V 60 gets a lot of love by coffee UA-camrs but I have been using the Kalita Wave metal brewer for 10 years. I take it Everywhere…car, camping, boat. Need a LEVEL surface to make coffee. It goes in the dishwasher every night. Tough and dependable. When I want more Clarity in my cup…I use a Chemex. So Kalita is a good choice for Everyone and your review was accurate and fair. Thank you.
Love your detailed and very helpful explanations of the differences and answering the many why’s I had when I started and couldn’t find in any of the videos I watched. Your video reinforced my understanding with the little experience I have so far with making pourovers. Thank you and keep up the good work! 😊
Try a Hario Switch all your V60 woes will be answered. Bad pour technique? Doesn’t matter it’s an immersion brewer. Heat retention? It’s glass and preheating is super easy. Just pour water from the kettle into the switch while it’s closed, go grind your bean, empty the switch back and start your brew. Clogging? All filter brewers clog if you grind too fine.
I was thinking of getting the sandstone kalita wave, but wasn’t sure if I should since I already have a v60. But if the kalita is more forgiving I will definitively buy one! It’s too early in the morning to be fighting with the v60 haha great video btw!
Hahaha I hear you! Leave the V60 for when you’re well awake and rested, or for the funky, weird coffees you wanna play around with. I’ve found the Kalita is a safe option to brew coffee before you’ve had your coffee in the morning 😆
Liz, I've been brrwing for more than 5 years using the V60 including all its variations (switch is my favorite) But a couple days ago here in the US i visited a coffee shop that employs kalita wave exclusively. I had the best pour over coffee ever there. No cap. Aroma and sweetness were absolutely insane. First time ever trying the kalita and I'm already sold. Lots of people praise the clarity the V60 can highlight but IMHO the sweetness and overall taste experience with the kalita is simply superior. Being an slower percolator the kalita has slower flow rate and makes a more even extraction. Thanks for the video. Much love!
@@lizhappybeansHi there! Well I'm a full time coffee geek and never quit trying new (and crazy) things to push the best out of my beans. I've been deep diving in low agitation lately and the results are nothing short of shocking. Using Gabi master B, melodrip and the Drip assist by Hario, I've achieved new levels of clarity, sweetness and texture. But this opens a new discussion and has to do with dripper geometry. Water showers rule out barista errors related to the pouring rate and pattern and allow for better and more precise judgement of dripper characteristics, all remaining variables equal. And I've come to conclude that V60 is in fact a less reliable but superior dripper than the kalita wave. And yeah, it sounds crazy. But low agitation pouring just makes the V60 a predictable and docile animal, that still has lots of flexibility compared to more self-controlled drippers like the Wave
I currently brew with a v60 and a clever dripper. Now I will order a kalita to test your conclusions, which make sense. I personally love the clever dripper, it is consistent and forgiving as well. Best method on clever dripper is to put water in first then add coffee. Makes an excellent cup. Keep up the good work. Btw the coffee bar looks great good job.
Yes! I hope you enjoy the Kalita as well! Each brewer definitely has their pros and cons and I love them all for different purposes. I also really enjoy the Clever dripper! What a convenient brewer that is. I use it exactly as you describe, especially when brewing 2 or more cups. And thank you! It’s an ever growing work in progress but in love with the current state of the coffee bar 💛
I’ve been daily using a V60 for probably 4 years - but I recommend the Kalita to friends due to the ease of use and lack of grind specificity. I have a TimeMore CS3 Max solely dedicated to the V60 grind size and only ever need to adjust 1-2 clicks up or down between coffees. With a consistent technique I prefer the complexity of the coffee from the V60 but not everyone is trying to deep dive like that. For easy, good coffee each day Kalita is the overall better choice.
