Givens are:

- filtered water
- good burr grinder
- good beans

What pushes it over the edge to great?

I do a V60 or Chemex and looking for little tips to improve an already good cup of coffee.

The temperature of the water

This is a great episode

https://player.fm/series/bon-appetit-foodcast/episode-201-the-stupid-simple-guide-to-coffee

Gains after that are going to be pretty insignificant unless you start blending and roasting yourself.

Current favorite coffee is Stockingmill Midnight Run

I did some digging and just ordered some third wave coffee. Anyone ever tried this?

That's a tough ask. There's a lot of subjectivity when it comes to the types of coffees people like.

The two biggest tips I tell people that are new to specialty coffee:
1. Buy freshly roasted beans (roasted within a week)
2. Grind before brewing or as close to as possible

You can have great technique or awesome equipment but old stale beans suck.

Since I do a lot of V60 my other big variable is grind size/drain time. I'm shooting for a 25 g dose to drain in around 3:30 min give or take.

I need to try out this 3rd wave stuff to improve the water because a lot of people swear by it.

Is the Clever Dripper still a thing?

Have one of those from back before kids, when I use to make a great cup every morning. Tempted to jump back in...

Update:

Third wave water is amazing. Noticeable difference. Check it out if you haven't already.