Quarlow Roasting Co.

Brew guides · 5 min ·

A pour-over that tastes the same every morning

One ratio, one grind setting and a three-minute routine. The recipe we teach at the café counter, written down.

Method
Pour-over
Ratio
1:16
Brew time
3:00
Water poured from a gooseneck kettle into a black pour-over cone over a glass server

Pour-over rewards consistency more than any other method. Get three things the same every time — the ratio, the grind and the time — and you can taste the difference between one coffee and the next instead of the difference between one morning and the next.

The recipe

  • 15 g coffee to 250 g water — a ratio of 1:16
  • Water at 93–95 °C, which is about 30 seconds off the boil
  • Medium-coarse grind
  • 3 minutes from first pour to last drip

The routine

  1. Rinse the paper filter with hot water and tip the water away. It removes the papery taste and warms the server.
  2. Add the coffee, shake it level and start a timer.
  3. Pour 40 g of water to wet all the grounds. Wait 30 seconds while it blooms and bubbles.
  4. Pour to 150 g in slow circles, keeping away from the paper.
  5. At 1:15, pour to 250 g.
  6. Give the cone a gentle swirl so the bed settles flat. It should finish draining at about 3:00.

If it doesn’t taste right

Sour, thin or sharp: the water ran through too fast. Grind a notch finer.

Bitter, dry or hollow: it ran too slow. Grind a notch coarser.

Change one thing at a time, and change the grind before anything else. Our light roasts — Karimikui and Alaka — are where this recipe shines.

Quick answers

Do I need a scale?

For pour-over, yes. A tablespoon of coffee can weigh anything from 5 to 9 grams depending on the bean. A kitchen scale that reads single grams is enough.

What grind setting should I use?

Medium-coarse, roughly the texture of sea salt. If you order ground, pick "Pour-over / filter" and we grind it to exactly that.