Meraki Tech Global · Manufacturer tutorial
Meraki: from grind to cup
Watch burr adjustment, weighed dosing, extraction temperature stability and glossy milk pouring.
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04 / STEP-BY-STEP BREWING
Brew a cup you’ll
genuinely savour.
Calculate your exact gram dose, start the live pour-over companion timer beside your kettle, and follow three foolproof signature recipes for filter, French press and espresso.
THE ESPRESSO WORKSHOP · ON VIDEO
Watch the technique.
Then make it your own.
On a semi-automatic portafilter machine like Meraki or Breville, you prepare the coffee bed by hand while a pump delivers steady pressure. Seeing real flow dynamics makes dialling in at home intuitive.
Breville · Manufacturer tutorial
Breville: read your extraction
Spot a shot that runs too fast or chokes too slowly and see exactly how to adjust your grinder.
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Three visual cues to watch during extraction.
Puck preparation
Weighing to 0.1 g, breaking up clumps evenly and tamping dead-level prevent high-pressure water from carving weak channels.
Stream texture (“mouse tail”)
After 6 to 8 seconds of pre-infusion, dark drops should merge into a supple, honey-like hazelnut stream — neither pale gushing nor stalled dripping.
Palate check
Keep your recipe steady (e.g. 18 g in → 36 g out), stir the crema with a spoon before sipping, then adjust only one variable at a time.
RATIO CALCULATOR
Spot-on proportions,
zero mental math.
Pick your brewer or tap a cup size preset. Water refers to poured brew water (grounds retain roughly twice their dry weight in liquid).
Quick sizes
Designed for pour-over, electric drip and French press. For espresso (1:2 liquid yield), open the espresso recipe tab below.
GUIDED RECIPES & LIVE TIMER
Four signature recipes explained down to every detail.
Pick your method below — for manual pour-over, run our live step-by-step timer right next to your scale.
RECIPE 01 · CLARITY & SWEETNESS
Your foolproof conical pour-over.
Adapted from Hario’s educational V60 guide for a clean, sweet, fragrant single cup.
15 g coffee250 g water92–96 °C2 min 30 – 2 min 50
If the spent coffee bed looks like a flat sandy beach rather than a steep crater clinging to the walls, your extraction was wonderfully even.
0:00
Target: 250 g in ~2:45
Live Pour-Over Timer (15 g / 250 g)
Follow target scale weights in real time as you pour.
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0:00 – 0:45 · The Bloom 45 g water
Pour 45 g of hot water in spirals to wet every ground. Give a gentle swirl and let golden bubbles release gas.
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0:45 – 1:30 · First main pour (Sweetness) Up to 150 g
Pour a steady stream from centre outward without hitting the paper walls until your scale reads 150 g.
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1:30 – 2:10 · Second pour (Balance) Up to 250 g
Gently top up to 250 g total to keep thermal energy steady and submerge floating grounds.
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2:10 – 2:45 · Drawdown & serve Flat coffee bed
Give one gentle circular swirl so grounds settle flat. Once drained, remove the dripper, swirl and sip!
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01
Rinse & pre-warm
Fold the paper filter seam, set it in the dripper and rinse thoroughly with hot water to banish paper taste and warm the carafe. Discard the rinse water!
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02
Grind & level
Grind 15 g medium-fine (soft sand), add to the centre, tap gently to level the bed and tare your scale to zero.
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03
Bloom (0:00 to 0:45)
Start your timer and pour 45 g of hot water across all grounds. Let the golden dome degas peacefully for 45 seconds.
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04
Two gentle pours & enjoy
Pour steadily in slow spirals up to 150 g (by ~1:15), then up to 250 g before 2:00. Let drain until ~2:45, swirl the carafe to aerate and serve!
RECIPE 02 · PLUSH BODY, ZERO GRIT
The barista-style clean French press.
One simple spoon trick removes harshness and muddy sediment while keeping velvety immersion body.
30 g coffee500 g water94 °C4 min + gentle rest
Stopping the plunger at the surface keeps settled micro-fines undisturbed at the bottom, giving you a remarkably clean, silky cup.
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01
Pour boldly over coarse grounds
Add 30 g of coarse coffee (flaky sea salt) into a pre-warmed press and pour all 500 g of hot water in vigorously so every particle saturates.
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02
Steep 4 minutes uncovered
Leave the plunger off! Let a fragrant crust form peacefully on top for a full 4 minutes.
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03
Break the crust & skim (the secret!)
Gently stir the top crust three times so grounds sink, then use two tablespoons to skim off the pale floating foam where bitter dust gathers.
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04
Rest the screen & pour gently
Wait 2 to 3 quiet minutes for fine silt to settle, press the screen only down to the liquid surface (never crushing the bottom bed!), and pour smoothly.
RECIPE 03 · PRESSURE & MICROFOAM
Balanced 1:2 espresso & silky milk.
Weigh dry coffee going in and liquid espresso coming out — goodbye guesswork.
18 g dry dose36 g liquid yield92–94 °C · 9 bars25 to 30 seconds
If 36 g gushes out in 15 seconds (pale and sour), grind finer. If it chokes past 42 seconds (bitter and dry), nudge the grinder slightly coarser.
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01
Warm the portafilter & weigh
Keep your portafilter locked in while heating, wipe the basket bone-dry and weigh the exact dose suited to your basket (commonly 18 g for a double).
