I use the Hario V60 with the Drip Assist. Alternatively I use the Hario Switch, in either steep and release or combination v60 style pouring and steep and release modes.

I’m sometimes forgetful at my advanced age, so I (and others) might be grateful for a refresher from @MWJB or @LMSC (and anyone else who cares to weigh in) on how to dial in v60. I know the basics of how to deal with astringency, bitterness or sourness by adjusting grind size. And I understand how to adjust brew ratio to adjust body and strength.

But I could use a refresher on how to vary flow rate (ml/sec) during each phase of the pour to impact taste. What are the impacts of slower versus faster flow rates? What do you aim for, when? To be clear, this is the ml/sec I see on my scale, as I pour, as distinct from the overall average flow rate for the pour (ml poured / by time in seconds).

I’d also be grateful for a refresher on the impacts of pulse frequency. If the flow rate is held constant, what do more frequent vs less frequent pulses do? What do shorter vs longer pulses do? How do these variables affect extraction? Taste?

How does the combination of flow rate, pulse duration and pulse frequency affect extraction and taste?

How do you pre-infuse and bloom? How much water for how long?

At the present time, I stick with more or less one grind setting and one pulse frequency (30 ml every 30 seconds, following an initial 60 ml pre-infusion pour and 1 minute 30 second bloom. But I know I could do better, to improve the taste of the decaf that I drink.

I know that this information is buried in the v60 thread, which is now quite long as a result of the exchange of experiences on specific shots. So if anyone wishes to weigh in on broader technique, that guidance would be gratefully received. If we might focus on technique in this thread, so that it does not become undigestably long, that would be great!

And..everyone’s different approach and ideas are welcome. Taste is a personal thing and so there is no right or wrong.

  • MWJB replied to this.

    JHCCoffee But I could use a refresher on how to vary flow rate (ml/sec) during each phase of the pour to impact taste. What are the impacts of slower versus faster flow rates? What do you aim for, when? To be clear, this is the ml/sec I see on my scale, as I pour, as distinct from the overall average flow rate for the pour (ml poured / by time in seconds).

    What is your brew size?

    At the moment I cannot recommend a V60 02 compatible filter paper, hopefully I will be able to in the next week. (I’m currently using the pink & black loose bagged 01 Japanese papers in my 02 Switch).

    I cannot advise regarding a flow rate as seen on your scales. I would concentrate on hitting the pulse weights and timings based on the weights & times that you see in real time, as you pour. I wouldn’t recommend a regime that was reliant on specific technology, because it then becomes less easy to share.

    May I ask why your pre infusion pour is larger than your subsequent pours?

    I wouldn’t bloom for that long. I would aim to keep pour timings and pulse weights consistent for ease of committing to memory.

    Faster pour rates (for a fixed grind setting & brew size) extract less, assuming that you are not too fine to start with and under-extracting due to this fine grind.

    For my 1 cup brews (200-210g) an average flow rate of around 1g/s seems to give good results & extractions, so I often pour at an average of 1g/s (e.g. 40g poured at 40s intervals, each pour taking 15s).

    If cups are under & lacking in body, I would use smaller pulses like 33g every 30s, or 25g every 30s (pours taking 10s each).

    I would start with roughly ⅓ of the pours in the centre of the Drip Assist for V60, the remainder in the ring, to agitate & wet at the start of the brew, then less agitation later in the brew to keep silt levels down.

    If your grind is too fine then you may have excessive silt/filmy mouthfeel in cups, if so grind coarser until the mouthfeel is to your preference & correct the pour rate to get extraction back on track.

    Astringency is not a good way to tune brews. Over-extraction is a very specific, smoky, sickly, cloying dryness. It’s easy to fix by grinding coarser, then it is very unlikely to ever happen again (except for extremely rare coffees that extract unusually easily…for these I would recommend immersion brewing).

    So, once you have fixed over-extraction issues, what do you do when you still get astringency? It could be excessive silt in the cup, or it could be darker, drier flavours coming to the fore because you have extracted just a little bit too little. It could even be that you have bought a drier tasting coffee (this is where scoring cups/bags, against a known brew regime becomes useful for sense checking compared to normal results).

    JHCCoffee Taste is a personal thing and so there is no right or wrong.

    Preference is personal (we buy different coffees because we want them to taste different, but we expect to brew those different tasting coffees consistently, minimising generic failure states), but to achieve an objective target & repeat it (whatever that is, is up to you), requires you to carry out the actions (brew inputs) that will meet that result.

