The Clever Dripper is the brewer that quietly does it all. It steeps your coffee like a French press, then drains it through a paper filter like a pour-over, so you get the body and richness of immersion brewing with the clean cup of filter brewing. No gooseneck kettle, no scale dance, no pouring technique to master. You dose, you pour, you wait, you serve. Caffeine up, friends.

This recipe is built for a single, generous 12-ounce mug, with a 1:15 ratio that gives you body without going too heavy. 

What you'll need

• A Clever Dripper 
• A Melitta #4 paper filter
• 26 grams of fresh coffee, ground slightly finer than French press
• 400 grams of filtered water, just off the boil (~200°F)
• A timer
• A digital scale (highly recommended for getting the ratio right)
• A mug or carafe to drain into

Made for the Clever Dripper

Magnolia Blend

Chocolate · Brown Sugar · Black Cherry

Shop the coffee →

How to make it

Step 1 — Filter

Drop a Melitta #4 paper filter into the Clever. Fold the seams so the filter lays flush against the walls.

Step 2 — Preheat and rinse

Place the Clever on a mug or carafe (so the valve opens) and rinse the filter with hot water. This warms the brewer and washes out any papery taste. Empty the rinse water before dosing.

Step 3 — Grind

Grind 26 grams of coffee slightly finer than you'd use for French press. Medium grind, somewhere between drip and French press. If you're using pre-ground, drip grind is close enough.

Step 4 — Dose and pour

Dose all 26 grams into the Clever. Start your timer, then assertively pour 400 grams of 200°F water evenly over the grounds. Don't be shy; a confident pour saturates everything evenly and gets the brew started right.

Step 5 — Stir

Stir for 3 seconds. Just enough to break up any dry pockets and make sure every ground is wet.

Step 6 — Steep

Place the lid on the Clever and let it steep until the 1 minute mark. 

Step 7 — Stir again

After 1 minute, lift the lid and stir for 3 more seconds. This second stir helps you get a more even extraction.

Step 8 — Steep again

Replace the lid and let the coffee steep until your timer reads 2 minutes.

Step 9 — Drawdown

Place the Clever on top of your mug or carafe. The valve opens and the brew starts draining. Drawdown should take 1 minute 30 seconds to 1 minute 45 seconds. Slow and steady is a good sign.

Step 10 — Final brew and serve

When the drawdown finishes, the walls of the Clever should be free of grinds. Remove the dripper. Total brew time should land around 3 minutes 30 seconds to 3 minutes 45 seconds. Serve and enjoy!

The variables that actually matter

The Clever is the most forgiving brewer in your kitchen, but two things still matter:

1. Grind size. Slightly finer than French press, slightly coarser than drip. This is the biggest lever on flavor and the easiest one to overshoot in either direction. Use your drawdown time as your guide.
2. Coffee freshness. The clean paper filter showcases everything you put in it. Beans roasted recently taste meaningfully better than anything older, which is why we roast-to-order and ship within 48 hours.

What to brew

The Clever Dripper is the most roast-versatile brewer we make coffee for. It handles light, medium, and medium-dark roasts beautifully, but medium roasts are the safest pick if you want a no-think morning routine.

Our Magnolia Blend is a great place to start, a medium roast with notes of chocolate, brown sugar, and black cherry. If you want a single origin, try our Papua New Guinea Nebilyer, a medium roast with chocolate, honey, brown sugar, and dried fruit notes that the Clever's clean immersion shows off beautifully.