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Quick recipe
- Ratio: 1:16 (about 55 g coffee to 900 ml water for a full 10-cup pot, or 7 g per 5 oz / 150 ml “cup”). The SCAA Golden Cup standard. Adjust to taste.
- Grind: medium, like coarse sea salt. Pre-ground supermarket coffee usually works fine here.
- Water: fresh, cold, filtered if your tap is hard or chlorinated.
- Temperature: 195 to 205 F (90 to 96 C) at the brew basket. Most cheap drip makers do not hit this. Pick the machine carefully.
- Machine: a SCAA-certified drip maker (Technivorm Moccamaster, OXO Brew 9-Cup) makes more difference than any other variable. A $25 Mr. Coffee will get you weak coffee no matter how good the beans.
- Off the warmer: Decant into a thermal carafe as soon as brewing finishes. Coffee on a hot plate goes bitter in 20 minutes.
For more brewing methods, see our French press primer and our Moka pot guide. For step-by-step detail and the corrections this article has accumulated from readers over the years, read on.
A couple of years back, I worked in an office where coffee was the lubricant that kept the wheels humming. We ran round the clock, and the coffee pot was always on and always full. It was also more often than not barely drinkable. The standing rule of the coffee pot was: if you drink the last cup, put on another pot. From the day I started working there and made my first pot of coffee, there was a new rule. If you drink the last cup of coffee, let Deb know so she can make another pot. Whenever I put on a fresh pot, people would drift from the far side of the building, and by the time it was finished dripping, there was a line at the coffee pot, waiting for that first cup.
That was fifteen years ago, and the cheap office Mr. Coffee we were stuck with was a big part of the problem. The rest was that nobody else was paying attention to what they put in it. Drip coffee gets a bad reputation from a few decades of weak, lukewarm, supermarket-grind coffee in restaurants and break rooms. The reputation isn’t really fair. Drip coffee at home, done right, on the right machine, is one of the cleanest and most reliable cups you can make. The trick is knowing which variables matter and which don’t.
Why most drip coffee tastes bad
The Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA, now SCA) publishes a standard for what they call “Golden Cup” drip coffee. The standard requires water to hit the coffee grounds at 195 to 205 F (90 to 96 C), with the full brew completing in 4 to 6 minutes, at a ratio close to 55 g coffee per liter of water (1:18 to 1:16). Coffee brewed inside that window is consistently drinkable; coffee brewed outside it usually isn’t.
Here is the embarrassing truth that most consumer drip-coffee-maker brands do not advertise: a lot of cheap machines never get that hot. Reader NewsView measured several brands back in 2010 and posted the numbers in the comments below this article: “You can get automatic drip coffee fresh brewed into a carafe anywhere from 150 to 180 F depending on the brand. Mr. Coffee seems to settle around 165, whereas KRUPS and Cuisinart dispense slightly hotter (170 to 175).” That matches what independent testers find when they put a thermometer in a $25 drip maker today. Water that cool extracts under-extracted, sour, weak coffee no matter how good the beans are. If you have ever wondered why the same beans taste great at one place and flat at another, the brewing temperature is almost always the answer.
The SCAA maintains a certification list of drip coffee makers that hit the right temperature reliably. Buying off that list is the single biggest upgrade most American coffee drinkers can make to their home setup.
The machines worth buying
- Technivorm Moccamaster ($300 to $360) is the gold standard. Made by hand in the Netherlands since 1968, SCAA certified, 5-year warranty, brews at the correct temperature in 4 to 6 minutes. Mine has been brewing daily for 9 years on a single replaced silicone gasket. Worth the money if you brew coffee every day and care about the cup.
- OXO Brew 9-Cup ($200) is the value pick. SCAA certified, hits 195 to 205 F (90 to 96 C), has a 30-second pre-infusion bloom that the Moccamaster doesn’t, and looks reasonable on a counter. The thermal carafe model keeps coffee hot without a burner. This is the machine to buy if you don’t want to spend Moccamaster money.
- The Bonavita 1900TS ($170) used to be the budget SCAA-certified pick. As of 2026 Bonavita is harder to find but worth grabbing used if you see one.
- The Behmor Brazen Plus ($230) lets you set your own brewing temperature, which is unusual at this price.
- Skip: the entry-level Mr. Coffee, Hamilton Beach, Black+Decker, and Cuisinart drip makers under about $100. They all brew under temperature. They are fine for keeping a pot warm at an office. They are not the right tool for good coffee.
One useful frame: a SCAA-certified machine costs more than a cheap one but less than a year of buying coffee shop drip coffee. The math works in under three months for most daily drinkers.
One scenario where none of the above is the right pick: brewing for a group of 15 or more. A 12-cup drip maker is the wrong tool for an event or office coffee hour. The right answer is an electric percolator urn (20 to 100 cup capacity, holds at serving temperature for hours) or a stovetop percolator if you are off-grid. The percolator brewing guide covers the technique; the coffee urn buying guide covers the unit picks by capacity.
