Battle of the Drippers: Hario V60 Vs Kalita Wave
If you are new to the world of specialty coffee and home brewing and wondering what is the best way to start brewing a delicious cup of coffee at home, I am sure you must have heard people say pour over is the way to go. However, the choice of which dripper to go with is rather difficult considering there are so many of them available in the market right now. In my experience the two most common and loved pour over drippers around the world are the Hario V60 dripper and the Kalita Wave series.
The Hario V60 may sound old to a lot of you but it was actually first launched in 2004 by Hario in Japan and the name V60 comes from its iconic V shaped conical design which points at a 60degree angle. The Hario V60 comes in a variety of materials including stainless steel, Ceramic, glass, copper and plastic. The plastic version is arguably the most used one considering that it has the lowest heat retention and is more durable and affordable than the other versions. The V60 has a single hole at the bottom for even flow.
The Kalita wave on the other hand comes from another
legendary Japanese brand Kalita, which has been making coffee products since
1950. The wave series was Kalita’s answer to Hario and it stand out due to its flat bottom design and a reputation of being a more
consistent and forgiving brewer. Kalita wave was launched in 2010 and has
slowly become a staple product in home brewing and manual brew bars of
specialty cafe's all around the world.
Here are some of the similarities and differences between the two brewers:
1. Design: The Hario V60 has a conical design with a single
big hole at the center, it also has spiral ribs on the inside
which let the paper filter paper stick to the side of the dripper. Kalita wave
on the other hand has a completely different design, with a flat bottom and
three small holes instead of one large hole in case of V60. The inside of the Kalita
also have these waves kind of pattern therefore the name wave dripper.
2. Sizes and materials: Both the Kalita and Hario V60 comes in two different sizes ( 01 and 02 for V60 and 155 and 185 for Kalita) and different materials like stainless steel,ceramic,copper,glass etc.
3. Filter papers: Filters for both the drippers are very
different. Hario V60 has a more traditional cone shaped paper filter, which is
placed inside the dripper, and the edge comes out of the bottom hole. Kalita
wave on the other hand have round shaped wave filters which has creases on it
which allows it to fit properly in the dripper and is never in contact with the
surface of the dripper.
4. Cost: Price of the dripper varies based on the size and
the material used, Hario V60 is available in a plastic version which is
relatively cheap (i.e. 10$ or 500-700rs). Kalita wave does not come in a plastic
version and the stainless steel version is available for 25$ or 2500rs. Both
the Kalita and Hario V60 is available in other materials and the copper version
of both of them is on the expensive side and cost anywhere from 60-75$ or
7000-9000rs. Paper filters for both the drippers are cheap and a pack of
100-150 is available for 400-500rs however the V60 filters are more easily
available then the Kalita filters.
Now let’s talk about the main question, Which coffee dripper is better or which one produces better cup of coffee? If you ask me, you cannot choose one over the other as both of the drippers make an excellent cup of coffee and slightly different considering various variables and the coffee used.
Here is my experience with both the brewers, I tried brewing with both the brewers with the same coffee, exactly same variables (i.e. grind size, water temperature, agitation etc), and here are some of my thoughts about both of them.
1. Coffee used: Ratnagiri Jasper 44 by curious Life Coffee
This is a naturally processed coffee with flavors of orange zest and raisins, it has a sweet texture and heavy body with lingering citrus mouthfeel to it. I brewed this coffee with both the Kalita and V60 side by side using the following parameters.
Hario V60: As noted above the V60 will always have a higher flow rate than Kalita due to the single hole and all the water draws down to the center of the cone and drips faster when compared. However due to this design it is very important to pour very carefully and consistently while using the V60. The cup brewed using the V60 was also nicely balanced and was able to extract the flavors of orange and rum present in it. What was different with this cup was that it had a lighter body than the wave and the mouthfeel was a little weak when compared to the above.
2. Coffee used: La Orquidea Colombian by Kaffeebox
This is a fully washed coffee Colombian coffee as compared to the natural coffee above and is a bright coffee with flavors of berries and a good heavy chocolate mouthfeel. This was brewed with the following parameters:
Hario V60: The V60 highlighted the bright acidity of this coffee beautifully and was a very balanced cup. It has a very complex acidity with nuance of berries and very good mouthfeel and aftertaste of dark chocolate. The V60 always has a knack of highlighting acidity in a coffee and was visible in this cup with a juicy aftertaste and overall sweet cup.
Kalita Wave: The wave had a weak cup as compared to the V60 and the acidity was very light in it when compared, however the flavors were quite present and had a good smoothness to it with the chocolate aftertaste. So overall i would prefer the V60 to Kalita for this coffee as the cup was more balanced and smooth in comparison.
Having said that, there are certain things that needs to be in mind while using both the brewers in order to obtain maximum results. In case of Hario V60 it requires precision pouring to obtain even extraction and avoid channeling. Because of the conical design if the water is not poured consistently some of the coffee will stick to the side of the brewer and also form an uneven brew bed, resulting in water flowing too quick or too slow from either side. To avoid this you need to agitate the coffee and ensure that there is a flat brew bed and a consistent and even pour to avoid channeling ( I suggest the Rao spin or even agitating with a spoon after the first or the second pour). This is avoided in case of the Kalita due to its flatbed design and therefore more forgiving in case of technique and consistency.
Talking about the Kalita due to its restricted water flow it
sometimes lead to choking of the water bed and therefore over extraction of
coffee. While pre rinsing the Kalita filter, it sometimes sticks to the bottom
of the dripper and blocks the three holes further slowing down the brew and
leaving a weak and over extracted cup. Finally both the drippers deliver
excellent cup of coffee and a lot of people believe that Kalita is for the beginner
coffee drinker who does not want to go into all the complexity and jargons that
comes with perfecting the art of pour over coffee and V60 is for the experts or
more advanced brewer. In my opinion both the brewers have their merits and
shine in different situations.
Conclusion: There is no clear winner in my opinion and
both of the drippers are best at something and bring out different flavors in
different coffee. The good thing about the Kalita wave is its ease of use and
consistency it delivers; Better results can be achieved with uneven pour and different
grind size. Whereas the V60 has a little learning curve in respect of different
variables and technique but when done right it is able to extract all the
complexity a coffee has to offer. The beautiful thing about manual brewing is
that it is very perspective in nature and everyone will have different opinion,
what taste great to me might be very different to you which leads us to exploring and developing our palate continuously.
Do tell me what is your favorite brewer and what do you think about the Kalita wave and the Hario V60. Happy Brewing you all!
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