Some of the best coffee projects we know of got their start on Kickstarter. From...
If you have a coffee in the morning, and a coffee maker at home, you might be a coffee addict. If you reach for the cup of coffee maker on button before you slap the alarm clock, you are beyond a doubt addicted to coffee. And as terrifying as it sounds, there will come a time when “old reliable” (your coffee maker) is not so reliable anymore and you need to buy a new one. Then you face the agonizing question of what you’re going to buy. Well, the four things you need to consider before you buy a coffee maker are: The size, type, filter and the features of your next coffee maker.
This is the first thing that you should consider: How much counter space you have, and more specifically, how much of the space are you prepared to give up for your coffee machine. This is often the best place to start when considering which coffee maker to buy: How much coffee do you need to brew?
There used to be only one type of coffee maker, but those days are long gone. These days you have a number of different coffee machines to choose from, depending on your coffee drinking style and preferences. So very briefly, you have to choose between:
Coffee Percolators are the classic, old school traditional coffee makers. Most “modern” percolators are said to produce a superior cup of coffee to their predecessors because they ensure that they do not burn the grounds, damaging aromas and flavors of the coffee. Whether “oldie but goldie” percolators are better than the newest percolators however remains to be seen (and hotly debated).
Developed by the French, it consists of a stainless steel mesh and acts as a press to filter the coffee. Ground coffee is measured and placed in the pot and hot water is poured over the grounds and left to brew for as long as desired. The press is then pushed down to filter the coffee, producing a full flavored coffee that is the brew of choice amongst most coffee drinkers. But lacking a hot plate, the coffee does not stay hot for very long, making it unsuitable for all day coffee drinkers.
Believe me when I say these make good coffee. This type of coffee maker uses ground coffee that is poured in to a filter. Water is often stored in a reservoir and then heated and released in to the grounds to brew your coffee drop by drop normally taking about two to four minutes to brew a cup of coffee.
Admittedly, when you see this thing for the first time, it looks more like something stolen from a chemistry lab than a coffee machine but do not let appearances fool you. These machines consistently create top quality, strong and very robust coffee. The double chamber system boils water into steam which rises in to the top chamber and mixes with the grounds coffee and then drips down, cooling, through the filter to brew your coffee using the process of vacuum stress, leaving you with an excellent cup of coffee.
These use specialist coffee and pressurized water to brew one or two servings of coffee at a time. The coffee comes in a pod that is loaded in to the coffee maker. Needles puncture the top and bottom of the pod so that water can be forced through at high pressure (up to 19 milibars). The built in filter is discarded with the pod.
Of course, if you opt for any other coffee machine besides a pod coffee maker, you are going to have to consider the type of filter your machine uses. Depending on the type of filter you opt for, you can wind up saving or spending more. The most common coffee filters are:
On the subject of filters, you might want to consider water filter. Water contains any number of minerals and other impurities that can taint if not outright ruin a cup of coffee. Unless you plan to buy or have filtered water on hand for your coffee machine, then getting a machine with a build in water filter could save you a lot of hassle, especially if you live in a Hard Water area.
These days, you can find coffee makers with enough features and electronics built in to fly aircraft. However, the more features it has, the more it is going to cost. So you need to focus on getting features you need, and will use which keeps the cost of your coffee machine down. The most common features that you should consider are:
So when you’re looking for a coffee maker, remember to start by considering how much coffee you will be brewing before looking at the type, the filter and finally the features that you need and want on your coffee maker. Remember, it’s about what you want and need. Avoid the bank breaking cost of some bullet stopping tank like coffee maker which features include being able to walk your dog… unless of course that’s what you need and want!
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Adam says
I repeatedly see coffee makers stating “1-4 Cup” mode…. I have no idea why this would make a better batch of coffee. How is it different then the Brew-Strength Control?