Brew Method
Melitta Pour-Over: Recipe, Filter Sizes and Cone Guide
A Melitta cone is a wedge-shaped paper-filter brewer for manual pour-over coffee. Use the 18 g coffee, 300 g (10.1 US fl oz) water starting recipe below, and check your exact dripper before buying filters: sizes and outlets differ between models.
On This Page9 Sections
Key Takeaways
- 1Start with 18 g coffee and 300 g (10.1 US fl oz) water, a medium grind and 94°C (201°F) water. Aim for 3–5 minutes including the 30-second bloom.
- 2Filter fit is model-specific. This recipe uses #2 paper in the US 1-cup plastic brewer; other Melitta products specify different papers and can have different outlets.
- 3A scale helps more than an elaborate pouring pattern. Use a gentle stream, leave space below the filter rim and watch the mug so it cannot overflow.
Highlights
- Coffee and water
- 18 g + 300 g (10.1 US fl oz)
- Input ratio
- 1:16.7
- Temperature
- 94°C (201°F) starting point
- Brew time
- 3–5 min, including bloom
What Is Melitta Cone?
A Melitta cone is a manual paper-filter holder with a wedge-shaped coffee bed. Hot water passes through the grounds into a mug or server. Its paper has a sealed bottom edge, unlike the pointed paper used in a Hario V60.
Melitta Bentz's paper-filter invention dates to 1908; today's brewer is a later development, not the exact original device. The maker's history records its familiar filter bags in 1936. For the wider brewing family, see pour-over coffee.
Outlet design matters, but not every Melitta has one small hole. The US 1-cup plastic brewer and the European porcelain 1x4 are different products; the latter has two outlets. Model, paper, grind and pouring work together.
Melitta Pour-Over Recipe
This is our editorial starting recipe for the US Melitta 1-cup plastic brewer with #2 wedge paper. Melitta supplies filter-fitting and pouring instructions, but does not publish this exact weighed formula.
Recipe
Melitta Pour-Over, 18 g Coffee, 300 g Water
- Makes:
- 1 serving; measure the coffee collected
- Time:
- About 7 minutes with hot water ready; 3–5 minutes brewing
Ingredients
- 18 g coffee, ground medium
- 300 g (10.1 US fl oz) brewing water at 94°C (201°F), plus extra water for rinsing
Equipment
- US Melitta 1-cup plastic brewer, #2 wedge filter, scale, timer, kettle and heatproof mug or server above 300 ml (10.1 US fl oz)
Method
- Fit a #2 wedge paper in the US Melitta 1-cup plastic brewer, folding the bottom and side seams as directed on the package. Set it securely over a heatproof mug or server with capacity above 300 ml (10.1 US fl oz). Rinse the paper and discard the rinse water.
- Add 18 g medium-ground coffee and level it gently. Put the entire setup on a scale and zero it. Keep the same running water total throughout brewing.
- Start the timer and add 40 g (1.4 US fl oz) water at 94°C (201°F), wetting all the grounds. Wait until 30 seconds on the timer before the main pour.
- Pour slowly over the coffee in small circles until the scale reads 300 g (10.1 US fl oz) total, adding 260 g (8.8 US fl oz) after the bloom. Pause whenever needed to keep water below the paper rim and monitor the level in the mug.
- Let the coffee finish draining, aiming for 3–5 minutes from the first water. Lift the dripper by its safe handling surfaces, set it on a heatproof dish, gently mix the collected coffee and serve.
Recipe notes
Our home starting recipe. This uses the US 1-cup plastic model and #2 paper.
Keep the scale cumulative: 40 g (1.4 US fl oz) bloom + 260 g (8.8 US fl oz) more = 300 g (10.1 US fl oz) water. Rinse water is separate.
Watch both the paper rim and mug level. Water input is not finished cup volume.
A burr grinder gives you adjustment options; filter-ground coffee is also a workable starting point. Allow about seven minutes with hot water ready, including preparation.
I keep the Melitta's outlet in view and let the water level fall between measured pours. When I pour faster than it can drain, water builds up around the coffee and I lose the controlled flow I want from this brewer.
A normal kettle can work if its stream is controllable. Pour from a manageable height and avoid washing water down bare paper above the coffee. Our bloom guide explains initial wetting; the grind-size guide helps distinguish filter grind from espresso powder.
Ratio, Time and the Coffee You Collect
300 ÷ 18 = 16.7, so the input ratio is 1:16.7. The bloom counts toward the 300 g (10.1 US fl oz) total. If you accidentally add 300 g (10.1 US fl oz) after the bloom, the actual ratio becomes 340 ÷ 18, or about 1:18.9.
Some water remains in the grounds and paper; a 300 g (10.1 US fl oz) input is not a promise of 300 ml (10.1 US fl oz) in the mug. Record the time alongside taste. Taste the cup before changing the grind.
Which Melitta Filters Fit?
Read the exact dripper's instructions, including the market where it was sold. “Cone filter” describes several shapes and sizes. It does not make Melitta wedge paper, V60 pointed paper and Wave pleated paper interchangeable.
