Beautiful Pour-Over Coffee Grounds Don't Always Mean Great Taste - How to Pour Water When Brewing Coffee

The "Deep Crater" Phenomenon in Pour-Over Coffee

FrontStreet Coffee has noticed through conversations with customers that many beginners learning pour-over coffee have developed a mysterious sense of "admiration" for the "expansion" of the coffee grounds and the formation of "deep craters." FrontStreet Coffee will analyze the principles behind this "deep crater" phenomenon.

First, FrontStreet Coffee has summarized what these beginners perceive as a "deep crater":

Creating such a "deep crater" is not necessarily a sign of superior brewing technique. It mainly requires achieving these three points:

1. Using dark-roasted coffee beans
2. Pouring water in small circles
3. Using a larger amount of coffee grounds

The first point is the most crucial. Some friends often ask FrontStreet Coffee, "I saw the barista at XX coffee shop create a very high and deep crater, but I can never replicate it at home." This is likely because you observed someone brewing with dark-roasted coffee beans, while you attempted to replicate it using lighter-roasted beans.

The reason for this lies in the density of the coffee grounds. The deeper the roast, the more the coffee beans expand during roasting, resulting in lower density and a more porous bean structure. Therefore, during the brewing process, dark-roasted coffee grounds show more significant expansion effects, with more grounds floating on the liquid surface, while relatively fewer grounds settle at the bottom (the coffee bed).

In contrast, light-roasted coffee grounds have higher density, showing less noticeable expansion during brewing. Fewer grounds float on the liquid surface, while relatively more grounds settle at the bottom (the coffee bed).

If you observe the changes in the coffee grounds layer during brewing, you'll notice that after pouring is complete, as the water level drops, the floating grounds and foam gradually deposit along the walls of the grounds. This is why dark-roasted coffee tends to form thicker side walls with a thinner bottom bed, creating what appears to be a very deep crater.

The second point concerns attention during water pouring. Pouring in small circles can create a depression in the center while preserving the surrounding walls. If you pour in large circles and "thin out" the walls, the original grounds from the walls will be washed into the center bed, serving to "fill the crater," resulting in a shallower depression.

The third point is quite straightforward. Drip cones typically have a wider top and narrower bottom structure. To create a deep crater, you need a sufficient amount of coffee grounds to form the side walls. Therefore, in small drippers, it's difficult to form what appears to be a deep crater with just 15 grams of coffee grounds – generally, you'll need to use 18 grams or more.

After explaining how to "create a crater," I believe everyone understands that creating a "deep crater" doesn't necessarily indicate that your coffee tastes good. When we observe the coffee bed after brewing, one reason is to check for signs of improper brewing. For example, pouring in circles that are too large might wash away the side walls; uneven circular pouring might result in one side having thin walls while the other side has thick walls. These pouring issues can be identified and corrected by observing the coffee bed.

Conversely, a seemingly "standard" crater doesn't prove that your coffee is problem-free – it only indicates that the crater hasn't revealed issues with your pouring technique.

Therefore, when brewing coffee, don't become overly fixated on the coffee bed. Focus instead on brewing logic and parameters.

Important Notice :

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