We will be abandoning the Keurig soon (or more specifically, giving it to our college-aged daughter), and I have started doing pour-over coffee with a traditional porcelain coffee…device…whatever you call it…and paper filters.
So far I haven’t been able to make it as strong as I’d like, but I bought some “strong, dark” beans from Trader Joe’s today, and will be giving them a try in the morning.
If you do pour-over coffee, what’s your technique? Do you wet the filter first? Fold the corner of it? Pour in short doses? All techniques I saw in various videos, but I want to hear from real people. Feel free to use phrases like “bloom” and “off-gassing” if you prefer.
I would actually use very coarsely ground coffee: add not-quite-boiling water, stir a bit, and decoct for five minutes. Then filter out the solids. The very fine grind is for Turkish coffee.
I’ve been a pour over girl all my life. I’ve tried other methods, but none suit me better than pour over. Like you, I prefer strong coffee.
I don’t use paper filters because I can taste the paper, even in the unbleached ones. I’ve used a stainless steel reusable filter for nearly 20 years and it continues to give good service with only an occasional soak in vinegar.
My method is to grind my French Roast beans more finely than is recommended. I heat water to just below boiling, wet the grounds, then fill the cone almost to the top. I give the grounds a gentle stir just to make sure they are well wetted and creamy. I refill the cone one more time to get the desired amount of coffee. Enjoy, if it’s to your taste.
I haven’t heard the term “pour-over” but this sounds like what I call the Melitta filter system, because I think they originated it. This is the coffee system I always use, usually with the one-cup filter and holder that sits right on top of the coffee mug.
One thing I’ve found – and this may be largely a personal preference as I like strong coffee – is to use more coffee than would normally be recommended. I use medium-roast Gautemalan beans from a supermarket with a wide assortment of in-store roasted beans – I hate hate hate most commercial coffees. I don’t have my own grinder – I grind it in the store on the “filter” setting, then keep it in the fridge in an airtight container (Oxo makes a really nice one).
For my taste, I find that two heaping scoops of the measuring spoon is about right for one mug – each scoop literally overflowing with as much as it can hold. My habit – whether it makes much difference or not I don’t know – is to follow the advice to first “burst” the flavour with a generous dash of boiling water, then after a few seconds add the full amount of water and let it seep through.
I haven’t found any significant difference in the results from different kinds of filters. My current supply is a bunch of cheap no-name bleached filters and they work just fine. I generally make pretty good coffee for my taste, and any variability is usually due to misjudging the amount of ground coffee I put in the filter. For my taste, there’s nothing worse than weak, watery coffee.
I like strong coffee too. The simplest, and least expensive, method I’ve found is to use 3 tablespoons of coffee for an 8 oz cup. Measure the coffee for the desired number of cups into a glass vessel (I use a large measuring cup). Add half the amount of boiling water needed and let the mixture sit for a minute or two (longer = stronger). Then pour the coffee mixture into the filter and add the remaining boiling water & let it filter through. Sounds more complicated than it is.
I have used a cheap Melitta cone and unbleached filters. As others have mentioned, use more coffee if you want stronger brew. And yes, use fine ground. I pour water just below boiling over the grounds to wet them, then slowly fill the cone to near the top. As the water filters thru I add more, slowly, to keep the cone full until I have the desired amount of coffee below.
I have switched to French press as my primary coffee making now, and have better control over flavor. Also, a burr grinder is a game changer - every cup is freshly ground!
My wife is the family coffee geek and uses pour over herself. Grind actually varies by pour over device; there are different ones. When I use the pour overs I tend to need to use more coffee as well the recommended finer grind to get the strength I like. My preference is the French Press but my wife feels she can taste more “notes” by her methods. She still starts the day with the French Press as I am up first and have a pot in the thermal carafe waiting for her.
Mostly what other people say, so this is what I’ll add.
Initially pour a small amount of hot water to wet the grounds. I let that soak in 15-30 seconds. I don’t time it or stir. Then I pour in more water down the sides of the filter to knock the grounds that stick to the sides to the bottom. As that water drains I add a bit more down the sides. So I’m not adding a large amount of water and waiting, rather making sure that as much grounds are in the water at all times. Sort of a risotto method of pour over.
When I’m done, instead of having a filter with coffee grounds stuck up the sides, there is a thick layer of coffee at the bottom of the filter.
Day 1: ground the new coffee (Trader Joe’s dark roast) more finely than in the past; put more coffee in the filter than I have in the past; poured a bit in to soak it and let that rest; then filled the filter twice with near-boiling water. Result: definitely stronger! In fact, exactly as strong as I like. Not a ton of flavor, though…not sure if that’s the coffee or the process. I’m going to do this one for a few more days and then try some different methods.
Allows the coffee grounds to steep for optimum extraction of flavors. I usually allow grounds to steep for 4 minutes. Once steeped enough, place the cone on top of your cup, a valve is opened and the coffee drains through the filter.
I’ve been using one of these for years. Works as well as a French Press with none of the fine sediment.
Makes about 14 ounces of brewed coffee. Enough for a tall mug.
Oh, interesting. That James Hoffman guy mentioned upthread is a fan. I might give this a try when I run out of size 2 filters (and if the price drops, it’s currently at it’s historical high - Merry Christmas, shoppers!)
A little tip: The Clever Dripper was only available in the clear plastic when I first purchased mine. It’s now available in 3 colors now - clear, “cloud” and “java.” All of these will get coffee stained over time, and I haven’t found any way to remove that stain (including ultrasonic cleaning baths). It doesn’t affect the flavor of the coffee, but it’s not very pretty.
If I purchased another of these, I would go for the “Java” color in order to disguise the stain a bit.
Although I respect James Hoffmann’s advice on all things coffee, his take on this seems a bit over-complicated. I simply rinse the filter, dump the coffee in, pour in hot water, stir a bit and set my timer for 4 minutes.
YMMV.
Well, I do have the porcelain gizmo, two moka pots, a drip coffee maker, and a couple of French presses. And a Capresso grinder. So I’ve got some minimal chops for coffee connoisseurship, even if I don’t have a Chemex, Aeropress, or Rancilio.
Coffee’s like beer for me. I prefer and seek out the good stuff, but I’ll happily drink the cheap stuff as well.