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| Product | Manufacturer-listed paper | What that means |
|---|---|---|
| US 1-cup black plastic brewer, 64007 | #2 or #4 cone filters; supplied with #2 | Our recipe uses the supplied #2 size; the maker also lists #4 as compatible. |
| US 1,065 ml (36 US fl oz) glass carafe set, 640446 | #4 cone filters | This is a different set; do not infer its capacity from the 1-cup recipe. |
| European porcelain 102 or 1x4 | Match the stated 102 or 1x4 format | These are regional/model designations. |
This comparison of the maker's listings is useful precisely because “#2 for small, #4 for large” is too simple. Fold the seams, seat the paper without buckling it, and leave enough paper above the coffee and brewing water. Our coffee-filter guide explains the main paper shapes.
For cleaning, follow the particular model. Melitta lists the US black plastic brewer as top-rack dishwasher safe and its current European porcelain 1x4 as dishwasher safe. Empty grounds after cooling and keep the outlet area free of residue.
Melitta Pour-Over Troubleshooting
Paper filtration normally gives a cleaner texture than leaving grounds in the cup. Use the following checks for weak, sharp, dry or slow coffee, changing one variable at a time.
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| Problem | Check first | Try on the next brew |
|---|---|---|
| Coffee is weak | Dose and total brewing water; did you add water after the 300 g (10.1 US fl oz) mark? | Keep 18 g / 300 g (10.1 US fl oz) accurately, then consider a little less water if strength still disappoints. |
| Coffee is sharp or thin | Even wetting, grind and roast character | Try slightly finer at the same dose and water; do not diagnose from brew speed alone. |
| Brew stalls or nears the paper rim | Paper fit, fine particles and vigorous pouring | Stop pouring until it drains. Next time use gentler pours or a slightly coarser grind. |
| Coffee is dry or harsh | Agitation, roast and a consistently long drawdown | Try a gentler pour or slightly coarser grind; compare taste before further changes. |
| Mug threatens to overflow | Collecting-vessel capacity and liquid level | Use a larger heatproof vessel and the viewing window where available. Do not lift a full hot brewer to guess the level. |
If pre-ground coffee drains poorly, first check that it is meant for filter brewing rather than espresso. Record any dose and water changes together.
Melitta Cone vs. Hario V60
Both are pour-over brewers and both can work with a range of roast styles. Choose between their filter systems and routines rather than a promised “better” flavor.
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| Detail | Melitta wedge brewer | Hario V60 |
|---|---|---|
| Paper shape | Fan or wedge, with a bottom seam | Pointed conical paper |
| Outlets | Model-dependent; check the actual holder | One large opening in the classic V60 |
| Recipe here | 18 g / 300 g (10.1 US fl oz) editorial starting point | 15 g / 250 g (8.5 US fl oz) adaptation in our V60 guide |
| Buying decision | You want the specified wedge papers and this everyday mug workflow | You prefer the V60 cone and its range of recipes |
A Melitta can be a practical first brewer when you can obtain its papers and brew securely over your mug. A gooseneck helps precision on either system; neither requires one as a condition for making coffee. The Kalita 101/102 is another wedge-style family, while Kalita Wave uses pleated basket paper. For a valve-controlled steep-and-release routine, compare the Clever Dripper.
Melitta Coffee Caffeine, Calories and Serving Size
A 200 g (7.1 oz) portion of generic brewed black coffee provides approximately 80 mg caffeine, 2 kcal and 0 g sugar in USDA reference data. This is a serving estimate, not a measurement of this brewer or recipe.
Serving assumptions, sugar and calculation
USDA brewed coffee, NDB 14209, lists 40 mg caffeine, 1 kcal and 0 g sugar per 100 g. Our 200 g example doubles those values. The coffee you collect weighs less than the brewing water because the grounds and filter retain water. Beans, dose and extraction affect caffeine; weigh the portion you drink rather than treating water input as serving weight. Milk, sugar and syrup add their own nutrients.
Serve it as black coffee, or use a measured milk addition for café au lait. For iced coffee, use a Japanese iced coffee recipe that counts ice and hot water separately, rather than adding unmeasured ice to this hot recipe.
Common Questions Before You Brew
Can I Use #4 Filters in a One-Cup Melitta?
The current US black plastic 1-cup model lists both #2 and #4, and comes with #2. That answer does not automatically apply to every porcelain, vintage or regional model. Match the package and brewer instructions.
What Grind Size Works for Melitta Pour-Over?
Start medium for the weighed recipe here. Melitta's US product instructions use the word “fine,” without a calibrated particle size. That is not an instruction to use espresso powder in every Melitta. Adjust based on taste and drainage with your own coffee.
Can I Measure the Coffee with a Tablespoon?
Yes. For a no-scale starting point, try 3½ tablespoons of ground coffee with 300 ml (10.1 US fl oz) water. This spoon estimate uses Starbucks' pour-over reference of 2 tablespoons for 10 g coffee. Your beans and grind affect the spoon's weight; weigh 18 g when you want to repeat the recipe more closely.
Is Melitta the Same as Drip Coffee?
It uses the same broad process of water passing through grounds and a filter. Here you deliver the water by hand; an automatic drip machine manages delivery for you.
Editor's Take
Sources and Further Reading
6 references
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