Views: 0 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2026-01-04 Origin: Site
There is a unique ritual to making pour over coffee. It’s a slow, deliberate process that feels less like a morning chore and more like a quiet moment of meditation. You measure the beans, heat the water to the precise degree, and wet the filter. But even with the most expensive beans and the fanciest gear, your brew can still taste flat, sour, or unpleasantly bitter if you get one crucial variable wrong: the grind size.
Finding the perfect grind for your pour over coffee maker is often the missing link between a "decent" cup of coffee and one that rivals your local specialty cafe. While water temperature and ratio matter, the size of your coffee grounds dictates how quickly water flows through them and how much flavor is extracted.
In this guide, we will answer the burning question of exactly what grind size you need, how to adjust it for specific devices like the V60, and how to troubleshoot your brew based on taste.
The size of your coffee grounds determines the surface area exposed to the water.
Finer grounds have a larger total surface area, allowing water to extract flavor very quickly. However, they also pack tightly together, slowing down the flow of water.
Coarser grounds have less surface area, extracting flavor more slowly. They allow water to pass through the gaps easily, resulting in a faster flow rate.
For a pour over coffee maker, gravity is doing the work. If your grind is too fine, the water will pool at the top, over-extracting the coffee and making it bitter. If it is too coarse, the water will rush through without picking up enough flavor, leading to a sour, watery cup.
For most standard pour over methods, the sweet spot is Medium-Coarse.
If you were to rub the grounds between your fingers, they should feel like rough sand or sea salt. This size allows for a balanced extraction where the water flows through at a steady pace—usually taking between 2.5 to 4 minutes for a standard brew—capturing the complex acidity and sweetness without the harsh bitterness.
However, "Medium-Coarse" is a spectrum. Depending on your specific device and the beans you are using, you might need to lean slightly towards Medium or slightly towards Coarse.
To help you visualize where pour over fits in the grand scheme of brewing, refer to the table below.
Grind Size | Texture Reference | Best Brewing Method |
|---|---|---|
Extra Fine | Powdered Sugar | Turkish Coffee |
Fine | Table Salt | Espresso |
Medium-Fine | Fine Sand | Moka Pot / AeroPress / Some V60 Coffee |
Medium | Regular Sand | Automatic Drip / Siphon |
Medium-Coarse | Sea Salt | Pour Over (Chemex, Kalita, V60) |
Coarse | Kosher Salt | French Press / Cold Brew |
Not all pour over drippers are created equal. The design of your coffee maker influences how water flows, which means you may need to adjust your grind size to compensate.
The V60 is famous for its large single hole and spiral ridges, which promote airflow and a faster drawdown. Because gravity pulls water through a V60 quite quickly, many baristas prefer a Medium-Fine grind—slightly finer than the standard sea salt texture. This slows the water down just enough to get a rich extraction.
If you are just starting out, investing in a complete V60 pour over kit is a great way to ensure all your equipment works in harmony. These kits often include the dripper, a server, and filters designed to work together for that specific flow rate.
Flat-bottom drippers restrict the flow of water naturally because the coffee bed is flat and the exit holes are small. For these, a true Medium-Coarse grind is usually ideal. If you go too fine here, you risk clogging the filter and stalling the brew.
The Chemex uses a very thick paper filter that slows down filtration significantly. To prevent the brew time from running too long (which leads to bitterness), you generally need a Medium-Coarse to Coarse grind.
Even if you follow the charts perfectly, different beans (light roast vs. dark roast) behave differently. The ultimate test is always taste. Here is a simple guide to dialing in your grind based on flavor.
Taste Profile | Diagnosis | Solution |
|---|---|---|
Sour, Salty, Watery | Under-Extracted | The water passed through too fast. Grind Finer. |
Bitter, Dry, Astringent | Over-Extracted | The water got stuck in the grounds. Grind Coarser. |
Sweet, Complex, Balanced | Perfect Extraction | Do not change a thing! |
For delicious v60 coffee, you need a burr grinder. Burr grinders crush beans to a uniform size, ensuring even extraction.
Manual Grinders: These are excellent for pour over because they don't heat up the beans and are very precise. They are also portable, making them perfect for travel kits.
Electric Grinders: If you brew large batches or value convenience, an electric burr grinder is the way to go.
Manufacturers like I-Top Industry Limited specialize in high-quality coffee gear, including precision burr grinders that pair perfectly with a V60 pour over kit. Whether you are looking for a commercial-grade electric grinder or a tactile manual one, ensuring your tool can produce a consistent medium-coarse grind is the best investment you can make for your coffee routine.
You can, but it is not recommended. Most pre-ground coffee is ground for automatic drip machines (Medium), which might be okay, but it lacks freshness. Once beans are ground, they lose their volatile aromatics within minutes. For the best "bloom" and flavor, grind fresh just before brewing.
Yes. Dark roasts are more brittle and soluble, meaning they extract faster. You often need to grind dark roasts slightly coarser. Light roasts are denser and harder to extract, so you may need to grind them slightly finer to get the full flavor profile.
A good starting point is a 1:15 or 1:16 ratio. This means for every 1 gram of coffee, you use 15 to 16 grams of water. For example, use 20g of coffee with 300g (or ml) of water.
Mastering the grind for your pour over coffee maker takes a little patience, but the reward is a cup of coffee that highlights the true character of the bean. Start with a medium-coarse setting that looks like sea salt, taste your results, and adjust from there.
Whether you are using a premium V60 pour over kit or a simple ceramic cone, the control is in your hands. Happy brewing!
