How to brew V60 coffee: our Brazuca recipe and the best beans

A V60 is one of the simplest ways to brew a clean, flavourful cup of filter coffee at home. You only need a dripper, a paper filter, a scale and a kettle. There are hundreds of V60 recipes online, but this is the one we use ourselves. It is a little unusual: a lower water temperature and a stronger ratio than most recipes. And it has surprised us. Every coffee we have brewed with it turned out remarkably good, which makes it close to a one-size-fits-all recipe for our coffees.

The Brazuca V60 recipe at a glance

	Brazuca V60
Coffee	18 g, medium grind
Water	235 ml in total
Ratio	1:13
Water temperature	86 °C
Pours	40 ml (bloom), 150 ml, 45 ml
Total time	About 2 minutes

What you need

• A V60 dripper and a paper filter that fits it
• A scale, preferably one with a timer
• A kettle, ideally one with a thin spout so you can pour slowly and precisely
• A grinder, so you can grind just before brewing
• 18 grams of whole coffee beans

Step by step

Preparation

Heat your water to 86 °C. If your kettle has no temperature setting, let freshly boiled water stand for a few minutes. Put the paper filter in the V60, rinse it with hot water to remove the paper taste and warm up the dripper, and throw that water away. Grind 18 grams of coffee medium, put it in the filter and shake gently so the bed is flat. Place everything on the scale and set it to zero.

Step 1: bloom with 40 ml

Start the timer and pour 40 ml of water, evenly over all the coffee, so that everything is wet. You will see the coffee swell and bubble: that is carbon dioxide escaping from the freshly roasted beans. Wait 23 seconds.

Step 2: pour 150 ml

Pour 150 ml in slow circles, starting in the middle and working outwards, without pouring directly onto the filter paper. The scale now reads 190 grams. Wait 15 seconds.

Step 3: pour the last 45 ml

Pour the final 45 ml in the same calm way, until the scale reads 235 grams. Let the water run through completely, remove the dripper, give the coffee a gentle swirl and pour it into your cup. From the first pour to the last drop, your coffee is ready in about 2 minutes.

Why this recipe works so well

Two things set this recipe apart: the temperature and the ratio.

86 °C is cooler than usual. Many V60 recipes use water of 92 to 96 °C. Hotter water extracts more from the coffee, including more bitterness. With slightly cooler water, the cup stays sweet and round and the bitterness stays in the background. Brazilian coffee, with its natural sweetness, chocolate and nuts, really benefits from that.

1:13 is stronger than usual. Many recipes use 1 gram of coffee to 15 or 16 grams of water. With 1:13 you use relatively more coffee, so the cup keeps its body and flavour, even at the lower temperature. Together, the two choices give a cup that is sweet, full and clean at the same time.

That balance is why it works with so many different coffees. We have brewed our fruity single origins with it and our chocolatey blends, and every time the result surprised us.

Which coffee works best in a V60?

With this recipe you can brew all our coffees. If you want to taste what a V60 can do, these are our favourites:

• Fazenda Sertão 100 Years Reserva: a natural Red Bourbon from the Serra da Mantiqueira, with red fruit, a sweet full body and a spicy finish. Taste the Fazenda Sertão 100 Years Reserva
• Maragogipe Southern Boundaries: unusually large beans from Alta Mogiana, light roasted, with red fruit jam, jabuticaba and tamarind. Taste the Maragogipe Southern Boundaries
• Funky Jumper Banger: a semi-anaerobic Red Catuaí with plum, raisin and orange.
• Sítio Matuto: a Yellow Catuaí with caramel and apricot, soft and easy to like.

Want to compare several? The Explore Filter Special Box brings together a selection of our filter coffees, or see all our filter coffee beans. Curious why some of them taste so fruity? Read why your filter coffee can taste like passion fruit.

Adjusting to taste

Every grinder is different, so “medium” can mean something slightly different on yours. Use the taste as your guide and change one thing at a time:

What you taste	What to do
Sour, thin or watery	Grind a little finer
Bitter, harsh or dry	Grind a little coarser
Water runs through much faster than 2 minutes	Grind finer
Water stays in the filter much longer than 2 minutes	Grind coarser

Common mistakes

• Not weighing. Measuring by eye or with a spoon makes every cup different. A simple kitchen scale solves that.
• Water that is too hot. Straight off the boil is too hot for this recipe. Let it cool to 86 °C.
• Skipping the bloom. Without the first 40 ml and the short wait, gas keeps the water from reaching all the coffee evenly.
• Pouring onto the paper. Water that runs down the side of the filter bypasses the coffee. Pour in the middle and in circles.
• Old or pre-ground coffee. Grind just before brewing and use beans from about a week to six weeks after the roast date for the best flavour.

V60 or filter machine?

A V60 gives you full control: you decide the temperature, the pouring and the timing, which brings out the details of a special coffee. A filter machine makes a whole jug without anyone standing next to it. Both are filter coffee; the difference is who does the pouring. Read more in V60 or filter machine: what is the difference?

Frequently asked questions

Why only 86 °C?

Cooler water extracts a little less bitterness from the coffee. Combined with the strong 1:13 ratio, that gives a sweet, full cup. For our Brazilian coffees, this works very well.

Is 235 ml enough for one cup?

Yes, it makes one generous mug. The coffee grounds hold on to some of the water, so you end up with a little less than 235 ml in your cup.

Can I use this recipe with any coffee?

In our experience, yes. It was written for our coffees, and every one we have brewed with it turned out well. With very different coffees from other roasters you may need to adjust the grind.

A recommendation, not a rule

This is the recipe we like best for our coffees, but it is a recommendation, not the only right way. It is just as much fun to brew the same coffee with a more classic V60 recipe, with water of around 92 to 96 °C, and taste the two side by side. You will notice how temperature changes the sweetness, the acidity and the body. Play around, keep what you like, and find your own perfect cup.