Hario Switch
A Hario Switch recipe (15 g coffee, 250 g water, two minutes of steeping, then drain), plus the hybrid method that starts as a pour-over and finishes as a steep.
What it does well
The Hario Switch is a V60 cone on a base with a small valve. With the switch closed, the water stays in and the coffee steeps like a French press. Open it and the coffee drains through a paper filter, so the cup is clean. With the switch left open it's simply a V60.
Steeping makes the result much less dependent on how you pour, and it brings out sweetness and body. It's one of the easiest ways to make a consistently good cup, and it uses ordinary V60 filters.
Starting recipe
- Coffee
- 15 g, ground medium, a touch coarser than for a V60.
- Water
- 250 g at 93 to 96 °C.
- Ratio
- About 1:16.7.
- Time
- 2 minutes of steeping, then about a minute to drain.
Step by step (full immersion)
- 1. Rinse
- With the switch open, put in a filter and rinse it with hot water. Pour that water away, then close the switch.
- 2. Steep
- Add the coffee, start a timer and pour all 250 g of water. Make sure every ground is wet; give it a gentle stir if needed. Cover it if you have the lid.
- 3. Release
- At 2:00, stir gently once or swirl, then open the switch.
- 4. Drain
- It should finish draining by about 3:00. If it's much slower, the grind is too fine.
The hybrid method
A popular variation starts with the switch open: bloom and pour about half the water as a normal pour-over, then close the switch, add the rest of the water to steep for a minute or so, and open it to drain. The pour-over part adds clarity, the steep adds sweetness. Try it once you've made the simple version a few times.
Adjusting
Sour or thin: grind a little finer or steep 30 seconds longer. Bitter or dry: grind coarser or steep less. Because the steep does most of the work, change one thing at a time and the Switch will tell you clearly what it did. More in Ratio, grind and time; compare it with the other brewers in Pour-over brewers.