You can spend years studying pour-over technique: spiral patterns, pulse pouring, agitation, bloom time, kettle height. All of it matters. Little of it matters as much as two numbers: how much coffee per how much water, and how hot that water is. Start at a 1:16 ratio and water around 93°C (200°F), then adjust from there.
Get these two right and your pour-over will be good, even with imperfect technique. Get them wrong and perfect spiraling will not save it.
The Ratio: Coffee to Water
The ratio is the most important variable in pour-over coffee. It sets the strength, the intensity, and the balance of the cup.
The Standard Range: 1:15 to 1:17
This means 1 gram of coffee for every 15 to 17 grams of water. Water weighs 1 gram per milliliter, so this is also 1 gram of coffee per 15 to 17 milliliters of water.
1:15: Strong. Full-flavored. The upper end of concentration most people find pleasant. Good for dark roasts where you want intensity, and for coffee that will be diluted with milk or ice.
1:16: The default starting point. Balanced. Works well across roast levels. If you brew at 1:16 and adjust from there, you will usually find your preference within a few brews.
1:17: Lighter. More delicate. Lets the subtler flavor notes come forward. Good for light-roast single-origins where you want to taste the floral, fruity, or tea-like characteristics.
Beyond 1:17: Gets thin. Most people find 1:18 and weaker too watery, though some light-roast drinkers push to 1:18 or even 1:19 for specific beans.
Practical Measurements
| Cups | Coffee | Water | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 small (200ml) | 12.5g | 200ml | 1:16 |
| 1 standard (250ml) | 15g | 250ml | 1:16.7 |
| 1 large (300ml) | 18g | 300ml | 1:16.7 |
| 1 generous (350ml) | 21g | 350ml | 1:16.7 |
| 2 cups (500ml) | 30g | 500ml | 1:16.7 |
If you do not have a scale: a level tablespoon of medium-fine ground coffee weighs roughly 5 to 7g, depending on the grind and the bean. It is not as precise as weighing, but it is close enough for daily brewing.
How to Adjust
Cup tastes weak or thin? Increase coffee (try 17g for 250ml) or decrease water (try 230ml with 15g).
Cup tastes harsh, bitter, or over-concentrated? Decrease coffee (try 14g for 250ml) or increase water (try 270ml with 15g).
Cup tastes right but you want a slightly different character? Shift by 0.5g of coffee at a time. The difference between 15g and 15.5g in 250ml of water is subtle but real, especially with light roasts.
The Temperature: 90 to 96°C (195 to 205°F)
Water temperature controls the speed and completeness of extraction. Hotter water extracts faster and more aggressively. Cooler water extracts more slowly and more selectively.
The Sweet Spot: About 93°C (200°F)
If you want a single number: 93°C. In this range water pulls the pleasant flavor compounds (acids, sugars, aromatics) without pulling too much of the bitter ones. It is the temperature many specialty coffee professionals target.
The Range by Roast Level
Light roasts: 94 to 96°C. Light roasts are denser and harder to extract. The beans were roasted less, so the cell structure is more intact and less soluble. Hotter water compensates. If your light roast tastes sour or thin, the water may be too cool.
Medium roasts: 92 to 94°C. The default range.
Dark roasts: 88 to 92°C. Dark roasts are more porous, more soluble, and extract faster. Cooler water helps prevent over-extraction, which is why dark roast pour-over can taste bitter if brewed at the same temperature as a light roast.
How to Hit the Temperature Without a Thermometer
At home: Boil water and wait about 30 seconds; you are roughly in the low to mid 90s °C. Wait about 45 seconds for roughly 90 to 92°C, and about a minute for the high 80s. These are rough guides: the real numbers depend on the kettle, the volume of water and the room temperature. A cheap thermometer, used once, will tell you how your own kettle behaves.
At camp: Same protocol. Boil, wait 30 to 45 seconds, pour.
At altitude: Water boils at lower temperatures at elevation. At about 1,500m (Denver), water boils at roughly 95°C. At 3,000m, it boils at roughly 90°C. At moderate altitude you can pour soon after boiling, because the lower boiling point already puts you near the pour-over range.
Up high, water boils below the ideal range. Pour right after boiling and consider a slightly finer grind to increase extraction at the lower temperature. Titanium conducts heat less well than aluminum, but a thin-walled titanium pot like the Valtcan 750ml titanium pot holds little heat in its walls, so the water starts cooling as soon as it leaves the flame. Pour promptly at high altitude.
Signs Your Temperature Is Wrong
Too hot (above about 96°C): The cup tastes bitter, harsh, and one-dimensional. Fix: wait longer after boiling, or use a coarser grind as a secondary adjustment.
Too cool (below about 88°C): The cup tastes sour, thin, and underwhelming. The acids dissolved but the sugars and heavier compounds did not. Fix: wait less after boiling, pour immediately, or use a finer grind.
How the Two Variables Interact
Ratio and temperature are not independent. Understanding how they interact lets you make intentional choices.
Higher ratio (more coffee) + lower temperature = strong and smooth. The concentration is high but the extraction is gentle. Bold, full cups without bitterness. Good for dark roasts and people who want intensity without harshness.
Lower ratio (less coffee) + higher temperature = delicate and bright. The concentration is lighter but the extraction is more complete. Good for light-roast single-origins.
Higher ratio + higher temperature = intense and potentially bitter. Both variables push toward maximum extraction. Use carefully.
Lower ratio + lower temperature = weak and sour. Both variables under-extract. This is the combination that makes people think pour-over is thin. It is not the method; it is the settings.
The One-Week Dial-In Protocol
If you are new to pour-over, this protocol gets you close to your ideal cup within a week.
Day 1: Brew at 1:16, about 93°C, medium-fine grind. Taste without adding anything. Note whether the cup is too strong, too weak, too bitter, or too sour.
Day 2: Adjust ONE variable based on Day 1. Too bitter: coarsen the grind one click. Too sour: grind one click finer. Too strong: add 15ml of water. Too weak: add 1g of coffee.
Days 3 to 5: Keep adjusting that same variable until the issue resolves. Do not change several variables at once, or you will not know which one helped.
Days 6 to 7: If the cup is close but not quite there, adjust temperature. Try about 2°C warmer or cooler (a few seconds more or less of cooling after the boil).
By the end of the week you will have a ratio, grind, and temperature that works with your beans, your water, and your equipment. Write these numbers down. They are your recipe.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the ratio change for different beans? The 1:15 to 1:17 range covers most beans. Within it, light roasts tend toward 1:16 to 1:17 and dark roasts toward 1:15 to 1:16. Start at 1:16 for any new bean and adjust from there.
Can I measure coffee by volume instead of weight? Weight is more accurate because ground coffee density varies with grind size and roast. If you do not have a scale, a level tablespoon is roughly 5 to 7g. Good enough for daily brewing.
Why do some recipes say 1:16.7 and others say 60g per liter? Same thing, different notation. 60g per 1000ml works out to 1:16.7. The ratio notation scales to any volume without calculation.
Does water quality matter? Yes. Very hard water (high mineral content) can mute flavor and leaves scale in kettles. Very soft or distilled water can taste flat, because coffee needs some minerals to extract well. Aim for moderate minerals: filtered tap water or a spring water that tastes good on its own works for most people. If your pour-over tastes off despite correct ratio and temperature, try different water before adjusting anything else.
What's the most common pour-over mistake? Skipping the bloom. The bloom releases trapped CO2 from the grounds, which otherwise causes channeling and uneven extraction. Pour 30 to 50ml of water, wait 30 to 45 seconds, then begin the main pour. It is one of the simplest steps with the biggest payoff.