Use enough coffee (your old recipe is probably wrong)
The biggest mistake most American home drip drinkers make is using too little coffee. The “1 tablespoon per 8 oz cup” advice that came stamped on the side of countless coffee makers (including the one I had in the office) translates to about 1:48 by weight, which is roughly half the strength a Golden Cup brew calls for. Coffee at that ratio tastes flat and sour, and the standard response is “add more water, the coffee tastes bitter,” which makes it worse.
The right ratio is 1:16 to 1:18 by weight. In practice:
- For a 10-cup brew (the typical American drip pot is rated for 10 “cups” of 5 oz / 150 ml each, totaling about 50 oz / 1.5 L of water): use 80 to 90 g (about 1 oz / 28 g, or 2 ounces by weight) of ground coffee.
- For a single mug (12 oz / 350 ml): use 22 g of ground coffee.
- For 6 cups (30 oz / 900 ml): use about 55 g, which is the SCAA’s reference standard.
If you don’t own a kitchen scale, two level tablespoons per 6 oz / 180 ml of water gets you in the right neighborhood. Hat tip to longtime reader Bill Berry, who pushed back on the original 1-tablespoon recommendation in the comments back in 2010: he was right then and he is still right. (The original version of this article also had a unit-conversion typo: “8 ounces (about 227 grams)” of water, where 227 g is actually the weight of a 1 lb bag of coffee, not 8 fl oz of water, which is closer to 237 g. The error has been fixed in this version.)
Grind size and freshness
Drip coffee wants a medium grind, similar to coarse sea salt. Too fine and the bed packs and the brew runs slow and over-extracts. Too coarse and the water runs through too fast and you get under-extracted, weak coffee. Pre-ground supermarket “drip” coffee from a recognized brand will get you in the right neighborhood without any thought.
If you want to take it a level up, buy whole bean coffee and grind right before you brew. A burr grinder is the right tool. A blade grinder is acceptable for drip (it is not for espresso). Coffee that has been ground more than about 30 minutes ago has already lost a noticeable share of its aromatic compounds. Coffee that was ground at the factory three months ago and sealed in a vacuum bag is still better than nothing, but it is not where the real flavor lives.
Avoid the open-bin coffee bean displays at supermarkets where you scoop into a paper bag. Those bins are not airtight, beans have often been sitting in them for weeks, and the result is stale coffee at fresh-coffee prices. Vacuum-sealed bags with a roast date printed on them are the better choice, even if the price is the same.
Water (the variable nobody thinks about)
Coffee is 98 percent water. The water you use is meaningfully part of the flavor. The general rule: if your tap water tastes good to drink straight, it will make good coffee. If your tap water tastes chlorinated, hard, or off, run it through a Brita pitcher or a faucet filter before brewing.
Skip distilled water and reverse-osmosis water. They lack the mineral content (calcium, magnesium) that helps extract flavor compounds from the grounds. Distilled water in a drip maker produces flat-tasting coffee even with great beans and the right machine. The SCAA actually publishes a brewing water standard with target mineral ranges; bottled “spring” water that lists mineral content on the label is usually close enough.
The actual brewing process
- Fill the reservoir with cold, filtered water. Cold not hot. Drip makers are designed to heat water from cold; loading hot water can damage the temperature sensor.
- Drop a paper filter into the basket and rinse it briefly with hot water from your tap. This removes any paper taste and pre-warms the basket. Dump the rinse water before brewing.
- Add ground coffee at the ratio above. Level the bed with a finger or a spoon so the water hits evenly.
- Start the brew. If your machine has a “bloom” or pre-infusion setting (OXO, Behmor), use it. If not, no harm done.
- Wait for the brew to finish. Total brew time should be 4 to 6 minutes for a 10-cup pot. If yours runs faster, your grind is too coarse; if it runs much slower, too fine.
- Decant immediately into a thermal carafe (or just pour the cup and turn off the warming plate). Coffee left on a hot plate for more than 20 minutes goes bitter and burnt. This is the single most fixable thing in a typical American household coffee setup.
Paper vs. permanent filters
Paper filters produce a cleaner cup. They absorb the diterpene oils in coffee (cafestol and kahweol) that can raise LDL cholesterol, and they catch fines that would otherwise pass into the cup. They cost two or three cents apiece and the cleanup is “drop the filter and grounds into the compost.”
Gold-tone permanent filters cost more upfront, last for years, and let the coffee oils through, giving you a slightly richer, fuller-bodied cup. The trade-off is cleanup (rinse the filter, dump the grounds) and the cholesterol effect if that matters to you. There is no wrong answer here; it is a personal preference. The original version of this article recommended paper exclusively, which is the safer default but not the only good choice. Reader feedback on this point has been mixed for years.
Cleaning and descaling
Coffee oils cling to every surface they touch and turn rancid within a few days at room temperature. A clean drip maker makes meaningfully better coffee than a dirty one, and the difference is more noticeable than people expect.
- Every brew: rinse the carafe and filter basket with hot water. No soap unless something is genuinely greasy; coffee oils season the pot.
