You don’t have to be a coffee snob to enjoy a good pour-over. The brewing style brings out the fruity, savory, and smooth notes of coffee beans and highlights some of the best qualities of the drink. Pour-overs don’t take much more time or effort to make, and they could be considered a simpler way of brewing since they don’t require a machine. Sure, the technique is a little tricky to learn, but a good pour-over is one of the best ways to upgrade your coffee without adding sugar or creamer. It allows you to enjoy the best parts of a pure cup of morning Joe without the bitterness or flat mouthfeel you can get with other brewing methods.
Anyone can learn to make a beautiful pour-over, but it does help to get all the details right. You need to know the correct water for coffee brewing to avoid affecting the taste. You should also be aware that the water needs to be at a specific temperature when you pour it over your coffee beans. Above all, you should know the ideal grind size of the beans because it will make or break a good pour-over. Medium-coarse is best, especially if you want to avoid a bitter taste (and disappointment) after you’ve put in the work for your home brew.
How to achieve the ideal grind size for a pour- coffee
When a pour-over goes wrong, it becomes bitter and sour. You’ll get a thin texture and a flat mouthfeel, which is utterly unpleasant. Low-quality beans, dirty equipment, and brewing ratio are just a few ways that a pour-over can go awry. One of the first things you need, however, is extraction, or the rate at which hot water removes compounds from the coffee beans. Water temperature and brewing time both impact extraction, but what affects it most is the grind size of your coffee beans. Finely ground coffee extracts faster and is good for espresso. Coarse ground coffee extracts more slowly and is used for French press-style coffee.
Use a grinder with an adjustable grind size, like Shardor’s electric coffee grinder, to get your perfectly ground, medium-coarse coffee ready for brewing. Set up a pour-over coffee maker with a basin or one that sits on top of a cup or carafe, and use this Barista Warrior Gooseneck Kettle to make your perfect brew. Pair it with a fudgy brownie cake pop to get coffee shop vibes at home or an expertly crafted omelet for a bougie breakfast in just a few minutes.