Thank you for the informative video. Can you still play with variables (temperature, ratio, grind size, ...) to adjust the taste on the Kalita? The way you describe it is almost like you can do anything and the coffee will always taste the same. My wife would like a pour over brewer for when I'm not there to make lattes. She will not weight the coffee/water or time anything. I don't think she understands that this is not a "drop the coffee in, drop the water in and come back 5 minutes later" type of brewing. Her main criteria is ease of use, then probably taste. She may complain about disposable paper filters. According to this video, the Kalita seems better for her than the V60 since it is more forgiven. How would it compare with the Chemex? On my side, I like to be precise in brewing and be able to adjust the taste. So ideally, I would like a brewer I can enjoy using as well.
I have fallen in love with the UFO dripper. It bridges the gap between flat and V60. It is so forgiving vs the stalling that drives me crazy with the kalita.
Interesting... and nice to hear someone go against the 'thing everyone is shouting from the rooftops' :). But... isn't some of the points also why you always hear that the best v60 is the clear plastic one, the cheapest? And maybe it differs per country, but here the filters in the supermarkets are for automated drip machines, and they all fit a v60-2 pretty well The only wave filters I see are the _massive_ ones for the big drip machines. When going camping and stuff got destroyed or ruined during packing or travel, it saved me multiple times to just get some filters from the grocery store. So, my last question would be 'how about the one cup', because a one-cup v60 is most of the filter coffee I brew at home. Is this Wave usable for something like a 15gr/250gr recipe? I got the Hario Switch for that 😉.
Thank you for your comment! And YES, you're right about the plastic V60! I'm sorry about the filter situation in your area/country. You can absolutely make a 1-cup recipe with Kalita, but ideally you'd use the Kalita Wave 155 (as opposed to the 185) for that purpose. You can go with a similar recipe to V60 (maybe just grind a little bit coarser!), but most likely your Hario Switch is a much easier workflow already ;) so... you know, don't change what is working for you!
I don't have a Kalita but I do own an April brewer. Overall, I really like it but my deal breaker are the filters. I personally get a very strong paper aftertaste from the Kalita filters, and the ones April make are just too expensive. With Hario you can get Cafec's filters which are fantastic and cost as much as the Hario tabbed ones. For me, it's enough to be a deal breaker for flat bottom filters. Edit: 1. Where I live, there are no alternatives to Kalita filters. 2. The Cafec filters are a massive improvement over the tabbed Hario filters. They significantly reduce the chance for clogging.
Amazing input! Thanks for sharing! Do you get that after taste even if you rinse the filter prior to brewing? (this is out of pure curiosity on my end)
@@lizhappybeans Thanks for the reply, and for the video! Yes, I tried rinsing it under the sink and then with some hot water to ensure I get rid of the taste, but I just can't seem to do it. I guess I'm just sensitive.
Thanks for the comparison. Wondering if you tried a different flat bed brewer? I have an Oreo v3. Also have you tried the Origami? It works with V60-style papers and similarly low contact you mention for the Kalimantan. On top, the Origami also works with Kapitän-style flat filters. Thus, very versatile…just the design in two pieces is not my favorite but still not a dealbreaker.
These are two brewers I haven’t had a chance to try yet but would absolutely love to! Thank you for this comment. I’ll do my best to get my hands on those and do a full comparison among brewers! Also, the aesthetics of Origami are just 🤌🏼🤩
Some good points, but one of the main benefits of the V60 is less variation (as a percentage) in the depth of the coffee bed, with varying amounts of coffee. For many coffee nerds, the depth of the coffee bed is important for a tasty cup. Also, V60 papers are everywhere, including Amazon. I have a ceramic V60, that sits in my closet, I have been using the plastic ones for many years, they are very inexpensive and they are extremely durable. There are many ways to make good coffee, and as long as you find a way that works, life is good!
the kalita wave has a huge clogging issue, you're constantly wanting to go finer on the grind size but at the same time fearing it will be too fine and clog it and the wave design traps grinds also making it extract less evenly
This can be true! I've found that I need to grind coarser for Kalita than V60 to avoid having this issue, with this in mind, the brews rarely clog and the taste is fantastic!
