Clever Dripper
The Clever Dripper is a plastic cone with a valve in the base. It stays shut while the brewer sits on a counter or scale and opens when you set it on a mug, so you get a French press style steep followed by a paper-filtered drawdown. It's one of the most forgiving brewers around: no pouring technique, no gooseneck, and the result is clean with decent body. Adding the water before the coffee, a trick popularized by Workshop Coffee and James Hoffmann, roughly halves drawdown time and stops the filter clogging.
Water by roast: light 98 °C · medium 95 °C · dark 91 °C
Steps
- PrepFold the filter along its seams, rinse with hot water, then set the Clever on a mug to drain the rinse water. Dump it.The valve only opens when the dripper sits on a cup
- PrepPut the Clever on the scale (off the mug) and tare
- 0:00Pour 300 g of hot water into the empty filter, then add the coffeeWater first stops the grounds from packing onto the filter and speeds up drawdown
- 0:10Stir gently until all the grounds are wet, then put the lid on
- 2:00Stir or swirl gently to break the crust and let the grounds sink
- 2:15Set the Clever on your mug to release the brew
- 3:15Drawdown finished, lift the dripper off
Variations
Ultimate Clever Dripper TechniqueJames Hoffmann
Water first, then coffee, a 2-minute steep and a quick stir before release for a faster, cleaner drawdown
18 g · 300 g water · 90-100 °C · medium-fine
- 0:00Pour all the water into the empty, rinsed filter
- 0:05Add the coffee and stir until everything is wet
- 2:00Stir or shake to break the crust and let the grounds sink
- 2:20Place on your mug or carafe
- 3:20Drawdown finished (about 45 seconds to 1 minute)
Workshop Coffee CleverWorkshop Coffee (James Bailey)
The water-first method Hoffmann adapted, with boiling water, the lid on, and a crust stir just before release
19 g · 300 g water · 100 °C · medium-fine
- 0:00Pour 300 g boiling water into the empty filter, add the coffee and stir to saturate
- 0:15Put the lid on
- 1:55Stir the crust in so the grounds settle
- 2:00Place on your mug
- 3:00Drawdown finished (about 1 minute)
Classic Coffee-First CleverSightglass Coffee
The traditional order, coffee in first, with a 30-second soak before stirring
20 g · 300 g water · about °C · medium-coarse
- 0:00Pour 300 g over the grounds
- 0:30Give a quick, gentle stir and put the lid on
- 2:00Set the Clever on your mug to release
- 3:30Drawdown finished (about 1:00-1:30)
Fix your cup
| Taste | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Sour, hollow, weak | Under-extracted | Grind finer or steep 30-60 seconds longer |
| Bitter, harsh | Over-extracted | Grind coarser or shorten the steep |
| Drawdown over 2 minutes | Fines clogging the filter, usually from adding coffee first | Pour water first, then coffee, and avoid hard stirring at the end |
| Muddy, silty cup | Very fine grind or a torn filter | Grind coarser and fold the filter seams before inserting |
| Brew drains while steeping | Valve not sealing | Clean the valve and gasket, check nothing is stuck under it |
Tips
- Try water first, coffee second. It's the single biggest improvement you can make to a Clever brew.
- Steep time and grind are your two main dials. Grind finer for more extraction, or add 30 seconds to 1 minute of steep.
- Hoffmann found the lid makes no real difference to taste, so use it or not.
- The first bit that drains out is clearer than the rest. That's water that sat under the filter, and it's normal.
- If your Clever is the small size, scale to about 15 g and 250 g so it doesn't overflow.
Common mistakes
- Putting the Clever on the mug to rinse and forgetting to dump that water before brewing.
- Brewing on the scale and then lifting it onto the mug too late, which over-steeps the coffee.
- Grinding V60-fine. The steep does most of the work, so medium to medium-coarse is right.
- Stirring hard right before release. A gentle stir to sink the crust is enough.
- Overfilling. Leave a little room at the top of the filter or grounds will float over the edge.
What you need
- Clever Dripper (standard size)
- #4 paper filter
- Scale
- Any kettle
- Spoon
- Mug or carafe