The V60 has a reputation for being fussy. It is not fussy, it is transparent. Every mistake in grind, temperature or pouring shows up immediately, which also means every fix works immediately.
The ratio
1:16 to 1:17 for medium roasts. A 20 g dose with 330 ml of water gives a 1:16.5, which is a clean, sweet cup. For light roasts 1:16 with slightly hotter water works better. For dark roasts 1:17 avoids the bitter edge.
| Cup | Dose | Water | Bloom water |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small | 15 g | 240 g | 45 g |
| Standard | 20 g | 330 g | 60 g |
| Large | 30 g | 500 g | 90 g |
A four pour recipe that works
- Rinse the filter with hot water and discard the water. Preheat the server too.
- 0:00 - Bloom. Pour 60 g of water over 20 g of coffee, swirl gently. Wait 40 seconds. Fresh beans will bubble, which is carbon dioxide leaving.
- 0:40 - Pours two and three. Pour to 180 g, then to 260 g, keeping the water level no more than two centimetres above the bed.
- 1:30 - Final pour. Pour to 330 g and give the brewer one gentle swirl to level the bed.
- 2:30 - 3:30. The bed should drain by now. If it has not, grind coarser next time.
Grind
Medium fine, like table salt. On a commercial grinder this is usually around 25 to 30 clicks on a Comandante or the equivalent. The V60 punishes both extremes: too coarse and the water runs straight through without extracting anything, too fine and you get a muddy bed and a stall.
What to change when the cup is wrong
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| Sour, thin, tea-like | Grind finer, raise temperature |
| Bitter, drying finish | Grind coarser, lower temperature |
| Brew stalls past 4 minutes | Grind coarser, pour more gently |
| Brew finishes in 2 minutes | Grind finer, pour more slowly |
| Muddy, clouded cup | Grinder producing too many fines |
Why pouring matters so much
Pour height and speed control agitation, and agitation drives extraction. Fast pours from high above disturb the bed and produce fines migration, which clogs the filter and creates an uneven extraction. Slow pours from just above the bed give a cleaner, sweeter cup at the same grind.
Use a gooseneck kettle. A spout that pours a wide stream makes this method impossible to learn.