Campsites just got a whole lot more caffeinated — I tested Yeti’s first pour-over dripper and it’s a force to be reckoned with

I don’t doubt that the Yeti Rambler Pour-Over is one of the best pour-over coffee makers you can buy right now. I can’t believe how well-made it is — it’s hardy, rugged, and beautiful. While it’s double the weight of a plastic V60, I’d much rather throw the Yeti into my hiking backpack than the V60.

If you buy or already own Yeti’s camping mug or tumbler, the Pour-Over slots right on top for uber-easy brewing, no matter where in the world you are. And the best part (in my humble opinion)? It uses Hario #2 filters, which are pretty ubiquitous, so no need to mess around with niche, proprietary filters.

It can’t all be perfect, though, right? Well, no. There are definitely cheaper options for solo hikers, and if you’re not as fussed about coffee it could be overkill. I absolutely adore my Yeti dripper, though, so if you’re as much of an outdoor enthusiast + coffee enthusiast as me, you might want to keep reading this Yeti Rambler Pour-Over review.

Yeti Rambler Pour-Over review: Cheat sheet

• Who is it for? Outdoor enthusiasts + coffee enthusiasts = Yeti Rambler Pour-Over
• What does it do well? Oh, everything. It looks great, it’s very hardy, and so well-made.
• What does it cost? $30 / £30
• What are its weaknesses? It doesn’t come with a cup, tumbler, or complementary filters
• Anything else to know? It uses Hario V60 #2 filters

Yeti Rambler Pour-Over review: Specs

Yeti Rambler Pour-Over review: Price & availability

The Yeti Rambler Pour-Over is $30 from Amazon U.S. and £30 from Amazon U.K.. While this makes it considerably cheaper than the $44 Kalita Wave, it’s still markedly pricier than the plastic Hario V60, which is just $11.

However, it’s worth noting that the Yeti Pour-Over is incredibly well-made. I can see the justification for this $30 price tag: it has a weighty metal body with a double-wall insulation, so even immediately after brewing the exterior of the dripper is cool and safe to touch.

Considering this is intended to be a camping-focussed dripper, it's both a positive and negative that it’s a touch heavy — but I’ll get into that later.

Yeti Rambler Pour-Over review: Design

The Yeti Pour-Over is patent pending, likely due to its relative newness. The rest of Yeti’s Rambler lineup (including accessories) is patented.

The Yeti Pour-Over is directly compatible with Rambler drinkware, like the 10 oz Tumbler, 16 oz Cup, or 14 oz Mug. I tested with the 14oz mug, and I have to say it was an utter delight.

While the Pour-Over doesn’t slot perfectly onto the rim of the mug, it fits well enough that I’m confident in its stability. For the next iteration, I’d maybe like to see a snugger fit to give me even more confidence that it won’t topple off. Even so, the base of the Yeti mug is large enough that it would be stable on uneven ground or on a tarp.

As I mentioned briefly above, the Yeti Pour-Over is so darn well made, but a little heavy. It’s 9.6 ounces, which might not sound like a lot, but considering the Hario V60 is just 4.2 ounces, it raises questions about which pour-over would be better suited to long camping trips when you’re trying to lose as much baggage weight as possible.

However, the Yeti Pour-Over can likely withstand more rugged adventures and being knocked around in a hiking backpack than the V60. The paint coating is thick and seemingly unscratchable (I tried). Thanks to its dual-walled insulation, even when it contained 200°F water it was cool to the touch.

Even though $30 is pretty expensive for what is essentially a metal V60 ($11!) I do think the build quality justifies this cost. If you decide to take this on a camping trip over the 4.2 ounce V60, I wouldn’t blame you.

Now that I’ve discussed outdoor-oriented design functions, I’ll discuss the Yeti Pour-Over’s design in terms of actual coffee brewing. Like the Hario V60, the Yeti has ridges on the inside of the conical dripper.

However, unlike the Hario V60, said grooves are straight rather than slightly convex. In reality this provides very minimal, if any, flavor difference. When I prepared coffee using the same beans, same grind, and same filter, my coffee tasted identical when made in the V60 compared to the Yeti.

Yeti Rambler Pour-Over review: Performance

Considering this is a conical dripper as opposed to the flat-bottomed dripper Kalita Wave, the Yeti Pour-Over’s performance is most similar to the Hario V60.

