# What should Santa bring me? V60, Chemex, Clever??



## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

I mainly just drink nice strong espresso or long black / Americanos - but enjoy a mug of good Aeropress now and again (especially when travelling).

So - if the Mrs were looking for a small present to get me Christmas then which should I try if the above (or other) alternative (but similar) brew methods.

Any feedback, advice or other suggestions would be most welcome - and if the said purchase is less than about £50 and available with Amazon Prome then all the better!

Thanks!


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## risky (May 11, 2015)

Do you have a pouring kettle? It will be hard to get the best out of v60 and Chemex without. No experience of the CCD. You could probably get a pouring kettle and a plastic v60 for less than £50.

I was going to suggest a Bonavita or other immersion Brewer but I'm not sure what it would offer you as you already have an Aeropress. V60 or Chemex would certainly offer a different cup.


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

No pour over kettle (yet) but don't see two presents being an issue !


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## risky (May 11, 2015)

Also bear in mind you can put Chemex filters in a v60 so the v60 might be the way forward and then if you find yourself wishing for the glassware you could buy the Chemex proper at a later date.


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## The Systemic Kid (Nov 23, 2012)

Taste-wise, Chemex produces a cleaner cup than V60 as it uses thicker papers. That said, Hario have released thicker papers for the V60 which will produce a different result to the standard, thinner, papers.


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## Dicci (Feb 9, 2015)

The V60 is a bit more adaptable, you can brew your coffee straight into a mug if it's just for yourself, or into a decanter if you've got friends round and want a bit of theatre!


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

risky said:


> Also bear in mind you can put Chemex filters in a v60 so the v60 might be the way forward and then if you find yourself wishing for the glassware you could buy the Chemex proper at a later date.


... Or that cheap Costco number as well ;-)


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## Burnzy (Apr 17, 2014)

Omg chemex by a long shot!! Not only are they stunning to look at and pour. They make a fantastic cup of coffee. The cleanest and most crisp filter coffee. Not touched my areopress since having a chemex, i even went out and bought a bigger one..

you dont need a pouring kettle if you have one of these, they work just as well.


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## Burnzy (Apr 17, 2014)

No opaque overstewed french press style coffee with a chemex. Add a nice fruity african natural and taste the blackcurrant!!!


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

Burnzy said:


> ...overstewed french press style coffee.


Doesn't happen, it just goes cold.


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

Burnzy said:


> Omg chemex by a long shot!! Not only are they stunning to look at and pour. They make a fantastic cup of coffee. The cleanest and most crisp filter coffee. Not touched my areopress since having a chemex, i even went out and bought a bigger one..
> 
> you dont need a pouring kettle if you have one of these, they work just as well.
> View attachment 18425


Haven't got one - got a link?


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

MrShades said:


> I mainly just drink nice strong espresso or long black / Americanos - but enjoy a mug of good Aeropress now and again (especially when travelling).


Out of interest, how important is the strength to you? E.g. how much water do you add to your Americanos & what's your Aeropress method?


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## Burnzy (Apr 17, 2014)

MWJB said:


> Doesn't happen, it just goes cold.


Ok ok, over extracted then


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## Burnzy (Apr 17, 2014)

MrShades said:


> Haven't got one - got a link?


They are quite hard to get actually, our local coffee shops sell them, about £20 though, they sold me a used one for £5 luckily.


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

Burnzy said:


> Ok ok, over extracted then


Still doesn't typically, maybe very rarely (a handful of coffees per year IME).


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## Burnzy (Apr 17, 2014)

MWJB said:


> Still doesn't typically, maybe very rarely (a handful of coffees per year IME).


Not sure what you are getting at, most coffees can be over extracted. My point really was just that chemex makes a very clean crisp coffee comapred to say a french press or AeroPress, which in comparison i now find over brewed when compared to the delicate nature of chemex coffee.. There really is nothing quite like a chemex imo.... But im no expert like many on here...


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

Burnzy said:


> Not sure what you are getting at, most coffees can be over extracted. My point really was just that chemex makes a very clean crisp coffee comapred to say a french press or AeroPress, which in comparison i now find over brewed when compared to the delicate nature of chemex coffee.. There really is nothing quite like a chemex imo.... But im no expert like many on here...


It's easiest to over-extract coffee in a pourover, but very hard to do so in a French press. What you are perceiving as "overbrewed" is likely off flavours from particles & lipids in the cup, possibly under-extraction too. Indeed, a pourover with a paper filter will give a cleaner cup, assuming you don't over/under-extract.


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## risky (May 11, 2015)

Worth pointing out a lot of people don't enjoy a Chemex for the exact reasons you've stated in its favour @Burnzy

It can be an acquired taste to drink coffee so clean and almost 'tea-like'


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## jtldurnall (Mar 16, 2015)

I'll throw my 50 pence in here and suggest the v60. I've messed around with different brew methods a lot, and keep coming back to the v60. It can be tricky to get right and you will need a pouring kettle, but there are plenty of videos out there to help you. It's also cheaper than a chemex, and if you wanted to try 'chemex like' coffee, you could always grab some chemex filters and give them a shot in the v60.


