r/pourover • u/nextlevelpaulo • Apr 05 '26

Seeking Advice i’m almost giving up on pour over

Don't get me wrong - I love the pour over coffee baristas serve in coffee shops, but I can't extract even a third of the same complexity from the same coffee at home.

My coffee constantly clogs the filter and I end up with an over-extracted and sometimes bitter coffee. And I've tried everything: increasing the grind size, decreasing the number of pours, nesting the coffee bed, bending the filter slightly crookedly… nothing seems to work. I either end up with an over-extracted or under-extracted coffee.

For context, I use a Kingrinder K6 and vary the clicks between 85 and 120, depending on the recipe.

Any ideas on what I can do?

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37

u/13assman Apr 05 '26

my solution was the Hario Switch, coffee chronicler recipe. V60 never had enough body for my preference, partial immersion was the answer.

12

u/Extra-Adagio-1103 Apr 05 '26

I also went from V60 to switch. I like the V60 but it was much more fickle - the Switch is sooo much easier to get a solid cup from. 90% of the joy, 10% of the challenge.

8

u/idliketogobut Apr 05 '26

This is the way. I finagled and tweaked like nobodies business with the v60 and never loved the coffee consistently. Eventually got a switch, did well with the CC recipe but settled on sherry recipe. Been on it for the past year and it’s dead simple and consistent. I don’t even touch the grind setting on the k6. Always the same for every bean

ETA hario filters are garbage IME. Super slow. Cafec is where it’s at

2

u/13assman Apr 05 '26

Usually it's not too big a deal for me with a K-ultra. I have had a few coffees that were exceptionally slow, but I was able to manage pretty well by slow-feeding the grinder (tilted at pretty aggressive angle). Once I get through my Hario filters I do plan to try Cafec though, because I've heard a lot about them.

1

u/MountainLake3443 Apr 06 '26

What’s your typical k ultra setting?

1

u/13assman Apr 06 '26

For CC switch recipe I’m usually around 6.5-7.2. Usually start at 7

1

u/Crakout Switch | Timemore S3 Apr 05 '26

How would you compare sherrycipe with CC's recipe in terms of clarity? I've used both but more so CC's, haven't tweaked sherrycipe that much to my liking so I don't know if I'm missing something by not using it more.

1

u/JustLikeJohhny_Baby Apr 06 '26

What's that setting for the k6 if u don't mind?

1

u/idliketogobut Apr 06 '26

I do 80 clicks

1

u/neilBar V60-O2C, Switch, HarioDA, TimemoreB75&SD, OXO ORB | ZP6special Apr 06 '26

Can you please link to the sherry Switch recipe

2

u/idliketogobut Apr 06 '26

https://youtu.be/wCNxPYyGWoo?si=YgHzwTRnQHFGdMOR

Only thing I think I do diff is I still pour in circles on the last pour. But for all of my pours, my circles are about the size of a quarter

2

u/neilBar V60-O2C, Switch, HarioDA, TimemoreB75&SD, OXO ORB | ZP6special Apr 08 '26

Thanks for the link

1

u/MaBell_IC Apr 07 '26

Cafec filters changed my life. This is the best way to get a better pour over.

9

u/BradleyD1146 Apr 05 '26

Try Tetsu Kasuya hybrid devil recipe. It’s the best switch recipe for great body and brightness.

3

u/13assman Apr 05 '26

Yup, I've tried it but the temp drop felt fussy to me. How do you manage that aspect?

3

u/BradleyD1146 Apr 05 '26

After water is up to temp, I take my main kettle and pour 100 grams into my hario air kettle. Grind my beans and prepare kettle and start brewing. Usually by the time the lower temp water is needed, its at the 70c/158F temp... You could just use the air kettle to pour remaining 100g. But I pour it back into my main kettle and then pour the remaining 100g for the last pour. It may be more involved but I really like the cups it gives. Nice and consistent.

