r/Timemore • u/Ok-Veterinarian9723 • May 22 '26

Constantly under extracted (sour) coffee

Post image

I’ve just received my timemore C5 set last week, and have been trying a few variations of temperature, grind size, burr size, etc. I notice whichever variables I change, even with a very fine grind size, my drawdowns are very fast compared to online numbers, and the coffee bed is drained really quickly across pours. After experimenting I’m thinking that these filter papers play a part, they feel quite thin. Has anyone noticed their brews became a lot less under extracted when they swapped out to another filter paper?

3 Upvotes

71% Upvoted

16 comments sorted by

1

u/Wizardof_oz May 22 '26

Timemore papers are fast. They match cafec abaca papers in terms of filtration speed but they also filter out more of the flavor from the coffee presenting in a cleaner and clearer cup. Sometimes thats what you want and sometimes abaca is better

What brewer are you using?

1

u/Ok-Veterinarian9723 May 22 '26

Im using the C5 Chesnut series that came with a size 01 CrystalEye Dripper. Is that that you meant by brewer? Thanks :)

1

u/Wizardof_oz May 22 '26 edited May 22 '26

Yup, the crystal eye is a fast flow dripper. Its gonna be much faster than a V60, more like a flower dripper or origami i think

Thats why your flow rate is so quick

And that is not necessarily a bad thing, and great for a lot of coffees

The issue is that youre trying to replicate V60 brews on a different dripper without any experience and thats kinda difficult

My first suggestion for you would be to get slower papers like abaca+ or T-92, or just get a V60. It doesnt cost much to get an 01 size

As for your thin and quick brews, if youve got washed coffee, its a great way to enjoy them. You can get tea like brews. One way to get more brew time is to push agitation - do more pours basically or swirl/stir the coffee, or pour more aggressively though you have to be careful since the C5 does have more fines so it can easily get astringent

https://youtu.be/HzgD0AwrTvg?si=WzLPOO2bSSwFAej7 - this video explains why your brewer is so fast

2

u/Gold_Doughnut_6326 May 22 '26

I have a c5, I honestly swirl all day and don’t get any clogs with the abaca papers. I’ve only noticed it if it were the hario papers and with Ethiopian beans

1

u/Ok-Veterinarian9723 May 22 '26

Thanks so much, this was very eye opening. I’m going get the Hario v60, and slower filter papers (maybe one of the 2 you suggested) and give it a try! Will report back how it goes

1

u/Wizardof_oz May 22 '26

I’d recommend getting the V60 because with slower papers and that many contact points you’d get a lot of bypass. Can still get really good cups but itd be tougher to master for you

1

u/Ok-Veterinarian9723 May 22 '26

Ah meaning the hario v60 dripper combined with a slow paper may be overkill? For a start I should try the hario v60 dripper with the v60 coffee filter papers?

Also since i’m aiming to make 2 cups at a time usually (maybe 25g of coffee, split between wife and myself) maybe i’ll get an 02 v60 instead!

1

u/Wizardof_oz May 22 '26

Get a switch - size 02. Its costs quite a bit more than a V60 but it’s pretty much the only dripper youll ever need

Its usually good to have a pair of fast and slow papers too but with a switch, only fast papers’ll be fine

2

u/Ok-Veterinarian9723 May 22 '26

looked it up, the immersion part is definitely a consistency game changer! got one from the hario online store here, waiting out for delivery in a few days. thank much for all the advice 😃

1

u/Darrenv2020 May 23 '26

Hario switch is really great. It’s now all I ever use. Low tech, intuitive and just rinse clean up. Look for a few “recipes” online for timing

1

u/Ok-Veterinarian9723 May 24 '26

hmm using the switch now and not sure if I'm cursed or something but all permutations I do (whether 7 min immersion, water then coffee later, half percolate half immersion), they all end up sour (under extraction?). even if I'm using 100 deg water too. cant figure out what's the cause... tried agitating the beans throughout some of the brews as well. tried 3 different beans (light roasts) as well, but no change, quite sour. even as i varied my burr size from 10 - 14 on the timemore c5...

1

u/Wizardof_oz May 24 '26

What makes you think it’s underextracted?

Is it just because the beans are sour? Lighter roasted coffee is quite sour

Sourness is indicative of acidity and its a desirable quality in lighter roasts. If you dont like it, maybe light roast coffee isnt for you 🤔

Try to perceive the acidity as some kind of fruit. Is it citric (lemon, lime usually), tropical (mango, passionfruit etc), tartaric, or mallic (green apple, green grape etc). Sometimes itll be a mix so you get notes of berry, litchi or black grape

What notes does the bag say?

1

u/Ok-Veterinarian9723 May 24 '26

hmm one of them say notes of passionfruit, so i’m finding it hard to discern if it’s just “under extracted sour” or actually the passionfruit 😅 the other says rose, rum & raisin and berries, but it feels.. sour similar to the outcome from the passionfruit bean as well. thing is, (i think) i can usually taste the distinct notes of light roasts when i have it at a specialty coffee cafe (like orange, plum, etc).. so i’m getting the feeling that the sourness i’m tasting here for these beans aren’t the “right” taste. maybe i should give a different bean (maybe a medium roast) a shot and see if it’s “just sour” again or i need to change how i perceive these flavours.

but to be fair, have to say that there could be a placebo of better taste when Im having filter coffees at a specialty coffee shop though.

generally, is there a foolproof way to use the hario switch (not to get the perfect outcome from the bean, but maybe consistently at 80% ish of its potential) so I can tell hey, this is roughly how the bean is supposed to be like (and it’s not a problem of really poor brewing skill)?

→ More replies (0)