- Once a week: wash the carafe, lid, and basket with soap and water and let them air-dry. Wipe down the shower head (the underside of the lid above the basket, where most people never look) with a damp cloth.
- Once a month: descale by running a full reservoir of half white vinegar and half water through the machine, then two cycles of plain water to rinse. If you live somewhere with hard water, descale every two to three weeks.
Common mistakes
- The machine. If you are using a cheap drip maker that doesn’t hit 195 to 205 F (90 to 96 C), no amount of bean upgrading will fix the cup. This is the most common single failure mode and the hardest to diagnose without a thermometer.
- Using too little coffee. See the ratio section. American “1 tablespoon per 8 oz cup” is roughly half-strength.
- Leaving coffee on the warming plate. 20 minutes is the rough cutoff. After that, the cup goes bitter fast. Move to a thermal carafe or just drink what you’ve poured and brew fresh.
- The “brew pause” mid-brew. Pulling the carafe to grab a cup before brewing finishes gives you a too-strong first cup and a too-weak rest of the pot. The first water through extracts most of the flavor compounds; the later water is more of a rinse. Let it finish.
- Distilled or RO water. Flat coffee. Use filtered tap or bottled spring water.
- Skipping descaling. Mineral buildup inside the machine slows brewing and lowers brewing temperature over time. A machine that brewed great a year ago and tastes flat now is usually just dirty inside.
Troubleshooting
- Sour, weak, thin coffee: almost always under-extraction. Increase coffee dose first (try 1:15), then check grind (try finer), then descale the machine to rule out temperature drop.
- Bitter, harsh coffee: over-extraction. Reduce dose (try 1:18), check grind (try coarser), and decant immediately when brewing finishes. Also stop using the brew pause.
- Coffee with grounds in the carafe: the paper filter is folded incorrectly or your grind is too fine. Re-fold the filter so it sits flush in the basket. Use a coarser grind.
- Lukewarm coffee out of a hot machine: the machine isn’t hitting target temperature. Either the heating element is failing or the machine is descaled-overdue. If descaling doesn’t fix it, the machine is the problem.
- Coffee tastes great fresh but flat 20 minutes later: get a thermal carafe. The hot plate is cooking the coffee.
- Different machines, same beans, very different cups: brewing temperature. The cheaper machine is probably under-extracting.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the best drip coffee maker under $100?
There isn’t one I’d recommend. The cheapest reliable SCAA-certified machines start around $170 (used Bonavita) or $200 new (OXO Brew 9-Cup). Below that price, you are buying a hot-water maker, not a coffee maker. The Mr. Coffee, Hamilton Beach, Black+Decker, and budget Cuisinart machines all underperform on brewing temperature in independent testing.
Is the Moccamaster really worth $300?
If you brew coffee daily and the cup matters to you, yes. The machine is overbuilt, brews at the right temperature for the full life of the unit, and has a 5-year warranty that the company actually honors. If you brew once or twice a week, the OXO Brew 9-Cup at $200 is the smarter buy and the cup difference is small.
How much coffee per cup, really?
About 1 tablespoon (7 g) per 5 oz / 150 ml of water, or roughly 2 tablespoons per 12 oz / 350 ml mug. That is the SCAA Golden Cup ratio. The “1 tablespoon per 8 oz” advice printed on the side of older coffee makers produces weak coffee and is one of the reasons American drip has a bad reputation.
Can I make good coffee with pre-ground supermarket beans?
Yes, if the beans are from a vacuum-sealed bag with a recent roast date and you are not trying to win awards. The drop-off from whole bean ground-this-morning to a fresh bag of supermarket pre-ground is real but small. The drop-off from supermarket pre-ground to an open-bin scoop-your-own at a busy market is significant. Avoid the latter.
What about French drip / chicory / New Orleans style?
It is a real and excellent tradition, and the comment thread on this article has been arguing about the details since 2009 (hat tip to Alan Durfee, Chris Healy, and several others). New Orleans-style French drip uses a porcelain-enameled multi-chamber pot, a dark coffee-and-chicory blend, and a slow hand-pour technique. It is closer to a pour-over than to a modern drip machine, and it produces a strong, smooth, chicory-tinged cup that pairs well with milk. If you have access to a Café du Monde or Community Coffee dark roast with chicory and you want to try it, you can do it on any pour-over setup; you don’t need the specialized pot. The cup is its own thing and worth experiencing once.
Does coffee oxidize quickly once brewed?
Yes. A brewed pot held at brewing temperature on a hot plate degrades noticeably within 20 minutes and is unpleasant after about 45. A brewed pot decanted into a thermal carafe stays drinkable for 2 to 4 hours. The thermal carafe is the single biggest small upgrade you can make to a drip-coffee setup that already has a decent machine.
Why does my coffee taste different from one day to the next using the same beans?
Variables that change without you noticing: water (chlorination levels in tap water vary), bean freshness (week 1 vs. week 3 of an open bag is a real difference), dose (eyeballed tablespoons vary 20 to 30 percent), machine temperature (cheaper machines drift), and how long the pot sat before you poured. Brew at the same ratio by weight, with filtered water, on a clean machine, and the cup-to-cup variation drops to almost nothing.
