I have been using Hario V60 dripper for years, and recently I tried their Single pour Dripper Mugen. I am going to share my feedback on the brewer, a comparison with the Hario V60, and my favorite Hario Mugen recipe.
So let’s get started and see if this pour-over dripper is suitable for you.
Key Takeaways
- The Mugen Brewer from Hario offers a unique brewing experience inspired by Tetsu Kasoya’s one-pour method.
- Comparing the Hario Mugen to a regular V60, the Mugen is designed for a slower flow rate and doesn’t require blooming, making it a simpler brewing process.
- Hario’s official recipe: Dose 25g coffee to 300g water at 93°C, pour it in 15s, aiming for a 90s drawdown.
- My personal adjustments include using less coffee, a slightly coarser grind, and lower water temperature, resulting in a more complex and balanced cup.
Design of The Hario One-Pour Dripper Mugen
The Mugen Dripper from Hario is a collaboration with the 2016 World Brewers Cup Champion Tetsu Kasoya. His famous ‘4:6 pour-over brewing technique’ is one of my favorite pour-over methods. However, this multiple-pours technique is not easy to master for beginners and requires a high level of accuracy to get the best result.
The design of this Hario One-pour dripper Mugen is much more beginner friendly. The secret is in its interior structure. Hario Mugen uses star-shaped ribs to reduce the drip rate. This design is intended to simplify the coffee brewing process and make it more accessible to a wider audience.
Indeed, as the name suggests, you can pour all of the water at once and then let it drip. That means no advanced pouring technique or a gooseneck kettle is required. What’s more, this newer method doesn’t require blooming the coffee, which is often used for pour-over.
The Hario Mugen dripper showcases that pour-over brewing doesn’t need to be overly complicated or focused on achieving a specific visual result, such as a flatbed of grounds.
By using this simplified method, it’s possible to produce a delicious and high-quality cup of coffee with more ease and accessibility.
Hario One Pour Dripper Mugen Vs. Regular V60
When comparing the Hario Mugen brewer to a regular V60, the most notable difference is the design of the internal rims.
The traditional V60 features a lot of inner rims that allow for a faster flow rate due to a spiraling effect, moving the water quickly through the coffee grounds.
The Mugen dripper, on the other hand, has a structure that purposely slows the flow rate by removing these inner spiraling rims, resulting in a slower extraction. The slow flow rate design of the Mugen is meant to counteract the single-pour approach, allowing enough time for proper extraction. The grinds you use for MUGEN should be slightly finer than regular pour over grind size.
When it comes to brewing, the official Mugen brewing method involves a single 15-second pour. The regular V60 technique often requires a multi-pour approach.
Both drippers use the same types of cone-shaped paper filters. However, regular V60 drippers have three sizes – 01, 02, and 03. The One pour dripper Mugen only has a ’02’ option. Don’t buy the wrong paper filter.
If you choose Mugen, you have two options for materials: Acrylonitrile-styrene resin and ceramic. There are more options for regular V60 drippers, such as glass, copper or metal.
The Official Hario Mugen Recipe
Before diving into my preferred recipe using the Mugen dripper, I’ve tried Hario’s recommended recipe as well.
Tetsu Kasuya showcased his recommended recipe on Hario’s YouTube Channel.
Official Mugen Recipe:
- 25g finely ground coffee
- 300g water (93°C)
- One pour in 15 seconds
- Drip down time 90 seconds
I tried the official recipe from Hario, which calls for dosing 25 grams of coffee to 300 grams of water, using 93 degrees Celsius water, and pouring everything in one single pour for 15 seconds. They aim for a drawdown that goes up until 90 seconds.
In Hario’s recipe, Tetsu Kasuya used a pretty dark roasted coffee. It’s worth noting that roast degree matters when it comes to flow rate. Especially when you pour all the water relatively fast, it will have a massive impact.
Drawbacks and Problems
While I enjoyed the official recipe, I found the coffee tasted too strong for my preference. Normally I brew pour-over with a 1:15 ratio, but this recipe is 1:12, which is really strong.
You have no control over the pouring speed, so the drip time is mostly decided by the grind size of your ground coffee. I struggled to get the right drip rate, mainly because grind size is always hard to reference with different coffee grinders.
After tweaking the grind size multiple times, I finally achieved the 90s drip time. The whole process is similar to dialing in for espresso. It’s just too much of a hassle.
My Tweaked Recipe
To adjust the recipe, I used less coffee (20 grams of medium dark roast coffee) and kept the amount of water (300 grams) the same. I also adjusted the grind size to coarser and lowered the water temperature to 90C.
In order to pour the water quickly, I used a regular kettle instead of a gooseneck kettle, which allows for a faster pour rate.
With these adjustments, I achieved a total brew time of approximately 3 minutes.
By making these adjustments, I created a more balanced and nuanced flavor profile for the coffee, while still staying true to the unique features of the Mugen brewer.
Overall, the official recipe is a great starting point, but adjustments based on personal preferences and the roast degree of the coffee are essential for a more satisfying cup.
It’s important to note that this tweaked recipe focuses less on a perfectly flat bed and accurate pouring. You can see coffee on the walls of the brewer after brewing.
This aligns with my philosophy that there is no single “correct” way to brew coffee, and that it is more about finding the balance between simplicity and artistry in the process.
Conclusion
Hario is a respected brand that always attempts to make brewing a great cup of coffee more accessible.
Previously I reviewed Hario Switch, which is a hybrid brewer combining filter and immersion brewing. Now, this V60 One-pour dripper is another great example, which eliminates the need for blooming and accurate pouring.
Additionally, they are all very affordable. Give it a try if you are interested in a more straightforward brew method.
