Every day starts for me with a filter coffee from a Hario V60 – and it has for many, many years now. I could brew my standard recipe with my eyes closed at this point. It's my entry point into every coffee, the base I use to develop other recipes from. What's practical about it: for the standard recipe, I never change the grind size. I bring out different facets through pouring technique, agitation and brew ratio instead.
For me, the V60 isn't just one dripper among many – it's the starting point for everything I know about filter coffee.
I've competed at the Brewers Cup many times, which is the filter coffee world championship. In 2014 I became Swiss filter coffee champion and placed 12th at the World Championship. Three runner-up titles in filter coffee round out my coffee journey. Over that time I've brewed, experimented and measured with plenty of different drippers. The V60 has always been my starting point, again and again.
This article explains why the V60 is so popular, how to use it properly – and what the best brewers in the world have gotten out of it.
What Is the Hario V60?
Hario is a Japanese glassware manufacturer that's been around since 1921. Hario launched the V60 in 2005. The name comes from the 60-degree angle of the inner wall. What sets it apart are the spiral ribs on the inside, which create air channels beneath the filter paper. Alongside the vertical flow of water through the coffee bed, this also allows already-brewed coffee to drain out to the side.
The 60-degree angle, the side drainage and the large opening at the bottom all support even extraction. The flow characteristics are designed to forgive mistakes: any build-up gets balanced out by the water flowing sideways along the air channels. The large opening also means you have a lot of control over flow speed simply through grind size.
Today the V60 is the most widely used pour-over dripper in the world. No other device has won more World Brewers Cup titles — between 2011 and 2021, the V60 was used by six world champions. At the same time, its design also makes it very well suited to anyone just starting out with pour-over.
The V60 in Different Materials
The V60 comes in a range of materials and sizes:
| Version | Material | Size | What sets it apart | Ideal for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| V60 Plastic | PP plastic | 01 / 02 | Light, affordable, sturdy | Beginners, travel |
| V60 Glass | Borosilicate glass | 02 | Good looking, neutral | Home use, gifts |
| V60 Ceramic | Porcelain | 01 / 02 | Good heat retention, stable | Daily use |
| V60 Copper | Copper | 02 | Very high heat retention | Pros, enthusiasts |
Size 02 makes the most sense for home use – really, for almost any context.
I use the ceramic version myself. It holds heat better than plastic, sits stably on the cup, and simply has a nice feel to it. If you're just starting out, the plastic version is an excellent choice. Affordable, light, practically indestructible. When I travel, I prefer to bring the plastic version.
What Do You Need for the V60?
The equipment list stays pretty short. Here's what you actually need:
Without a scale, you won't be able to brew reproducibly good coffee. Any kitchen scale will do. Coffee scales with a built-in timer are handy, but not essential. What matters is gram accuracy, not the specific model.
My Standard Recipe for the Hario V60
I've used this recipe as my base for years. It's the same one we describe in our filter coffee brewing article, just adapted specifically for the V60 and with every step spelled out.
The coffee should feel like fine polenta. If the V60 drains through faster than 2:30 min: grind a bit finer. If it takes longer: grind a bit coarser. Grind size is the most important lever you have.
Reference values for our hand grinders, measured from the zero point (where the burrs just touch):
| Grinder | Pour-over setting |
|---|---|
| Comandante C40 MK4 | 20–25 clicks |
| Timemore C5 ESP Pro | 1.5–2.0 rotations |
| Timemore C3 ESP Pro | 20–30 clicks |
| Timemore Slim 3 | approx. 33–53 clicks |
| Kinu M47 Classic | approx. 4.0–5.0 rotations |
All values are starting points. Comandante figures come from our own measurements, C5 from kaffeemacher.ch; Slim 3 and Kinu are approximate. Dial in depending on the bean and roast.
Important: there's no single correct recipe. This one is a proven starting point. Lighter roasts benefit from a slightly higher temperature, say 94 to 96 degrees. Darker roasts tend to do better at 88 to 92 degrees. At the World Championship, I brewed a light-roast Kenyan coffee at 98 degrees, and the balance was excellent.
Famous Recipes from the Brewers Cup
The Brewers Cup is the world's filter coffee championship. No device has been used there more than the V60. Two recipes in particular have caught on widely in the community.
Tetsu Kasuya won the World Championship in 2016 with a concept he called the 4:6 method. The idea: the brew water is split into a 40-to-60 ratio. The first 40 percent shapes the balance between acidity and sweetness, the last 60 percent shapes the coffee's strength.
