Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Dark Winds season 3, episode 3.Tom Spenser (Bruce Greenwood) used a sock as a coffee filter inDark Windsseason 3, but was he just messing with Bernadette Manuelito (Jessica Matten) or do people actually use socks to brew coffee? Bernadette has been investigatingTom Spenser on suspicion of running a human trafficking ringfor most ofDark Windsseason 3. Despite the severity of those allegations, Bernadette had coffee with Spenser, and their conversation actually seemed somewhat friendly for a bit. That wasn’t even the most confusing moment in the scene, however, as Spenser apparently brews coffee with a sock.

InDark Windsseason 3, episode 3, Bernadette convinced her boss (Tony Serpico) to let her apologize to Spenser at his house. When she arrived, Spenser made her a pot of coffee and revealed his family’s secret recipe: using a sock as a coffee filter. The entire exchange was strange, including the part where Spenser mentioned that his grandfather preferred using dirty socks: “the riper the sock, the richer the brew,” in his own words. It was so odd that it almost seemed likeDark Windsseason 3 was playing a joke on Bernadette and us, the viewers, but it’s actually based in reality.

Tom Spenser (Bruce Greenwood) using a sock as a coffee filter in Dark Winds season 3, episode 3

Yes, Using Socks To Filter Coffee Is A Thing Outside Of Dark Winds

Socks Are Essentially Makeshift Versions Of Cloth Coffee Filters

Given the bad blood between Spenser and Bernadette, it wouldn’t be surprising if Spenser had simply made coffee with a sock to mess with Bernadette, but it isn’t as strange as it seems.People likely did use socks as coffee filters in the past, and they still do to this day. Surprisingly, there’s even a mass-market coffee brewing product called “The Coffee Sock,” which is a reusable cloth filter meant to replace paper filters. Cloth filters are fairly common in the world of coffee brewing, and in a pinch, a (hopefully clean) sock can be used as a makeshift substitute.

Dark Winds season 3, episode 3 finally laid the groundwork to reunite Leaphorn, Chee, and Bernadette and link their investigations together.

The main goal of any coffee filter is to separate the coffee grounds from the rest of the water.As Spenser demonstrated inDark Winds, a sock is fairly good at doing just that: it’s porous enough to let the water soak into the grounds, but the holes in the fabric aren’t big enough for the grounds to go the other way. Hanging the sock over the edge of the kettle also lets you close the lid on top of it, letting it disperse more evenly. It even has an advantage over paper filters, as socks can be washed and reused indefinitely.

Jim Chee (Kiowa Gordon), Joe Leaphorn (Zahn McClarnon), and Bernadette Manuelito (Jessica Matten) wearing Navajo Tribal Police uniforms in Dark Winds against a blue background

The Deeper Meaning Behind Tom Spenser’s Coffee Scene With Bernadette

Bernadette Used A Fake Apology To Continue Investigating Spenser, But He Saw Through It In The End

The whole reason Bernadette was drinking Spenser’s sock coffee was because she had come to apologize for interfering in his business, but that wasn’t what she was really after.Bernadette pretended to apologize to Spenser so that she could ask him more questions about his operation and continue her investigation into his suspected human trafficking ring. She also used the opportunity to ask about Budge de Baca (Raoul Max Trujillo), asBudge had returned Bernadette’s gunearlier in the episode. Spenser realized what Bernadette was really up to, and there was a visible shift in his demeanor and temper as he got angry with her.

“Ye’iitsoh (Big Monster)”

Bernadette Manuelito (Jessica Matten) holds a cup of coffee in Dark Winds season 3, episode 3

“Náá’tsoh (Big Eyes)”

“Ch’į́į́dii (Ghosts)”

Article image

“T’áá Áłts’íísígo (Just a Small Piece)”

“Béésh Łį́į́ (Iron Horse)”

April 27

There also may have been a deeper meaning behind Spenser’s decision to give Bernadette coffee that he brewed with a sock. As Spenser has explained, his family has been dominating New Mexico for generations in both ranching and oil drilling.Using the sock technique for his coffee, which his grandfather told him about, may have been a way to subtly tell Bernadette that the Spensers have been there for centuries, and they weren’t going anywhere. Even before he knew Bernadette was continuing her investigation, it seems Tom Spenser was still making power plays over her inDark Windsseason 3.