Over the course of the 6 months I've been working on this blog, I've learned quite a few new things. Turns out, challenging yourself to write about one topic every week teaches you by proxy. A few weeks ago, I wrote about learning to adjust your brew methods to your personal taste and documenting your recipes. Over the course of documenting my recipes and stumbling across new information, I've ended up at a slightly adjusted recipe for brewing with a V60.

Left High and Dry

If you recall my original v60 recipe, I recommended keeping your pour circles within 1/4 in of the edge of the slurry. As it turns out, that practice leaves particles out of slurry so they don't extract as fully. We call these little particles high and drys. We want to extract solubles as evenly as possible so these high and dries throw off our final cup.

The Last Go-Round

To solve this problem, I've started pouring my last circle around the outer edge to knock them back into the slurry. Then, after the final pour, I gently lift the V60 and give it a light swirl before tapping it on the cup. The swirl further agitates the ground bed while the tap settles the entire ground bed evenly. These two additional steps allow the water to filter evenly through all of the grounds, which promotes an even extraction. Based on my notes, this combination helped produce sweeter and more balanced cups.

Updated V60 Recipe

What you'll need

V60
Gooseneck Kettle
Digital Kitchen Scale
Burr Grinder
Timer
Stirrer (I use a chopstick)

At a Glance

Ratio - 1:16 coffee to water
Water Temperature - 202°F
Grind on Medium Fine, 3 on the Handground
30-45 second Bloom
3 pours, typically 70-100g each
Swirl + Tap
Allow to drain and enjoy

Full Method

Prep

Heat your water to 202°F
Weigh out your beans
Rinse your filter and pre-heat your decanter or mug
Grind your coffee on a medium fine setting
Add your coffee to the V60 and give it a shake to level off the ground bed
- At this point, I also write down the target weight of my three pours to reference while I'm brewing. That way I don't have to do math while I'm focusing on pouring.

Brew

Start the timer as your pour the bloom
- Pour double the weight of your coffee, i.e.: for 15g of coffee pour 30g of water
- Stir immediately to evenly saturate the grounds
After 30-45 seconds begin your first pour
- Pour slowly using concentric circles beginning in the middle
- With your last circle, pour around the outside to push the high and drys into the slurry
- Allow the slurry to settle for 5-10 seconds
Begin your second pour
- Use the same technique as the first pour
- Repeat for the third pour as well
- You should finish your third pour between 2:00 and 2:15
Allow the slurry to drain
- This should take roughly 1 to 1 1/2 minutes, giving you a final brew time between 3:00 - 4:00 minutes.
Dispose of the filter and enjoy your coffee.

Adjust as needed

Remember, don't regard this method as the gospel truth for brewing with the V60. Make adjustments as needed to give you the cup of coffee you like. Don't let anyone tell you you're brewing wrong if you like your results.

Natural Filters

This is just a quick little side note for you. Personally, I really dislike the natural filters I'm using in this picture set. When compared to the white filters, the natural filters don't bond as easily to the V60 walls and require extra rinsing to eliminate the papery flavor they impart to the coffee. So far, I can't find any advantage to the natural filters, if anyone is aware of some, I'd love to hear. For now, though, I'm sticking to the white filters whenever I can!

Photo Set

Check out this rad mug courtesy the Created Co!

Adding whole bean coffee to handgroud hand grinder

Grinding coffee with Handground precision hand grinder

I don't recommend using this method when you do your pour over, but hey, it sure looked cool for the photos ;)

Thanks for reading! As always, feel free to leave any comments or questions below. If you have any ideas for future content, shoot me an email! I'd love to hear from you!

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