I use a pour over for single cups and i also have an 8-cup chemex. I'm trying to find the correct grind setting for these and have noticed several different results.

I use a capresso burr grinder. 555 or something similar to that, one of the cheap ones. I don't know the model off the top of my head. I have it on about 80% coarse. I pour a small amount of water about 10 seconds off the boil to wet the grounds. Wait 30 seconds and then pour so that the water is 1" from the top until i have poured all the water out.

My main question is how should the grinds be positioned in the filter when i'm done? I have had them evenly distributed along the edges and clumped all in the bottom.

I am currently using a batch of ethiopian counter culture just roasted on 11/24. When i do the wetting part of my pour over i actually get a bloom out of this batch of coffee but it clumps at the bottom after it is done.

Before i was using some 8'oclock coffee and it wouldn't bloom, but it would evenly distribute to the sides of the filter when finished.

What is the norm and what should i change?

Thanks for your time and help.

Greg

anyone?

It depends if you stir the grounds or not.

In my machine (Bunn), the correct starting position of the grounds is an even flat cake (according with the manual). The grind setting depends on the paper filter used. In my case, I grind fine because it is a fast drip (big holes in paper). What I do is the following.

(temperature to ~198F)

1 wet the paper filter in the basket with plain water

2 put the grounds evenly distributed (shake a little)

3 brew coffee (here you can measure the time it takes)

Somewhere in the middle I stir the grounds. Even though my machine does a complete saturation of the grounds by itself, I think I get extra flavor by stirring the grounds. The grounds, because the water does not drain very fast, reach the middle height of the filter basket. The final grounds look like a cup. Don't know how much water you add at once.

Cheers

For pour-over brewing, I have a Clever Coffee Dripper, a 2-cup cone which I made using the Filter Holder from an old drip machine, and a 10-cup Melita Cone. Needless to say, the Clever is the one I use most often.

I think the key is, after wetting the grounds, to pour in a circular motion. It probably doesnt matter if you are letting the clever steep, but using it like a regular drip cone, the circular pouring, I think, makes a difference. Do that, the grounds are always covering the entire sides, all the way down to whatever is left at the bottom, which usually forms a little pile.

I LOVE the Clever Coffee Dripper. I use it both ways.. sometimes with a coarse grind and I let it steep, other times I put it over a cup and use it like a regular filter cone.

For when guest are over that dont want 'spro(or I dont feel like making 'spro), I use either the 8cup FP, or the 10cup melita. I would like to get a Chemex for guests.. it looks nicer on the table then a big, black plastic cone on top of a Carafe.

I have personally found the hasbean brewing guide for Chemex really helpful. And it works! When the brew goes well i have a fairly flat bed of grounds at the end.

http://www.hasblog.co.uk/brewing-guide-the-chemex

One slight modification: after stirring the grounds anti-clockwise right before the final descent, i also end with one clock-wise stir. It may not make any difference but it does help to achieve the flat bed. I picked up that trick on a visit to Penny University in London.