Pour over coffee is a great way to brew a highly customizable cup of coffee by hand. There are many factors that go into this brew method, but they are all customizable to create the perfect cup of joe for even the pickiest coffee drinkers.
It’s a fun way to brew your coffee and we are excited to share with you how to make pour over coffee!
We have found there is a lot of pride and satisfaction that goes into making your coffee by hand and watching the brewing process take place right in front of you instead of hidden away in a machine. As well as being able to control various aspects of this brew method. So, without further adieu, let’s get into how to make pour over coffee!
Table of Contents
What Is Pour Over Coffee
Pour over coffee is done by manually brewing a single cup of coffee with a filter and a funnel that sit above a mug or carafe. The coffee grounds sit in the filter and hot water is poured over them. The water filters through the coffee grounds and empties into your mug. The finished product is a flavorful hot cup of coffee made by hand with no machine.
How to Make Pour Over Coffee
What you need
-Fresh coffee beans
-Grinder
-Pour over coffee maker
-Water kettle
-Paper filter
-Scale
Step 1. Boil Water
The first thing you will want to do is to bring about 700 grams of water to a boil in your kettle. For pour over coffee, we recommend using a gooseneck kettle. This will allow you to have better control over the flow rate and make sure you evenly wet the grounds. It isn’t a requirement that you use a gooseneck kettle but it is recommended! Click here to check out our list of the 8 best gooseneck kettles.
Step 2. Grind Your Beans
For the freshest tasting coffee, we recommend grinding your coffee beans right before you brew your coffee. You will want to grind 42 grams of coffee with a coarse grind. This will make 2 cups of coffee. If you don’t have a scale, this is about 4 tablespoons for 2 cups of coffee.
Step 3. Place Filter in the Dripper
The dripper is the piece that sits on top of the carafe or mug.
Step 4. Add The Coffee
Next, you will want to pour your coffee grounds into the filter. Gently tap the dripper or wiggle the filter so that the grounds are.
Step 5. Pour
Once your water is boiling, let it sit for a moment, you don’t want it to be totally boiling before you pour it, this could cause it to scald your coffee and ruin the grounds. If you have a thermometer you want to aim for the water to be about 195º-205ºF
When you begin pouring you want to evenly get the grounds wet. Pour the water starting in the center and pour just enough to get the grounds wet. This is where the coffee will bloom. Blooming is where the Co2 is released once the hot water is poured on the grounds and it will make the grounds begin to rise up, or “bloom”.
Let the coffee bloom for about 30 seconds. You do not want to let the grounds dry out.
Next, you will pour the rest of the water evenly over your grounds starting at the center moving outwards. Pour in slow steady spirals and make sure you evenly saturate the coffee grounds.
Step 6. Enjoy!
The complete brew process takes about 2 minutes. Once you are out of water and it has filtered through the grounds you will have your freshly brewed delicious cup of coffee to sit back and enjoy.
Brewing Tips
Play With Temperature
If your coffee is bitter or burnt tasting, try a cooler temperature of water. If you are using water that is too hot it can make your coffee taste bad.
Pour Slowly
Make sure you pour your water slowly over the grounds. It’s important that you evenly saturate all of the grounds, and going slowly will help you have more control over where and how much water you are pouring on your grounds.
Use Good Water
If your water does not taste good your coffee won’t taste good. It’s recommended, if you can, to use spring water. If you don’t have spring water, try using filtered water if your tap water doesn’t taste great.
Don’t Pour Water On The Sides
When brewing, make sure you avoid pouring water down the sides of the filter. You want to slowly pour starting in the middle and evenly pour moving out to evenly saturate the grounds
Keep Practicing
Change up the water to coffee ratio, water temperature, type of coffee you use, and anything else you want to switch up. Making the perfect cup of pour over coffee takes practice as well as some experimenting.
Which is why we recommend trying out and changing the different elements of what goes into making pour over coffee, which will help you ultimately create the perfect cup for you and your taste.
Why Use the Pour Over Method to Brew Coffee?
Using the pour over brew method gives you a lot of control over your cup of coffee. You control the water temperature, how long you let the coffee bloom and brew for, the speed at which water is poured, and ultimately you control the taste.
If you are picky about your coffee or are just looking for a more hands-on way to brew a cup of joe, this is a great brew method to try and with enough practice, you can make the perfect cup of coffee that is unique and exactly the way you like it.
Wrapping Up
To wrap up, the pour over brew method is an excellent way to brew a cup of joe. It will create a delicious cup of coffee that is highly customizable to you and your taste. We recommend everyone give it a try at least once in their life.
If it doesn’t taste amazing on your first brew, practice makes perfect. Eventually, you will have a cup of joe that tastes amazing to you. We hope you enjoyed learning how to make pour over coffee in this article, happy brewing!