Can you brew 30g of coffee at once? How much ground coffee is appropriate for a single pour-over extraction?

Parents: "You know how to make coffee, right? Quick, make everyone a cup to drink~"

Me: ......

I wonder if all the coffee enthusiasts at home during the New Year are having this same conversation: Under the watchful eyes of relatives and friends, wanting everyone to have a taste of coffee, you grind dozens of grams of beans at once to brew a large pot for multiple people. After all that effort, the liquid surface in the later stages starts to pool, the extraction time far exceeds 2 minutes, and the coffee's flavor becomes dull and muddy, completely different from your usual brew. Then you wonder why this happens.

To address this issue, FrontStreet Coffee is here today to share some techniques for brewing coffee with large amounts of grounds for multiple servings.

Why does this change occur when the amount of coffee grounds increases?

Given that most of us own size 01 small drippers, or typically only brew 1-2 servings at a time, the amount of coffee grounds is a relatively fixed parameter, rarely exceeding 20 grams in daily brewing. Over time, we've become familiar with this "small amount" brewing framework. When brewing a particular coffee bean, we know exactly how much water to pour, what flow rate to use, when to stop or continue pouring... we have all these details under control.

But now, when the amount of grounds suddenly increases to 30 grams, with the same coffee-to-water ratio, the amount of water nearly doubles (or even more). First, the pouring time will inevitably increase proportionally, and naturally, the total drainage time will also add up.

Additionally, regardless of which style/model of dripper we use, once the amount of grounds increases, the coffee bed will inevitably become taller and thicker, extending the total time for water to penetrate through the coffee and drip into the server below. Take FrontStreet Coffee's usual 15-gram amount as an example - when poured into a size 01 V60 dripper, it typically reaches about half the height, finishing drainage between 1 minute 50 seconds to 2 minutes 10 seconds. However, when using 30 grams of coffee grounds for extraction, you can see through the dripper that the thickness has reached 2/3 of the dripper's body. If you still pour water according to your "small amount" habit, it will take at least 2 minutes 40 seconds for all the coffee liquid to finish dripping.

In other words, if you only increase the amount of grounds for a single brew, and the difference is significant (for example, 15 grams versus 30 grams), the coffee's immersion time will be longer, increasing the likelihood of bitter and astringent compounds being released in the later stages. This easily results in heavy, thick flavors characterized by bitterness, astringency, impurities, and intensity. In FrontStreet Coffee's view, at this point, we can make corresponding adjustments based on the model of dripper we have to ensure the coffee's flavor is closer to what we achieve when brewing with smaller amounts.

When you have a large dripper (size 02)

If you're used to brewing a single serving (15 grams) with a small dripper but switch to a large dripper for multiple servings (30 grams), you only need to convert the parameters proportionally. However, if you want to replicate the extraction model of a small dripper, you still need to pay attention to adjusting the bloom state and water flow rate.

More grounds means a thicker coffee bed, which requires more hot water to saturate all the particles and a longer waiting time for them to release gas. For example, when FrontStreet Coffee uses a conical size 02 V60 to brew 30 grams of grounds, the coffee bed becomes thicker toward the center. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee uses 60 grams of water for blooming and waits 35 seconds. During pouring, FrontStreet Coffee first concentrates on the center in small circles, allowing the "center stage" particles to absorb water first and gradually spread out. This allows gas to escape toward the periphery, achieving a better blooming effect.

When you reach the formal extraction stage, the water flow rate should be larger than before. First, this helps elevate the coffee bed, increasing the contact area between coffee and water. Second, it can appropriately shorten the contact time between coffee and water, avoiding over-extraction caused by the coffee steeping for too long. For example, if the flow rate for small amounts is 5-6ml/s, for larger amounts, you can increase it to 10ml/s, controlling the extraction time to around 2 minutes 30 seconds.

When you only have a small dripper (size 01)

As everyone knows, the size 01 dripper is originally designed only for brewing 15-20 grams of grounds. If you force the use of this small equipment to brew 30 grams of grounds, it will obviously be "overloaded." Just look - the blooming hamburger-like dome almost fills the entire dripper, leaving even less space for subsequent pouring. There's a good chance that blockage and pooling will occur in the later stages. Therefore, to adapt to the rhythm of large amounts of grounds, we need to redesign a brewing plan.

First, regarding grind size, FrontStreet Coffee suggests adjusting it slightly coarser to reduce water flow resistance. Taking the EK43s used in our store as an example, when brewing large amounts of grounds, our barista will adjust the grind 0.3-0.5 settings coarser. The pass rate through a #20 sieve changes from approximately 80% to 75%, with the aim of appropriately speeding up the drainage.

In terms of pouring technique, you can use multiple pours while controlling the water flow according to the expansion of the coffee bed to avoid overflow.

Maintain a coffee-to-water ratio of 1:15, with 30 grams of grounds corresponding to 450 grams of hot water, which can be divided into 5 pours. The first pour for blooming uses 50ml of water, while each of the remaining 4 pours uses 100ml. The bloom still starts from the center, the second pour circles in a small radius, the third pour covers a slightly larger area than the second, the fourth pour covers a slightly larger area than the third, and the final fifth pour is again centered. The total extraction time should be between 2 minutes 40 seconds to 3 minutes.

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FrontStreet Coffee

No. 10, Bao'an Front Street, Yandun Road, Dongshankou, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473