Tag Archives: Brewing methods

Do We Really Need 47 Ways to Make a Better PourOver?

Pour-Over Made Better?


My friend Stan gets it.

I recently ran across this article giving a gaggle of barista tips for making better pour-over coffee. I noted two things immediately:

  1. Baristas don’t agree on anything.
  2. Nobody mentioned starting with really good coffee.

Do you stir or not stir? Do you grind really coarse or only medium? Should the water be exactly 204F? Why does anyone expect a Keurig to make decent coffee??

Ok that last one was mine. I really hate Keurig for the reason that they seem specially designed to produce bad coffee–low temperature water, using pre-packaged mass market coffee ground who knows how and stored for long periods before use. Please don’t use NanoRoast in your Keurig.  Just don’t. I don’t want to be responsible for your disappointment.

But I digress…

Pourover coffee is not complicated as long as you can boil water and discern a medium to coarse grind. A paper filter leaves less sediment than a metal one, and starting with filtered water really helps as well. Otherwise, pouring water just off the boil slowly through medium-coarse high-quality coffee grounds in a filtered cone is really all you need to know. Read my comprehensive musings on brewing techniques for details here.

Keep it simple, and Enjoy your coffee!

s