Why this article changed
The original version of this article ran from 2007 to 2026 and accumulated 74 comments, many of which corrected or added to the practical advice it contained. The version you just read folds in what those readers taught us: the SCAA temperature standard most consumer machines miss (NewsView, 2010), the ratio correction from 1 tablespoon per 8 oz to something closer to the Golden Cup standard (Bill Berry, 2010; Tome Trajkovski, 2019), the New Orleans French drip tradition (Alan Durfee and Chris Healy, 2009), and the cleaning and descaling protocols that the original article only glanced at. It also fixes a unit-conversion typo where “8 ounces” of water was equated with “227 g” (the weight of a 1 lb coffee bag, not 8 fl oz of water). The thread is still open. If you have refinements, please add them.
Discussion 96
RE: comment 29 from ‘E’
Yes, grinding the same coffee finer will produce a ‘stronger’ cup of coffee because you are increasing the surface area of the coffee that comes into contact with the coffee. Reiss
Here is a suggestion for many of you.
Simply combine the method of the French Press (Coffee submerged in a glass with plunger and screen) which many of you may be aware of, and the standard automatic or manual drip method.
Using a Melita portable Drip Coffee Maker (Larger one with the carafe)
Simply plug the hole of the Cone basket from underneath with something………That can be easily removed.
Let’s use 24oz. of coffee as an example.
Make your coffee as you ordinarily would, perhaps using 1 tbsp of coffee per 6 oz. of water and heating up your own water to boiling…..pour it into a measuring cup……..let is sit for a few seconds to bring it under the boiling temp………to about 200 degrees.
Pour 24 oz. of water into the cone basket. Perhaps the full 24 oz. won’t fit.
Now, combining the french press and drip methods…….Let the hot water sit in the basket for at least 5 minutes or so……….Then pick carefully pick up the basket by the handle….carefully unplug the hole at the bottom of the basket and let the brewed coffee drip out. You can then add any of the remaining water as the water level in the basket lowers.
I actually widened the opening at the bottom so that the water will drip out much faster after having settled in the basket with the coffee for about 5 minutes.
Quick review……….Plug the bottom of your portable Melita Drip Coffee Maker…..Carafe Version (Available at Super Markets)
Add your coffee…….Boil your own water and pour it into your measuring cup…Let it sit for few seconds to slightly cool down to approx 200 degrees.
Let the coffee and the hot water sit in the basket for 5 minutes or so………Then carefully unplug the hole………and let the coffee drip into the carafe.
Pretty simple…….and makes a HUGE difference.
You can experiment with different times and quantities.
I am related to robert the bruce! small world! I too love luzanne and french market! I am looking for a stainless french press, because I like to savor my coffee and not rush the experience and I think the stainless well keep the coffee hotter longer?
this dscussion was interesting from a historical point of view, but im thinking that you are all missing the point. To make a quick and excellent cup pf coffee the best process is still the ‘FRENCH PRESS” IT IS FOOLPROOF AND YOU CAN END THE 1/2/3 MEASURE CONTROVERSY SIMPLY BY ADJUSTING UNTIL YOU GET THE FLAVOR/STRENGth that you like.
My french press is one ive had for years, dragging it from cape cod to cananda to florida…no wired..no batteries..no mistrakes, ever!”
I prefer chickory in my coffee..luzanne and french market are my favs of commercial blends…i also buy chickory from COMMUNiTY COFFEE online and try it mixed with various coffees as my fancy hits me…chickory is around $2.50 per 12 oz and i usually use 13 chickory to 2/3 coffee.
if you dont own a french press u should..it wll never wear out and is usually made of this pyrex like glass that is very strurdy..maybe even unbreakable (but i hate to tempt fate)
i also use amr coffee type maker for larger consumption but they only last us about a year or 2 nomatter how cheap or how expensive.
when im alone,,its the french press for me..drip goes in trash…when i have visitors i go to wally world and get a $20 drip and it usually out lasts the guests..then into the trash!
lastly, i started my love affair with chickory at cafe dumand in n’oleans..only srever perfect at 5am with half hot milk!..still the best along with a mound of benes!
robert the bruce
I am looking for a French Drip coffee pot. I saw a couple of people on here have found them. Where did you find one? My cousin is getting married in New Orleans soon & I’d love to get one for her! Thanks!
# Sue Says:
February 5th, 2010 at 7:28 pm
I would like to know why if I use a paper filter or one I bought to set into the coffee area.
I always end up with grounds in my coffee pot.
Thanks Sue
Hi, Sue. The coffee brew is coming out of a single little hole in the bottom of the basket. This is to slow down the outgoing trickle, so most or all of the grounds will be immersed in hot water at the same time.
(This is actually the most efficient way to make coffee, which is why the water only has to pass through once, and why drip coffee has the highest caffeine content of any type of coffee.)
