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Can This Little Brewing Gadget Really Make Coffee Taste Better? How Lily Drip Affects Coffee Extraction

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, Pour-over coffee has long become part of most people's daily routine, and for brewing equipment that can potentially go wrong, numerous "auxiliary tools" have emerged to assist us. Today, FrontStreet Coffee brings you one of these interesting little gadgets – the LilyDrip. But who would have thought that this cone-shaped aid

Pour-over coffee has long been integrated into most people's daily lives, and for this type of brewing equipment that can potentially fail, numerous "auxiliary tools" have been developed to assist our brewing process. Today, FrontStreet Coffee brings you one of these interesting little gadgets—the "Lily Drip".

The Story Behind Lily Drip

But who would have thought that this conical auxiliary tool was actually inspired by a glass marble!

Lily Drip's story begins with a little girl named Lily who loved watching her father brew coffee. One day, as her father was preparing to brew coffee, Lily playfully placed a glass marble into the filter cup. Instead of immediately removing the marble, her father thought it would be a fresh experience, so he folded the bottom of the filter paper to accommodate the marble and began brewing. Unexpectedly, with the marble's assistance, the coffee actually tasted better! Her father then conducted in-depth research based on this principle.

After two months of research, the development was complete. Her father transformed the spherical glass marble into a bullet-shaped cone, making it better suited for conical filter cups! This auxiliary brewing device was thus born, and its name was taken from the little girl Lily who inspired her father—Lily Drip.

What is Lily Drip Used For?

Lily Drip is primarily designed for conical filter cups. With continuous updates, there are now also Lily Drips specifically designed for cake filters!

The reason for its existence stems from a common issue when we normally use conical filter cups for brewing: coffee grounds tend to accumulate in the center of the filter cup, forming a V-shaped pattern with very thick middle layers! This can lead to problems during blooming, where hot water cannot penetrate the deeper coffee grounds, resulting in uneven extraction. Alternatively, when brewing light-roasted beans, which tend to produce more fine particles, the gaps for water flow are significantly reduced. This ultimately causes blockages as water cannot penetrate in time, extending the extraction time and leading to over-extraction of the entire coffee!

When you use Lily Drip, the coffee grounds that originally accumulated in the center will disperse to the sides. This action eliminates concerns about uneven extraction due to overly thick coffee layers, or over-extraction due to insufficient flow space and prolonged extraction time!

Experimental Comparison

Let's move directly to the practical demonstration! FrontStreet Coffee will use light-roasted coffee beans for this comparison. We'll compare two brewing methods—V60 alone versus V60 with Lily Drip—to see if Lily Drip is truly as magical as the rumors suggest!

Beans Used: Yirgacheffe Gudingong
Weight: 15g
Water Ratio: 1:15 (225ml hot water)
Brewing Temperature: 92°C
Filter Cup: V60
Brewing Method: Three-stage pouring
Auxiliary Tool: Lily Drip

Before using Lily Drip, you need to press the bottom of the filter paper in the opposite direction to create a "hat shape" that can accommodate the Lily Drip.

(After folding the filter paper normally, use Lily Drip to press the outer bottom of the filter paper in the opposite direction; alternatively, you can use a dedicated pressing tool)

We first bloom with double the amount of water (30ml) for 30 seconds, then pour 120ml of hot water in large circles, wait until it's nearly drained, then pour in small circles with the remaining 75ml of hot water, and wait for the dripping to complete! For brewing with Lily Drip, you can pour in large circles throughout (since that's the only option)!

Results and Analysis

The V60 brewing time was 2 minutes and 18 seconds, with tasting notes revealing elegant jasmine fragrance, soft citrus acidity, and fresh Longjing tea sensation—very traditional Yirgacheffe flavors, overall quite balanced.

The V60 with Lily Drip brewing time was 1 minute and 55 seconds, with tasting notes featuring bright citrus, subtle jasmine fragrance, and the same Longjing tea sensation, with a round mouthfeel and overall flavor leaning more toward fruity sweet and sour notes!

As you can see, when paired with Lily Drip, the V60 brewing time was reduced by about 20 seconds, effectively solving the problem of over-extraction caused by blockages in most light-roasted beans. The brewed Gudingong coffee primarily features sweet and sour notes from the middle section, with a round mouthfeel.

There are often cases online of under-extraction caused by using Lily Drip. In such situations, we can appropriately increase the water temperature or adjust to a finer grind to enhance extraction strength. This way, Lily Drip can solve the blockage and over-extraction issues while still allowing us to enjoy a delicious cup of coffee!