Coffee Grind Sizes: The Difference Between Coarse, Medium, Medium-Fine, Fine, and Very Fine Grinds for Pour-Over Coffee

Introduction

The coffee brewing process is essentially an extraction process, using water as a solvent to extract flavor compounds from coffee beans. The various parameters in a brewing recipe are the most obvious and important factors affecting extraction efficiency. These factors include coffee-to-water ratio, grind size, water temperature, and extraction time.

The coffee-to-water ratio refers to the proportion of coffee grounds to water usage. A higher ratio results in a weaker taste, while a lower ratio produces a richer flavor. The recommended coffee-to-water ratio for pour-over coffee is between 1:14 to 1:18. FrontStreet Coffee's standard ratio is 1:15, using 15 grams of coffee grounds with 225 grams of water.

Water temperature and extraction time are more easily understood. Higher water temperatures extract more flavor compounds, while lower temperatures result in lower extraction efficiency. FrontStreet Coffee uses 90°C water temperature for brewing lightly roasted coffee beans and 88°C for darker roasted beans. Extraction time refers to the duration from when coffee grounds first contact water until the dripper is removed. The longer the contact time between grounds and water, the more compounds are extracted; shorter contact times result in weaker flavors. FrontStreet Coffee's brewing/extraction time is approximately 2 minutes.

Grind size refers to the coarseness of coffee grounds, achieved by grinding coffee beans with a grinder. Coarser coffee grounds produce weaker flavors, while finer grounds yield stronger flavors.

How Does Grind Size Affect Coffee Flavor?

Grind size is often described as the coarseness of coffee grounds or the size of coffee particles. When coffee grounds are coarser, the particles are larger, and water flow requires more time to penetrate the particles and extract coffee compounds. Similarly, when coffee grounds are finer, the particles are smaller, and water flow takes less time to penetrate and extract compounds from within the particles.

During the brewing process, within the same timeframe, finer coffee grind sizes can extract more coffee compounds, resulting in stronger flavors. Meanwhile, coarser grind sizes can only extract limited coffee compounds, often leading to weaker flavors.

What Are the Common Grind Sizes?

Generally, commercial coffee grinders can be categorized into three types based on grinding range: grinders designed for espresso extraction range, grinders suitable for most grinding methods but not espresso, and grinders with grinding ranges that accommodate all brewing methods.

According to the recommended grind sizes for different coffee brewing methods, we can identify several common grind sizes. The finest grind is used for Turkish coffee preparation, followed by espresso, then medium-coarse grind for pour-over/drip coffee, slightly coarser for siphon brewing, and finally the coarsest grind for French press preparation.

Espresso grind size is relatively fine, which stems from the espresso preparation process and its purpose. Espresso production requires very short extraction times, typically between 20 to 30 seconds. Additionally, espresso is primarily used as the base for most Italian-style coffee drinks, requiring extraction of sufficient coffee compounds to support dilution with water or milk. Therefore, the grind size is much finer compared to other brewing methods.

Pour-over coffee brewing methods have moderate extraction times among various brewing methods, averaging around 2 minutes, although 1 to 3 minutes is also acceptable. Most single-serving pour-over coffee brewing recipes average 2 minutes extraction time. Compared to espresso, pour-over coffee doesn't require such fine grind sizes to avoid over-extraction, so the grind size falls into the medium-coarse category.

French press coffee extraction takes 4 minutes or longer, exceeding pour-over coffee extraction time. Therefore, French press coffee typically uses the coarsest grind size to avoid over-extraction that can result from prolonged extraction times.

What Grind Size Should Be Used for Pour-Over Coffee?

Pour-over coffee grind size falls into the medium range among various brewing methods. However, different grinder models express grind settings using different standards. How can FrontStreet Coffee communicate the appropriate grind size to customers using different grinders? Additionally, when we encounter a new coffee bean, how should we determine the optimal grind size for that particular bean?

To address these challenges, FrontStreet Coffee uses a standard 0.85mm sieve. This sieve has a mesh opening of 0.85mm, allowing coffee particles smaller than this size to pass through. When using this sieve, we weigh 10 grams of coffee beans for grinding, place the ground coffee in the upper layer of the sieve, and through repeated shaking, coffee particles smaller than 0.85mm are sifted into the lower layer. We then weigh the coffee grounds in the lower layer, and this weight relative to the initial 10 grams provides the pass-through rate for that grind size.

FrontStreet Coffee recommends a grind size for pour-over coffee that is slightly finer than medium, with a sieve pass-through rate of approximately 80%, meaning 10 grams of coffee beans yield about 8 grams of grounds after sieving.

FrontStreet Coffee would like to remind you that this represents our recommended basic standard grind size, not an absolute rule. Once you understand the interrelationships between various parameters, different parameter combinations are possible. However, if you're still a beginner or haven't determined the optimal grind size for a particular coffee bean, this 80% sieve pass-through grind size will be an invaluable tool to help you find your starting point.

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