Start with 15 g of coffee and 250 g of water. That is a 1:16.7 ratio, close to Hario's basic one-cup recipe. Keep it fixed for the first few brews so a grind change has a result you can actually interpret.
Set up before heating the water
Use a V60 and filter size suitable for the batch. Put the brewer on a server or sturdy cup, rinse the paper and discard the rinse water. Check that the cup can hold the drink safely. Weigh the coffee and use a medium-fine starting grind, then tare the scale with the brewer in place.
Use water you enjoy drinking and keep the source consistent. For a medium or lighter roast, water just off the boil is a reasonable starting experiment, not an instruction to use boiling water for every coffee. Handle the kettle safely and adjust only after the basic recipe is repeatable.
Bloom, then pour without chasing the walls
Wet the coffee evenly with about 45 g of the total water and allow roughly 30 seconds for the bloom. Then pour steadily over the bed, bringing the total to 150 g, and continue to 250 g once there is room. These staged weights are a proposed simple routine, not the only valid V60 technique.
Avoid repeatedly pouring directly onto the paper above the coffee bed. Keep the pouring pattern and agitation consistent. Let the brewer drain, remove it safely and stir the drink before tasting. The beverage will weigh less than 250 g because water remains in the grounds and filter.
Taste before choosing the next adjustment
If the drink is thin and unpleasantly sharp, try a small finer-grind adjustment while keeping coffee and water weights fixed. If it is harsh or drying, compare a slightly coarser setting. Taste after cooling enough to judge; temperature can hide distinctions in a very hot cup.
A long drawdown can involve fines, agitation or a filter problem. Check that the paper is seated correctly and your pouring has not changed before making a large grind adjustment. Brew time is worth recording, but there is no need to reject a pleasant cup because it missed an online target by twenty seconds.
Scale the ratio, then recheck the brew
For 400 g of water at the same ratio, use about 24 g of coffee. Use the ratio calculator for other batches. A larger bed and different pouring schedule may require another grind adjustment; scaling the weights does not guarantee identical drawdown.
Record dose, total water, grinder setting, bloom and total brew time. Finish with one taste note and one planned change. Keep a good recipe for several cups before adding another pouring technique.
