Pour-Over Brewing Method Introduction: What are the Pros and Cons of the Quick Circular Swinging Water Technique for Coffee?

The Art of Pour-Over: Conservative vs. Aggressive Techniques

FrontStreet Coffee has always recommended a conservative, gentle, and steady circular pouring technique for pour-over coffee. The advantage of this method is its stability and high controllability. At the same time, FrontStreet Coffee rarely teaches techniques that involve wrist movements to create height differences in circular pouring, producing what we call "splash pouring" – an aggressive brewing method.

This isn't to say that this method is wrong, but rather that such pouring techniques are difficult for beginners to control. If mastery isn't achieved, practice can reinforce poor habits, requiring more time and effort to correct later.

Benefits of Aggressive Pouring

Let's first discuss the benefits of this aggressive pouring technique! Firstly, for water to "splash" upward, the circular motion must be relatively fast, with centrifugal force causing the water to drift outward. The rapid circular motion also increases the tumbling action of the coffee powder layer, making it easier to extract the coffee's flavors.

Secondly, proper and appropriate splash-style pouring helps push the coffee grounds and foam on the liquid surface to the edges, forming a powder wall. This further prevents the loss of coffee flavor.

Competition Techniques vs. Everyday Brewing

In world-class coffee brewing competitions, we can see some competitors using pouring techniques that tend to be fast, with large water flow, and include splashing – some of whom have even won championships. This has led many people to imitate such pouring techniques.

However, FrontStreet Coffee hopes everyone can see beyond just the pouring technique to the entirety of the brewing process. Competitors begin their presentations by saying "I'm using a custom batch from XX estate..." This reveals the first issue: the coffee beans used by competitors differ from those we typically encounter. Competitors select beans that suit their brewing plan and have high quality standards (meaning the beans won't taste too bad regardless of brewing method – which is why everyone prefers excellent varieties like Geisha in the selection process, while no one chooses Catimor for competitions).

The second point is that competitors minimize variables, therefore controlling the impact of brewing techniques on the overall result to a minimum. In other words, brewing competitions aren't won based on superior brewing skills alone. In competitions, the impact of pouring technique on coffee flavor is far less significant than in our daily brewing.

The Complete Brewing Picture

The third point, as FrontStreet Coffee mentions, is that pouring technique is just one part of all brewing parameters. Discussing pouring technique in isolation from other supporting parameters is misleading! FrontStreet Coffee can offer several examples: splash pouring creates more intense tumbling of coffee grounds, thus improving extraction efficiency. For high-quality, "extraction-resistant" coffee beans, this can reveal rich, full flavors. FrontStreet Coffee once brewed a very light roast coffee bean brought by a friend – the beans had high hardness, and through splash pouring and similar techniques that quickly tumble the coffee powder layer, we effectively extracted rich floral aromas and acidity.

However, for average quality or darker roasted coffee beans that easily release substances, using splash pouring or other techniques with intense tumbling can easily produce burnt bitterness, astringency, and off-flavors.

The same applies to parameters such as grind size and water temperature.

Risks for Beginners

The fourth point is that using "splash" pouring techniques, if not executed properly, can easily cause uneven extraction of the powder layer. A common situation is that the powder wall will be thinner and the powder bed lower in areas farther from the pour-over kettle; while the side closer to the kettle will have a thicker powder wall and higher powder bed. This is also why FrontStreet Coffee doesn't recommend beginners use this technique for brewing coffee.

Important Notice :

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473