Weak Pourover Coffee: Yay or Nay?
0 voters
Because I’m bored traveling: for the Nth time I just tried to enjoy watery pourover coffee, pitched as always as having “incredible clarity of flavor.” I say “nay.” I want to like it but can’t get on board. Give me something out of a machine. Others?
You can make pourover as strong/concentrated as you like. Mine is not watery. I use 48g of ground coffee to make 320ml liquid.
Why not french press?
I have been using a French press for 20 years. Love it but with all the talk about pur over, I wanted to try it just in case it was better. I’ve brewed probably two dozen times and have completely given up. Like the OP I just don’t get the flavor or body that I do out of the French press. But unlike the OP I am not a fan of any of the machines I have tried.
Because of cholesterol. Coffee contains cafestol and kahweol, which are two of the most cholesterol raising substances known. Paper filters remove them, but french presses don’t. There was a large study in northern Norway where men were encouraged to switch from steep to filter coffee and it lowered their blood cholesterol levels significantly: https://en.uit.no/om/enhet/artikkel?p_document_id=80172&p_dimension_id=88111
Regarding pour over: Depending on the model, pour over coffee requires a certain level of skill to get the best results. V60 requires quite a lot of skill and can give pretty poor results at first, Kalita is somewhat easier.
I’ve had coffee where he saturated the grounds in a press and after 3 minutes of extraction, poured everything through a cloth filter. I do the same from time to time with paper at home when I want to try something a little different. I usually use a machine, but I also like more floral, lifted notes in my coffee and don’t want to spend time pouring manually.
I like pourover coffee. It is, however, a huge pain in the ass. Accordingly, it’s drip for me.
I find pourover produces the best cup of coffee, particularly for more delicate coffees and lighter roasts. (also partial to an Americano, but that’s different). I used to make the French press, but now find that it tends to result in much muddier flavors as the water sits on the beans, unless you pour off the beans at just the right time. I use a fair amount of ground coffee, and a relatively fine grind, and my cup is neither watery nor weak. I also don’t find it to be a PITA. I use a metal cone filter, and both the filter and the ceramic dripper go into the d/w every morning after use. I’d say it’s much easier than the French press to clean, since the press basically had to be hand washed and I was always pouring coffee and grounds into the trash, since the grounds are bad for drains (at least so I’m told).
Wow, that calculates out very strong. However, I’m using my drip calculations (15:1 water:coffee) and pourover may be different. Last time I made pourover (years ago), I wasn’t as sophisticated or precise in my coffee making.
Pourover seems like an elevated version of drip where you can more precisely control the saturation of the grounds. But, I think a lot of the advantage goes away with a high end coffee maker like the Technivorm. I need a full pot anyway, so pourover is not much of an option and I’m not willing to do each cup individually.
As to the OP’s issue, I suspect a lot of the weakness could be altered with the grind. Not sure what kind of grinder you are using, but even after years of knowing that the grinder makes the biggest difference, I’m still amazed at how true that axiom is.
I drink coffee every day. Pourover every day. Don’t even own a machine. I do prefer my coffee on the delicate side
I think pourover is a large step up from a press, which is a giant step up even from a good machine. A vacuum pot also makes good coffee, but not worth the hassle.
As for needing a whole pot, I make a rather large cup of coffee with a pourover, but it’s so little trouble that if I have to make another it’s not really an issue at all. I’d rather have it fresh anyway. I should add that an electric kettle makes a big difference in this process, and decreases the hassle. Would be even better if it was on a 220, but honestly the amount of water I use boils quite quickly even on a standard outlet.
I have a decent but not excellent grinder.
I am a long time coffee addict/lover and fully agree that the pour over method is the best. I got some education from a barrista, and I think the extended contact and ability to stir the water and coffee combination within the “cone” produces more flavors. I even travel with a pour over!
This.
George
For me.
Pour-over is the best option. I love the ability to make stronger as needed. I drink only Starbucks Reserves and use 35gram per my 16oz cup. On mornings where I am feeling randy, I go 38-40. The taste is pure, clean, bright and perfect. I keep about 12 different 8.8 oz bags of assorted Reserves and go with certin regions for certain moods. I grind in a cheap grinder and don’t really see any issues with a 5 second push-grind. I use No. 2 filters and prime them with warm water before I pour-over. My coffee Xanadu.
Fresh press it too dirty for me.
Not a real fan of cold-brew other than for ice coffee and I have been doing less of that if this past summer is any indication.
for me, Technivorm Moccamaster is essentially a pourover and works just fine. And it’s done so for years.
Sounds like you are a big fan of body in your coffee? You could try using a stainless steel filter in place of a paper one, that would allow the oils to come through and give you that bigger body you are looking for. Alternatively you could try a siphon brew method, but that’s a real pain in the ass, I was doing that every morning for the last month while waiting for a bulk order of V60 filters to get delivered. It filters outs the grinds using cloth and is a bridge between the body of a press and the brightness of a paper filter, some say it is the perfect method to brew with, plus it looks cool as $hit.
As mentioned earlier increasing the grind to brew ratio could be the key, try 15:1 with a coarse enough grind to take 3.5 minutes to pour out.
Ultimately everyone has different tastes, what kind of coffee do you enjoy? Do you love a juicy berry like Kenyan? Or is a smoky earthy Sumatran more your style?
I brew two pour overs every morning using V60’s, one for me and one for the wife, I’ll never trust a machine to prepare our meds in the morning.