But if you use too fine a grind of coffee grounds in an auto-drip coffee maker, it “traps” too much water at once, slowing its trickle down too much. Then the water will tend to overflow over the sides of the paper basket, and bring some grounds into the hole with it.
Even worse, the too-fine grounds tend to form a “mud” in the basket. When this mud overflows the paper and gets down to the drain hole, it can clog it up — sending water and grounds over the sides of the brewing basket too, and onto the counter or floor!
So more is not always better. If you’re grinding your own, don’t overdo it; and if you’re buying it ground, go for medium grind rather than fine. It should be slightly grainy, rather than powdery. A powdery fine grind will compact too much. An espresso pump can push water through the compacted powder; but mere gravity and drip can’t.
One other thing can cause the brew to overflow: using the wrong size paper filter! If the machine calls for #6, don’t use #4; etc.
Cheers,
David
After good reviews from Consumer Reports, I purchased this machine. Used it three times and returned it. It leaked water on the counter top, didn’t keep coffee hot and I had to use the flavor button, plus twice the amount of coffee grounds that I use with current coffee maker to get a reasonably strong cup of coffee. Cord is too short and it is difficult to pour the last bit of coffee from pot due to the way it is designed. And if you try to get a cup of coffee before it is through brewing, it leaks coffee onto the warming pad. The Braun coffee pot I currently have is a much superior coffee maker that costs less. Would not recommend purchase of this machine.
My wife and I have owned a coffee maker since the day we met; 14 years and we’ll be replacing it with it’s new counterpart. Of us who own this type of maker understand in 3 minutes your coffee will be ready unless you use the “decaffienated” tap (lack of a better word) which slows the amount of water passing to the grounds. The current thinking today is 2 tablespoons not 1 tablespoon per 5 oz cup of coffee though when 5 or 6 oz. became a cup I have no idea (isn’t a cup 8 oz.) and who has 5 oz. coffee cups?
Alton Brown of Good Eats aired an episode which he also inferred that each 5 oz. cup of coffee requires 2 tablespoons as well as Starbucks. In our hourse it’s been a 1:1 ratio up to we began reading the labels on coffee; the bottom line is if you own your own grinder as we do we use whole beans; generally from Sam’s Club which sells Starbucks and other generic brands that are rated in the high 80s but the really good stuff is going to be expensive at wherever your local coffee shop might be and of course, online. Personally, I like a coarse grind; my wife medium, but the grind will determine how much coffee you’re going to need.
It’s simple math when you’re making just one or two cups and the size of our cups is 16 oz. and 18 oz. of coffee so in my case 4 tablespoons go in the basket. It is not an exact science. The bigger the pot the more exotic the math gets.
The reason is how much water do you want to pass over your grinds and for how long. One or two cups is easy math; a pot is balancing act between flavor and bitterness and to avoid bitterness you’re talking about a serious amount of coffee and then the question becomes permanent or paper filter and is it big enough to hold the grounds; remember 3 minutes is likely to fill your filter all the way up with grounds when you’re making a full pot. I use the “restricter” decaf tap but it too will change the strength of your coffee.
The bottom line is you have to manipulate what is good for you, not what is on the label. There is no hard rule about a good cup of coffee; we all have our quirks. The rule however for coffee strengths is constant – one is the roast and how dark and the darker..the stronger to bitter.
I prefer coarse as I just said a moment ago and while it requires more coffee grinded it’s flavor and aroma is 2nd to none; but that’s me. We own a Cuisinart grinder and we generally make our coffee to different strenghs, but that’s us. For the moment I’m dying to get my hands on a good espresso maker that won’t break the bank; any idea?
Thanks and all have a wonderful day/evening; take care!
Need some advice about the grind. We have had a Krups blade grinder forever. Just got a Capresso burr grinder for my birthday. We use a Cuisinart drip with paper filters. Both like dark coffee.
I have read that I should be grinding coarse of medium/coarse. Wife believes grinding fine will lead to a stronger cup. Any advice???
Thanks!
I would like to know why if I use a paper filter or one I bought to set into the coffee area.
I always end up with grounds in my coffee pot.
Thanks Sue
I have gone through several automatic coffeemakers over the past few years seeking the Holy Grail of a good, strong, hot cup of coffee. I’ve tried Cuisinart, Mr. Coffee, Capresso, Black and Decker. No success. The best was an old-style Melita grind-and-brew that’s no longer made, and unfortunately finally broke.
They all seem to break, leak, produce weak or cool coffee. One even produced bad smelling coffee!
I use Gevalia, grind it myself and toy with the proportions of grounds ans water.
From another website, a Technivorm Moccamaster seemed a good/expensive bet – then I read reviews and found it easily leaks and doesn’t pour properly.
friends had a ceramic pot with a ceramic grounds holder that sat into the top and a water holder on top of that (a true drip pot) Terriffic coffee, but I can’t locate one like it (antique).
What should/can I do to get that perfect cup of coffee?
