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Coffee maker for a kitchen

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Magiccarp View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Magiccarp Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Coffee maker for a kitchen
    Posted: 15 January 2020 at 00:04

An interesting topic that happened to be started by a spammer....

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Hoser Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 January 2020 at 03:43
We have used many coffee makers over the years, from Mr. Coffee to Braun and other pricier models. They all seem to make pretty good coffee. I guess the downside is you make a full pot and wind up throwing away quite a bit of leftover coffee....after it sits there for awhile it's just not the same.  At the firehouse, we had a commercial Bunn coffee maker and it was great. (we practically lived on coffee when on shift) but they are not practical and way pricey for home use.

Now at home I use a Keurig K-cup machine and love it. Upside: freshly brewed coffee each cup in seconds, and no wasted coffee. Downside: Not eco-friendly at all...generating a lot of non-biodegradable waste going into our environment. 

Don't know if this helps you at all....but that's my slant on it.

And welcome to the forum Smile
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote HistoricFoodie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 January 2020 at 06:33
Welcome to Foods of the World, Alex.  I hope we'll be hearing more from you. Just jump right in to existing threads, or start one or three of your own.  

Coffee is my one big vice. A day without coffee is a day without sunshine, far as I'm concerned.

Through the years we've used just about every type coffee maker there is, from stove-top percs and manual drips to the most high-tech, digitally controlled machines that do everything but change the diapers and walk the dog.

In my opinion, based on all that, you just can't beat a French press. Inexpensive and simple to use, they come in various sizes. But they all work on the same principle: Ground coffee is steeped in a glass carafe. A plunger is used to then compress and strain the grounds. Voila! The perfect cup!




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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote gracoman Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 January 2020 at 09:07
Ahhh, coffee!  Giver of life.  Sandman slayer...

Do what you will, but don't screw with my morning cuppa, my Joe, my Java, my mud, my go juice.

First one must decide on what technique best suits them.  There are only a few but they differ greatly in price and quality. 

A visit to your local barista is great if you have the time, inclination and a fat wallet.  I have none of those so make mine at home. 

So basically pour over, pressed or machine.  The first two are more time consuming but give a better result. I prefer a French press but that's just me and the HistoricFoodie.  You may be cut from a different cloth.  To each his own I say.

One can spend as much on a machine as one would like but I'll take a pass on that stuff.  I'm not a crazy coffee person, just a plain ole everyday coffee person.  Yes, taste is important but come on.  Let's get real about this stuff.

I've gone through several glass presses.  You know, the Bodum types.  They wear out, the glass breaks, and they don't keep coffee warm at all.  So, I finally broke down and bought an Espro double walled stainless press.  It is my preferred method, but for every day stuff, I also own a one cup Techni-Vorm Mocca-Master which is basically an automatic pour over machine.  Everybody can choose their own poison with this machine.

I can plunge the Espro and leave the ground in the carafe as it automatically seals them against further extraction.  It keeps the coffee hot and has a screen system that keeps spent grounds out of the coffee.  It can also be used with a filter should you desire a cleaner cup of mud.  And, like all presses, can also be used to brew tea.  My Espro has an available second filter method for brewing tea so there in no taste crossover.

My Techni-Vorm

My Espro and coffee grinder shown with a freshly made jug of cold brew.  Did I forget to mention presses also make great cold brew coffee?  Oops.

My one cup Melitta cone (green) shown next to my brown Techni-Vorm cone.  The difference in exit hole size makes a big difference in extraction time.

The Melitta cone is my go-to backpacking coffee maker.  I also own a large Melitta cone for camping that can brew 1 1/2 quarts at a time.  I set this over a large pre-heated stainless double-walled carafe.  No pics of that but here's one of my one cup backpacking method.

Don't get me started on espresso, cappuccino, Turkish or Vietnamese coffee.  Ugh, gotta go... this morning's cup #2 is ready.....




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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote pitrow Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 January 2020 at 12:31
Originally posted by Hoser Hoser wrote:

Now at home I use a Keurig K-cup machine and love it. Upside: freshly brewed coffee each cup in seconds, and no wasted coffee. Downside: Not eco-friendly at all...generating a lot of non-biodegradable waste going into our environment.


