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How Much Water for 15g Pour-Over Coffee - Single-Serve Pour-Over Brewing Guide and Three-Stage Pouring Techniques

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, For professional coffee knowledge exchanges and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat Official Account: cafe_style). How many brewing methods are there for pour-over coffee? How much coffee liquid can 15g of water brew? What does "filter-style" mean? Pour-over coffee refers to the Melitta small-hole filter cup, which has very small holes in its filter cup. Regardless of whether

Why Does FrontStreet Coffee Insist on Using a 1:15 Coffee-to-Water Ratio for Pour-Over Brewing?

Is this ratio the result of a random discovery, or was it determined through various brewing experiments with different data? In this article, FrontStreet Coffee will explain why the 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio is suitable for pour-over brewing.

What's the Difference Between Coffee-to-Water Ratio and Water-to-Coffee Ratio?

First, FrontStreet Coffee uses 15g of coffee grounds to brew with 225ml of water, which means brewing 15g of coffee with 15 times its weight in water. If we were to describe this as a water-to-coffee ratio of 1:15, it would mean using 1ml of water to brew 15g of coffee grounds, which would be "quite absurd." Therefore, when describing brewing ratios, FrontStreet Coffee refers to the water-to-coffee ratio as 15:1 or the coffee-to-water ratio as 1:15.

When Brewing with a 1:15 Coffee-to-Water Ratio, Is the Final Coffee Also at a 1:15 Ratio?

As FrontStreet Coffee just mentioned, we use 15g of coffee grounds to brew with 225ml of water. Many people might think that 225ml represents the amount of coffee liquid after extraction is complete. In reality, 225ml refers to the total amount of water poured. Only 1:13 of the water actually passes through the coffee grounds, and after extraction is complete, we only have 195ml of coffee liquid.

Why is this? Generally, coffee grounds absorb about twice their weight in water during the blooming process (we can't say this applies to all beans, but it's generally around 2 times). Therefore, the coffee liquid we obtain is not equal to the total amount of water we pour. Still don't understand? Let FrontStreet Coffee use the 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio as an example: the coffee grounds will absorb 30ml of water, so 225-30=195, and 195÷15=13. Therefore, we ultimately get 195ml of extracted coffee liquid, at a ratio of 1:13.

Why Does FrontStreet Coffee Insist on Using a 1:15 Coffee-to-Water Ratio?

According to the range provided by SCA Golden Cup Extraction—extraction yield: 18%-22%, concentration: 1.15%-1.45%—coffee within this range is considered Golden Cup extraction, which we can simply understand as the "delicious zone." Based on the description in the diagram, FrontStreet Coffee observed that the 1:17 ratio passes through the largest area of the Golden Cup zone, meaning it's most likely to hit the Golden Cup range, followed by 1:16 and 1:18 coffee-to-water ratios. In contrast, 1:15 is actually very difficult to achieve Golden Cup extraction. According to this logic, is FrontStreet Coffee's recommendation wrong?

After a long period of operation and experimentation, FrontStreet Coffee discovered that when baristas use a larger coffee-to-water ratio, brewing at 1:18, although the extraction yield and concentration fall within the Golden Cup extraction range, it's easy to extract unpleasant flavors (during which the concentration is maintained, but the extraction yield is difficult to ensure).

Using a 1:16 ratio for brewing ensures both extraction yield and concentration, but the flavors always feel somewhat thin. When brewing medium-dark roasted coffee beans, it fails to present a rich, full-bodied sensation. The 1:16 ratio is suitable for brewing coffees that need to express clear flavor layers, such as FrontStreet Coffee's washed green标 Geisha coffee beans from Emerald Manor. Geisha coffee beans are inherently very extraction-resistant and have concentrated flavors. Therefore, during extraction, we can appropriately increase the coffee-to-water ratio to clearly express the rich floral aromas and bright acidity of the green标 Geisha.

Getting back to the main point, FrontStreet Coffee conducted multiple brewing experiments with light-roast coffee and found that the concentration of 1:15 is approximately 1.35-1.42%, with corresponding extraction yields of 17.79%-18.73%. Although this is only at the edge of meeting Golden Cup standards, sensory testing revealed that the flavors are very appropriate, without the sharp acidity or astringency that comes from under-extraction. This is a brewing ratio suitable for the vast majority of coffee beans. Compared to larger coffee-to-water ratios that tend to result in over-extraction or bitterness, 1:15 is a conservative and stable coffee-to-water ratio that can be used to brew over 80% of coffee beans.

Are the Golden Cup Extraction Parameters Wrong?

No! The Golden Cup extraction range is a parameter derived by SCA using immersion extraction (such as cupping), while our daily pour-over coffee belongs to drip coffee, which uses water flow to stir the coffee grounds, thereby improving extraction efficiency. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee slightly reduces the coffee-to-water ratio during the brewing process. It's not that 1:15 is necessarily right, nor that 1:16-1:18 are necessarily wrong. Ultimately, it depends on the freshness of the beans, grind size, brewing water temperature, brewing equipment, etc., as well as the brewer's personal taste preferences. Parameters vary from person to person, and there's no right or wrong. As long as the brewed coffee is one you enjoy, that's the best result.

How Does FrontStreet Coffee Brew with a 1:15 Coffee-to-Water Ratio?

FrontStreet Coffee typically uses a three-stage extraction method for coffee. First, it more fully extracts the flavor compounds from the coffee during extraction, thereby enhancing the coffee's layered complexity. Second, it has strong compatibility and can excellently express the flavors of most coffees from different origins and with different roast levels.

How to Use the Three-Stage Method to Brew a Cup of Coffee?

First, prepare everything (warm the filter cup and server, grind the coffee, prepare water at the appropriate temperature), and pour in the coffee grounds.

Begin the first water pour while starting the timer. Pour 30g of hot water for the first stage, moving from the center outward in circles. The coffee grounds absorb water and slowly expand, forming a puffed-up "coffee burger." Wait for 30 seconds of blooming time. Starting at second 31 on the scale, begin the second water pour, moving from the center outward in circles. Keep the water flow steady and vertical. When the water column impacts the coffee grounds, foam will appear. This brewing stage allows the coffee foam to release and spread across the entire surface of the grounds, with the liquid level rising to the base of the short ribs. The water amount for this stage is 100g.

When the liquid level drops to the 1/2 mark, begin the final water pour. For this stage, also pour 95g in a "smelling" motion from the center outward. The original dark brown foam transforms into light yellow coffee foam, and the liquid level returns to the same height as after the second water pour. When all the coffee liquid has flowed into the server, remove the filter cup and end the extraction.

Finally! Pay Attention!

The first stage of three-stage extraction awakens the flavor molecules, the second stage extracts the sour and sweet flavor molecules, and the third stage extracts the rich, full-bodied flavor molecules. When coffee extraction is complete, the coffee liquid in the server will also have layers due to the different densities of coffee liquid from each stage. Therefore, after extraction is complete, remember to shake clockwise to fully integrate all the coffee flavors before tasting.