Kalita Wave
How to brew with a Kalita Wave: Stumptown’s 21 g recipe, the grind, pulse pouring, why the flat bottom and wave filters help, 155 vs 185, and Wave vs V60.
Contents
- Method
- The short version
- What makes the Kalita Wave different?
- How much coffee and water should I use?
- What grind size should I use?
- How do you brew a Kalita Wave, step by step?
- Kalita Wave 155 vs 185
- Why is my Kalita Wave slow or fast?
- Kalita Wave vs other pour-overs
- Who made the Kalita Wave famous?
- How do you clean a Kalita Wave?
- Kalita Wave vs other brewers
- Words in this guide
- Questions & answers
How do you brew coffee with a Kalita Wave?
The Kalita Wave is a flat-bottomed pour-over dripper with three small holes and wave-shaped filters. Stumptown's recipe uses 21 g of coffee and about 345 g of water: bloom with 60 g, pour to 200 g by about a minute, then add small pulses to 345 g by 2:00, finishing at around 2:45–3:00. The flat bed makes it forgiving and consistent.
At a glance
- Ratio
- 1:16
- 21 g : 345 g
- Grind
- Medium-fine (table salt)
- Brew time
- 3:00
- approximately
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Origin
- Japan
Method
Rinse the filter
Seat a Kalita Wave filter in the dripper and rinse it with hot water, pouring gently so the waves keep their shape. Pour the rinse water away.
Add the coffee
Add 21 g of coffee, ground medium-fine, and shake it level.
Bloom30 s
Start a timer and pour 60 g of water to wet all the grounds.
Pour to 200 g30 s
Pour in a slow spiral until the scale reads 200 g, at about 0:45–1:00.
Pulse to 345 g1:00
Add the rest in small pulses, keeping the water level steady, until you reach about 345 g by 2:00.
Let it drain1:00
Let it drain. It should finish at around 2:45–3:00, leaving a flat bed.
The Kalita Wave is a flat-bottomed pour-over dripper from the Japanese company Kalita. Instead of a cone with one big hole, it has a flat bed and three small holes, and it uses wave-shaped paper filters with folds that hold the paper away from the walls. The result is a dripper that’s forgiving and consistent: the flat bed brews evenly and the small holes slow the flow, so small slips in your pouring matter less. Here’s a proven recipe, how to pour and which size to get.
The short version
- Flat bottom, three small holes, wave-shaped filters.
- A good recipe: 21 g coffee to about 345 g water (close to 1:16), from Stumptown Coffee.
- Grind medium-fine and pour in small pulses.
- Finishes at around 2:45–3:00.
- More forgiving than a V60, so it’s a good first pour-over.
What makes the Kalita Wave different?
- Flat bottom: the coffee sits in a level bed, so all the water passes through the same depth of coffee.
- Three small holes: they slow and steady the flow, so the brew time depends less on how you pour.
- Wave filters: the paper has 20 waves. They keep most of the paper off the dripper’s walls, so the water goes down through the coffee rather than around it.
How much coffee and water should I use?
This is Stumptown Coffee’s Kalita Wave recipe, which makes one big mug:
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| Coffee | 21 g, ground medium-fine |
| Water | About 345 g |
| Ratio | Close to 1:16 |
| Water temperature | Just off the boil, about 205°F (96°C) |
| Bloom | 60 g of water, with a gentle stir |
| Finish | Around 2:45–3:00 |
Other roasters’ recipes sit around 1:15 to 1:17, finishing between about 3:00 and 3:45 for bigger batches.
What grind size should I use?
Medium-fine is a good place to start; the small holes already slow the flow. If it drains well past 3:30 or tastes bitter, go coarser; if it’s fast and sour, go finer.
How do you brew a Kalita Wave, step by step?
- Rinse the filter, pouring gently so the waves keep their shape. Pour the water away.
- Add 21 g of coffee and shake it level.
- Bloom: start a timer and pour 60 g of water in the first 10 seconds, then give it a gentle stir.
- At 0:45, pour to 200 g in a slow spiral, finishing by 1:00.
- Pulse to about 345 g by 2:00, in small pours of about 25–50 g.
- Let it drain, finishing at around 2:45–3:00.
Brew mode on this page times each stage for you.
