What is a purover?
Pourover (from the English "pour-over") is a method of coffee preparation in which hot water is evenly poured over ground coffee beans. This process allows you to extract the taste and aroma of coffee, creating a pure and high-quality drink. Preferably, to separate coffee particles from the drink, any dense material is used - a filter. Filters can be any: paper, fabric or even metal. The most popular pourovers are Hario V60, Chemex, Cafec Flower Dripper, Kalita Wave or Aeropress, each of which has its own characteristics and affects the taste of coffee.
This technique has been widely used in Europe since the 1900s, and in other countries for much longer, but in recent years it has been "rediscovered" by the specialty coffee movement.
Feature of the filter
Compared to other brewing methods, this method is distinguished by purity and depth of taste. Therefore, it is recommended to brew single varieties with the help of pourover, as it allows flavors and aromas to fully unfold.
Good filter coffee is clean, clear and uniform. This happens because the water extracts negative aromatic substances and other components that can affect the taste of the drink. The filter traps these substances, creating a flawless cup.
When brewing in this way, three variables affect the final result, which are dependent on each other.
- Coffee grinder. The finer the grind, the more substances are extracted. This is due to the fact that the contact area increases and water passes more slowly through the small particles of coffee.
- Contact time. It is not only the time of water flow through ground coffee. This is also the time we spend on infusion (adding water). You can increase the brewing time by pouring water very slowly. Accordingly, by this we will increase the level of extraction.
- Amount of coffee. The more ground coffee in the filter, the longer the water will pass through it and thus the contact time will increase.
Based on these facts, you can understand that it is extremely important to follow the ratio of water and coffee so that your drink is balanced, bright and drinkable.
The basics of a delicious cup
Frying
Since brewing in purover perfectly emphasizes subtle taste notes and aromas, it is recommended to use grain that is not dark and not old roasting. That is why the filter style of roasting, which is present in our assortment on the website and in the Riverside store, is best suited for this. Such a grain is usually brighter and more expressive. And it also has a higher acidity compared to other roasting styles.
Milling.
For brewing coffee in a pourover, it is recommended to use medium grind, which is finer in appearance than crystal sugar. It helps the coffee not to be over-extracted and to maintain the perfect balance. The ideal brewing time ranges from 2 minutes 40 seconds.
Ratio .
On the Internet, you can find many recipes with different ratios of water to coffee, but the gold standard is exactly 1:16.6 (1 g of coffee to 16.6-17 g of water). Of course, this is not a "coffee law", but it is based on this proportion that you can adjust your recipe. For example, if according to this ratio, the coffee seems watery, you can increase its amount by several grams, without changing other parameters. Don't be afraid to experiment!
Water temperature.
The optimum water temperature for brewing coffee in a pourover is usually in the range of 195°F to 205°F (about 90°C to 96°C). This is the temperature range that allows the coffee to effectively extract flavors without destroying the aromatic compounds. The higher the degree of brewing, the more bitter and unbalanced your coffee will be. Boiling water "burns out" the enzymes responsible for acidity. Therefore, it is very important to control the temperature indicator!
Kettle for purover
The speed with which water is poured in plays a big role in brewing coffee. To distribute the water evenly, there are special kettles - with a long, very narrow spout. In this case, the rate of infusion can be controlled. This helps achieve uniform extraction. In addition, such kettles are isothermal. This means that they keep the set water temperature for a long time.
Whether you choose an electric kettle or one that heats on the stove is up to you, but keep a thermometer handy to monitor the temperature.
If you have not purchased a kettle that has the ability to set the temperature mode, the classic rule of the "coffee experimenter" will be useful. You can simply bring the water to a boil, wait 1 minute for it to cool, and start brewing purover. If this time the coffee is not acidic enough, next time we suggest giving the boiling water more time to cool down.
Recipe from Riverside
Ratio: 18g/300ml.
- Grind and weigh the grain.
- Heat the water to 94°C.
- Place a paper filter in the funnel and wet it with hot water. (This will help get rid of the cardboard taste in the coffee)
- Place the funnel on a decanter or cup and pour ground coffee into it.
- While watching the scales, pour 36g of water, thereby wetting the coffee.
- At 30 seconds, start slowly pouring water in a circular motion until the indicator on the scales reaches 150 g.
- For 1 min. 30 sec. add water up to 300 grams. Try to pour water on the coffee, and not on the walls of the funnel, because this way the water will flow past the coffee.
- Wait until the coffee runs out and the tablet is dry.
- Remove the paper filter and enjoy a bright drink!
