Pour Over Coffee: How to Actually Get It Right
What ratio should you use for pour over?
About 1:16 by weight, which is 60 grams of coffee per litre of water. For a single mug that is roughly 22 grams of coffee to 350 grams of water.
Weigh it. Pour over is the method where a scale changes the result most.
Fire Watch is the Colombian medium roast most people start with, and it works in almost anything you own.
Adjust by ten percent at a time. Smaller changes are hard to taste.
| Cups | Coffee | Water | Total time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 mug | 22 g | 350 g | 2:30 to 3:00 |
| 2 mugs | 30 g | 500 g | 3:00 to 3:30 |
| Chemex, 3 cups | 45 g | 750 g | 4:00 to 4:30 |
| Chemex, full | 60 g | 1000 g | 5:00 to 5:30 |
The method is only half of it. The bean decides the rest.
You can dial in every variable on a machine and still get a cup you do not want, because the bag was never going to work.
Roast level does more here than any other single choice.
See the roasts →What grind size does pour over need?
Medium-fine, a little finer than drip, roughly the texture of table salt. Too coarse and the water runs through fast and sour. Too fine and it clogs and turns bitter.
If the brew finishes under two minutes, go finer. Over four, go coarser.
Cone shape matters. A V60 wants finer than a flat bottom brewer.
Most people change technique when they should change coffee.
It is easier to blame the equipment than the bag on the counter. Usually it is the bag.
Start with a roast built for how you brew and most of the fiddling disappears.
Browse the lineup →What is the bloom and does it matter?
The bloom is the first pour, roughly double the coffee weight in water, left for thirty seconds. It lets trapped carbon dioxide escape so the rest of the water can extract evenly.
Skip it and the coffee brews unevenly, because gas is pushing water away from the grounds.
A vigorous bloom means fresh coffee. A flat one means the bag is old.
The morning you want is boring and repeatable.
The method works. The grind works. The only variable left is whether there is coffee in the house on a Tuesday.
- Pick the roast that suits how you actually brew.
- Set it to resupply on a schedule that matches what you drink.
- Stop thinking about it. You do not hit zero again.
What water temperature should you use?
Between 195 and 205 degrees Fahrenheit. Off boil by about thirty seconds is close enough without a thermometer.
Too cool and light roasts taste sour. Too hot and you pull bitterness from anything dark.
Water quality matters as much as temperature. Filtered, not distilled.
Brew it. Get after it.
Whatever you are up against tomorrow, it starts better with a cup that was worth making.
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Shop the roasts →Questions people actually ask
What is the best ratio for pour over coffee?
Around 1:16 by weight, or 60 grams of coffee per litre. That is roughly 22 grams of coffee to 350 grams of water for a single large mug.
Why does my pour over taste sour?
Under-extraction. Usually the grind is too coarse, the water too cool, or the brew finished too quickly. Go finer and aim for a total time near three minutes.
Do you need a gooseneck kettle?
It helps a lot but is not essential. The narrow spout gives you control over pour rate and placement, which is most of what separates a good pour over from a rushed one.
What roast is best for pour over?
Light and medium roasts shine, because pour over preserves clarity and brightness. Dark roasts work but can taste flat without acidity to give them shape.
How long should a pour over take?
Two and a half to three minutes for a single mug, four to five for a full Chemex. Much faster means the grind is too coarse, much slower means too fine.
