Sowden SoftBrew

The Sowden SoftBrew is a coffee pot that looks like a teapot. Inside its porcelain body sits a fine stainless steel filter, made by photo-etching thousands of tiny holes into the metal. You put the coffee in the filter, pour in hot water, leave it to steep and pour. The grounds stay in the filter, so there’s no plunger, no paper and nothing to press. It was designed by George Sowden. Here’s how to use one.

The short version

• A porcelain pot with a fine steel filter fixed inside.
• Medium-ground coffee to start, using Sowden’s scoop guide for your pot.
• Almost boiling water, as George Sowden uses.
• Steep for about 4 minutes, then pour. Some steep longer.
• No plunger and no paper: the filter holds the grounds.

How does the SoftBrew work?

It’s a full immersion brewer, like a French press. The coffee steeps in hot water inside the filter, a cylinder of thin stainless steel with a very large number of tiny holes, which retailers say are made by photo-etching. Sowden’s own leaflet says it has up to 160,000 holes, fine enough to block all grounds larger than 150 microns. When it’s ready, you just pour: the filter keeps the grounds in the pot.

How much coffee and water should I use?

Sowden’s leaflet gives the coffee in scoops by pot size:

Pot	Coffee
2-cup	2 to 3 scoops
4-cup	3 to 5 scoops
8-cup	6 to 8 scoops
12-cup	10 to 12 scoops

Start in the middle and adjust: more coffee for a stronger cup, less for a lighter one. Coffee Companion’s reviewer used 40 g to 24 oz of water.

What grind size should I use?

Start with medium. George Sowden says there’s no recommended grind and suggests starting at medium; he uses quite a fine grind himself, though not as fine as espresso. Coffee Companion also suggests grinding finer than for a French press. Coffee Review’s tester found a fair amount of sediment in the cup, so go coarser if that bothers you.

How do you use a SoftBrew, step by step?

1. Add the coffee to the filter, using the scoop guide. Warming the pot first is optional: Coffee Review’s tester got his best results without it.
2. Pour in almost boiling water and put the lid on.
3. Steep for about 4 minutes.
4. Pour. The grounds stay in the filter.

Sowden also suggests cold brew: fill the pot with cold water and leave it in the fridge overnight, for about eight hours.

Brew mode on this page times the steep for you.

How long should it steep?

About 4 minutes is a good start. The directions allow 4 to 8 minutes, George Sowden says his takes about four, and Coffee Review’s tester poured his first cup at four. Because the grounds stay in the water while it sits, the coffee keeps brewing: if it turns bitter, pour it all into cups or a jug once it’s ready.

SoftBrew vs other steeped brewers

	SoftBrew	French press	Espro Press
Filter	Fixed, fine steel cylinder	Mesh plunger	Double micro-filter plunger
To serve	Just pour	Press, then pour	Press, then pour
Vessel	Porcelain	Glass or steel	Steel or glass
After brewing	Keeps steeping	Keeps steeping	Espro says it stops

Who designed the SoftBrew?

George Sowden, a designer best known for his work with the Memphis group, founded in Milan in 1981. SoftBrew coffee pots are sold under his own Sowden brand, in several models, including Oskar and Jakob, and in sizes from 2 to 12 cups. He has also designed SoftBrew teapots.

How do you clean it?

Tip out the grounds, rinse the filter well from the inside out so the tiny holes don’t clog, and wash the pot. If the filter starts to slow down, check the care instructions that came with yours.

General guidance only. Porcelain and hot water can scald: hold the pot by its handle, pour carefully, and follow the care instructions for your SoftBrew.

SoftBrew vs other methods

• French press: the classic steep-and-press brewer.
• Espro Press: a French press with a double micro-filter.
• Coffee bags: steeping one cup, with no equipment at all.
• Clever Dripper: steep, then drain through paper.

Explore every immersion method in the immersion chapter.