I've been playing around with the Kalita Wave after using a Chemex for my main pour over brewing method. The questions that I have is what recipe do you use when brewing? How many g's? Timing and size of pours?
Good question! So, before I jump into recipe, the main thing to keep in mind transitioning from Chemex to Kalita is grind size. You’ll go finer with the Wave due to the differences in filtration. This is my go-to recipe: 20g coffee beans, ground to a medium-fine setting 1:15 ratio coffee to water (300g out at 94°C) 1. Start by blooming with 60ml of water and wait for 30 seconds. Make sure to fully saturate the coffee bed. 2. After 30 seconds, pour the next 60ml in a spiral motion and stir to settle the grounds. 3. At the 1 minute mark, pour 60ml again in a spiral motion. No agitation. 4. At 1:30mins, pour the remaining 120ml in a consistent, center, slow stream. 5. It should be drained between 2:45 to 3mins. 6. Serve and enjoy! Note: as the Autumn weather sets in, I also prefer to pre-heat my cups for better temperature retention. Hope this helps!
@@lizhappybeans thanks Liz. Yeah I’ve been dialing in grind size on my Encore ESP. It’s been a tad challenging and I’m getting there. Will try your timing next time. It’s been quite a journey trying to pull it all together into a beautiful and bright cup.
I go for Origami or V60. Darker roasts can also be great in the Hario Switch. Kalita Wave can be nice for super light coffees but I'm no longer into super light coffees. Think Scandinavian style and think of like Drop Coffee in Stockholm as a reference to what I call a super light roast. But one thing that is not so nice about Kalita is how inconsistent the drippers are from one to another. I have two 155 steel ones and the holes and cross grove are of totally different size and they drip at totally different speed. Also the bottom on one has a bulge that go into the dripper the other one does not. And stay away from the glass version.
@@lizhappybeans Yes I also think that there are more customer friendly companies out there. Kalita is known to be hard to work with regarding this and some other issues. A cafe around the corner from my home did use the glass version at the cafe but they are even more inconsistent so they changed to the steel version. I still have these two 155 drippers around and they drip differently. Never tried the steel 185 but I've heard it's prone to clogging which the hand made one Tsubame is supposed not to do. Out of the 4 Kalita drippers I have 1 glass 185,2 steel 155 and 1 ceramic 185 the ceramic one performs by far the best
Thank you so much for this video , Liz! I always enjoy your stuff, but this one seems extra pertinent because I've been thinking about the v60. After watching, I'm seriously thinking about a kalita. Do you know if either one of these brewer shapes come in a collapsible version for more compact travel?
You are so welcome! Honestly, as far as I'm aware, neither the Kalita or the V60 comes in a collapsible version. However, for quick setup and travel, you could do with a Pourigami. I made a short video about it a while ago, you can watch it here: ua-cam.com/users/shortsfzdyxHHhMwA?si=WimI0qvlZBKyn7tb Shoot me a message if you've got any questions!
V 60 gets a lot of love by coffee UA-camrs but I have been using the Kalita Wave metal brewer for 10 years. I take it Everywhere…car, camping, boat. Need a LEVEL surface to make coffee. It goes in the dishwasher every night. Tough and dependable. When I want more Clarity in my cup…I use a Chemex. So Kalita is a good choice for Everyone and your review was accurate and fair. Thank you.
Thanks for the kind words! Totally agree!
Love your detailed and very helpful explanations of the differences and answering the many why’s I had when I started and couldn’t find in any of the videos I watched. Your video reinforced my understanding with the little experience I have so far with making pourovers. Thank you and keep up the good work! 😊
Amazing! Thank you for sharing! ❤️
Try a Hario Switch all your V60 woes will be answered.
Bad pour technique? Doesn’t matter it’s an immersion brewer.