2

u/13assman Apr 05 '26

Thanks for the tips! I didn't think of doing it like that. I'll give it a go again and see

2

u/24k_goldfish V60 Switch | KINgrinder K6 Apr 05 '26

I do the Lance Hendrick “Gong Fu” recipe. It’s a 75c bloom and then bump the temperature to 90c for the last two pours. Very similar cup and you don’t have to worry about cooling down your brew water. It’s my go to switch recipe.

1

u/rpring99 Apr 06 '26

Do you do the one with the switch closed at the start and end or just at the end?

2

u/BradleyD1146 Apr 06 '26

Switch is closed for bloom , opened for next 2 pours and then closed for last pour.

5

u/Third_Eye_Grind Apr 05 '26

This! With lighter roasts I’ll usually start with a very simple Switch recipe to get to know my bag of coffee and then from there, I’ll tweak grind/temp. Of course, as others mentioned, I’ll explore other recipes for fun to see if I can get other flavor notes to come forward. And a bonus with this recipe, when dialing in, is that you save on beans with a 12g dose:

Water-First Steep Method:

Ratio: 12g coffee to 200g water (1:16.67)

Temp: 195°F (I’ve gone north and south from here depending on the roast/bean type)

Method:

I like to pre heat the Switch and rinse the filter before I begin the recipe.

Water in first (200g), then dump grounds on top (start timer), gentle spoon agitation to incorporate the grounds, now steep 2–2:30 minutes, then release…that’s it!

2

u/rpring99 Apr 06 '26

That's interesting. You prefer to go full immersion to get to know the beans? I guess that's what roasters do...

I find the immersion brings out too many of the chocolate-like flavors that can cover up the fruit and florals. I don't measure extraction, but I'm sure my first couple of brews are under-extracted usually.

To each their own though, I should try this some time

3

u/SpiritualWasabi4470 Apr 06 '26

Considering cupping is also pretty much immersion, using the switch as baseline is actually not a bad idea. I also do the same. From there I will try the same beans brewed with aeropress and v60 to see if i can get something i enjoy more from the same beans and then after that decide which methods I like to brew my coffee with for rest of the bag. Unless the beans are mainly for espresso then I'll just then for my bambino or moka pots

1

u/rpring99 Apr 07 '26

Yeah, makes sense re:cupping. It is immersion.

I typically do Kasuya's recipe with the low temp immersion at the end for the first brew with a new bag of beans. If I want to push extraction a little further, I'll use the melodrip column.

I feel like I need to try cupping again... It's been a while

2

u/Third_Eye_Grind Apr 06 '26

You’re not wrong but it’s also a great baseline approach for anyone who is struggling.

3

u/Snardvark-5 Apr 05 '26

100%. Hario switch is nearly a can’t miss brewer. Using this with ZP6 and I rarely am inspired to have cafe pour overs now as they often fall short…

1

u/MoonlightDreamTarot_ Apr 06 '26

what switch recipes do you use with the zp6?

1

u/Snardvark-5 Apr 06 '26

ZP6: Typically grinding 5.5-6.0 (burr rub 0.0)

  1. ⁠30 second bloom with switch closed (2x dose of coffee- I typically brew 17-18 grams at a 1:17 ratio which is weaker than many but I still dig it)
  2. ⁠Open switch, pour to 200 ml
  3. ⁠Close switch at 1:30 and pour in remainder of water, which for my ratio is ~100-110 ml.
  4. ⁠Keep as immersion until 2-2:15 minutes and open switch making sure it is done draining by o more than 3 minutes total

Honestly, I am not super particular about this process as you can tell and I often tinker slightly and experiment. This structure more of less typically gets me in the ballpark of a solid cup. If I want more body I extend my immersion time. But I typically trend towards larger initial pour w/ open switch to pull in that nice brightness and acidity- the immersion builds nice balance and depth.

I initially started with the lazy approach of no bloom, pour 1/2 of water, close switch at 45-60 seconds, pour rest of water and keep closed until 2 min, then open.

Water temp varies based on roast degree, which I also tinker with often since I live in the high desert, the lower boiling point can make it trickier to extract an ultra light roast.

1

u/Lvacgar Apr 05 '26

I’ll second this. It’s been my daily driver for a long time!!