Pour-Over Coffee Bean Recommendations: Selection Guide & Unique Japanese Brewing Methods

Introduction to Four Major Pour-Over Coffee Techniques

Recently, many coffee enthusiast friends who came to FrontStreet Coffee to buy coffee beans asked FrontStreet Coffee how to properly pour-over coffee to bring out its best flavor. FrontStreet Coffee often says that the pour-over coffee process is an enjoyment, and coffee brewed by hand feels more delicious on a spiritual level. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee would like to introduce the four major pour-over techniques in this article.

Four Major Japanese Pour-Over Techniques

Coffee enthusiast friends familiar with Japan know that Japanese people particularly pursue craftsmanship, so they naturally have extreme pursuit of how to brew coffee with special flavors. Therefore, they have researched several pour-over coffee methods to present the best flavors of coffee beans. The pour-over methods of FrontStreet Coffee's baristas are also based on Japanese pour-over techniques, aiming to present coffee beans from different regions with the best quality to coffee enthusiast friends.

The following are the four most common pour-over coffee methods in Japan:

1. Matsuya-style Pour-Over

The Matsuya-style pour-over method was invented by Matsuyoshi Kazuyoshi in 1962. He developed filter paper that does not hinder the expansion of the coffee grounds and a corresponding metal frame to maintain the angle of the filter paper. FrontStreet Coffee believes that the special feature of this pour-over method lies in using coarsely ground coffee powder and long-term blooming. During brewing, first dig a large hole in the coffee powder, then start pouring a fine stream of water from high above the filter cup until the coffee liquid begins to drip, then draw circles outward to wet the coffee powder, cover with a lid and bloom for 3 minutes. After 3 minutes, start pouring water evenly and continuously. When the coffee liquid reaches half of the coffee pot, stop pouring, and finally add hot water to dilute.

Flavor Profile: Coffee brewed with this technique shows minimal flavor changes even after some time and doesn't become muddy.

2. Kawano-style Pour-Over

The Kawano-style pour-over is what's known in the industry as the drip method. As the name suggests, it uses a dripping form for brewing, dripping into the coffee powder drop by drop like an hourglass. Through this technique, the coffee powder can have a full blooming effect. This brewing method requires very stable kettle handling and patience; the general approach is to first let water concentrate to wet the coffee powder drop by drop, and when it reaches about one-third, you can start pouring water. When the water level of the coffee powder reaches the top, you can pause until the water level drops to half before pouring water again.

Flavor Profile: The drip method can highlight the sweetness of coffee while avoiding sourness and bitterness.

3. Volcano Pour-Over

The volcano pour-over method utilizes the carbon dioxide contained in the beans. Through multiple blooming, it makes the coffee powder swell like a volcanic eruption, so dark roast coffee beans are more suitable for this technique because dark roasted beans have more carbon dioxide. This pour-over method is mostly paired with flannel. Because the middle powder layer is thick, it mainly focuses on the center, pouring water at a position the size of a one-yuan coin. The first half of the volcano pour-over is to fully extract without destroying the powder layer, while the second half is even pouring to prevent over-extraction in the middle and achieve dilution. The first third of the volcano pour-over is over-extracted, the last two-thirds are under-extracted, and these coffee liquids need to be mixed at the end to get perfect coffee.

Flavor Profile: Volcano pour-over coffee has a rich texture and high concentration.

4. Zigzag Pour-Over Method

This is a brewing method researched by Tahara Shizumi, a barista at Coffee Ran-kan who won first place in the Japanese Barista Championship: using flannel as a filtering tool and praised as flannel-style espresso. Because there is no blooming step in the entire process and the extraction time is only 40 seconds, its characteristic is pouring water into the coffee powder in a zigzag pattern for even water distribution. After even pouring, when the extraction liquid dripping from the flannel becomes concentrated, increase the water amount until the extraction liquid starts to become light, then increase the water amount again.

Flavor Profile: The coffee has a mellow taste with a solid body and obvious aftertaste.

As you can see, pour-over coffee methods are not so easy to master, but FrontStreet Coffee believes that pour-over coffee actually has no rigid requirements and can be adjusted manually.

For example, water quality, coffee filter cup, the coarseness of ground coffee beans, the ratio of coffee powder to water, the size and height of pour-over water flow, brewing extraction time, or circling and dripping can all create subtle differences in coffee flavor. But these can all be changed according to personal preferences and habits after coffee enthusiast friends accumulate certain experience, thereby brewing single-origin coffee flavors that best suit their own taste.

Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee believes that pour-over is indeed a field of study. To pour-over a cup of coffee with good flavor, you must go through extensive practice. Next, FrontStreet Coffee will recommend some single-origin coffee beans suitable for pour-over beginners.

Coffee enthusiast friends all know that coffee beans from different regions will have different flavors. For example, African coffee flavors tend to be more citrusy and lemony, relatively fresh and bright, while Asian coffee beans tend to have a mellow taste, and American coffees tend to be nutty and cocoa-flavored. FrontStreet Coffee will recommend coffee beans with high cost-performance from these three continents for pour-over beginners.

African Single-Origin Coffee Recommendations

First, the most representative coffee producing region in Africa is undoubtedly Ethiopia. Among them, FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe coffee is quite famous. FrontStreet Coffee believes that coffee enthusiast friends are not unfamiliar with it. It occupies a corner of the specialty coffee market with its charming fruit acidity. FrontStreet Coffee also sells Frontsteet washed Yirgacheffe daily beans. Coffee beans processed by washing will have cleaner and brighter flavors, better highlighting the most original taste of Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee, further emphasizing its citrus and lemon acidity. FrontStreet Coffee often says that washed processed coffee beans best reflect the basic flavor of a region. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee believes this Frontsteet washed Yirgacheffe is very suitable for pour-over practice. This Frontsteet washed Yirgacheffe is also a representative of light roast coffee beans.

FrontStreet Coffee · Ethiopian Washed Yirgacheffe Coffee Beans

Country: Ethiopia
Region: Yirgacheffe
Altitude: 1800-2000m
Variety: Local native varieties
Processing: Washed processing
Flavor: Jasmine, berries, lemon, citrus

FrontStreet Coffee Pour-Over Suggestions

To fully extract the fruity acidity of Yirgacheffe, FrontStreet Coffee uses higher water temperature and finer grind for extraction, but to avoid over-extraction due to high temperature, FrontStreet Coffee uses faster flow rate filter cups, such as V60 filter cups. The V60 filter cup has a 60-degree conical shape. The conical angle allows coffee powder to concentrate in the center, and when pouring water, the water flow automatically converges toward the center of the filter cup, ensuring sufficient contact time between water and coffee powder, thus extracting appropriate coffee liquid. Additionally, the ribs on the inside of the V60 filter cup extend clockwise in a spiral from bottom to top, creating enough space between the filter paper and filter cup, allowing good water flow. Combined with the large hole at the bottom, the water flow rate is relatively faster than many filter cups.

The specific brewing parameters for FrontStreet Coffee are: V60 filter cup, water temperature at 90℃, water-to-coffee ratio of 1:15, 15g coffee powder, grind size (80% pass rate through China No. 20 standard sieve).

Regarding grind size, FrontStreet Coffee reminds that even though they are all FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe beans, due to different grades, FrontStreet Coffee will still sieve each type of bean to determine their respective grind sizes. FrontStreet Coffee brewing method: First wet the filter paper and preheat the filter cup and coffee pot. Use 30g of water for 30 seconds of blooming, pour small circular streams to 125g for segmentation, continue pouring to 225g when the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, stop pouring, and remove the filter cup when the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed (timing starts from blooming). Extraction time is 2'05".

Asian Single-Origin Coffee Recommendations

The most representative coffee from the Asian region is undoubtedly FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling from Indonesia. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee specially launched FrontStreet Coffee Mandheling daily beans for novice coffee enthusiasts to taste. Its coffee processing method is Indonesia's unique wet hulling method. Coffee beans processed by wet hulling will have special tobacco and earthy aromas, which are very distinctive. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee Mandheling also has considerable fame in the single-origin coffee world. FrontStreet Coffee daily beans themselves aim to let new coffee enthusiasts understand coffee flavors in the most cost-effective form, so this FrontStreet Coffee Indonesian Mandheling coffee bean is perfect for pour-over practice.

