The Complete Pour-Over Guide

Pour-over is the most hands-on way to make filter coffee. You control the water, the speed and the timing, which means you can taste exactly what a coffee has to offer. It also means there is more to get wrong.

This guide covers the whole process in order. Each section links to a deeper article if you want to go further.

Grind for the brewer

Pour-over sits in the medium to medium-fine range, but the exact setting depends on your brewer, your dose and how fast you pour. Grind too fine and the bed stalls. Too coarse and water runs straight through.

Our article on pour-over grind size shows you how to use total brew time to find your setting.

Set your ratio

Weighing your coffee and water is the quickest way to make every cup taste the same. Most people start between 1:15 and 1:17, coffee to water.

Read our guide to the pour-over ratio to see how to adjust strength without throwing the whole recipe off.

Get the water right

Water is about 98 percent of your cup, so it matters. Temperature has a big effect on how quickly flavour comes out of the grounds. Light roasts usually want hotter water, darker roasts a little cooler.

We cover the practical range in pour-over water temperature, including what to do if your kettle has no thermometer.

Let it bloom

Fresh coffee is full of carbon dioxide. When hot water first hits the grounds, that gas rushes out and can push water away from the coffee. A short pause at the start fixes this.

The pour-over bloom article explains how much water to use and how long to wait.

Pour with control

How you pour shapes how evenly the coffee extracts. Slow, steady circles keep the bed level. Pouring in one spot can dig a hole and send water around the coffee instead of through it.

Our guide to pour-over technique compares single-pour and pulse-pour methods and covers the swirl at the end.

Choose your brewer

The two brewers we get asked about most are the Hario V60 and the Chemex. Both make excellent coffee, but they behave differently. The Chemex uses a thick paper filter and gives a very clean cup. The V60 drains faster and gives you more control through your pour.

Read V60 vs Chemex to work out which suits the way you like to brew.

A starting recipe

1. 15 grams of coffee, medium-fine.
2. 250 grams of water just off the boil.
3. Bloom with 40 grams of water for 40 seconds.
4. Pour the rest in slow circles, finishing by about 2 minutes.
5. Aim for a total time of around 3 minutes.

Taste it. If it is sour, grind finer next time. If it is bitter or dry, grind coarser. Change one thing per brew.

Keep reading

• Gooseneck kettle guide: the pouring tool that makes control easier
• Coffee scale buying notes: weighing coffee and water as you brew