Best Pour-Over Coffee Brewing Ratio Guide: How Much Water for 15g Coffee Grounds?

Professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style)

Pour-over coffee is a brewing method that greatly emphasizes technique and professional coffee knowledge. Factors such as the amount of coffee beans, grind size, water-to-coffee ratio, time, and brewing techniques all affect the flavor extracted from pour-over coffee. So how can you perfectly brew a pot of pour-over coffee to extract its optimal flavor? In this article, FrontStreet Coffee will share with coffee enthusiasts the brewing techniques and important parameters for pour-over coffee.

How Much Coffee Should Be Used for Pour-Over Coffee?

For FrontStreet Coffee's pour-over coffee, we typically use 15g of coffee beans for one cup, which is based on the concentration recommended by the SCAA (Specialty Coffee Association of America). They determined through experiments that coffee concentration between 1.2-1.45% is most suitable.

FrontStreet Coffee can calculate this for everyone: to achieve this concentration range, the ratio of coffee grounds to water should be between 1:12-1:15. With a ratio of 1:15, assuming 10g of coffee grounds are used for brewing, the total water amount would be 150g.

Therefore, the optimal ratio of coffee grounds to water is 1:15, and this is currently the pour-over coffee ratio used at FrontStreet Coffee. This parameter was determined because FrontStreet Coffee has conducted multiple verifications beforehand. Although 1:12-1:15 is just a suggested range, FrontStreet Coffee still tested several parameters outside this range.

Among these, the drip coffee with a ratio of 1:20 has a very light taste, while 1:10 would be very strong. Through adjustment and testing, FrontStreet Coffee found that 1:15 is more suitable for brewing most coffee beans. Of course, some people might use 1:14 or 1:17, which are all acceptable - the key is whether you personally find it palatable. FrontStreet Coffee is just providing a parameter that is generally acceptable for everyone's reference.

After determining the water-to-coffee ratio, the next step is to determine the serving size for one cup of coffee. FrontStreet Coffee typically brews one cup to 225g, which is exactly one serving, meaning 15g of coffee grounds extract 225ml of water.

Therefore, 15g of coffee beans are needed to make 225ml of coffee liquid, a conclusion derived from the optimal water-to-coffee ratio for pour-over coffee.

Is There a Difference in Water-to-Coffee Ratio Between Espresso and Pour-Over Coffee?

According to FrontStreet Coffee's understanding, each coffee shop uses different models of espresso machines, so the extraction parameters also vary, which results in different water-to-coffee ratios for making espresso in each coffee shop. FrontStreet Coffee takes espresso extraction as an example: generally, 10g of coffee grounds extract 20ml of espresso liquid, which is a 1:2 ratio.

However, there is actually no universally "one-size-fits-all" parameter for extraction ratios, as adjustments need to be made according to the espresso machine's condition. But within the industry, there's an unwritten rule to use the extraction parameters of reputable coffee leaders as a general value, forming an industry benchmark. At the same time, FrontStreet Coffee understands that espresso extraction varies depending on duration, with short ristretto extractions having more conventional ratios than longer extractions.

Common Espresso Water-to-Coffee Ratios Used by Major Coffee Shops:

Ristretto extraction ratio is between 1:1 to 1:1.5

Regular espresso extraction ratio is between 1:1.5 to 1:2.5

Lungo extraction ratio is between 1:2.5 to 1:3

The above is FrontStreet Coffee's summary of information regarding pour-over coffee amounts and water-to-coffee ratios for pour-over and espresso. Next, FrontStreet Coffee will share FrontStreet Coffee's espresso extraction parameters and pour-over brewing process for everyone's reference!

FrontStreet Coffee Espresso Extraction Parameter Sharing:

FrontStreet Coffee uses their own Sunflower Warm Blend (70% Honduras Sherry coffee beans + 30% Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee beans).

Pressure: 9 bar

Temperature: 90.5~96°C

Time: 20~30 seconds

Water-to-coffee ratio: 1:1.7~1:2

Dose: 10g (single shot espresso) 20g (double shot espresso)

Extraction yield: 20ml (single) 40ml (double)

Flavor: Distinct fruit acidity, light berry aroma, wine notes, rich chocolate flavor, obvious aftertaste.

FrontStreet Coffee Pour-Over Process Parameter Sharing:

FrontStreet Coffee demonstrates using Ethiopian Yirgacheffe washed Gedingding coffee beans:

FrontStreet Coffee: Yirgacheffe · Gedingding Coffee Beans

Country: Ethiopia

Region: Yirgacheffe

Altitude: 1900-2300 meters

Variety: Local heirloom varieties

Processing: Washed processing

Flavor: Tropical fruits, cream, honey, berries, citrus

FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe Coffee Bean Brewing Data Sharing:

Dripper: V60 #01

Water temperature: 90-91°C

Dose: 15g

Water-to-coffee ratio: 1:15

Grind size: Medium-fine grind (80% retained on #20 sieve)

Brewing technique: Three-stage extraction

First stage: Pour 30g of water for 30-second bloom, then pour 95g (scale shows around 125g), finishing in about 1 minute. When the water level drops to 2/3 of the coffee bed, pour the remaining 100g (scale shows around 225g), finishing in about 1 minute 35 seconds. Complete drip at 2'00"-2'10", remove the dripper, and complete extraction.