Matt Winton won the World Championship in 2021 with a simpler approach: five equal, aggressive pours. No waiting for the water to fully drain — the next pour comes as soon as the previous one is nearly gone. That gives an even extraction with a clean, clear profile.
In the office, we drink V60-brewed filter coffee all day long. Usually 250 to 300 ml at a time, shared out among everyone in the office. That way we get to try a lot of different coffees in a single day.
The Right Filter Paper for the V60
The V60 needs conical filter papers with a 60-degree angle. Hario sells them in sizes 01 and 02. For the size 02 version, which makes the most sense for home use, you'll want the V60 filter paper 02.
White or natural brown? The difference in the cup is minimal. I rinse the paper regardless of colour. That's the more important point: unrinsed filter paper releases a papery taste, and you can clearly taste it. Run about 100 ml of hot water through the filter once it's in place, pour out the rinse water, then add the coffee.
Try tasting the rinse water once. You'll immediately understand why this step isn't optional. That papery taste has no business being in your cup.
Common V60 Mistakes
Not rinsing the filter paper. You get a papery taste in the coffee. The paper also often doesn't sit cleanly against the filter, which slightly disrupts extraction. Always rinse it.
Wrong grind size. Too coarse: the coffee drains through in under 1:30 minutes, comes out thin and sour. Too fine: it barely drains at all, comes out bitter and dry. The recipe stays the same — the grind size is what adapts.
Water too cold. Below 90 degrees, coffee turns sour and flat. If you don't have a kettle with temperature control: bring it to a boil and wait two minutes.
Pouring too fast. Too much water at once pushes coffee particles upward. They end up "high and dry", never getting extracted — the result comes out thin and unbalanced.
No scale. Without a scale, the brew ratio varies from one brew to the next. With a scale, it's reproducible.
V60 vs. Other Filter Methods
| Method | Body | Clarity | Time needed | How demanding? | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hario V60 | Light to medium | Very high | approx. 4 min | Forgiving, accessible brew method | Anyone who wants clear, complex filter coffee |
| Chemex | Medium to full | Medium | approx. 5–6 min | Grind size matters a lot. Handy: filter and carafe in one | Aesthetics fans |
| AeroPress | Medium | Medium | approx. 2–3 min | Easy to use, steep learning curve to master | Fast, sturdy, on the go |
| French Press | Full-bodied | Low | approx. 4 min | Very easy to use | Bold, more body. Honest coffee |
Brewing Large Batches with the V60
Up to around 500 ml and 30 grams of coffee, the V60 gives solid results. Beyond that, the coffee-to-water ratio no longer suits the brewer, and quality drops off quickly. If you want to brew a full litre of coffee, you're better off doing two brews back to back.
The sweet spot for the V60 02 sits between 200 and 350 ml of water, with a matching amount of coffee. Less is possible, but it demands very careful brewing. As a general rule with pour-over methods: more coffee and water tend to give more consistent results.
For very large target volumes, I'd recommend a bypass brew. You brew a concentrate, then dilute it afterward with water to reach the right strength.
The V60 for Cold Brew and Flash Iced Coffee
The V60 isn't just for hot filter coffee. For the flash-brew method — where coffee is brewed directly over ice — the V60 is one of the best options out there. The concentrate is brewed hot through the filter straight onto ice cubes, cools down immediately, and holds onto its aromatics better than a long-steeped cold brew. It sounds simple, but it produces a surprisingly clear, aromatic iced coffee.
We've covered exactly how that works in our cold brew article.
We carry the V60 in plastic, glass and ceramic, along with matching filter papers. If you want to go deeper: in our Filter Coffee Course Level 1, we walk through the fundamentals step by step.
Verdict
The Hario V60 is the reference point among pour-over drippers for good reason. It's precise, flexible, and forgiving in terms of taste. And yet it also shows you what you're doing wrong — and rewards you with exceptional coffee once you get it right.
I use it every day as my base, my calibration point for every other recipe. If you want to understand filter coffee, you start with the V60. Not because it's easy, but because it's the most honest mirror of the coffee and the technique behind it.
Tetsu Kasuya's recipe, Matt Winton's 5-pour method, my own standard recipe: they all work. The V60 gives you the room to experiment. Try out the different recipes and see what tastes best to you.
