How Long The Perfect Pour-Over Coffee Should Take To Brew

Throughout time, coffee drinkers have found ways to brew a better cup of coffee without having their own personal in-home baristas. Whether the method is drip coffee, French press, or pour-over, there are ways to make each cup a delightful experience. Pour-over coffee is a popular option for coffee drinkers due to its rich flavor. The exact time it takes for the perfect pour-over brew has long been debated. The Takeout spoke with Lauren Abendroth, director of research and development at Death Wish Coffee Co., to set the record straight. According to Abendroth, the ideal time it takes to brew the perfect pour-over coffee is between three and four minutes, depending on the size of your coffee grind.

"For a finer grind, aim closer to three minutes, and for a coarser grind, closer to four minutes," she tells The Takeout exclusively. "This ensures you are maximizing the contact time between the water and the coffee for optimal extraction." Some coffee grinders have presets available for specific brewing methods, including pour-over coffee. The reason that the time you take to pour the water over your coffee grounds is so important is that it can really impact the flavor. "If a pour-over coffee is brewed too quickly, it will taste watery and bland because the water doesn't have enough contact time with the coffee to extract its full range of flavors," Abendroth points out, adding that taking too long to brew your coffee isn't a good way to go either. "If a pour-over coffee is brewed too slowly, it will taste bitter and unbalanced because the prolonged contact between the water and coffee causes over-extraction."

It's true: Coffee has powers we're only beginning to understand. However, the learning curve surrounding pour-over coffee shouldn't intimidate you. There are several methods for adjusting your brewing speed and conjuring your perfect cup of joe.

When you start making pour-over coffee, rather than jumping in willy-nilly, make sure you're giving your coffee time to bloom before adding more water, and you'll avoid one of the most common pour-over coffee mistakes. Blooming is a process where carbon dioxide gas is released from the coffee grounds. This allows more water to penetrate the grounds and creates a fuller flavor profile. According to Lauren Abendroth, blooming is one of the most important steps. "It is always recommended to start by blooming the coffee using about twice the amount of water as coffee grounds," she shares exclusively with The Takeout. "Once the top of the coffee bed is bubbling, continue adding water in a circular motion, dividing the remainder into three or four additions."

Avoid pouring all of your water in one spot while brewing to create an even pour. "If the water moves too quickly through the coffee bed, make sure you are evenly distributing the water across the entire bed rather than pouring in just one spot. If the brew is too slow, try adding water continuously while maintaining a circular motion." Abendroth recommends adjusting the size of your grind if adjusting your brewing techniques doesn't work. If the water is soaking and moving through too fast, use a coarser grind on the next brew. On the other hand, to speed up brewing, use a finer coffee grind size. Once you've gone through the motions a few times, your confidence in pour-over coffee will bloom along with your coffee grounds, and you'll wonder why you didn't try it out sooner.