What Are the Best Coffee Beans for a V60? A Roaster’s Guide
If you’ve bought a V60 and found yourself staring at a wall of coffee bags wondering which one to choose, you’re not alone.
The short answer? The best coffee beans for a V60 are usually high-quality, freshly roasted beans with flavours you actually enjoy. Single-origin coffees and lighter, more developed filter roasts are particularly popular because the V60 produces a clean cup that makes it easier to taste the individual characteristics of a coffee.
But there’s no single bean that is the perfect V60 coffee.
Origin, variety, processing method, roast profile, grind size and even your water can completely change what ends up in your cup. That's also what makes brewing with a V60 so interesting.
Here’s what we look for when choosing coffee for a V60 at Camden Coffee Roastery.
Why is the V60 so good for speciality coffee?
The Hario V60 is a pour-over brewer that uses a paper filter and relies on gravity to draw water through your ground coffee.
Compared with brewing methods that produce a heavier-bodied cup, the V60 is known for clarity.
And clarity is exactly what you want when you're drinking a coffee with something interesting to say.
A fruity Ethiopian coffee, for example, might reveal delicate berry or floral notes. A naturally processed Brazilian coffee could give you something sweeter and rounder. Change the origin, variety or processing method, and you can end up with a completely different cup without adding a single flavouring.
That's why we particularly enjoy using the V60 to explore single-origin speciality coffees.
So, what are the best coffee beans for a V60?
If you're choosing a coffee specifically for V60, start with these four things:
1. Choose freshly roasted coffee
Coffee begins changing as soon as it's roasted. Buying from a speciality roaster means you can pay attention to when your coffee was roasted rather than simply relying on a distant best-before date.
Fresh doesn't necessarily mean brewing it the minute it leaves the roaster, though. Coffee releases CO₂ after roasting and often benefits from some resting time before brewing.
2. Try a single-origin coffee
A single-origin coffee comes from a particular country, region, producer or lot rather than combining coffees from several origins.
That traceability makes single origins especially fun to brew with a V60.
You can begin noticing how a washed Colombian coffee differs from a natural Ethiopian coffee, or what happens when you move from a Brazilian coffee to one grown in Sumatra.
3. Look for a lighter roast profile
Generally, lighter roast profiles preserve more of the flavours associated with the coffee's origin, variety and processing.
A darker roast pushes more of the flavour towards the roasting process itself.
Neither is automatically better; it depends entirely on what you enjoy, but if your goal is to explore the distinctive flavours of speciality coffee, a lighter roast can be a great place to start.
4. Read the tasting notes
This is probably the easiest way to choose.
If the bag describes flavours you already enjoy, start there.
Love bright, fruity flavours? Look for coffees with tasting notes such as berries, citrus, stone fruit or tropical fruit.
Prefer something sweeter and more comforting? Look for chocolate, caramel, nuts or dried fruit.
Tasting notes aren't ingredients added to the coffee. They're descriptions of flavours and aromas that naturally remind us of other foods when we taste the coffee.
Does coffee origin matter for V60?
Absolutely, although origin shouldn't be treated as a guarantee of flavour.
Coffee is an agricultural product. Variety, altitude, climate, soil, processing and roasting all influence the final cup.
Still, exploring different origins is one of the easiest ways to discover what you like.
At Camden Coffee Roastery, our current single-origin range includes coffees from places including Ethiopia, Brazil, Colombia, Sumatra, Costa Rica and Uganda.
Rather than deciding that one country produces the "best" V60 coffee, try brewing coffees from different origins using the same method.
You'll quickly start building your own flavour preferences.
Does processing method matter?
Very much.
Once coffee cherries are picked, the way the fruit is removed and the beans are processed can have a major impact on flavour.
Three terms you'll commonly see are:
Washed coffee
The fruit is removed before the beans are dried.
Washed coffees are often associated with a cleaner, clearer cup, which can work beautifully with a V60.
Natural coffee
The coffee cherry is dried with the fruit still surrounding the seed.
Natural processing can produce fruitier, sweeter and sometimes more intense flavours.
Honey processed coffee
Despite the name, no honey is added.
Some of the coffee cherry's mucilage remains on the bean while it dries. Honey processing can create an interesting middle ground between the clarity associated with washed coffees and the sweetness or fruitiness associated with naturals.
And then things get even more interesting.
Producers increasingly experiment with fermentation and processes such as anaerobic fermentation, which can create dramatically different flavour profiles.
The V60 gives you a brilliant way to explore those differences.
Which Camden coffees should I try with a V60?
Our coffee selection changes as new harvests and lots arrive at the roastery, so rather than declaring one coffee the permanent "best", we'd recommend choosing according to the flavour experience you're looking for.
Here are a few from our current range to get you started:
For a clean, balanced cup: Colombia Nabusimake
Our Colombia Nabusimake Single Origin is a washed, medium-roast coffee with notes of hazelnut praline, pear and raspberry compote. We recommend it for filter and pour-over brewing, making it an easy place to start if you want to see why washed coffees and the V60 work so well together.
Try it if you like: clean cups, balanced sweetness and bright fruit.
For something fruitier: Ethiopia Dahab Natural
Our award-winning coffee!
If you want to explore the fruitier side of speciality coffee, try our Ethiopia Dahab Natural. Natural processing tends to bring more fruit and sweetness into the cup, and brewing it through a V60 gives those flavours plenty of room to show themselves.
Try it if you like: expressive, fruit-forward coffees.