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

MWJB said:


> Out of interest, how important is the strength to you? E.g. how much water do you add to your Americanos & what's your Aeropress method?


Answering both of those :

- not much water at all (doubling the volume of the original double espresso)

- Aeropress : single heaped Aeropress scoop of beans ground to something close to espresso finenes in Porlex (I'm usually after a quick fix if aeropressing), brief bloom / stir and then fill the Aeropress and stir again before steeping for about 1 min then inverted pour through Kohilabs steel filter (or paper if lazy). Not that strong but usually quite tasty.


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

Erring towards a v60 at the moment .... Clean and "tea like" not sounding that appealing...


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## risky (May 11, 2015)

Obviously depends what beans you're using. As stated, v60 might be the best bet and just buy a pack of Chemex filters to experiment with.


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

MrShades said:


> Answering both of those :
> 
> - not much water at all (doubling the volume of the original double espresso)
> 
> - Aeropress : single heaped Aeropress scoop of beans ground to something close to espresso finenes in Porlex (I'm usually after a quick fix if aeropressing), brief bloom / stir and then fill the Aeropress and stir again before steeping for about 1 min then inverted pour through Kohilabs steel filter (or paper if lazy). Not that strong but usually quite tasty.


If you like a certain hit of strength/intensity, you could also try a Turkish/Ibrik brew? It's probably the method that equates to more coffee = more strength in the most intuitive fashion? Fast, repeatable & simple, you can skim off the surface & filter the result through a drip cone or your Aeropress if you don't want the silt?


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

So - Hario Buono 1.2l pouring kettle (£30 Amazon ) and 500ml v60 with decanter (£19)?

V60 seems like a done deal. Hario kettle ok?

Thanks for all help so far - much appreciated.


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## Dicci (Feb 9, 2015)

You can get a V60 2 cup dripper, decanter and a pack of filters for £15 in Whittard if you've got one near you?


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## Hairy_Hogg (Jul 23, 2015)

I have a V60 and a CCD - The CCD is the most forgiving, can be used for long steeps as well as short and can be used as a pour over the same as a V60 if you sit it on the cup. CCD wins it for me...


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

Well - have taken the plunge with some Hario gear :

- Hario V60 glass dripper 02

- Hario V60 02 papers

- Hario acrylic server 03

- Hario Buono 1.2l kettle

Should all be here on Monday, thanks to Prime, at a total price of £64

Thanks again to everyone who commented and helped.


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

Now I need a separate grinder I guess...

I could use the Porlex, or

I could use a Super Jolly, or

I could use a Royal

Don't worry about "it'd be a pain to go from espresso to pour over" as I've got the K10 for espresso still.

Which will I get better results from? Is the best espresso grinder still going to be the best pourover grinder?


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

.... and now I realise I'm going to need some pourover capable scales. Hmmm...


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## aaroncornish (Nov 7, 2012)

MrShades said:


> .... and now I realise I'm going to need some pourover capable scales. Hmmm...


Not essential.

Scales and a timer will work just fine...

Although this is coming from the man with 2 sets of pourover scales


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## Scotford (Apr 24, 2014)

MrShades said:


> Now I need a separate grinder I guess...
> 
> I could use the Porlex, or
> 
> ...


Rhino beats porlex.

Orrr, you could get a Tanzania


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

But what if I chose from the grinders that I have spare : Porlex, SJ or Royal... Or just whack espresso grounds directly out of the K10? (Don't really want to fiddle with the k10 grind setting!)

Which will give best results with v60 - or won't it matter (I'm looking for minimal fines I guess).


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## risky (May 11, 2015)

MrShades said:


> But what if I chose from the grinders that I have spare : Porlex, SJ or Royal... Or just whack espresso grounds directly out of the K10? (Don't really want to fiddle with the k10 grind setting!)
> 
> Which will give best results with v60 - or won't it matter (I'm looking for minimal fines I guess).


Why do you want minimal fines? I thought the whole reason the Mahlkonig grinders were so good for brewed was because of the fines.

I'm getting deja vu, I mentioned on another thread the last time I tried grinding for brewed on a Mazzer it just gummed up the burrs. I'm sure some people have been successful though.


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## MrShades (Jul 29, 2009)

Errrr....I think they are good for brewed because of the fines - less of them.


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## risky (May 11, 2015)

MrShades said:


> Errrr....I think they are good for brewed because of the fines - less of them.


Ah sorry I misinterpreted 'fines' in your previous post as 'the ability to grind finer', however as a matter of interest, technically the EK43 for example produces more fines, but is has the tightest distribution, so in a way, you could say it isn't making many fines









http://cargocollective.com/mattperger/The-EK43-Part-Two#.VnhkWBWLTIU

But I guess this is moot anyway as you don't have an EK43 and therefore want to avoid fines as you suggest.


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