The Perfect, Pour-over Coffee Recipe

Image by fancycrave1 from Pixabay 

Making a pour-over coffee is like a ritual. Meditation. You don’t have to use a lot of machines. There are no green flashing lights. Just you. Sitting at home. Using a couple of simple tools. Have you ever tried making a pour-over coffee before? If not, you’re in for a treat.

The result, a nice cup of coffee to go along with a dessert, which will remind you of drip coffee makers, but with a significantly more flavored and complex taste. Even if you have been making pour-over coffee for years, I invite you to try out my version. Its flavor will be the same both on the first and the tenth try. If you can, find a couple of minutes to slow down: consciously watch the bloom. 

The rising cream after the first pouring. The swelling of the coffee. The first traces of steam. Take a look at the flow rate and how each spiraling pour changes the taste of the final cup.

When you’re trying to make a cup of pour-over coffee, you should keep in mind the following factors:

How good are coffee beans

Both will incrementally affect the coffee taste. Of course, other details matter as well. You’ll have to grind the beans to a specific coarseness, always use adequate measures, and have the proper water temperature. 

Let’s see what else you’ll need:

High-quality, fresh coffee beans (Try out those coming from Ethiopia or Guatemala).

Coffee grinder 

Filtered water.

Coffeemaker.

Paper filters.

Scale (for precise measuring).

Pro Tip: Home barista site Coffeeble recommends using a grinder for pour overs that can dial in the coarser grind size needed for V60, Chemex and other similar brewing styles.

When it comes to preparation, there are various recommendations on the water/coffee ratio. I’ve researched the subject for quite a while, and what I’ve found is that the best water to coffee ratio is using 1 gram of coffee on 16 milliliters of water. Meaning that for two large cups of coffee (250ml), you’ll need about 32 gram of coffee and half a liter of water.

Of course, this is under the pretension that you already have quality coffee beans. Not to mention filtered water. People often make needlessly strong coffee in order to hide low-quality beans or water imperfection.

It’s also recommended that you grind your coffee beans just a bit finer than usual. The ground coffee should have the consistency of table salt. This goes above the average recommendation of grinding it to the coarseness of rough sea salt. However, this way, you’ll get a more balanced taste with your pour-over coffee.

Even though it doesn’t look like it, remember that you’ll get a strong cup of coffee. Although you should make adjustments when you’re using different systems or beans, the process will hold up.

The Nitty Bitty Instructions

Now come the instruction details of making your perfect cup of pour-over coffee. Try to follow them to the letter, if you want to get that same taste.

Use around 1 gram of coffee with 16 milliliters of filtered water. This amounts to 32 grams of coffee for two big cups of coffee. You should grind your coffee beans to have the coarseness of finer sea salt or your average table salt. After grinding them, set them aside. Moreover, remember to add slightly more water (around 600ml). This extra water is required for wetting your filter in the next step.

Bring the water to a boil. Spread your paper filters. To do this, separate them with three folds on one side and a single fold on the other. Next, place your filter on top of your coffee making machine. Insert the three-folded side toward the sprout. You should now wet the paper filter. Use just enough boiling water to saturate the filter. This will help you minimize any likely “paper taste” in your pour-over. 

From here, spill the excess water through the sprout. Now, place ground coffee in the filter and shake it gently so it settles. Place enough water so it just covers the ground coffee. This will make the coffee “bloom”. Wait for 45 seconds. This is needed in order to allow the gas to escape which improves the overall taste of the coffee.

After the coffee has bloomed, you can begin placing the remaining filtered water over your coffee. Do this in small spirals. You should concentrate your water mostly in the center of the coffee, with just a bit of pouring around the edges in order to consistently wet the beans. In the first round, you should use around 200ml of water.

Also, keep in mind that you should pour the water slowly. This will allow you to keep a consistent pour and enable the whole coffee to filter in the same amount. In other words, get the optimal taste. Of course, you can always use your water in batches of around 200ml. Still, even here, you should never allow the grounded coffee to go entirely dry. Your overall pour time needs to be around three and a half minutes.

After the coffee has been brewed, you should detach the filter. Now, you can enjoy your coffee.

Bonus advice: Just before you place your brewed coffee in a cup, you should use any leftover hot water to warm it. Of course, you should remove this extra water before pouring your coffee.