For a sweeter natural coffee: Brazil Amarelão
Our Brazil Amarelão is a natural-process, 87-score coffee. It's a great next step if you want to compare how a natural Brazilian coffee behaves in the V60 against a washed Colombian or a fruitier Ethiopian.
Try it if you like: sweetness, rounder flavours and naturally processed coffee.
For something different: Sumatra Kerinci Estate Honey Process
Curious about honey processing? Our Sumatra Kerinci Estate gives you the chance to taste it for yourself. Brew it alongside a washed or natural coffee using the same V60 recipe and the differences become much easier to explore.
Try it if you like: discovering unusual processing methods and comparing coffees side by side.
For the adventurous V60 drinker: Uganda Tangwen 72-Hour Anaerobic Natural
For a more experimental cup, our Uganda Tangwen undergoes a 72-hour anaerobic natural process. This is the kind of coffee we'd reach for when you want your V60 to show you just how expressive processing and fermentation can make a coffee.
Try it if you like: experimental processing, bold flavour experiences and coffees that are a little less conventional.
Prefer decaf? You can still brew a brilliant V60
Decaf doesn't have to mean giving up interesting filter coffee. Our House Decaf is a washed Ethiopian heirloom coffee with notes of stewed pear, dulce de leche and mixed berries, and we offer it ground specifically for V60/AeroPress as well as whole bean.
The easiest way to choose? Start with the flavour profile that sounds most like you, then brew another coffee using the same V60 recipe. Comparing them side by side is one of the best ways to learn what origins and processing methods you actually enjoy.
Whole bean or ground coffee for V60?
If possible, buy whole beans and grind them immediately before brewing.
Grinding dramatically increases the surface area of coffee exposed to oxygen, meaning ground coffee loses its aromatic compounds much faster.
A burr grinder also gives you another important advantage: control.
If your V60 is drawing down too quickly and tastes weak or sour, you can grind finer. If the brew is taking too long or tastes unpleasantly bitter or dry, you can try grinding coarser.
Don't have a grinder? That's fine too. Ask your roaster to grind the coffee for V60 when you order.
When ordering coffee from Camden Coffee Roastery, you can select V60 / AeroPress as your grind option on our coffees, so you don't need to own a grinder to get started.
What grind size is best for V60?
There isn't one universal V60 grind setting because grinders, coffees, recipes and doses vary.
As a starting point, aim for a medium-fine grind, finer than you'd typically use for a French press, but considerably coarser than espresso.
Then let the cup tell you what to do.
If your coffee tastes weak, thin or sharply sour, try grinding slightly finer.
If it tastes overly bitter, harsh or dry and the water is taking a long time to pass through the coffee bed, try going slightly coarser.
Changing one variable at a time makes it much easier to understand what improved or worsened your brew.
Our V60 starting recipe
Want somewhere simple to begin?
Here's a V60 recipe we've used at Camden Coffee Roastery:
Coffee: 20g
Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:16
Water: 320ml
Bloom: 60g for 1 minute
Pour: Continue steadily up to 320ml
Finish pouring: Around 2:30
Target drawdown: Around 3:00
Treat it as a starting point rather than a law.
Different coffees behave differently. Experiment with your grind, water temperature, ratio and pouring technique until you find the cup you enjoy most.
That's half the fun.
What is the best V60 coffee for beginners?
If you're new to speciality coffee, don't worry about finding the most unusual or expensive coffee on the shelf.
Start with flavour.
Choose a freshly roasted coffee with tasting notes that sound appealing, brew it consistently, and then change one thing at a time.
Once you've found something you enjoy, try another origin or processing method and compare the two.
You'll learn far more about your coffee preferences by tasting than by memorising coffee terminology.
The best V60 coffee is the one you want to brew again
There isn't a country, variety or processing method that automatically produces the world's best V60 coffee.
That's exactly why we love this brewer.
Its clarity allows different coffees to show their character, making it one of the simplest ways to explore just how different coffee can taste.
Start with freshly roasted speciality coffee. Pay attention to origin, process and tasting notes. Grind fresh when you can. Keep your brewing recipe relatively consistent.
And most importantly: taste everything.
You might be surprised by what becomes your favourite.
Frequently Asked Questions
What coffee beans are best for V60?
Freshly roasted speciality coffee is a great choice for V60. Single-origin and lighter roasted coffees are particularly popular because the V60's paper filter and pour-over brewing method can highlight delicate flavours and differences between coffees.
Can you use any coffee beans in a V60?
Yes. You can brew light, medium and darker roasted coffees with a V60. The "best" beans depend on the flavours you enjoy and how you adjust your recipe.
Is light or dark roast better for V60?
Light and light-to-medium roasts are commonly chosen for V60 because they can preserve more origin characteristics and delicate flavours. However, darker roasted coffee can also be brewed with a V60 if that's the flavour profile you prefer.
Is single-origin coffee better for V60?
Not necessarily better, but single-origin coffee is particularly interesting in a V60 because the brewer's clarity can make characteristics associated with the coffee's origin, variety and processing easier to explore.
What grind size should I use for V60?
Start around medium-fine and adjust according to taste and brew time. Grind finer if your coffee is flowing too quickly and tastes weak or sharply sour; go coarser if it draws down very slowly and tastes harsh, dry or overly bitter.
How much coffee should I use for a V60?
A coffee-to-water ratio around 1:15 to 1:17 is a useful starting range. Our 20g coffee to 320ml water recipe uses a 1:16 ratio.
