The Pulsar Dripper is a collaboration between NextLevel and Jonathan Gagné, an astrophysicist, coffee blogger, and the author of the book "The Physics of Filter Coffee". It is one of a few coffee brewers on the market focused on "zero-bypass" filter brewing.
To give a simple explanation, when you use a traditional pour-over brewer like the Hario V60, some of the water takes the path of least resistance around the bed of coffee, and so doesn't get involved in extraction. Brewers such as the Pulsar Dripper are designed to get around this (no pun intended) by not giving the water anywhere else to go other than through the bed of coffee.
The Pulsar Dripper features a base with a flow-control valve, a barrel, and a dispersion cap, which acts as a sort of shower screen. When you pour coffee into the dispersion cap, it flows evenly through the holes in the cap, ensuring that the coffee bed below is evenly supplied with water. In theory, this should help produce a cup with better, more even extraction.
I found this recipe on Jonathan's coffee blog a while back and have been using it to make cups of filter coffee at home and at The Granary ever since. I'd recommend checking his blog out if you have a minute or two to spare. There are some great articles on there exploring the science of brewing filter coffee. He also shares some of his astrophysics research papers, although I won't pretend to understand these.
Recipe
- 25 - 30g coffee (medium grind)
- 1:17 ratio of coffee: water (by weight)
- 45s bloom, using 3x the weight of the coffee
- Aim for a total brew time of 3:30 - 4:30
Equipment Needed
- NextLevel Pulsar Dripper
- Coffee
- Scales that are accurate to 0.1g
- Timer
- Kettle
- Supply of clean, soft water
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Start by weighing out and grinding your coffee. Use a grind setting slightly coarser than for a manual pour-over, but finer than for a batch brew.
- Fill the kettle with clean, relatively soft water and put it on to boil.
- With the Pulsar Dripper valve closed, fill the base halfway with warm water.
- Place a filter paper into the base and open the valve, allowing the water to drain out - rinsing the paper filter in this way will remove any papery taste from the brew and ensure that there is as little air as possible trapped below the filter.
- Mount the barrel firmly on the base, with the threaded side down.
- Pour your coffee into the Pulsar, shaking to level the grounds, and then place the dispersion cap on top of the barrel.
- After your kettle has come to the boil, leave it to stand for a minute or so.
- Start your timer and pour three times the weight of your coffee into the dispersion cap.
- Let a little water drip through before closing the valve.
- At forty-five seconds, pour enough water to make a slurry height 1-2cm above the grounds. I have found the "200" mark on the brewer to be a good reference point.
- Open the valve.
- Pour the rest of the water in several short bursts, maintaining the same slurry height as before.
- After your final pour, give the Pulsar a gentle swirl, holding the barrel and base together. If you're too enthusiastic with your swirl, you will slow the brew down too much.
- Serve and savour!
Brew Notes
- Using 25-30g of coffee for this recipe is recommended because it provides adequate bed depth, reducing the risk of astringency.
- We are aiming for a total brew time of 3:30 - 4:30 with this recipe.
- If your total brew time is outside of the above range, but the result is a pleasant cup, then don't worry. Keep your grind size as it is. Every coffee is different, and this range is intended as a rough guide only to help in troubleshooting cups with unpleasant flavours.
- If the cup is unpleasant and the total brew time is much shorter than the above range, then you should try grinding a little finer.
- If the cup is unpleasant and the total brew time is much longer, then you should grind a bit coarser.
- Experiment! This recipe is something we have found to consistently work for us, but that doesn't mean it should be taken as gospel. As with most brew methods, there are so many variables (bloom duration, grind size, ratio) to play with. Find whatever works for you.