What Equipment Do You Need for Pour-Over Coffee? How to Buy a Complete Set of Pour-Over Tools! Differences Between Coffee Hand Grinders at Various Price Points!

Introduction to Pour-Over Coffee Equipment

Compared to other extraction methods, pour-over coffee can better highlight the unique flavor characteristics of the beans themselves. Therefore, in today's era where the specialty coffee concept prevails, pour-over has become one of the mainstream extraction methods.

However, because making pour-over coffee is quite time-consuming, coffee shops often charge dozens or even hundreds of yuan for a single cup—enough to buy several bags of beans to make many cups yourself. Consequently, many friends decide to buy their own beans and brew their own coffee, as some expenses are indeed worth saving. But here comes the question: what equipment should one purchase to make pour-over coffee?

Because many friends have seen baristas using various unknown gadgets in addition to regular equipment when brewing pour-over coffee offline, there's a misconception that making pour-over coffee requires numerous items. In reality, however, many of these items merely serve auxiliary functions, helping us brew better coffee but being non-essential. The essential equipment for making pour-over coffee actually amounts to just a few items. So today, FrontStreet Coffee will share what equipment beginners really need to purchase to start with pour-over coffee!

Coffee Grinder

If we pursue quality and flavor, then a grinder is undoubtedly an indispensable piece of pour-over equipment. This is because coffee retains its maximum flavor only when ground fresh and brewed immediately. However, the price range of grinders on the market is extremely broad, from hand grinders costing tens of yuan to electric grinders costing tens of thousands of yuan, which can be overwhelming.

Price is naturally linked to quality, but this doesn't necessarily mean that more expensive options are always better. Some grinders are expensive because they come with many additional features that may not be absolutely necessary for individual use. Ultimately, we need to start from our own needs and find a grinder that matches our goals. If, as FrontStreet Coffee mentioned at the beginning, our goal is simply to meet daily coffee needs or to start with pour-over coffee, then a hand grinder costing several hundred yuan can already fully satisfy these requirements, and it's more portable. There will be differences among hand grinders under the thousand-yuan range, but they won't be too significant, so everyone can choose according to their preferences and budget (but it's recommended not to go below 200 yuan).

If our budget is higher and we want even better grinding quality, then we can set our selection for grinders in the thousand-yuan and above range. Besides hand grinders, we can also choose electric grinders in this price range. Electric grinders offer better uniformity and convenience. If you don't have the need to grind and brew coffee outdoors, then an electric grinder in the thousand-yuan range and above would be an excellent choice.

Pour-Over Kettle

Next is the pour-over kettle! Although regular kettles can also be used for pour-over brewing, as we all know, the water flow size and the position where water lands will both affect extraction. While regular kettles can indeed be used for pouring water, if you want to use them to brew a delicious cup of coffee, it will greatly test the pourer's skill in controlling water flow.

Therefore, if we want to brew a delicious pot of pour-over coffee more efficiently and professionally, a dedicated pour-over kettle is very necessary. Once we decide to purchase a pour-over kettle, there are many factors to consider, such as whether the kettle has temperature control, the type of spout, and the capacity. FrontStreet Coffee has previously written a dedicated article about spouts, so interested friends can directly refer to that article→"The Differences Between Pour-Over Kettle Spouts." Here, we'll mainly focus on the temperature control aspect that affects pour-over kettles!

Pour-over kettles come in temperature-controlled and non-temperature-controlled versions. Non-temperature-controlled versions are cheaper by about a hundred yuan because they don't have the temperature control module. If you have other boiling tools at home and don't mind the trouble, we can certainly choose the non-temperature-controlled version to save enough for several bags of beans, and then buy a thermometer for measurement, which would actually make the water temperature more precise.

But if you don't have boiling tools at home and want to avoid the hassle, you can spend a little extra money for a once-and-for-all solution by purchasing a temperature-controlled pour-over kettle. Because it comes with its own heating module, we don't need to perform too many tedious operations. However, the temperature control module adds some weight to the kettle body, so we need to decide on the kettle capacity based on our own grip strength. As for capacity, FrontStreet Coffee doesn't have much to say—just choose according to the amount of water you typically use to brew a pot of coffee. But everyone should remember that whether it's temperature-controlled or not, the kettle's capacity should ideally be higher than your usual pouring amount. For example, brewing a regular single-serving coffee uses 15g of beans with a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, meaning 225ml of water will be poured. Then we should choose a specification around 300ml (or above), as this allows for better control of water flow.

Filter Cup

The filter cup not only serves a filtering function in pour-over coffee, but different designs of filter cups also have different effects on extraction. For example, coffee brewed with conical filter cups will have richer layers, while coffee brewed with flat-bottom filter cups will be more balanced; some have faster flow rates due to larger bottom holes, while others are the opposite; digging deeper, the material of the filter cup also affects the coffee. Because of this, the types of filter cups sold on the market are extremely rich and varied.

But unlike grinders and pour-over kettles, FrontStreet Coffee can give specific recommendations for filter cups—namely, Hario's resin version of the "V60." There are three reasons for this recommendation: resin is drop-resistant and not easily damaged; the price is very affordable, so it's not a big deal if it breaks; it has wide compatibility and can satisfy most brewing methods on the market today, and it's very suitable for brewing the currently mainstream light-roast beans. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee primarily recommends the V60 (resin version) for filter cups. If after getting started you want to experience more filter cups, it's not too late to purchase them then. When you have the need to buy filter cups, you can refer to this article to understand the differences between filter cups→"Gateway" (Most of the other filter cups FrontStreet Coffee purchased were basically no longer used after a few reviews...). But don't forget to buy filter paper—the shape and size of the filter paper must be selected according to the filter cup (there are also related introductions to filter paper, you can refer to this article→"The Differences Between Filter Papers")~

Digital Scale

The digital scale is the last essential piece of equipment for making pour-over coffee! If we want to consistently brew delicious coffee, the presence of a digital scale will be very necessary. Because besides having an appropriate extraction rate, delicious coffee also needs to have an appropriate concentration, which is mainly determined by the coffee-to-water ratio—that is, the amount of water poured! Additionally, most brewing methods have specific requirements for how the water amount is divided during pouring. Therefore, when brewing coffee, we really need a digital scale to visually see the amount of water being poured.

Pour-over coffee has an advantage in that its requirements for digital scales are not as high as those for espresso (espresso requires precision to decimal places when weighing grounds), so we don't need to deliberately purchase professional coffee scales. Kitchen or bakery digital scales costing tens of yuan can all be used. If these scales don't have a timing function, buying an additional timer for a few yuan or using a phone is also acceptable. Of course, if you want convenience, it's still better to buy a professional coffee scale.

So, above are the essential equipment purchases for getting started with pour-over coffee. As for equipment like pour-over serving pots, as long as you don't usually have the need to serve coffee to multiple people, any container can be used as a substitute. Therefore FrontStreet Coffee won't elaborate further, and everyone can weigh their own needs~

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