A pour-over technique where you split the total water into multiple discrete pours separated by short pauses. The bed is allowed to drain partially between each pulse — water level drops to roughly the top of the slurry — and then you pour again. Common shapes: 4 pulses, 5 pulses, sometimes 6.
The opposite technique is the continuous pour, where you maintain a steady stream from bloom to finish without stopping.
What pulse pours change
Pulses give you more control over total brew time at a given grind. Each pour adds water; each pause lets that water work through the bed before the next pour adds more. Net result: longer contact time per gram of water, more agitation cycles, often a slightly higher extraction.
Pulses also even out extraction when the bed is uneven or the grinder produces variable particle sizes. Each pulse refreshes the slurry surface, redistributes fines, and reduces the impact of channels formed during earlier pours.
When to use them
Pulse pours suit lighter roasts and finer grinds where you want to coax extraction without going to a longer steep. Tetsu Kasuya's 4:6 method is the canonical example — five pulses, two for sweetness/acidity balance and three for strength.
Continuous pours suit medium roasts and forgiving recipes — you want fewer variables and a smoother flow. Hoffmann's V60 falls closer to the continuous side after the bloom, with one steady inward spiral.
Neither is "more correct." Pulses give you more handles to grab; continuous pours give you fewer chances to make mistakes.