Can You Brew Pour-Over Coffee with an Espresso Machine? How to Make Pour-Over Coffee? What Grind Size Should You Use for Pour-Over Coffee?

The incident happened yesterday when FrontStreet Coffee was replacing the gasket on their coffee machine and noticed that the group head size was remarkably similar to the filter cup size. This prompted them to take out a V60 filter cup for comparison.

They discovered that the diameters were identical—a perfect match! Then, a bold idea emerged: Could this pour-over coffee be brewed using a coffee machine?

Theoretical Feasibility Analysis

Leaving aside whether coffee brewed with a coffee machine can still be called pour-over coffee, let's first discuss the feasibility of this approach. Theoretically, it's possible because most coffee machines allow temperature adjustment, which can fully meet the extraction temperature required for pour-over coffee. Additionally, the hot water from coffee machines can be freely controlled, and the water dispenses over a wide area as droplets, which can actually achieve more even extraction. The only drawback is that since the hot water drips down, it lacks penetrating power and cannot agitate the coffee grounds. This lack of agitation reduces overall extraction efficiency, potentially resulting in under-extracted coffee.

Fortunately, this shortcoming can be compensated for by adjusting other parameters. For example: increasing water temperature, grinding finer, or extending extraction time. Of course, we can also use external tools for physical agitation. In summary, it's theoretically feasible! So without further ado, while there aren't too many customers yet, FrontStreet Coffee decided to experiment and see what kind of pour-over coffee could be made with an espresso machine!

Experimental Setup

After much deliberation about the brewing experiment, we finally decided to use Catuaí from the Elida Estate as our test beans! Its medium-light roast and conventional natural processing would allow us to more clearly taste the difference between espresso machine-brewed coffee and traditionally made pour-over. The extraction parameters were as follows:

• Coffee dose: 20g
• Grind level: Ek43 setting 10, with 80% pass-through rate on #20 sieve, fine sugar grind
• Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15
• Brewing water temperature: 94°C (actual temperature from coffee machine will decrease)
• Filter cup used: V60 (01)
• Brewing method: Three-stage pouring
• Brewing equipment: Coffee machine

Although not everyone might try this, FrontStreet Coffee must remind everyone: before using a coffee machine for pour-over brewing, make sure to clean the group head thoroughly, otherwise residual coffee powder might fall into the filter cup and affect the brewed coffee's quality. Following standard procedure, let's first rinse the filter paper!

Brewing Process

Next, pour in the coffee grounds and place the filter cup on the server. Since the distance between the shower screen and the group head on FrontStreet Coffee's Lelite3 espresso machine was too close, we needed to remove the shower screen to fit the server, filter cup, and electronic scale. Once everything was prepared, we could begin extraction. First, we opened the water valve and dispensed 40ml of hot water for a 30-second bloom of the coffee grounds.

After the bloom ended, we opened the water valve to inject the second pour of hot water. This pour used a small flow rate (4ml per second) for a total of 140ml. Since the bloom had expanded the coffee bed area, the hot water dripping from the shower screen couldn't reach all the coffee grounds. Therefore, during pouring, we could gently rotate the filter cup to ensure hot water saturated all coffee grounds, achieving even extraction.

After dispensing the required amount for the second pour, we waited for the coffee to permeate. When permeation was nearly complete, we opened the water valve for the third pour of hot water, totaling 120ml, which would be dispensed at a rate of 6ml per second.

At nearly 3 minutes, the coffee drip completed, and then we could remove the filter cup and begin tasting!

Results and Conclusions

Not bad at all! This pot of Catuaí brewed with the coffee machine showcased its flavors well: peach, orange, and raisin, with an extraction rate as high as 20.25%. However, due to the lack of agitation and longer extraction time, it was somewhat inferior compared to manually brewed pour-over, with a slightly bitter and muddled aftertaste. So FrontStreet Coffee immediately brewed another pot, adding agitation during the second pour and shortening the extraction time. The result was much better than the previous pot—no bitterness or muddled flavors, smoother texture, and a clean green tea finish.

Therefore, we can conclude that espresso machines can indeed be used for pour-over brewing! So now we can return to our original question: Can pour-over coffee made with an espresso machine still be called pour-over coffee?

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