Pour-Over Coffee Water-to-Coffee Ratio: Essential Tips and Techniques for Beginners

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Hello everyone, many of you purchase coffee equipment and beans to make pour-over coffee at home. I frequently receive various questions about pour-over coffee, and everyone's enthusiasm for discussing is quite high. So today, I'll share several common questions that beginners often have and provide comprehensive answers.

First Question: Why doesn't water drain during pour-over coffee blooming?

The purpose of blooming is to allow hot water to slowly penetrate into the center of the coffee grounds, letting the substances in the coffee powder dissolve first in the hot water to form a high-concentration coffee solution. During the second brewing, the physical phenomenon of concentration gradient causes movement from high concentration (the bloomed coffee liquid) to low concentration (the hot water), achieving equilibrium (uniform concentration).

Therefore, if too much water is used for blooming, resulting in a large amount of coffee liquid dripping, the situation is that the falling water doesn't pause but directly carries out substances from the exterior of the coffee grounds... When the components of the outer layer of coffee grounds are dissolved, the inner layer is still dry... As hot water penetrates into the inner layer of coffee grounds... the unpleasant tastes and astringency from the outer layer also begin to dissolve. The coffee brewed this way ends up both weak but with over-extracted unpleasant tastes.

If the blooming water amount is insufficient, with no water droplets falling at all, this means the coffee grounds haven't absorbed enough water, and some coffee hasn't degassed sufficiently, which will result in under-extraction~

So how much water should be used for pour-over coffee blooming?

Generally speaking, there are 2 calculation methods:

① Use 1.5~2 times the amount of coffee grounds. For example, if using 15 grams of coffee grounds, the blooming water amount would be approximately 23~30 grams. For light roast coffee, you can use slightly less;

② Use 1/10 of the total extraction amount. For example, to extract 240 milliliters of coffee, use 24 grams of blooming water. Similarly, for light roast coffee, you can use slightly less;

Therefore, the correct blooming state is when several drops of water fall - this is best, but the prerequisite is that as shown in the image above, the blooming water is poured completely and evenly distributed over the coffee grounds, ensuring every coffee particle can absorb water~

Second Question: Where does the acidity in coffee come from?

Coffee is one of the plants with the highest chlorogenic acid content in the plant kingdom, and chlorogenic acid is a strong antioxidant. Additionally, coffee also contains acidic chemical compounds such as formic acid (oxalic acid), citric acid, and malic acid. During green bean processing, acetic acid (vinegar acid) and lactic acid are produced. Finally, during roasting, although certain acids decompose with heat, generally speaking, citric acid, malic acid, lactic acid, and acetic acid are largely retained. Therefore, coffee always has some acidity~ after all, coffee is a fruit.

Thus, even medium-dark roast coffees like Blue Mountain and Mandheling still carry acidity, though it's lower compared to medium and light roasts. Additionally, coffee flavor is a complex state where the four tastes of sour, salty, bitter, and sweet both enhance and suppress each other. For example, a certain amount of sweetness can suppress acidity, while a certain amount of saltiness can highlight sweetness, etc. Furthermore, when we judge coffee acidity, besides acidity level, we should also consider acidity quality - that is, the quality of the acidity~

For example, medium-dark roasted Blue Mountain is what we call a very balanced coffee with low acidity, but it has excellent acidity quality. This statement means Blue Mountain coffee has gentle acidity, and it's high-quality acidity that makes one's mouth water when drinking.

Another example is Kenya coffee's bright berry acidity and citric acid - although high in acidity, good Kenya coffee's acidity can transform into a sweet and sour fruit sensation, which is also excellent acidity quality.

But if it's low-quality acidity, such as high acidity that only makes one cringe; or although the acidity is low, it's dull and lifeless acidity, then it cannot be considered excellent acidity quality.

Third Question: How should one control the water-to-coffee ratio for pour-over coffee?

Honestly, I think when it comes to brewing coffee, whatever you like is best~ Some people like it strong, some like it weak.

But what I want to discuss here is why we always recommend a water-to-coffee ratio between 1:14~1:16?

First, let's talk about the water-to-coffee ratio we use for cupping - 1:18.8

This ratio is designed to make the coffee's concentration and extraction rate fall within the Golden Cup range, which means: 1. Extraction rate between 18%~22%. 2. Coffee concentration within the range of 1.2%~1.45%.

As for the water-to-coffee ratio for pour-over coffee, it's a recommended ratio to make your coffee achieve "better taste"! Because friends who have done cupping know that cupping coffee is relatively weak - this is to better distinguish the various flavors of coffee, and each cupping round takes about 20 minutes, with coffee grounds completely immersed, allowing flavors to be fully released. In contrast, pour-over uses water to extract coffee contents within 2~3 minutes, so to achieve the same extraction effect, you need to reduce the water-to-coffee ratio~1:14~1:16 (depending on the coffee roast level), and with this ratio, as long as there are no "god-tier operations" during the brewing process, it generally won't taste too bad.

Of course, there are exceptions to everything. I personally like to brew Hacienda La Esmeralda Natural Red Label Geisha at a 1:18 ratio, which can showcase the complete floral and fruity aromas~ You can also use a 1:13 or even 1:12 ratio to brew Blue Mountain or Mandheling, which extracts only the front and middle flavor sections~

As for the various techniques for pour-over coffee, my suggestion is: as long as the brewed coffee tastes good, who cares how you brew it!

Fourth Question: How long should Ethiopian coffee beans be rested?

Friends who have read our article "FrontStreet Coffee Teaches You Coffee | The Importance of Fresh Coffee - Bean Resting Chapter" will know~

This Ethiopian coffee belongs to light roast, and light roast coffee beans degas relatively evenly and slowly, so they need more time to complete maturation. Resting for 5-7 days is normal, and if your storage environment temperature is relatively low, resting for 8~10 days is perfectly fine~

The above is just a small portion of beginner questions about pour-over coffee. If there are any omissions or inappropriate points, everyone is welcome to supplement and discuss~ If you have other coffee-related questions, you're welcome to communicate with us, and we'll do our best to answer~

Looking forward to the next coffee beginner Q&A! Let's work together to improve our professional skills!

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