Not to side-track the thread, but I too have resorted to a k-cup machine because I often have several cups throughout the day but by the time remember to go back for another cup the carafe is cold and nasty. Anyway I just wanted to say, if you look around you'll be able to find k-cups that are fully biodegradable. Lately I've been getting Boyd's brand and the k-cups have a top like a normal k-cup but the bottom is just a mesh bag with the coffee in it. So much less waste to begin with, and if you can believe their boxes the whole thing is 100% compostable. They are not the only ones I've seen with a similar boast.
Mike
Life in PitRow - My often neglected, somewhat eccentric, occasionally outstanding blog
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote gracoman Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 January 2020 at 19:18
Originally posted by pitrow pitrow wrote:


Not to side-track the thread, but I too have resorted to a k-cup machine because I often have several cups throughout the day but by the time remember to go back for another cup the carafe is cold and nasty. Anyway I just wanted to say, if you look around you'll be able to find k-cups that are fully biodegradable. Lately I've been getting Boyd's brand and the k-cups have a top like a normal k-cup but the bottom is just a mesh bag with the coffee in it. So much less waste to begin with, and if you can believe their boxes the whole thing is 100% compostable. They are not the only ones I've seen with a similar boast.
The waste and dependence on k-cups is why I went with the one-cup TechniVorm.  Those things, the small footprint, the 5 year unconditional warranty and Techni-Vorm's quality and reputation. It uses #2 coffee filters I buy at Trader Joe's for $2.00/hundred. I'm supposed to use #1 filters but #2 work fine.  And I can buy any coffee I want. My last one-cup coffee brewer was a Cuisinart.  It was big, obnoxiously loud, and broke after 2 years.  I get tired of buying things twice.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote HistoricFoodie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16 January 2020 at 06:08
 automatically seals them against further extraction

Likely the most important aspect of presses. It not only seals the liquid from the grounds, the built-in filter also removes much of the bitter oils.

They wear out, the glass breaks, and they don't keep coffee warm at all.

Oddly enough, I've never broken the glass on one.  But you're right, they do wear out. But they're cheap enough, nowadays, that replacing them isn't onerous.  

Thanks for the tip on the Espro, G-man.  I'm unfamiliar with it, but it sounds great, and I'm going to check them out. 
But we hae meat and we can eat
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote gracoman Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 16 January 2020 at 11:27
Bodum press parts are also available so no need to buy the whole set up again. A local hardware store here carries them.  Says something about Bodum longevity. I found out about this when my daughter broke the glass in the Bodum press I gave her.  It wuz a 'spensive fancy-schmancy Bodum press that had the strange word Starbucks engraved into the handle.  Guess where I bought that.  Ugh Starbucks.  The place where all coffees taste the same.

The Espro has features I've not seen anywhere else.  That said, I bought my Espro several years ago and that may have changed.  I know Bodum started making a double walled stainless steel pot but don't know much more about it than that.

Espro is a Canadian product and I bought one on the advice of a friend who lives in Nova Scotia.  It is one of the better things I've purchased.  These days, I'm always amazed when a product does what it advertises.

The Espro has a double basket plunger that insures no grounds will make it into your cup.  It also has a paper filter option for cleaner coffee if that is what you are looking for.  Pictured below is the double basket plunger set up.  You can see the sealing gasket along the top of the third basket from the left.  Furthest to the left is my tea plunger accessory.  That has never been used.  Call me crazy I prefer tea served in glass mugs or cups from a glass tea pot.

This pic shows how the optional paper filter is installed.  I sometimes use this for hot coffee but always use it for cold brew.

Paper filter correctly installed

These units are not cheap but it should last forever and it is beautiful enough to deserve counter space.  I have, however, noticed the price has dropped since I bought mine and they do go on sale.

My one cup Bodum press is reserved for chai and rehydrating dried mushrooms.



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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote HistoricFoodie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 17 January 2020 at 17:30
Anyone thinking about an Espro really needs to shop around. Just a cursory search showed prices ranging from $32 to $45.  That's a 33+% spread.  

It's definately on my list!
But we hae meat and we can eat
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote HistoricFoodie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 February 2021 at 01:52
I think a coffee maker is a thing that is better not to save money so that you do not regret the money spent in vain.

Not just coffee, Tracey. My daddy used to say, "never be afraid to buy the best. You won't be disappointed."  I've found that to be true in most things, but especially kitchen tools and appliences.

Sometimes this means deferring a purchase in order to save up what it costs.  But that's a minor thing compared to the long-term satisfaction you get.   
But we hae meat and we can eat
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TasunkaWitko Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 25 January 2023 at 18:09
The office has a Kuerig, so that's what I use there. The boss supplies Starbuck's Breakfast Blend, which is fine; however, I usually bring two of my own:

Arbuckle's Ariosa Blend, which is - as far as I can tell - closest to the original, if not The Original.

Black Rifle Coffee Company's Freedom Roast, which is also very good and well-balanced; bokd but not harsh.

At home, our coffee maker can accomodate both Kuerig-style pods or function as a regular drip coffee maker a la Mr. Coffee, so I have an opportunity to try many things. Current favorites are from Gevalia, both the Signature and Traditional Roasts. 

My tastes lean toward the dark and robust roasts or blends, as long as they are in balance. My ultimate yardstick determining whether I like it or not is, Does this coffee put me next to a campfire, which is un turn at the bank of some body of water in the mountina, on a nice, calm morning, regardless of the weather? If so, then chances are that I will like it....
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