TEMPERATURE
I agree with Karen, #22. The automatic drip coffeemaker manufacturers don’t publish their design specifications on how hot an optimally functioning machine should get. That leaves the guesswork up to us. You can get automatic drip coffee fresh brewed into a carafe anywhere from 150 – 180 depending on the brand. Mr. Coffee seems to settle around 165, whereas KRUPS and Cuisinart dispense slightly hotter (170-175). Not sure about BUNNs because I have no direct experience with that brand, but most users report that those brew a very hot cup ‘o joe.
Karen has a point, here, however. We all know the optimal temp for proper extraction if we’ve read anything on the web (just below boiling. However, there is only one Dutch-made coffeemaker endorsed by the trade association for achieving this. Which implies that results with other machines will be hit or miss, with variation in brew and extraction temps even between machines with identical model numbers. It also seems to diminish the flavor/heat when an automatic drip coffeemaker is beginning to wear out or scale over inside from infrequent cleaning. It’s vitally important to descale with diluted white vinegar religiously!
AROMA
Moreover, what is the significance of the “smell test”, which is to say if your coffee tastes bad and your grounds smell burnt, is it getting *too* hot. Can you tell by the odor of the used grounds anything about how little or how much extraction, and can it be a reliable troubleshooting method? This, too, is something I’ve never read anything about, but conceivably it might yield some clues as to how well an automatic drip machine is running.
SEMANTICS
RE: #21
Alan, the key word here is the word “AUTOMATIC”, as in automatic drip coffeemaker. That is the industry nomenclature, and has been since the early 1970s. You are confusing Jeremy, and others here, by leaving a critical modifier out.
Second, do not put hot water into your automatic drip coffeemaker (in answer to a previous question).
ON TOPIC
To those going off on tangents about non-automatic drip brewing methods (Alan, etc.): Please stay on topic! The subject on *this page* is the use of an automatic drip coffeemaker, the type most people are going to have questions about. You don’t need to tell the “coffee snob” how to do other types of brews or even the pros and cons between them because they’ve already made up their minds. The article on this page is going to be useful to new coffee drinkers and/or people trying to figure out if there is any way to get their new automatic drip machine to produce a more flavorful brew. Personally, every time I start with a new automatic drip coffeemaker, I find myself having to experiment with the coarseness of the grind, the amount measured out per cup and to also account for the fact that some automatic drip coffeemaker manufacturers define a cup as 5 oz whereas other brands a “cup” is 6 oz (but never a standard 8 oz size).
A CUP IS NOT A CUP
The article here, in this instance, doesn’t even touch on the havoc it plays when one realizes that their 10-cup automatic drip coffeemaker is actually making only 6.25 8 oz cups (5 oz), or for a 12-cup Mr. Coffee, at a presumed 6 oz measure, a total per pot of just nine 8 oz cups. That’s why the measurement you use for one coffee machine may not produce similar results for another. One might be using a 5 oz cup, and the other 6.
So here’s the deal, folks: The New Orleans style coffee is fascinating, but it is off topic. Moreover, for those who want to talk about the percolators that some people hate and others love, there’s a separate page on this site just for that topic.
ARE THERMAL COFFEEMAKERS A POOR CHOICE FOR BEST TASTE?
I would like to see comments here where people share their best tips for a good cup of coffee using an *automatic drip coffeemakeer*, either the conventional glass decanter type or the stainless steel thermal variety.
Example: I have found that brewing from an automatic drip coffee machine into a stainless steel thermal carafe gradually imparts a somewhat “old coffee” taste to the all-metal carafe, despite using baking soda, dish soap and vinegar to clean the carafe with each and every use. I once bought a certified KRUPS refurb stainless steel thermal carafe model from a mainstream retail store and even straight from the factory it smelled of old coffee associated with prior use. Then, when I recently purchased a Cuisinart DTC-975, the coffee odor began to cling to the inside of the thermal carafe from the very first use and no amount of soaking and cleaning has made it as “odor neutral” — like-new smelling — as my old machine using a glass carafe. There has to be a negative impact to the coffee flavor when just ONE USE will make the receptacle into which it brews start smelling stale or off. With continued use, I suspect the coffee itself can’t be far behind. Or at least that is *my* theory — and most recent disappointment since I was looking forward to the thermal design carafe in pursuit of coffee that wasn’t “baked” on a warming plate.
I use white vinigar to clean my coffeemakers. And to clean lime. Just as effective, less dangerous than CLR
I would disagree with Alan’s excellent instructions on a few opints. First, for good, traditional New Orleans coffee, one must use coffee and chicory–the darker the better–but the tastes are changing from the old Creole preferences to more “American” standards. I like Union, CDM, and French Market (particularly the City Roast rather than the Creole Roast, although both are good), finding Community New Orleans Blend somewhat light. Second, boiling water is a no-no: place the French drip pot (la grégue) in a saucepan of simmering water, then use a teaspoon of that water at a time to drip through the gounds. Keep the pot in the simmering water to keep the coffee warm, but be aware that it will strenghthen over time.
