# Nel Drip

Source: https://dailyextraction.com/methods/nel-drip/
Last updated: 2026-10-19

> Nel drip is pour-over through a flannel cloth filter, the classic method of Japan's kissaten coffee houses. Dab the damp flannel gently, without wringing it, add about 20–24 g of medium-coarse coffee for two cups, and bloom it with about 40 ml of water at 85–90°C for 30 seconds. Then pour slowly, a little at a time, to about 300 ml, and let it all drip through: about 3 to 4 minutes.

## At a glance

- Ratio: 1:14 (22 g coffee : 300 g water)
- Grind: Medium-coarse
- Water temperature: 85–90 °C
- Brew time: about 3:30
- Category: Pour-over & Drip (Percolation)
- Difficulty: Advanced
- Origin: Japan
- Also known as: neru drip, flannel drip, flannel filter coffee, Hario Woodneck

## Steps

1. **Prepare the flannel**: Take the flannel filter out of its water in the fridge, rinse it in hot water and dab it gently with a clean towel, without wringing it, then fit it in its holder over a server.
2. **Add the coffee**: Add about 20–24 g of medium-coarse coffee for two cups and level it.
3. **Bloom**: Pour about 40 ml of water at 85–90°C over the coffee and wait 30 seconds.
4. **Pour slowly**: Pour slowly in a small spiral in the centre, a little at a time, keeping the water off the cloth at the edges, until you've poured about 300 ml.
5. **Finish**: Stop pouring and let all the coffee drip through, at about 3 to 4 minutes in total.
6. **Rinse and store the flannel**: Empty the grounds, rinse the flannel in hot water without soap, then keep it submerged in water in the fridge.

**Nel drip** is pour-over through **flannel**. The name comes from the Japanese for flannel, *neru*. A cloth filter on a wire holder hangs over a server, and hot water is poured over the coffee **very slowly**, almost drop by drop. It's the classic method of many of Japan's **kissaten**, the traditional coffee houses, and it gives a **rich, smooth, rounded** cup, with more body than paper. It's also the most demanding filter to look after. Here's how to brew and care for one.

## The short version

- **A flannel cloth filter** on a wire holder.
- **About 20–24 g of coffee for two cups**, medium-coarse.
- **Water at about 85–90°C**, poured slowly in the centre.
- **About 3 to 4 minutes** in total.
- **Keep the flannel wet in the fridge**, and never use soap.



## How does nel drip work?

The **flannel** is a cone or bag of brushed cotton, usually sewn onto a **wire ring with a handle**. It's held over a server, the coffee goes in, and the water is poured over it slowly. Cloth is more open than paper, so it lets through more of the coffee's **oils**, giving a **fuller, silkier** cup, while still holding back the grounds. The slow pour, concentrated in the centre, means the water spends a long time in contact with the coffee.

## How much coffee and water should I use?

| | Amount |
| --- | --- |
| Coffee | About 20–24 g, for two cups |
| Water | About 300 ml |
| Bloom | About 40 ml, for 30 seconds |
| Temperature | About 85–90°C |
| Time | About 3 to 4 minutes |

Nel drip often uses **more coffee** than an ordinary pour-over. In a larger nel, 45–50 g is not unusual. Temperatures vary widely between guides, from about 79°C to 95°C; Coffee Guide Japan's standard recipe uses **85–90°C**.

## What grind size should I use?

**Medium-coarse** to **coarse**; one guide compares it to French press. The slow pour and long contact time would over-extract a finer grind.

![Chart of coffee grind sizes from extra fine to extra coarse, with medium-coarse highlighted for nel drip](https://dailyextraction.com/diagrams/grind-size.svg#medium-coarse "Nel drip uses a medium-coarse grind.")

## How do you brew nel drip, step by step?

1. **Prepare the flannel**: rinse it in hot water and **dab it gently** with a clean towel. Coffee Guide Japan says not to wring it: keeping the cloth damp matters.
2. **Add about 22 g** of medium-coarse coffee and level it.
3. **Bloom** with about 40 ml of water at 85–90°C, and wait 30 seconds.
4. **Pour slowly** in a small spiral in the centre, a little at a time, keeping water off the cloth at the edges.
5. **Stop at about 300 ml**, and let all the coffee drip through.
6. **Rinse the flannel** and store it in water in the fridge.