As a result, there’s more of a need for pouring finesse when compared to a flat-bottomed dripper. However, if you’re less of a coffee perfectionist and more of a hot-bean-juice-please-energize-me kind of coffee drinker, then the Yeti is delicious enough without requiring a gooseneck kettle or the like.

Like the V60, the Yeti Pour-Over can be prone to funnelling. If you don’t know what that is, here’s a photo.

Funneling is basically when the coffee grounds go up the cone instead of lying flat. It’s due to either grind, water temperature, or pouring skills. However, I fixed it without changing grind size with a consistent, controlled pour. Here’s a photo after I fixed said funnelling.

Now, the grounds are flat and the coffee will taste much better. Funneling effectively overbrews the bottom grounds and underbrews the top grounds, resulting in an uneven flavor. It’s pretty easy to fix — just pour very slowly above the funneled coffee and it should sort itself out.

Yeti’s recommended recipe is as follows: 18g of medium-ground coffee with 300ml “30 seconds off the boil” water. I tried this and found it a little too intense. I think I’ve perfected my Yeti coffee routine, which I’ll get into below. However, there’s no “one way” with coffee — if you like a deeper brew, then you’ll need to up the coffee dose.

My go-to Yeti Pour-Over recipe

With my Timemore Black Mirror Basic 2 (one of the best coffee scales for pour-over), I weighed out 18g of medium (bordering on medium-coarse, like the texture of light brown sugar) ground coffee.

Remember, this is just my preference and my tastes. What you like will almost definitely be different.

To compensate for the coarser grind, I poured 300g of 200°F water very slowly into my pre-wetted V60 #2 paper filter. After a 30 second initial ‘bloom’ (with around 50g water), I poured in circular motions, making sure to pour from the outside in to prevent funnelling.

After around three minutes, I had a delicious, full-bodied and rich coffee with no bitterness. With the Yeti insulated mug, it stayed warm (without the lid) for an hour. I don’t know why, but drinking out of the Yeti mug just made it taste so much better.

Yeti Rambler Pour-Over review: Storage & maintenance

You’ll be pleased to know that the Yeti Pour-Over is dishwasher safe, so when you get home from your comparing trip you’ll be able to just pop it in the dishwasher for easy cleanup.

As the dripper uses Hario filters, it’s fully compostable, and a new pack of filters will set you back around $11-16 for 200.

The dripper is also pretty small at just 4 inches in diameter, so it’ll be easy to pack into camping backpacks. There’s no handle, unlike the Kalita Wave and V60, so it’ll be able to fit into smaller crevices.

Yeti Rambler Pour-Over review: How does it compare?

Flavor is very subjective, so it’s difficult for me to recommend a pour-over dripper based on flavor alone. If you are familiar with a V60, the Yeti Pour-Over follows the same brewing process and can be experimented with in the same way.

Kalita Waves tend to brew a stronger coffee because of the flat bottom, but, again, this can be customized with different ratios, grind size, and bean variety.

For outdoor-focused brewing, it’s a genuine toss-up between the Yeti Pour-Over and the Wacaco Cuppamoka ($34). While the Cuppamoka is a cup and a dripper in one, it isn’t as versatile as the Yeti Pour-Over. If you seriously need to save space or money, then the Cuppamoka is a better overall choice.

However, if you’re brewing for more than one person, then the Cuppamoka is completely redundant. The Yeti Pour-Over is far more versatile, but you’ll need to buy Yeti’s 16oz cup ($25), 14oz mug ($30), or 10oz tumbler (being discontinued, on sale for just $15) to drink out of.

For more than one serving, the Yeti Pour-Over is the best choice, and I wholeheartedly recommend it.

Yeti Rambler Pour-Over review: Verdict

While positioned as a camping accessory, I don’t see why you couldn’t use the Yeti Pour-Over both at home and on adventures. If you don’t have a dripper and you want something you can use for both hikes and home, then I think the Yeti Pour-Over is one of the best choices out there.

If you’re serious about outdoor gear and you’re building a collection, then I’d recommend getting a pair of 14oz mugs and the Pour-Over dripper for hot fresh coffee on the trail. Drinking out of the mug is so satisfying, especially when the insulated walls keep the brew hot for hours.

Yes, there are cheaper options, like the plastic Hario V60 and the Wacaco Cuppamoka (a cup and dripper in one for $34, whereas Yeti’s dripper and cup would be $60). However, the Yeti Pour-Over is much more versatile, and it’s so darn well-made. I would put much more faith in the Yeti surviving rugged outdoor adventures than the V60. I can’t wait to go on my next camping trip to use this outside.