What Makes a Good Dripper Material? Differences and Features of Pour-Over Coffee Drippers? Are V60 and Kono Drippers Good?

Introduction to Drip Brewers: Understanding Coffee Extraction

The drip brewer is one of the essential pieces of equipment for making pour-over coffee. We often hear statements like "This brewer makes coffee taste sweeter, that one makes it more aromatic..." The reason behind this is that the structural design of the brewer directly affects coffee extraction.

Different designs produce different extraction effects, which is why there are so many types of brewers available today. Many beginners often feel troubled when choosing a brewer because there are too many options! Each brewer looks different—what are their distinctions?

Actually, it's not difficult to understand the "effects" of a brewer. We only need to understand which factors of the brewer affect extraction, and then we can roughly deduce the functionality of that brewer. Today, FrontStreet Coffee will share the four major design elements that affect extraction. Once we familiarize ourselves with these four designs, choosing a suitable brewer becomes effortless!

1. Brewer Structure

First, we need to understand the shape design of the brewer, as the brewer's shape design not only affects the final coffee performance but is also the feature that everyone pays most attention to when selecting a brewer. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee will focus on introducing this part. Currently, the most common brewers on the market mainly come in three types: conical, wedge-shaped, and flat-bottom.

In the article "Characteristics of Cake Brewers," FrontStreet Coffee mentioned in detail the effects brought by different brewer shapes. They affect the final brewed coffee characteristics by influencing the distribution of coffee grounds. The conical brewer looks like a "funnel," wide at the top and narrow at the bottom. After coffee grounds are poured in, they form an inverted cone structure. This inverted cone bed structure means that each layer's cross-sectional area is different, getting smaller as it goes down. Compared to other shapes of brewers, the same amount of grounds in a conical brewer will form a thicker coffee bed.

A thicker coffee bed means it's less likely to receive uniform extraction because the extraction efficiency of hot water gradually decreases from top to bottom. Therefore, the coffee grounds at the bottom and around the edges that aren't reached by water will receive relatively less extraction. This leads to differences in the amount of substances dissolved from the coffee grounds, giving the coffee richer layered expression!

The flat-bottom brewer, due to its flat and relatively large bottom area, forms an inverted conical frustum structure when coffee grounds are poured in. With the same amount of grounds, the coffee bed thickness in a flat-bottom brewer is the thinnest among the three types.

The advantage of this coffee bed structure is that even if we haven't mastered pouring techniques skillfully, as long as we use the right parameters, we can easily brew a delicious cup of coffee. Because the cross-sectional area of each layer of the coffee bed is very similar, and the thickness is relatively thin, there won't be significant differences in the extraction received by the coffee grounds. Since the extraction rates are similar, and the amount of dissolved substances is very close, the final brewed coffee thus has more balanced performance.

The wedge-shaped brewer features an inverted trapezoidal design, somewhat similar to the conical brewer, gradually narrowing from top to bottom. Therefore, after coffee grounds are poured in, each layer's cross-sectional area of the coffee bed is inconsistent. However, unlike the conical brewer, the bottom of the wedge-shaped brewer is wider, so the coffee grounds ultimately don't concentrate at a single point but along a line. Therefore, with the same amount of grounds, the coffee bed thickness in a wedge-shaped brewer is moderate among the three types.

Combining the extraction characteristics of the previous two brewers, we can conclude that the extraction characteristic of a wedge-shaped brewer is that it allows extraction to form differences, but these differences won't be too large, giving the coffee both a certain sense of layering and a certain degree of balance.

However, we need to know that the extraction characteristics of a brewer are not solely determined by the coffee bed structure. Because the drainage speed of the brewer can change the extraction pattern, and what determines this is the opening at the bottom of the brewer and the brewer's ribs.

2. Brewer Holes

Each brewer has different bottom hole designs, where differences can refer to aperture size or quantity. When the bottom opening of the brewer has a larger diameter and more holes, the water flow speed will be faster, and vice versa.

Then, as FrontStreet Coffee mentioned earlier, flow rate can change the extraction pattern of coffee. Generally, pour-over coffee mainly uses drip extraction, where hot water is poured in while coffee liquid seeps out. Because the concentration of the liquid extracting coffee is constantly being refreshed, this extraction pattern tends to have higher extraction efficiency (that is, faster dissolution of flavor substances). At the same time, because the drainage speed is faster, usually the coffee grounds won't receive uniform extraction, just like the coffee bed structure of a conical brewer, which can produce richer layered sensations. Another common extraction pattern is immersion, which allows coffee grounds to soak in water, thereby giving all grounds nearly the same extraction efficiency. Compared to drip extraction, although this extraction pattern is not as efficient, because the extraction rates of the coffee grounds are similar, the coffee will have more balanced performance.

One of the factors that determines the extraction pattern is the bottom aperture of the brewer. When the brewer opening is larger and the drainage speed is faster, because the water in the brewer can seep out in time, the extraction pattern during brewing is mainly drip-type; when the holes are smaller and the drainage speed is slower, during brewing, because the water in the brewer cannot seep out in time, it gradually accumulates and then forms immersion extraction (not completely immersion-type). Besides aperture, the brewer's rib design also affects flow rate.

3. Brewer Ribs

Most brewers have ribs because the presence of ribs creates gaps between the filter paper and the brewer, allowing hot water more space to flow within the brewer. Without ribs, the filter paper would completely adhere to the brewer. The only channel for hot water to seep out would be the small area at the bottom that doesn't touch the brewer, so可想而知, the flow rate would be extremely slow.

Therefore, most brewers are designed with ribs. When designing brewers, manufacturers control the degree of fit between filter paper and brewer by managing the height and quantity of ribs, thereby adjusting the flow rate. However, these rib structures will vary. There are spiral ribs like those in V60, straight ribs like those in Kono and Origami brewers, as well as dotted, ring-shaped, and countless other designs.

When the ribs are more numerous and more prominent, the fit between filter paper and brewer is lower, so the flow rate is faster, and vice versa. Of course, besides affecting flow rate, spiral ribs like those in V60 can also guide the flow of hot water, allowing hot water to pass through more coffee grounds in the same amount of time, thereby extracting relatively more flavor substances.

4. Brewer Material

Finally, there's the material of the brewer! The material used for the brewer affects two aspects: one is heat retention, and the other is price. Setting aside price, the material mainly affects heat retention because each material has different thermal conductivity and specific heat capacity. Currently, the more common materials for brewers on the market include: resin, glass, ceramic, and metal. But because explaining this would require a lengthy discussion, and its impact on extraction is relatively not as significant, interested friends can click "Transport Gate" to learn more directly.

Combining the above four points, we can understand the extraction characteristics of a brewer. For example, the V60, because it's a conical brewer with a larger bottom aperture, long and prominent ribs, and faster drainage speed, produces coffee with relatively richer layers (because extraction is relatively less uniform); while the Kono brewer, due to its shorter and less prominent ribs, allows most of the filter paper to fit perfectly with the brewer, resulting in slower drainage speed. This makes it easier to form immersion extraction during the brewing process. The coffee brewed with it may not have as rich layers as V60, but it will be more balanced.

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