anyone use Chemex filter in Stagg X? I am going to try tomorrow. Folding out a Chemex filter, it fits into the Stagg X easily and does not bunch up at bottom like a V60. I will cut some of the extra off as so much folds over sides it would cause a mess if left hanging over.

Update: It worked well. Cleaner coffee, even by appearance of top. Although very similar taste to the day before when I used a V60 filter.

Can you explain the folding pattern?

I printed a FS and I've been using it with great results. I've been using Kalita 185, cafec trap filters, and a few V60 filters.
I haven't really tried supermarket batch brew 8-12 cup filters yet. They are SO thin and I'm thinking they could clog easily.

Awesome YouTube videos!

mikelipino wrote:One thing that might help you with consistency is a tool I designed, the Filter Smoosher. It's designed to press a variety of filters to the Stagg X (V60 and trapezoidal filters work, but I like flat bottom filters better because less junk hangs off the bottom). It also floats the bottom of the filter above the bottom of the dripper to prevent clogging without the need of an additional dispersion screen. Lastly you can consistently set the filter, press out the pleats, and heat the Stagg X all in one go.

Testing the FS, I was averaging 23% EY (vs 19.5% with normal pleated filters) and have been doing 1:20 ratios for the past few months for really nice tasting cups around 1.4 TDS (1:16 is a bit too intense at 1.6 TDS!). This was with 2x bloom and 4 subsequent pours (drawing nearly completely down to maximize fresh solvent while keeping slurry temp up). So it's approaching no bypass brews.

If you have a 3d printer, it's worth a go!

I've also designed a swirl base because I tend to swirl and use larger-mouthed carafes.
image

I printed a FS and I've been using it with great results. I've been using Kalita 185, cafec trap filters, and a few V60 filters.
I haven't really tried supermarket batch brew 8-12 cup filters yet. They are SO thin and I'm thinking they could clog easily.

Awesome YouTube videos!

That's great to hear it's working for you! I find the same with the supermarket batch brew filters in that they tend to run really slowly likely due to clogging. Hey it works in a pinch.

I've been meaning to upload a video on a good recipe (I hesitate to use Ultimate as it's lost all meaning ), but have been playing around with the Decent way too much. Here's what I've been doing daily to hit a nice, drinkable TDS (~1.4%, similar to a 1:16 pourover) with high EY (24%) in a 1:20 ratio. 4 pours to maximize contact with fresh water while minimizing slurry temp decrease.

15g coffee, ground fine-med as a Hoffmann V60
- 30g bloom for 45s, swirl aggressively to wet all grounds
- Pour 1 to 97.5g, swirl medium to dislodge coarse grounds from the sides (high and dry). Draw down until you can almost see the bed (around time 1:20) then
- Pour 2 to 165g, swirl very gently to even the bed, but not wash fines from sides (this prevents bed clogging later). Avoid pouring out to the sides for the same reason. Draw down until you can almost see the bed (around 2:00) then
- Pour 3 to 232.5g, swirl very gently as above. Draw down until you can almost see the bed (around 3:00) then
- Pour 4 to 300g, swirl very gently as above, and wiggle the brewer slightly to further flatten the bed
- Drawdown should be 4:00 - 4:30 for medium, washed coffee. It can be as much as a minute higher for some coffees, like Ethiopians (more fragile / fines) and "fancy" processing methods like fermented, carbonic maceration, and the like while remaining not bitter. No idea why.

But as with other pourover, adjust grind size to taste. If you think you're clogging, try to agitate less, particularly on the sides. Since this a mostly no-bypass method, my thought process is that the limited bypass pulls fines to the sides where they then don't participate much in the brew and seal the sides, decreasing bypass more. Aggressive swirls, especially later in the brew, pull those fines into the bed and start to clog.

Chemex filters are large squares that are folded to fourth the size for use, then when used in a Chemex, you press away one fold, so there are three folds on one side and one sheet on the other of a funnel. You put the thicker part (3 folds) over the pour spout when using in a Chemex. For stagg, I fold it out to full size then put middle at bottom of Stagg and fold rest around the stagg, and cut off the excess.

mikelipino wrote:That's great to hear it's working for you! I find the same with the supermarket batch brew filters in that they tend to run really slowly likely due to clogging. Hey it works in a pinch.

I've been meaning to upload a video on a good recipe (I hesitate to use Ultimate as it's lost all meaning ), but have been playing around with the Decent way too much. Here's what I've been doing daily to hit a nice, drinkable TDS (~1.4%, similar to a 1:16 pourover) with high EY (24%) in a 1:20 ratio. 4 pours to maximize contact with fresh water while minimizing slurry temp decrease.

15g coffee, ground fine-med as a Hoffmann V60
- 30g bloom for 45s, swirl aggressively to wet all grounds
- Pour 1 to 97.5g, swirl medium to dislodge coarse grounds from the sides (high and dry). Draw down until you can almost see the bed (around time 1:20) then
- Pour 2 to 165g, swirl very gently to even the bed, but not wash fines from sides (this prevents bed clogging later). Avoid pouring out to the sides for the same reason. Draw down until you can almost see the bed (around 2:00) then
- Pour 3 to 232.5g, swirl very gently as above. Draw down until you can almost see the bed (around 3:00) then
- Pour 4 to 300g, swirl very gently as above, and wiggle the brewer slightly to further flatten the bed
- Drawdown should be 4:00 - 4:30 for medium, washed coffee. It can be as much as a minute higher for some coffees, like Ethiopians (more fragile / fines) and "fancy" processing methods like fermented, carbonic maceration, and the like while remaining not bitter. No idea why.

But as with other pourover, adjust grind size to taste. If you think you're clogging, try to agitate less, particularly on the sides. Since this a mostly no-bypass method, my thought process is that the limited bypass pulls fines to the sides where they then don't participate much in the brew and seal the sides, decreasing bypass more. Aggressive swirls, especially later in the brew, pull those fines into the bed and start to clog.

I have been doing something similar but bloom and 3 pours, letting bed almost go dry each time. Mine take around 5 minutes but I am using 21 to 22 grams of coffee at 17:1, so I guess longer because larger.

Acavia wrote:Chemex filters are large squares that are folded to fourth the size for use, then when used in a Chemex, you press away one fold, so there are three folds on one side and one sheet on the other of a funnel. You put the thicker part (3 folds) over the pour spout when using in a Chemex. For stagg, I fold it out to full size then put middle at bottom of Stagg and fold rest around the stagg, and cut off the excess.

Would it be possible to take a picture? I don't quite understand what you mean.

Oh for sure, I think multiple pour is a good technique on the Stagg X whether you use no-bypass or not. One of the main problems with multiple pour pourover is the slurry temp decrease (Jonathan Gagne once charted decrease over time for a few pourover methods). And as we know, decreased temp = decreased extraction. Because the Stagg X is dual walled, with a good preheat it retains heat well. Of course there's a balance here, and like 10 pours mean that the mass of each pour won't heat the slurry very much, but I figure around 4 pours is near optimal.

I have tried smooshing different kinds of filters. In terms of best 'fit' (combination of wall contact and no clogging), Melitta filters do by far the best. They have fewer folds than Kalita style filters and still have a flat bottom, unlike V60 style filters. I smoosh a flat bottom outside the Stagg before I smoosh the sides inside.

There are plenty of Melitta style filters on the market, so one should be able to find the 'right' paper.