The coffee itself can be drunk in two ways, either as cafe au lait (a half-and-half mixture with scalded milk) or straight in a demitasse. If you are familiar with Cuban coffee as either cafe con leche or cafe cubano, you have the general principle. My Oklahoma ex-inlaws used to call my coffee “starter coffee” because they had to mix it with water.
My own five-piece pot is a different design than Alan’s, for my bottom filter is flat, with a lifting handle (so a paper filter is not an option), while the top filter (more of a disperser) is rounded.
to jeremy –
yes, using hot water in a drip coffee maker may damage it. It is heating up the water internally, and doesn’t know how hot the water you are supplying will be, so if you put in 120 degree or hotter water, it’ll heat it up beyond the proper temperature for brewing coffee – so it’ll brew incorrectly and may get too hot internally.
by the way, the best machine to use for consistent results and no hassles is a bunn pour-over model.
good luck
You want decent if not great coffee? Please don’t use an electric anything!
If you must use an “electric” drip pot, then it will heat its own water. You don’t start with hot water.
As I said before, read my first post. There i no need for confusion. If you must use an elecrtic “something”, then get a modern one of some sort, not an old aluminum or stainless antique.
Alan
Wow the more I read about coffee makers the more confused I am! How hot should the water be in an electric drip coffee maker?
Jeremy,
you have the wrong idea about what a drip coffe maker is. You MUST use hot (boiling water). any maker that requires cold water, is some type of percolator, NOT a drip coffee maker. And percolators, by design, require power to operate. A drip maker (at least the only ones I have ever used) do not need power.
see my April 25th post above.
can you put hot water into a drip coffee maker….i have heard that if you use hot water instead of cold water it will ruin the coffee maker…true or false…”?
Mine has started leaking from the resourvoir before it’s made. I can’t find my manual. Is there a cure for this? HELP??
I just scored a new old stock biggin from Normandy France on Ebay. In it’s original tissue paper and box. A note on home grinders making a fine grind, you must invest in a good burr grinder to be able to do this. I used to have a Hamilton Beach burr grinder and it would make a grind as fine as talcum powder for expresso. Just my .02 cents.
I do not like strong coffee, so I use two heaping scoops for 12 cups of coffee.
Please allow me to take exception to Mr. Durfee’s take on New Orleans French drip coffee preparation. First, chicory is simply a matter of taste.
If you grew up drinking it daily as cafe au lait it creates the fondest of memories if you now live in Texas and drink some of the dish water they call coffee here. I would say that most New Orleanians would agree that a tablespoon of coffee per 6 ozs. of water plus a tablespoon for the pot would satisfy most New Orleans coffee drinkers. Of course, tastes vary and some might like it stronger or weaker.
I have seen some people add the water one tablespoon at a time but this really tests one’s patience. The best advise is to just take your time adding the water. No place in the U.S. made better coffee than New Orleans but things are changing now.
PLEASE: I need a simple formula for my Mr. Coffee automatic drip machine. Mine is a 12 cup pot BUT each of those cups are only 5 oz. What I would truly appreciate is a formula for Strong Coffee and one for Medium Coffee based on the 5oz. cup. Any takers here? Thank you!
this is diet and coke we are 11 years old and we just stayed up ALL NIGHT and we NEEEEED coffee b4 we crash! and we dont know how to make coffee but diets mom has a coffee maker and we dont know how to make coffee with it and this is NOOOOO HELP! u wasted my time!
I just bought this coffeemaker but it didn’t come with the filter that I believe (from the manual) is supposed to be in the water container. I can’t seem to find out how to obtain this filter. Please help!
I was trying to purchase Costa Rica coffee online. I saw that they have dark roast and light roast. If I want mideum roast, does it mean I can mix half each or dark and light roast?
To: R.Soni Talton
Percolators are with a doubt the very last type of coffee maker you should ever consider. They recirculate the coffee by *Boiling* it, which is an absolute no-no. Not only that, but most of them allow you keep the coffee hot by continuoous heating. Double bad!
Please don’t!
to Jewel or anyone
Please! Where on the web can I find one of these pots? I too am from New Orleans and have memories of that very slow drip method. I have a small pot (almost 8″) and it has only one filter. Better results than anything electric of course, and, moreover those all break. Have even been considering stove-top percolator…would want a well-made one…any comments there? Thanks
To Jewel
Glad you were able to find the complete French Drip Coffee Maker. Hard to come by and a lot of the new (overseas) junk out there is not worth having. Are there more where yours came from?
Bottom strainer is the rounded one; top one is flat.
I wouldn’t get too uptight about hard water deposits (if you get them). A little white vinegar soak does wonders-every now and then.
Please let us know how it works for you.
Where did the term “biggin” come from? Never heard that in my years of drinking the nectar that comes out of one of these things.
I haven’t had a decent cup of coffee now for about 25 years now. Oh well!
Reply to Alan Durfee: I just located and purchased an original 5 part porcelain. All parts are porcelain including all strainers. It is white with black trim and about 10 inches tall. I had gone to the web to discover why there were 2 strainers inside the biggin. From a coffee lover.
It leaks water on the counter.