Heat retention? It’s glass and preheating is super easy. Just pour water from the kettle into the switch while it’s closed, go grind your bean, empty the switch back and start your brew.
Clogging? All filter brewers clog if you grind too fine.
Liz thank you for this awesome info packed review. I agree tired of the clogging with my V60 just ordered the wave.
Woohoo! 🥳 thanks for your feedback too ❤️
I was thinking of getting the sandstone kalita wave, but wasn’t sure if I should since I already have a v60. But if the kalita is more forgiving I will definitively buy one! It’s too early in the morning to be fighting with the v60 haha great video btw!
Hahaha I hear you! Leave the V60 for when you’re well awake and rested, or for the funky, weird coffees you wanna play around with. I’ve found the Kalita is a safe option to brew coffee before you’ve had your coffee in the morning 😆
Liz, I've been brrwing for more than 5 years using the V60 including all its variations (switch is my favorite)
But a couple days ago here in the US i visited a coffee shop that employs kalita wave exclusively. I had the best pour over coffee ever there. No cap. Aroma and sweetness were absolutely insane. First time ever trying the kalita and I'm already sold. Lots of people praise the clarity the V60 can highlight but IMHO the sweetness and overall taste experience with the kalita is simply superior. Being an slower percolator the kalita has slower flow rate and makes a more even extraction.
Thanks for the video. Much love!
Amazing!!! So so happy to hear about your experience and that it's made coffee an even better experience for you! Hope to see you around for more ❤
@@lizhappybeansHi there! Well I'm a full time coffee geek and never quit trying new (and crazy) things to push the best out of my beans.
I've been deep diving in low agitation lately and the results are nothing short of shocking. Using Gabi master B, melodrip and the Drip assist by Hario, I've achieved new levels of clarity, sweetness and texture. But this opens a new discussion and has to do with dripper geometry.
Water showers rule out barista errors related to the pouring rate and pattern and allow for better and more precise judgement of dripper characteristics, all remaining variables equal. And I've come to conclude that V60 is in fact a less reliable but superior dripper than the kalita wave. And yeah, it sounds crazy. But low agitation pouring just makes the V60 a predictable and docile animal, that still has lots of flexibility compared to more self-controlled drippers like the Wave
I usually brew 18-20g of coffee (300-320ml water) would you suggest the Kalita 155 or 185?
I usually brew 20g, using the 185.
I’d go for the 155 if your dose was around 15g though…
I currently brew with a v60 and a clever dripper. Now I will order a kalita to test your conclusions, which make sense. I personally love the clever dripper, it is consistent and forgiving as well. Best method on clever dripper is to put water in first then add coffee. Makes an excellent cup. Keep up the good work. Btw the coffee bar looks great good job.
Yes! I hope you enjoy the Kalita as well! Each brewer definitely has their pros and cons and I love them all for different purposes. I also really enjoy the Clever dripper! What a convenient brewer that is. I use it exactly as you describe, especially when brewing 2 or more cups.
And thank you! It’s an ever growing work in progress but in love with the current state of the coffee bar 💛
I was absolutely shocked at how good the easy driper is, i seriously threw it away.
Kalita 102 now, ,V60 is hiding in garage 😆
Clever driper
@@Pollyanna-cc3et I’m curious as to why you threw away such a good dripper. ?
@@billpiotter8190 frustrated by how easy it was
I’ve been daily using a V60 for probably 4 years - but I recommend the Kalita to friends due to the ease of use and lack of grind specificity. I have a TimeMore CS3 Max solely dedicated to the V60 grind size and only ever need to adjust 1-2 clicks up or down between coffees. With a consistent technique I prefer the complexity of the coffee from the V60 but not everyone is trying to deep dive like that.
For easy, good coffee each day Kalita is the overall better choice.
Thank you for the informative video.
Can you still play with variables (temperature, ratio, grind size, ...) to adjust the taste on the Kalita? The way you describe it is almost like you can do anything and the coffee will always taste the same.