Kalita Wave 155 vs 185
| Wave 155 | Wave 185 | |
|---|---|---|
| Makes | 1–2 cups | 2–4 cups |
| Filters | Wave 155 | Wave 185 |
Kalita USA says the 185 brews 2–4 cups (500–700 ml). Each size needs its own size of Wave filter. The Wave comes in several materials, including stainless steel and glass; the heavy-gauge stainless steel version made in Tsubame has its own guide, the Kalita Wave Tsubame.
Why is my Kalita Wave slow or fast?
| Problem | Try |
|---|---|
| Drains slowly, tastes bitter | Grind coarser, or pour more gently so you don’t stir up fines |
| Drains fast, tastes sour or thin | Grind finer |
| Filter collapses at the sides | Pour into the middle, not onto the paper |
| Uneven, sloped bed at the end | Give the dripper a gentle swirl after the last pulse |
Kalita Wave vs other pour-overs
| Kalita Wave | V60 | Chemex | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shape | Flat bottom | Cone | Cone, with its own carafe |
| Holes | Three small | One large | One, the neck |
| Filter | Wave, 20 waves | Cone paper | Thick bonded paper |
| Forgiveness | High | Lower: your pour sets the flow | Medium |
Who made the Kalita Wave famous?
Kalita is a family-owned Japanese company, founded in Nihonbashi, Tokyo, in 1958. The Wave became widely known in specialty coffee after James McCarthy won the 2013 US Brewers Cup and then the 2013 World Brewers Cup in Melbourne, brewing with a Kalita Wave and a Panamanian Esmeralda coffee roasted by Counter Culture Coffee.
How do you clean a Kalita Wave?
Throw away the filter and grounds, then rinse or wash the dripper. Keep the three holes clear.
General guidance only. Take care pouring hot water, and follow the care instructions for your dripper’s material.
Kalita Wave vs other brewers
- V60: a cone with one big hole, brighter and more technique-dependent.
- Chemex: thick filters and a very clean cup, brewed into its own carafe.
- Melitta: the original paper-filter cone.
- Japanese iced coffee: pour-over brewed onto ice, which you can make with a Wave.
Explore every pour-over in the pour-over chapter.
What you’ll need
Words in this guide
- 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.
- Bloom
- The bloom is the first small pour of water in a brew, usually 2–3 times the weight of the coffee, followed by a 30–45 second pause.
- Fines
- Fines are the very small, dust-like particles that every grinder produces alongside the main grind.
- Specialty coffee
- Specialty coffee is high-quality coffee graded at 80 points or more out of 100 by trained tasters using the Specialty Coffee Association's scoring system.
Questions & answers
How do you use a Kalita Wave?
Rinse a Wave filter, add medium-fine coffee, bloom, then pour in a spiral and small pulses. Stumptown's recipe uses 21 g of coffee and about 345 g of water, finishing at around 2:45–3:00.
What's the best ratio for a Kalita Wave?
Most recipes sit around 1:15 to 1:17. Stumptown's 21 g to about 345 g is close to 1:16.
Kalita Wave 155 vs 185, which should I buy?
The 155 is the smaller size, for one or two cups; the 185 is for two to four. Kalita USA says the 185 brews 2–4 cups (500–700 ml). Each needs its own size of Wave filter.
Why does the Kalita Wave have a flat bottom?
The flat bottom keeps the coffee bed level, so the water passes through an even depth of coffee. Its three small holes slow the flow, so the result depends less on your pouring than a single-hole cone does.
Kalita Wave vs V60?
The V60 is a cone with one large hole, so your pouring controls the flow. The Wave is flat-bottomed with three small holes, so it's more forgiving and consistent. Both make a clean cup.
Who made the Kalita Wave famous?
James McCarthy of Counter Culture Coffee won both the 2013 US Brewers Cup and the 2013 World Brewers Cup brewing with a Kalita Wave, which brought it a lot of attention.
Sources
- Brew guide: Kalita Wave. Stumptown Coffee Roasters
- Waves series. Kalita Co., Ltd.
- Kalita Wave Tsubame stainless steel coffee dripper 185. Kalita USA
- Meet the world’s best brewer: James McCarthy. Sprudge
- Guest review: flat-bottom coffee drippers. Prima Coffee
- Kalita: everything you need to know. Japanese Coffee Co.
- Kalita Wave filter 185. Japan With Love
General guidance only. Not medical, food-safety or professional advice. Always follow your equipment's own instructions.