Video Overview | Sibarist Fast Filters
Sibarist created the FAST filter to bring more variables, such as grind size and ratio, to the V60 brewing experience, and as a result to push what is possible with pour-over extraction percentages. Watch this video to see what makes the FAST different and what to expect when brewing with it.
Transcript
Hi, I'm Steve with Prima Coffee. And today, we're going to talk about the FAST filters from Sibarist. The Sibarist is known for designing products for coffee prep and service, like V60 stands, and espresso and coffee trays. So these filters are just another addition to that lineup, where they're trying to keep coffee preparation interesting. Probably because they're a design firm, the packaging is really clean and minimal. You can see there is just the name of the product and the company. And the bag itself is very related to the coffee industry. This is a bag for roasted coffee, and you can see that one way CO2 valve right there. The FAST in the name refers to the speed at which you can brew a cup of coffee. So part of that is in the materials. They're made from really soft, lightweight materials, including abaca fiber. So compared to those Hario filters which are really thick and rough, these feel really thin. And they are. So these filters are still made to fit the V60 number 2 dripper. However, they don't behave anything like the Hario filters. It feels like you're not using a V60 at all. The reason is because we have certain expectations for the V60, especially about the range of the final brew time, the appearance of the coffee bed at the end, and the coarseness of the grind, which is medium-fine. All that is required for that characteristic clean and bright cup of coffee that we're kind of used to with the V60.
With the FAST filters, you need to abandon all those expectations. Because the Sibarist FAST filter is more permeable than the original Hario filters, the flow rate will be roughly 25% to 40% quicker. So it's actually kind of difficult to grind fine enough to significantly slow the flow rate is what we found. And we were using a filter grinder and a light-roast Colombian coffee. We kept grinding finer and finer without significant difference in that final brew time. This is one of the selling points of the FAST. You can grind really fine, and theoretically, you can extract more of what tastes great in your coffee. We ended up hitting a, sort of, an extraction ceiling before we hit the finest grind setting, but we were using a filter grinder. So it could be fun to see what you can find with an espresso grinder and go really, really, really, really fine so you can rest the brew a little bit and extract more. And that is the other selling point. So with these filters, unlike the original Hario, you can experiment with dose, with grind size, with water temperature. So this is the filter for you if you want some more options with your V60. So you can keep both the Hario filters and the FAST filters and, depending on what you want that day, if you want a clean cup, use the Hario filters. If you want, sort of, more body, or your coffee is draining really slow, or if you just want to play around and experiment, use the FAST filters. So that is the Sibarist FAST filter.