My wife would like a pour over brewer for when I'm not there to make lattes. She will not weight the coffee/water or time anything. I don't think she understands that this is not a "drop the coffee in, drop the water in and come back 5 minutes later" type of brewing.
Her main criteria is ease of use, then probably taste. She may complain about disposable paper filters. According to this video, the Kalita seems better for her than the V60 since it is more forgiven. How would it compare with the Chemex?
On my side, I like to be precise in brewing and be able to adjust the taste. So ideally, I would like a brewer I can enjoy using as well.
I have fallen in love with the UFO dripper. It bridges the gap between flat and V60. It is so forgiving vs the stalling that drives me crazy with the kalita.
I have heard wonderful things about it! Really considering getting one to try ❤️
The UFO looks like a solid alternative. I’d like to see it compared to these two, and the Origami!
Interesting... and nice to hear someone go against the 'thing everyone is shouting from the rooftops' :). But... isn't some of the points also why you always hear that the best v60 is the clear plastic one, the cheapest? And maybe it differs per country, but here the filters in the supermarkets are for automated drip machines, and they all fit a v60-2 pretty well The only wave filters I see are the _massive_ ones for the big drip machines. When going camping and stuff got destroyed or ruined during packing or travel, it saved me multiple times to just get some filters from the grocery store.
So, my last question would be 'how about the one cup', because a one-cup v60 is most of the filter coffee I brew at home. Is this Wave usable for something like a 15gr/250gr recipe? I got the Hario Switch for that 😉.
Thank you for your comment! And YES, you're right about the plastic V60!
I'm sorry about the filter situation in your area/country.
You can absolutely make a 1-cup recipe with Kalita, but ideally you'd use the Kalita Wave 155 (as opposed to the 185) for that purpose. You can go with a similar recipe to V60 (maybe just grind a little bit coarser!), but most likely your Hario Switch is a much easier workflow already ;) so... you know, don't change what is working for you!
Love the video! Thanks for sharing
Thank you for watching! ☺️❤️ see you around for more
I don't have a Kalita but I do own an April brewer. Overall, I really like it but my deal breaker are the filters. I personally get a very strong paper aftertaste from the Kalita filters, and the ones April make are just too expensive. With Hario you can get Cafec's filters which are fantastic and cost as much as the Hario tabbed ones. For me, it's enough to be a deal breaker for flat bottom filters.
Edit:
1. Where I live, there are no alternatives to Kalita filters.
2. The Cafec filters are a massive improvement over the tabbed Hario filters. They significantly reduce the chance for clogging.
Amazing input! Thanks for sharing!
Do you get that after taste even if you rinse the filter prior to brewing? (this is out of pure curiosity on my end)
@@lizhappybeans Thanks for the reply, and for the video!
Yes, I tried rinsing it under the sink and then with some hot water to ensure I get rid of the taste, but I just can't seem to do it. I guess I'm just sensitive.
Thanks for the comparison. Wondering if you tried a different flat bed brewer? I have an Oreo v3. Also have you tried the Origami? It works with V60-style papers and similarly low contact you mention for the Kalimantan. On top, the Origami also works with Kapitän-style flat filters. Thus, very versatile…just the design in two pieces is not my favorite but still not a dealbreaker.
These are two brewers I haven’t had a chance to try yet but would absolutely love to! Thank you for this comment. I’ll do my best to get my hands on those and do a full comparison among brewers! Also, the aesthetics of Origami are just 🤌🏼🤩
Some good points, but one of the main benefits of the V60 is less variation (as a percentage) in the depth of the coffee bed, with varying amounts of coffee. For many coffee nerds, the depth of the coffee bed is important for a tasty cup. Also, V60 papers are everywhere, including Amazon. I have a ceramic V60, that sits in my closet, I have been using the plastic ones for many years, they are very inexpensive and they are extremely durable. There are many ways to make good coffee, and as long as you find a way that works, life is good!
