mitigate that issue by extending the brewing time and and ensuring sufficient agitation. Probably not going to produce the ideal brew, but should be better than under extracted coffee.