Here, FrontStreet Coffee would like to popularize that there are many types of Mandheling. For example, the king of Mandheling, FrontStreet Coffee PWN Golden Mandheling, has a cleaner flavor than our common FrontStreet Coffee Lintong Mandheling, and the earthy fishy smell disappears. The three flavors of sweet, sour, and bitter are also very balanced. This is because the PWM company that produces FrontStreet Coffee Golden Mandheling attaches great importance to the quality of coffee cherries. They must go through four manual selections of the highest quality, defect-free coffee cherries before they can be used to make FrontStreet Coffee Golden Mandheling coffee. Therefore, in terms of price, FrontStreet Coffee Golden Mandheling is also more expensive, but FrontStreet Coffee suggests that coffee enthusiast friends with conditions might as well compare FrontStreet Coffee Lintong Mandheling daily beans and FrontStreet Coffee PWN Golden Mandheling. In terms of flavor performance of coffee beans from the same region, this can provide a good comparison for pour-over beginners.

FrontStreet Coffee Lintong Mandheling (Daily Beans) Coffee Beans

Region: Sumatra Lintong region
Altitude: 1100-1600 meters
Variety: Typica, Caturra
Processing: Wet hulling
Flavor: Toasted bread, nuts, caramel, pine, herbs

FrontStreet Coffee · PWN Golden Mandheling Coffee Beans

Region: Sumatra Aceh Gayo Mountain
Altitude: 1100-1600 meters
Variety: Ateng
Grade: G1, 3 manual selections
Processing: Wet hulling
Flavor: Spices, herbal, caramel, pine, nuts, chocolate

FrontStreet Coffee Pour-Over Suggestions

FrontStreet Coffee tries to unify brewing parameters when brewing FrontStreet Coffee Mandheling coffee beans. Since FrontStreet Coffee natural Mandheling uses medium-light roast, while the other four Mandheling beans use medium-dark roast, different brewing parameters will be used for coffee beans with different roast levels.

Light-Medium Roast Coffee Bean Brewing Parameters: V60 filter cup, 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, 15g coffee powder, 90°C water temperature, grind size (80% pass rate through No. 20 standard sieve)

Medium-Dark Roast Coffee Bean Brewing Parameters: Kono filter cup, 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, 15g coffee powder, 88°C water temperature, grind size (70-75% pass rate through No. 20 standard sieve)

FrontStreet Coffee uses segmented extraction, using 30g of water for 30 seconds of blooming, pouring small circular streams to 125g for segmentation, continuing to pour to 225g when the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, stopping pouring, and removing the filter cup when the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed (timing starts from blooming). V60 filter cup extraction time is 2'00", while Kono filter cup extraction time is slightly longer at 2'10".

Flavor Description

FrontStreet Coffee PWN Golden Mandheling: Multiple layers, mellow and clean, high balance, rich nut and caramel aroma with chocolate notes, long aftertaste.

FrontStreet Coffee Lintong Mandheling: Herbal and medicinal taste on entry, dark chocolate, caramel, sweet aftertaste.

American Single-Origin Coffee Recommendations

Finally, FrontStreet Coffee recommends from the American coffee region FrontStreet Coffee's Huehuetenango coffee beans (daily beans) from Guatemala. Its coffee beans also use washed processing, so the flavor will also be cleaner and brighter, suitable for pour-over beginners. FrontStreet Coffee recommends this single-origin coffee bean to pour-over beginners because its flavor is between the previous two FrontStreet Coffee Ethiopian Yirgacheffe and FrontStreet Coffee Indonesian Mandheling. FrontStreet Coffee mentioned above that FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe's roast level is light roast, so the flavor expression won't be as mellow. FrontStreet Coffee Indonesian Mandheling is dark roast beans, so the flavor expression will highlight its mellowness more. This FrontStreet Coffee Guatemala Huehuetenango's roast master has medium roasted this bean, so the flavor expression is more balanced.

FrontStreet Coffee · Guatemala Huehuetenango Coffee Beans

Country: Guatemala
Region: Huehuetenango
Altitude: 1500-2000m
Variety: Bourbon, Caturra, Catuai
Processing: Washed processing
Bean Appearance: Relatively uniform bean size
Flavor: Nuts, lemon peel, berries, citrus

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Suggestions

The brewing parameters used by FrontStreet Coffee are: V60 filter cup, 90°C water temperature, 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, 15g coffee powder, grind size (80% pass rate through No. 20 standard sieve)

FrontStreet Coffee brewing method: 30g water for 30 seconds blooming, after blooming ends, pour circular to 125g, continue pouring to 225g when water level drops by half, remove filter cup when all water has dripped through, total extraction time 2 minutes.

The above are FrontStreet Coffee's pour-over methods and single-origin coffee bean recommendations for pour-over beginners. FrontStreet Coffee hopes this article can help all coffee enthusiast friends.

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