How to Make a Pour-Over

This recipe uses 20 g of coffee and 300 g of water for a small two-serving brew. Adjust the dose to taste.

What you need

• A pour-over brewer
• A carafe or mug
• SteffenMarkkus coffee beans
• A burr grinder
• A brew scale
• Filtered water, heated to 195-205°F

Ratio

We recommend 10 g of coffee per 150 ml (150 g) of water as a starting point. 150 ml is one serving. For more servings, multiply: 3 servings is 30 g of coffee and 450 g of water, and 4 servings is 40 g and 600 g.

For this recipe we brew two servings: 20 g of coffee and 300 g of water. The grounds hold on to a little water, so you end up with slightly under 300 ml of coffee.

Steps for 2 servings

1. Measure and grind the coffee

Weigh 10 g of whole beans per serving, so 20 g here, and grind them to a medium setting (the "Drip" setting in the picture). Grind slightly coarser for dark roasts and slightly finer for very light roasts. If you use pre-ground coffee, the dose is still 10 g per serving.

2. Heat the water

Heat fresh, filtered water to 195-205°F. We set our kettle to 205°F. A kettle with temperature control or a thermometer is the most reliable way to hit that range.

3. Prepare the brewer

Put a filter in the brewer and rinse it with hot water. This removes paper taste and warms the brewer and carafe. Discard the rinse water.

4. Add the coffee

Pour the 20 g of ground coffee into the filter and level the bed. Press a small divot into the center with a finger or spoon. It helps the first pour wet the bed evenly.

5. Set up the scale

Put the brewer and vessel on the scale and tare it to zero. You will pour water by weight.

6. Bloom

Start the timer and pour 40-50 g of water evenly over the grounds. Let it stand for 45 seconds. With fresh coffee you will see bubbles rise. This short pour wets all the grounds so the water passes through evenly.

7. Swirl

Hold the brewer and carafe together and give them a few swirls so the water reaches the whole bed. This helps prevent channeling as you pour more water.

8. Pour in two stages

• At 45 seconds, pour slowly in circles until the scale reads about 225 g.
• At 1:15, pour the rest, again in slow circles, until the scale reads 300 g.
• For larger batches, pour in several stages instead. Pouring 150-200 g every 30 seconds gives an even extraction.

9. Let it drip

Let the coffee drain fully through the filter. The whole brew should take 2-3 minutes, depending on the number of servings.

10. Serve

Remove the brewer, give the coffee a gentle swirl in the vessel, and serve.

Tips

• Freshness: our coffee is roasted to order. Try it after it arrives, then rest it longer if that suits your taste.
• Pour slowly: a slow, circular pour wets the bed evenly.
• Adjust the grind: if the cup is bitter, grind coarser to cut contact time. If it is sour, grind finer to add contact time. With pre-ground coffee, change contact time by pouring faster or slower.
• Adjust the ratio: if the coffee is too strong, try 9 g per 150 ml. If you want it bolder, try 11 g. Change the dose in 1 gram steps.

Taste the brew, then change the grind or dose one step at a time.