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02
Distribute & tamp dead-level
Fluff away any clumps, settle the bed flat and tamp firmly and level: tamping crooked causes channelling far more than pressure differences ever do!
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03
Pull to a 1:2 yield on a scale
Place a small scale under your warm cup: rich dark drops should appear around 6–8 s and coalesce into a honeyed “mouse tail” reaching 36 g in 25 to 30 s.
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04
Swirl or fold in velvet milk
Swirl the espresso once to blend crema layers (where aroma concentrates) before sipping or pouring 62 °C microfoam milk right into the centre.
RECIPE 04 · FLASH-CHILLED CLARITY
Japanese Flash Iced Pour-Over.
Extracted hot to capture sparkling florals and sweetness, chilled instantly onto ice so it never tastes flat or watery.
16 g coffee100 g ice + 150 g water94 °C water2 min 20
Try this method with a washed Ethiopian or Kenyan arabica — peach, blackcurrant and citrus notes pop like an artisanal iced tea.
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01
Weigh ice into the server
Rinse your paper filter separately with hot water first, then place 100 g of large ice cubes straight into the empty carafe.
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02
Grind one click finer
Because only 150 g of hot water passes through the bed instead of 250 g, grind your 16 g dose one click finer than usual to unlock full sweetness.
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03
Bloom and pour slowly
Pour 40 g of 94 °C water for a 35-second bloom, then pour gently in two slow stages until your scale reads 150 g of poured water.
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04
Swirl cold & serve over fresh ice
Swirl the carafe until the last dilution cubes melt completely, then pour over fresh ice in a tall glass for vibrant summer refreshment!
Benchmarks adapted from Hario educational guides and the National Coffee Association. Always tune to your own palate. Hario ↗
Four quiet allies behind every great cup.
Water: 98.5% of your filter cup
Chlorinated tap water masks delicate aromatics; distilled water extracts flatly; chalky hard water mutes fruity sparkle and scales boilers. Fresh pitcher-filtered water or balanced spring water unlocks instant clarity.
Spot-on temperature without a thermometer
Using a standard kettle? Bring water to a boil, take it off the heat and open the lid for 30 to 45 seconds — you’ll land right around 93–94 °C! Never pour roaring-boil water straight onto a dark roast.
Pre-warm thick ceramics
A cold stoneware mug steals 8 to 10 °C from an espresso or small pour-over on contact. Swirl hot tap or kettle water in your carafe and cup first — then enjoy how flavours blossom even further as the drink cools toward 55–60 °C!
Banish stale coffee oils
Natural coffee oils oxidise quickly on glass carafes, portafilter spouts and grinder burrs, adding rancid bitterness to fresh beans. Rinse daily with hot water, dry-brush your grinder weekly, and descale water tanks as needed.
CLEAN GEAR, SWEET COFFEE
Three tiny habits that keep every cup tasting clean.
Even world-class beans taste harsh when brewed through oxidised coffee oils. This effortless rhythm keeps your setup tasting sweet year after year.
01
AFTER EVERY CUP · 15 SECONDS
Hot water rinse & steam purge
Knock out spent pucks or filters right away, flush 2 seconds of hot water through the espresso grouphead, wipe the steam wand with a damp cloth then purge a burst of steam, and rinse carafes warm.
02
EVERY WEEK · 3 MINUTES
Dry-brush burrs & wash mesh screens
Brush dry grounds out of grinder burrs (never put water on steel burrs!), unscrew and wash your French press mesh screen, and rinse the removable brew group on bean-to-cup machines under lukewarm tap water.
03
EVERY MONTH · 15 MINUTES
Dissolve coffee oil film & descale gently
Soak espresso baskets, portafilter spouts and glass servers in hot water with a dedicated coffee detergent (like Cafiza), and run a gentle descaling cycle whenever your water hardness calls for it.
Everyday questions, honest answers.
What single upgrade improves home coffee the fastest?
Before replacing your coffee maker: a quality burr grinder (even a hand grinder!) paired with a simple 0.1 g kitchen scale and freshly roasted beans. A humble $10 dripper or French press with freshly milled beans beats a pricey machine fed stale pre-ground coffee every single morning.
Does dark-roasted coffee pack more caffeine?
Surprisingly, no! Caffeine stays very stable through roasting. However, dark beans puff up and lose moisture weight: if you measure by scoops (volume), you actually scoop fewer beans — and slightly less caffeine — than with dense light-roasted beans!
Can I brew the same bag as both filter coffee and espresso?
Yes! Any 100% arabica or blend works across methods once you match grind size and ratio. In practice, light-to-medium roasts sparkle in filter brewers for aromatic clarity, while medium to medium-dark roasts extract more forgivingly as sweet, chocolatey espresso.
Why does good coffee taste sweeter five minutes after pouring?
Above 70 °C, human taste buds struggle to perceive sweetness and subtle fruit notes due to thermal protection. Around 55 to 60 °C, your palate opens right up — revealing honey, berry or cocoa notes in a well-extracted cup.
Why do I need to tweak my grinder when opening a new bag?
Growing altitude, variety, humidity and days since roast all change how brittle beans are and how fast water flows. Nudging your grinder a click or two on the first brew of a fresh bag is completely normal.