I’ve been making my own Chemex for the past few years. Originally I was curious about the process, but soon it became another way for me to slow my morning or afternoon down and to ground myself in the present. Here is the recipe that I currently use. It’s a blend of a couple of different recipes from various sources, one of them being Blue Bottle, which offers some good advice regarding technique.

Supplies

1. First a prayer: Acknowledge the Native lands you are living on. Acknowledge the slave labor that your practices and purchases support. Acknowledge the environmental destruction that results from this cup of coffee. Express gratitude to all who allow you to live your life as you do.
2. Boil water. In the meantime, grind your beans to the coarseness of sea salt. A little finer than sea salt is also okay. I recommend starting with about 41 grams of coffee beans. As you get used to the process, you can adjust the amount to taste.
3. When the water is ready, set the filter on the Chemex carafe (the filter’s 3-layer side lays over the spout) and pour a small amount over it to dampen it. Pour that water out. (Remember, it’s hot!) Set your Chemex with a damp filter on the scale. Reset the scale to zero. Dump your ground coffee into the damp filter. Shake the coffee to level it. Confirm the coffee amount (41 grams). Reset the scale to zero.
4. The Bloom. Begin your timer. You’ll pour twice the amount of boiled water (82 grams or milliliters in this example) over the coffee in a spiral motion, making sure that all the coffee is wet. Let the water drain through for about 45 seconds. During the bloom, the wet grounds will look like they’re breathing. Enjoy the aroma. Remember to breathe yourself because this process is to slow you down a bit in order to enjoy the time you have at present.
5. Second Pour. At 00:45 pour 200 grams of boiled water over the coffee in a spiral motion. Let the water drain through for about a minute. (Scale should read 282 grams. Don’t worry if you’re off on your pours. Just adjust on the next pour. You’re not going to ruin your coffee if it’s a little off, either during the brewing or at the end. Experience being here and being now.)
6. Third Pour. At 1:45 pour another 200 grams of boiled water over the coffee in a spiral motion. Let the water drain through for about a minute. (Scale should read 482 grams.)
7. Fourth Pour. At 2:45 pour another 200 grams of boiled water over the coffee in a spiral motion. Let the water drain through until the timer reaches 4:30. (Scale should read 682 grams.) All the water should be drained at this point (in the bottom of the Chemex carafe as coffee). If not, then you may need to adjust the grind of your beans: finer coffee will allow the water to flow through more quickly; courser coffee will make the water flow more slowly.
8. Pour the remainder of the boiled water in your coffee cup(s) to warm. (This serves the same purpose as chilling your cocktail glass for a cold beverage.) Dump the water and pour your velvety Chemex coffee into your mug(s) and enjoy. You should have enough for two people to have 2 medium-sized cups of coffee, so be sure to share your time and experience with a friend.
9. Compost the filter and coffee grounds in your garden.

Let me know if you have any questions. When you come to visit, I’ll make you a fresh cup of coffee.