I have been somewhat disappointed with this coffee maker. It drips when the pot is removed to fill a cup and then leaks excessively when the filter basket is removed. I have not been impressed at all.
REALLY GOOD COFFEE?
Forget anything with a cord on it or any procedure which reheats coffee once made.
I grew up in New Orleans, and everyone on both sides of family made coffee every day using a 5-part porcelain-enameled French-Drip pot. My Mother (God Bless her) made coffee this way seven days a week for over 70 years (and she was not a coffee drinker).
Please note that you have to REALLY care about your coffee and your family to go through this routine:
1)Use what they used to call “fine-grind” coffee (drip-grind is too coarse), whatever brand you prefer. And PLEASE DO NOT use chicory flavoring.
Note, I don’t think that home-type grinders can get it this fine, but I am not sure.
2) insert bottom strainer in upper section of pot, and line with one-layer of filter paper.
3) *pack* in as much coffee as the section will hold using wooden spoon handle or old wooden potato masher which fits, and set this assembly on lower section of pot.
4) insert upper strainer on top of coffee.
5) while you are preparing breakfast, slowly add boiling water (it will definitely be slow)over a 30-45 minute period. In between water addition, be sure to put lid on upper section.
6) please note that this pot is NEVER, EVER placed on a burner.
7. what you now have in lower section of pot is a thick coffee liqueur-*very* strong.
8. Now, to suit taste, add SMALL amount of liqueur to your coffee cup and top off with either boiling water or hot milk, or combination.
9. you have now reached coffee nirvana.
10. take whatever is not used for breakfast and put in small jar with lid and refrigerate. It will be just as good tomorrow.
Prior admonitions about hard water use is contrary to good coffee. Filtered, or bottled will NOT give you the taste benefits derived from your local water supply (certain municipalties excepted). As far as hard-water deposit clean-up, that’s no big deal. A little vinegar every now and then does does the trick.
Note that I haven’t been able to find an original (typically manuf. from 20’s to early 50’s), complete 5-piece pot as described in many years, and I do look occasionally.
They also used to make china French Drip pots with 3-pieces, but they will not work nearly as well.
Not for the faint-of-heart, or the lazy or the time-restricted person, for sure. My guarantee-you WILL be spoiled forever more.
Bon Appetit!
Coffee/Water measurement. Using an ordinary drip coffeemaker (Mr Coffee 12 cup) and ordinary ground coffee (Community-Dark Roast),I use four level coffee scoops, and ordinary tap water. A little rounded scoop of coffee makes a big difference in strength, so measure carefully. I then pour the coffee into a thermos,as soon as it finishes brewing, and drink it all day long. Usually make a half-pot in the afternoon by adding two scoops of grounds to the rest and seven measures of water. The key is the coffee and the level scoop measurement.
Is this coffee maker offered with a thermal carafe?
195-205 according to C.S.
can this coffee maker be cleaned with CLR? That is calcium, lime and rust., for those who live in areas with high mineral content in their water.
I’d like to know if you ever found the coffeemaker in white. Amazon only shows it in black, and so far can’t find it in white anywhere…
does this have an automatic shut off option?
Actually, the drip basket is removable. Just lift the handle and pull it out.
Jay Says:
December 5th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
I’m confused on the amount of coffee grounds per ounce of water. I like mine pretty strong and usually end up drinking it black. Any suggestions?
A coffee scoop
measured out these 2 tablespoons
1 ounce
a standard rule, one scoop of coffee and a 6 ounce cup
there can be different rules,
depending on either fixing it
manual drip
French press
or automatic trip information I give you here is for the automatic trip
automatic trip
this is the best coffee i have ever tasted!!! good job.
I’m confused on the amount of coffee grounds per ounce of water. I like mine pretty strong and usually end up drinking it black. Any suggestions?
When cleaning the coffee pot put a little bit
of baking soda in a drop of dish soap
makes them both together so they become a paste
this will clean out the oils and freshen the pot every time you will notice a difference
Enjoyed this article. Reminded me of my ‘corporate’ days, where coffee etiquette was of utmost importance! Thanks for the walk down memory lane :)
It’s not “better” or “easier” use paper filters. That’s totally subjective. Also, it’s not 1 Tbsp per 8 oz of water — that’s very very weak coffee. It’s more like 1 Tbsp per 5 oz of water.
Had this coffee maker for about two months, loved it, until this morning it would not brew. I had it set for wake up coffee at 5:50am, got out of bed, and nothing. Hit the brew button and nothing. Everything was plugged in and snug…tried many times to get some coffee to brew this morning and NOTHING! Ugh, not happy…
This is a great article overall, but there is one more major aspect to making a good pot of coffee that needs to be mentioned for two reasons: 1) taste, and 2) successful operation of the coffee maker. I am referring to the correct grind, which should be medium grind for most coffee makers. A grind that is too fine may taste weak or bitter, and it may also clog the filter and thereby cause the overflow problems that many people complain about in coffee maker reviews.
This is an amazing product. Reading this article makes me want to buy one in Amazon right away! Very informative!