Brew Guide: Chemex | Stumptown Coffee Roasters

Chemex

How to Brew Using a Chemex Coffee Brewer

The Chemex Brewer, an iconic design invented in 1941 and housed in the MOMA permanent design collection, is as beautiful as it is functional. Easy to use and effortless on the eyes, it brews a clean cup while preserving body and balanced floral notes. This guide will show you how to get the most from your Chemex.

Let's Get Brewing

Brew Time About 4 Minutes

What You Need

8-cup Chemex
Chemex Filters
Grinder
42g (6 Tablespoons) of Stumptown coffee
Hot water just off the boil (about 205°F)
Scale
Timer
Stumptown Diner Mug

Brewing Instructions

Simple guidance for a great cup

Brew Along With Us

Follow along step by step and see how it comes together

Prep and preheat
Fill your kettle with filtered water and heat to just off-the-boil. Place a Chemex filter in the brewer with a single sheet away from the spout and multiple sheets lined up against the spout. Rinse the filter with hot water. This preheats the brewer and gets rid of any papery flavor from the filter. Discard the rinse water.
Weigh and grind coffee
Measure out 42g (about 6 Tablespoons) of your favorite Stumptown coffee and grind it medium-coarse like Kosher salt. Add the coffee to the filter, shaking it gently to level the grounds. Zero your scale if using.
Saturate grounds
Start a count-up timer when you add the hot water. Pour 150g of water or until all the grounds are saturated and allow it to bloom. Stir to make sure there are no dry grounds.
Add more water
At 0:45, start the second pour, making sure to reintegrate the coffee and water. Pour with a wiggling motion, then a gentle spiral up to 450g of water or until the volume reaches close to the top of the rim. Pour over the dark spots and avoid the light ones.
Fill to the top
At 1:45, pour water to 700g or until the slurry is roughly flush to the top of the Chemex.
Wait for it to brew
At 4:00, you should be pretty close to your target volume. Look for the glass bubble on the side of the brewer, which indicates 20 ounces. Carefully lift the filter. It’s okay to hover for a couple of seconds to make sure you have enough volume. Then pull the filter out completely and let it drain into the sink.
Serve and enjoy
Swirl the Chemex around a little and serve!