        JHCCoffee I see from your previous brew in November (for which I did a shadow brew) that you were using 300g of brew water, drip assist and a Niche Zero set at 85.5 (one full rotation of 360 degrees from marked zero).

        I’d perhaps start at 6× 50g pours every 40s, each taking 15-20s, first 2 pours in the centre, last 4 in the ring.

        I wouldn’t dose more than 21g of coffee.

        Then report back on mouthfeel (clean/filmy/silty) and balance of acidity (tangy/unripe/ripe fruit/balanced/flat lack of acidity).

          6 days later

          Thanks @MWJB !

          I have previously been pouring brews with fully 30g of decaf beans and 240g of water, at 55 on the NZ. I was pouring 60g of water in one go, through the center of the Drip Assist, followed by a 1 minute and 30 second bloom, followed by 30g poured over 15 seconds, followed by 30 seconds of rest, until 240g is reached. I like the full body and flavor. While there was no obvious silt (due to the filter), the taste was definitely not clean. It’s full bodied but somewhat muddied in flavour. Not alot of flavour separation. Definitely stronger in flavour (for a v60). I have not been taking v60 notes (as I do with espresso) but my recollection is that the coffee is a tad bitter without sugar and milk. However I take my pour over coffee with sugar and cream.

          I would like a cup that is abit cleaner than this, but still fuller bodied and with ample strength and flavour. With detectable flavour nuances. In short, I want the best of all worlds. In decaf.

          This morning I followed your suggestions and poured a v60 with 21g in and 300g out. NZ at 85. Poured 50g into the centre x 2. With 15 seconds per pour, then wait 25 seconds (for a total of 40 seconds) and pour again. Then pour the balance into the ring at the same intervals.

          The drink was (without sugar or cream) clean, balanced, but did not have much strength or flavour. Well, perhaps a tad flat (insufficient acidity). It was quite light in body. The sugar and cream simply overwhelmed the coffee. Will adjust the recipe again today, and then will be pouring espresso through the weekend.

            JHCCoffee I see, I don’t take dairy nor sugar in coffee, so I can probably get away with a weaker cup, but still at satisfactory intensity (for me, this is typically 1.40 to 1.70%TDS)

            A 1:8 (30:240g) brew ratio is perhaps a tall order to achieve a level of extraction that has clarity.

            I had a bash at a 24g:240g brew, 80 on the Niche Zero, preheated Switch 02, 01 Japanese tabbed white paper from loose bagged, pink & black pack.

            Note: I closed the valve for the first pour/bloom, opening the valve again at 35sec - maybe a light stir/swirl here would be fine with a regular 02 cone?

            First 3 pours of 30g every 40s (each pour taking 10-12s) in the centre. Remaining pours (same amounts & timings) in the ring.

            Dry bed at 5:11

            I got 194g of brewed coffee at 2.28% TDS. To be honest, this was higher than I was expecting.

            It was syrupy and, compared to my normal expectation, somewhat cloying, but not unpleasant. There was some fruitiness (distinctiveness rather than what I’d regard as clarity, specifically). No bitterness & no astringency.

            To get as close as I can right now to your typical cup, I added a sweetener and 20ml of lacto free UHT milk (awful stuff, I won’t be buying that again). The fruitiness of the coffee still came through and I found the cup quite enjoyable, no less so than my typical brews (though obviously, I can’t really relate to your typical brew, or expectation).

            Ideally, I’d perhaps like to get a shade more strength from the brew, maybe going down to 77 on the Niche Zero?

            All coffee, including filter coffee, has some silt (or, more correctly non-dissolved solids), these give coffee its mouth feel, it’s only a problem if it gives an unpleasant texture, or coats the tongue making notes hard to detect/increasing bitter, charred, darker flavours.

            Hope this is of some help?

              @JHCCoffee

              My wife and I drink filter on week days. Black for me; and, with 1 tbsp of milk for my wife and no sugar.

              I mostly brew 1:15 ratio at 12% 400 Kruve dosing 15g coffee. If I add a tbsp milk for my wife’s coffee, the coffee is no longer strong enough. For the same 12% and 15g of coffee, the ratio is 1:13.33 (15g:200g) for a tbsp of milk.

              There are week days, she will ask for a little more than a tbsp of milk with ¼ tsp of sugar. I end up reducing the ratio further between 1:11.67 and 1:10. I don’t drink my black at these strengths, except espresso. But, it sits well with her and she likes the flavour and the taste of filter.

              Typically, I think chocolate and nutty flavours come through milk. If we add sugar on top of milk or cream, I am not sure if any flavours / notes can overcome that. I don’t know as there is neither milk nor sugar in my coffee. 😊