Brew mode on this page times each stage for you.

## How do you look after a flannel filter?

- **Never use soap.** Rinse it in hot water after every brew. One guide also scrubs it with a brush under hot water.
- **Keep it wet.** Store it **submerged in water in the fridge**, or in a sealed bag, so it never dries out between brews. Change the storage water daily if you can.
- **Deep clean when stained.** One guide soaks it with an espresso-machine cleaning powder to strip coffee oils.
- **Break in a new one.** Guides differ: simmer it with used coffee grounds for 5 to 10 minutes, or boil it in plain water for about 5 minutes.
- **Replace it** after about 50 to 100 uses.

## What about the Hario Woodneck?

The **Hario Woodneck** is a home nel drip set: a glass server with a wooden handle and a flannel filter on a wire holder. It comes in **240 ml** and **480 ml** sizes, and Hario's recipe for the 240 ml model is **13–18 g of coffee** to **240 ml of water at 95°C**. It's a popular way to try nel drip without a kissaten's equipment.

## Where does nel drip come from?

Coffee Guide Japan notes that brewing through cloth has **European** origins, in the Netherlands and France. In Japan, it became the hallmark of the **kissaten**, and even after paper filters became common in the 1960s and 1970s, dedicated kissaten kept the nel drip tradition alive.

## Nel drip vs paper pour-over

| | Nel drip | [V60](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/v60/) | [Chemex](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/chemex/) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Filter | Flannel | Thin paper | Thick paper |
| Body | Full, silky | Light to medium | Light |
| Grind | Medium-coarse | Medium-fine | Medium-coarse |
| Care | Wet in the fridge, no soap | Throw away | Throw away |

*General guidance only. Take care with hot water, and keep a stored flannel filter clean and cold so it doesn't go stale or mouldy.*

## Nel drip vs other methods

- **[Kono Meimon](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/kono-meimon/):** a paper dripper designed as a simpler alternative to nel.
- **[V60](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/v60/):** the modern cone pour-over.
- **[Chorreador](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/chorreador/):** Costa Rica's cloth filter on a wooden stand.
- **[Chemex](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/chemex/):** a glass pour-over with thick paper.

Explore every pour-over method in the [pour-over chapter](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/pour-over/).

## Words used in this guide

- [Pour-over](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/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.
- [Body](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/body/): Body is how heavy and textured coffee feels in your mouth, from light and tea-like to thick and syrupy.
- [Bloom](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/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.
- [Steeping](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/steeping/): Steeping is leaving ground coffee to sit in water so its flavour dissolves out, as in a French press or cold brew.

## FAQs

### What is nel drip?

Pour-over coffee brewed through a flannel cloth filter, or nel. It's the traditional method of many of Japan's kissaten coffee houses, known for a rich, smooth, rounded cup.

### How do you store a nel filter?

Rinse it in hot water without soap, then keep it submerged in water in the fridge, so it doesn't dry out and go stale. Don't let it dry between brews.

### How do you break in a new nel filter?

Guides differ: one simmers it with used coffee grounds for 5 to 10 minutes, another boils it in plain water for about 5 minutes. Rinse it well afterwards.

### How long does a flannel filter last?

Guides suggest replacing it after about 50 to 100 uses, or when it stays stained, smells stale or drains slowly.

### What is the Hario Woodneck?

A home nel drip set from Hario: a glass server with a wooden handle and a flannel filter on a wire holder. It comes in 240 ml and 480 ml sizes.

## Sources

- [Nel drip coffee brewing guide](https://coffee-guide.jp/en/brewing/nel-drip-coffee-guide)
- [Hario nel drip: everything you need to know](https://japanesecoffeeco.com/blogs/japanese-coffee-blog/hario-nel-drip-everything-you-need-to-know)
- [Introduction to nel drip coffee and the Hario Woodneck](https://coffeechronicler.com/hario-woodneck-nel-drip-coffee/)
- [How to nel drip the Daibō way](https://good-liver.com/blogs/the-good-liver-a-guide-to-good-living/how-to-nel-drip-the-daibo-way)
- [Nel drip brew guide](https://makr.coffee/blogs/brew-guides/nel-drip)