100% agreed! The most important part of finding the best fit for you. Thank you for watching and providing your input, I love to read it! ☕️
the kalita wave has a huge clogging issue,
you're constantly wanting to go finer on the grind size but at the same time fearing it will be too fine and clog it
and the wave design traps grinds also making it extract less evenly
This can be true! I've found that I need to grind coarser for Kalita than V60 to avoid having this issue, with this in mind, the brews rarely clog and the taste is fantastic!
I've been playing around with the Kalita Wave after using a Chemex for my main pour over brewing method.
The questions that I have is what recipe do you use when brewing? How many g's? Timing and size of pours?
Good question! So, before I jump into recipe, the main thing to keep in mind transitioning from Chemex to Kalita is grind size. You’ll go finer with the Wave due to the differences in filtration.
This is my go-to recipe:
20g coffee beans, ground to a medium-fine setting
1:15 ratio coffee to water (300g out at 94°C)
1. Start by blooming with 60ml of water and wait for 30 seconds. Make sure to fully saturate the coffee bed.
2. After 30 seconds, pour the next 60ml in a spiral motion and stir to settle the grounds.
3. At the 1 minute mark, pour 60ml again in a spiral motion. No agitation.
4. At 1:30mins, pour the remaining 120ml in a consistent, center, slow stream.
5. It should be drained between 2:45 to 3mins.
6. Serve and enjoy!
Note: as the Autumn weather sets in, I also prefer to pre-heat my cups for better temperature retention.
Hope this helps!
@@lizhappybeans thanks Liz. Yeah I’ve been dialing in grind size on my Encore ESP. It’s been a tad challenging and I’m getting there.
Will try your timing next time. It’s been quite a journey trying to pull it all together into a beautiful and bright cup.
@@lizhappybeans did you mean 130 ml in step 4 - taking it to 300 ml of water total?
@@SteveVencl oh! Yes! I’m sorry, I meant 120ml in step 4. I’ll edit above so it’s correct 👍
I go for Origami or V60. Darker roasts can also be great in the Hario Switch. Kalita Wave can be nice for super light coffees but I'm no longer into super light coffees. Think Scandinavian style and think of like Drop Coffee in Stockholm as a reference to what I call a super light roast.
But one thing that is not so nice about Kalita is how inconsistent the drippers are from one to another. I have two 155 steel ones and the holes and cross grove are of totally different size and they drip at totally different speed. Also the bottom on one has a bulge that go into the dripper the other one does not.
And stay away from the glass version.
Oh wow! I didn't know or hadn't heard about build inconsistencies among Kalita drippers.
Thanks for sharing!
@@lizhappybeans Yes I also think that there are more customer friendly companies out there. Kalita is known to be hard to work with regarding this and some other issues. A cafe around the corner from my home did use the glass version at the cafe but they are even more inconsistent so they changed to the steel version. I still have these two 155 drippers around and they drip differently. Never tried the steel 185 but I've heard it's prone to clogging which the hand made one Tsubame is supposed not to do.
Out of the 4 Kalita drippers I have 1 glass 185,2 steel 155 and 1 ceramic 185 the ceramic one performs by far the best
5 reasons that it is better
Yes it is ❤️🫶
102
Thank you so much for this video , Liz! I always enjoy your stuff, but this one seems extra pertinent because I've been thinking about the v60. After watching, I'm seriously thinking about a kalita. Do you know if either one of these brewer shapes come in a collapsible version for more compact travel?
You are so welcome! Honestly, as far as I'm aware, neither the Kalita or the V60 comes in a collapsible version. However, for quick setup and travel, you could do with a Pourigami. I made a short video about it a while ago, you can watch it here: ua-cam.com/users/shortsfzdyxHHhMwA?si=WimI0qvlZBKyn7tb
Shoot me a message if you've got any questions!