Clever Dripper
How to use a Clever Dripper: steep like a French press, then drain through paper like a pour-over. Ozone Coffee’s recipe, the valve, sizes, filters and comparisons.
Contents
- Method
- The short version
- How does the Clever Dripper work?
- How much coffee and water should I use?
- What grind size should I use?
- How do you brew with a Clever, step by step?
- What sizes and filters are there?
- Who invented the Clever Dripper?
- Clever vs other brewers
- How do you clean it?
- Clever vs other methods
- Words in this guide
- Questions & answers
How do you use a Clever Dripper?
A Clever Dripper is a cone brewer with a valve in the bottom. Off the mug, the valve stays shut so the coffee steeps like a French press; set it on a mug and the valve opens, draining through a paper filter. Ozone Coffee uses 15 g of coffee to 250 g of water at 95°C, steeps until 2:15, then drains for a total of about 3:30.
At a glance
- Ratio
- 1:16.7
- 15 g : 250 g
- Grind
- Medium (sand)
- Water
- 95 °C
- Brew time
- 3:30
- approximately
- Difficulty
- Beginner
Method
Rinse the filter
Fold a
Add the coffee
Take the Clever off the mug and put it on the counter. Add 15 g of coffee, ground medium, like filter coffee.
Add all the water
Start a timer and pour in all 250 g of water at 95°C, making sure all the grounds are wet. Put the lid on.
Steep2:15
Let it steep until 2:15. The valve keeps everything in the brewer.
Drain1:15
Set the Clever on your mug or server. The valve opens and the coffee drains through the paper.
Serve
Lift the Clever off when it has drained, at about 3:30 in total.
The Clever Dripper is a cone-shaped brewer with a shut-off valve in the bottom. On the counter, the valve stays closed, so the coffee steeps like a French press. Set it on a mug and the valve opens, draining the coffee through a paper filter like a pour-over. You get the easy, hands-off brewing of immersion with the clean cup of paper. Here’s a recipe, how the valve works and how it compares.
The short version
- Steep, then drain: a valve holds the water in until you set it on a mug.
- Ozone Coffee’s recipe: 15 g coffee, 250 g water at 95°C, steep until 2:15, about 3:30 in total.
- Grind medium, like filter coffee.
- Uses #4 cone paper filters.
- Forgiving: no pouring technique needed.
How does the Clever Dripper work?
At the bottom of the Clever is a valve. While the brewer sits on the counter, the valve stays shut, so the coffee and water steep together, like a French press. When you put it on a mug or server, the valve opens and the coffee drains through the paper filter. Because it’s an immersion brewer, you don’t need careful pouring: the steep time does the work.
How much coffee and water should I use?
This is Ozone Coffee’s Clever Dripper recipe:
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| Coffee | 15 g, medium filter grind |
| Water | 250 g, at 95°C |
| Ratio | About 1:16.7 |
| Steep | Until 2:15 |
| Total time | About 3:30 |
Other roasters’ recipes sit around 1:15 to 1:17, with steeps of roughly 2:00 to 3:00. A longer steep gives more body.
What grind size should I use?
Medium, like filter coffee. If it tastes weak or sour, grind a little finer or steep longer; if it’s bitter or drains very slowly, grind coarser.
How do you brew with a Clever, step by step?
- Rinse a #4 filter in the Clever, then set it on a mug to drain the rinse water.
- Move it to the counter and add 15 g of coffee.
- Pour in all 250 g of water at 95°C, wet all the grounds and put the lid on.
- Steep until 2:15.
- Set it on your mug. The valve opens and it drains.
- Lift it off when it’s done, at about 3:30.
Brew mode on this page times the steep and the drain for you.
What sizes and filters are there?
| Large | Small | |
|---|---|---|
| Holds | 500 ml (about 18 oz) | 300 ml (about 10 oz) |
| Filters | Size 4 cone papers | Size 2 cone papers |
Ozone Coffee says the size is printed on the brewer’s base.
Who invented the Clever Dripper?
The Clever comes from the Taiwanese company E.K. Int’l Co., founded in 1996, which sold it under the brand Abid, short for Absolutely Best Idea Development, and now as HandyBrew. The maker says it brought the idea of cupping into the design. Retailers often date the Clever to 2008, and a forum post says Sweet Maria’s first brought it to the US in 2009, but I haven’t found a primary source for either date, so treat them as approximate.
Clever vs other brewers
| Clever | French press | V60 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| How it brews | Steep, then drain through paper | Steep, then press through mesh | Pour-over through paper |
| Filter | Paper | Metal mesh | Paper |
| Cup | Clean, medium body | Heavy, full | Clean, bright |
| Technique | Very little | Very little | Careful pouring |
The Hario Switch works on the same idea, but you open and close its valve with a switch instead of setting it on a mug.
How do you clean it?
Lift out the filter and grounds, then rinse the brewer, valve included, so nothing blocks it.
General guidance only. Take care with hot water, and only set the Clever on a mug or server that it sits on securely.
Clever vs other methods
- French press: steeps the same way, with a heavier cup.
- Hario Switch: a hand-switched immersion dripper.
- V60: pour-over with more control.
- AeroPress: another steep-and-filter brewer.
Explore every immersion method in the immersion chapter.
What you’ll need
Words in this guide
- Steeping
- Steeping is leaving ground coffee to sit in water so its flavour dissolves out, as in a French press or cold brew.
- Pour-over
- Pour-over is a way of making filter coffee by hand: you pour hot water over ground coffee in a filter cone and let it drip through into a cup or jug.
- Immersion vs percolation
- Immersion brewing steeps all the coffee in all the water at once, as a French press does.
- Body
- Body is how heavy and textured coffee feels in your mouth, from light and tea-like to thick and syrupy.
- Metal filter
- A metal filter is a fine stainless-steel mesh that holds back coffee grounds, as used in a French press plunger and some reusable pour-over filters.
Questions & answers
How does a Clever Dripper work?
It has a shut-off valve in the bottom. On the counter, the valve stays closed so the coffee and water steep together. When you set it on a mug or server, the valve opens and the coffee drains through a paper filter.
What's a good Clever Dripper recipe?
Ozone Coffee uses 15 g of medium filter-ground coffee to 250 g of water at 95°C. Steep until 2:15, then set it on your mug to drain, for a total of about 3:30.
What filters does the Clever use?
Ozone Coffee, the UK distributor, says the large 500 ml Clever takes standard size 4 cone filters and the small 300 ml one takes size 2. The size is printed on the brewer's base.
Who makes the Clever Dripper?
The Taiwanese company E.K. Int'l Co., under the Abid brand (Absolutely Best Idea Development), now HandyBrew. Retailers often date it to 2008, but I haven't found a primary source for the year.
Clever Dripper vs French press?
Both steep the coffee, but the Clever drains through paper, so the cup is cleaner with less sediment. A French press filters through metal mesh for a heavier, fuller body.
Clever Dripper vs Hario Switch?
Both combine steeping and paper filtering. The Clever's valve opens when you set it on a mug; the Hario Switch has a switch you open and close by hand.
Sources
- Clever Dripper brew guide. Ozone Coffee
- Clever: history and how to use it to brew coffee. Caffè Ernani
- Clever coffee dripper: recipe and hands-on review. Brew Coffee Home
- Clever Dripper brewing guide. Crema Coffee
- Clever Dripper C-90200. HandyBrew (E.K. Int’l Co.)
- Clever Dripper filter papers. Ozone Coffee
General guidance only. Not medical, food-safety or professional advice. Always follow your equipment's own instructions.