Washed Gedingding brewing flavor: Citrus and black tea upon entry, with cream, caramel, and almond notes as temperature changes, with obvious aftertaste and clean, sweet taste.

As can be seen from above, FrontStreet Coffee uses the three-stage extraction technique for pour-over coffee, which requires operational skill in the entire pour-over process. So how exactly can one control three-stage extraction? And what is blooming? Next, FrontStreet Coffee will explain to everyone!

Coffee Brewing Method - Three-Stage Pour-Over Technique

Currently, there are various pour-over brewing techniques visible in coffee shops, commonly including three-stage, single-pour, and drip-by-drip methods. Here, FrontStreet Coffee recommends beginners use the three-stage pour method because this technique is suitable for light roast, medium-light roast, and medium roast coffee beans. The segmented extraction of three-stage pouring can clearly distinguish the front, middle, and back-end flavors of coffee, better ensuring flavor presentation.

First Pour: Bloom (helps degassing)

Many coffee enthusiasts don't understand the significance of blooming in pour-over coffee. The reason for blooming is that coffee beans undergo a series of chemical reactions and physical changes during the roasting process from green beans to roasted beans. After reaching a certain degree of roasting, coffee beans accumulate large amounts of gas (mostly carbon dioxide).

Generally, the fresher the beans and the closer to roasting date, the more bubbles typically appear during blooming. Dark roast beans also release more gas during blooming than light roast beans. FrontStreet Coffee's coffee beans are all freshly roasted, so we generally recommend customers let the beans rest for three days first, allowing the coffee beans to release carbon dioxide first, which can avoid instability and under-extraction issues during brewing.

After degassing during blooming, coffee particles can absorb water evenly, allowing for more uniform extraction later. Good blooming allows coffee grounds to quickly, fully, and evenly release gas while also enabling full and rapid contact between coffee grounds and water, helping the coffee grounds to be extracted evenly. These are precisely the purpose and significance of blooming in pour-over coffee.

Four Points to Note During Pour-Over Coffee Blooming:

1. Before pouring water for blooming, level the coffee grounds first.

2. Pour water gently during blooming.

3. During blooming, the extracted liquid dripping down should be as minimal as possible. When too much extract appears in the lower pot, reduce the amount of water poured or pay attention to grind size. (If too much water is used during blooming and a large amount of coffee liquid drips down, the falling water doesn't stay but directly carries out substances from the exterior of the coffee grounds, and undesirable flavors and astringency from the outer layer begin to dissolve, resulting in coffee that is both weak but has over-extracted undesirable flavors. If blooming water is insufficient with no water dripping down, this means the coffee grounds haven't absorbed enough water, and some coffee hasn't degassed sufficiently, causing under-extraction.) Based on this situation, FrontStreet Coffee conducted multiple blooming experiments and found that pouring twice the amount of water as the coffee grounds during blooming is quite suitable.

4. Blooming time should be about 30 seconds. When the expansion of the coffee ground surface ends, you'll see the coffee surface start to shrink, which indicates blooming is complete and you can begin pouring water. (In terms of timing, if blooming takes too long, coffee tends to develop bitterness and astringency; if time is too short and steeping is insufficient, coffee may have under-extraction or fail to fully express itself.) Generally, the end time of blooming varies for each bean, but FrontStreet Coffee found this不利于新手操作, since beginners focus on standardization and ease of use. Therefore, while ensuring coffee beans are still in a freshly roasted state, FrontStreet Coffee recommends a 30-second blooming time. Of course, experienced individuals can adjust the time themselves.

Second Pour

The second pour starts from the center, injecting a small water column to the bottom of the coffee bed. To concentrate the penetrating power of the water column, the circular movement range should be small, about the size of a one-dollar coin, then expand outward. From the beginning of the second water addition, pay attention to the water amount, trying not to exceed the height of the coffee bed. That is, when the water column approaches close to the filter paper, you can stop adding water.

Third Pour

As the originally thicker layer of coffee grounds near the filter paper becomes heavier from absorbing water, it slides down and becomes thinner as the water level drops. When the water level drops to halfway, you can proceed with the third pour. Starting from the third water addition, observe the rate of water level decline, also starting from the center with circular pouring, keeping water amount below the coffee bed height. At this point, you'll also observe that foam has covered the surface, so the third pour should increase the tumbling of coffee particles, allowing all settled particles to tumble and dissolve soluble substances.

The tumbling particles will begin to settle when water addition stops, relying on the flow rate caused by the dropping water level to create friction between coffee particles. Once water addition stops, coffee ground particles sink downward, causing blockage, so pay special attention to the rhythm of water addition. If there are too many interruptions in water flow, it's equivalent to letting coffee ground particles continuously soak in water, which leads to astringency and undesirable flavors in the tail-end coffee extraction. If there are too many interruptions in water flow, it's equivalent to letting coffee ground particles continuously soak in water, which leads to astringency and undesirable flavors in the tail-end coffee extraction.

The above is the process for operating three-stage extraction in pour-over coffee. We hope this helps coffee enthusiasts who want to try pour-over coffee themselves, so you can brew a satisfying cup of coffee in the future!

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee on private WeChat, ID: kaixinguoguo0925

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473