Coffee Sock Review: How To Brew With Cloth Coffee Filters

These cloth filters from Coffee Sock have shaken up my regular coffee routine quite a bit. Here are 3 reasons I love using them.
coffee sock cloth filters
✍ Written by: Garrett Oden
📅 Published: July 27, 2023
🗃 Filed under: EQUIPMENT

For the first time in years, a new coffee product has seriously disrupted my regular coffee routine.

I’ve been brewing coffee manually for a while now. I’ve found my own systems, my preferred brewing methods, my typical routine. Just when I thought no new product could shake things up and cause me to reevaluate my coffee habits, some cloth coffee filters from Coffee Sock arrived in the mail.

coffee sock cloth filters

I’m a big paper filter guy. I love how easy they are. I love the lighter body and crisp flavor. But these cloth filters seized my attention. I haven’t used a paper filter in weeks because I love using them so much. Let me share with you why.

3 Reasons I Love Coffee Sock’s Cloth Filter

Coffee Sock generously offered me a couple of products in exchange for my honest feedback. Since I’ve enjoyed using the Coffee Sock filters so much, I decided they deserved a blog post. I assure you that these words are my own and that my opinions are in no way influenced by the generosity of Coffee Sock.

1. Cloth Fabric Coffee Filters Encourage a Syrupy Body

I’ve always been a champion of the crisp and clean body that paper filters produce, but the syrupy, juicy body that comes about from cloth filters is captivating. The cloth allows the coffee’s natural oils to slide right through.

These give the final mug a smooth, syrupy feel and contribute towards a fuller flavor. The coffee grounds and micro-particles, however, are kept from entering the final mug.

While I still appreciate the thick and clean mouthfeel that metal filters and paper filters produce, I love this in-between zone where I get to experience the feel and flavor of the oils without the sediment.

3 reasons I love cloth filters

2. Cloth Filters Can Be Used For Ages

I’ve been using these cloth coffee filters almost exclusively for the last two months.

They’ve gotten a little darker in color, but I’ve seen no tearing, thinning, or any other kind of decay. They function just as well as they did the day I opened the package.

While rinsing out the filter cloth isn’t as quick as throwing a paper filter away, it sure is more rewarding knowing that I’m not producing a lot of paper waste over time. These cloth filters complement my values of minimalism, practical purchases, and reusable tools.

3. Cloth Coffee Filters Are Travel-Friendly

Lauren (my wife) and I are preparing to travel internationally and work remotely for the next year or so. We’ll be living out of backpacks, so space will be very limited.

Instead of lugging around 50 paper filters or a metal cone (which we’re less fond of, though still enjoy), we’ll be able to take a single thin, reusable cloth coffee filter for brewing.

travel cloth coffee filter

Specifically, we’ll be taking the Coffee Sock Travel Filter, which is designed to be used on the road. It consists entirely of a cloth cone and a holding wire. So simple. So travel-friendly.


Bottom Line on the Coffee Sock Filter

I didn’t think I’d be crazy about cloth-filtered coffee, but I was wrong. I am slowly being converted to a full-time cloth filter user.

If you’d like to try strainer cloth filters for yourself, I suggest taking a look at Coffee Sock. The Texas business (my homies) focuses solely on cloth and sells filters for:

Who knows? Maybe you won’t be able to stop yourself from converting as well.

Garrett Oden

Garrett Oden

Coffee Industry Writer

Welcome, fellow coffee lover!

The entire purpose of this coffee blog is to empower you to explore the wonderful world of coffee. There’s much to learn and experience, so get to reading!

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4 Comments

  1. Gil Palmer

    Do you use it as an immersion-coffee device like a Clever Dripper or a pour-over device?

    • Garrett Oden

      Either one works! I’ve been using it for pour over brewing, personally.

  2. JW Goble

    Looks great Garrett, thank you for sharing. Which drippers did you try the sock in? And may I ask what scale are you using in your photos? Enjoy your travels and remote work! Where will you travel to first?

    • Garrett Oden

      I’ve really loved using it in my Hario V60, which is what the filters I got are really made for. Still loving them! The scale is an Acaia Pearl. It’s really nice, but quite pricey. I won it in a latte art competition – otherwise I wouldn’t have it.

      Thanks for the kind words! We will be traveling to Estonia for a month, then Bulgaria, then Greece. From there, we’re not 100% sure!