The day I realized I was over-extracting my pour-over by a full minute

I was at Onyx Coffee in Bentonville last month watching their barista make a V60, and I noticed she pulled the kettle off way earlier than I do at home. Turns out I was letting my brew time hit 4 minutes when most light roasts should finish around 2:45 to 3 minutes max. That extra minute was pulling out all the bitter tannins and making my coffee taste like burnt ash. Has anyone else had a brewing routine that was way off without knowing it?

3 comments

3 Comments

wade2501mo ago

That extra minute you mentioned was my exact problem too, I cut my brew time to 3:00 and it fixed everything.

patricia2621mo ago

Funny how shaving off just one minute can fix so many things, isn't it?

nelson.vera1mo ago

Three and a half minutes was my sweet spot after months of trial and error. I used to do 4:15 and it came out so bitter I could barely drink it, went through an entire bag of beans that way before I realized what was happening. Now I set a timer on my phone every single morning, you know, no guessing games with my old stove timer that has the numbers worn off. My husband laughed at me for being so precise about it, but he changed his tune when he tasted the difference in his morning mug.