Coffee makers

So now that we have resolved the heated topic of boiling water. I was wondering if we could step up to the complexity of brewing coffee.

Our drip coffee maker continues to aggravate us, never quite hot enough, the filter collapses inwards occasionally and it can't make just two cups. So were seeking a new caffeine supply system.
It should be usable by a half asleep parent, so this rules out anything complex and unfortunately a lot of good coffee makers. so are we stuck in the realm of mediocre drip and percolators? I'd prefer not to K-cup/pods route, in part because I keep seeing complaints about failing pumps and how the pricing is akin to the razor blade model.

You can make your own K-cups/pods if that might interest you. I don't have such a system, but they're definitely convenient.

I don't drink coffee, but my mom has a coffee maker into which she puts unground beans and which has a timer. So, basically, before she goes to bed, she puts beans in the machine, as well as water, and sets the timer. When she gets up in the morning, there's coffee waiting for her.

She seems to really like it.

Also, if paper filters are a problem, they make those reusable metal mesh ones that are rigid.

It's this one, or one quite like it.

Well, since you got the boiling water part down, why not a small french press.

For drip (and I've linked this before) I like this:

https://shop.melitta.com/itemdy00.asp?T1=64+007&Cat=

Combined with an air pot it's perfect.

If I suspect that even this will exceed my capabilities in the morning, I'll just set it up the night before so all I have to do is press the air pot button.

I agree this is the answer. We did our own exhaustive study of coffee makers and found that to get an automatic that gets the water hot enough is extremely expensive. So the answer is either french press, or if you don't like the sediment in the coffee (which I don't mind), then you can use a vacuum coffee maker.

You can't make steam in a French Press though. And letting the grinds sit in "boiling" water isn't going to make an ideal cup of coffee. Not to mention being half asleep while using one.

All the pod machines I've had coffee from made a very nice temperature coffee.

What steam should be anywhere near the coffee grounds?
I thought espresso machines just used it as a pressure source to force hot water past the grounds.
Or are you talking about steaming the milk?

I've read that the 'right temperature' for a French Press is something like 190F and the steep duration something like 5 minutes. Longer steeping gets you more caffeine, but also more acid. It's all a matter of personal preference and taste, though.

I'm interested to see what this thread yields...

Steam pressure to push the water through the grounds quickly, yes.

But if you want simple and low-volume french-press coffee-tea, then you can try Bodum's press mugs. Super simple and you don't have to worry about the mess until you're awake and potentially at your destination if you leave the house with it.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/06/gadgets-bodum-french-press-travel-mug.html

Stainless variant:
http://www.amazon.com/Bodum-Stainless-16-Ounce-Vacuum-Silicone/dp/B0026L7DWE/ref=dp_cp_ob_k_title_0

http://www.tested.com/how-to-make-a-perfect-cup-of-coffee-with-the-aeropress/47-21/

I have an Aeropress. It can make what is normally a great tasting coffee grind taste like utter shit. I've only used it about half a dozen times, but for the life of me, I can't get anything decent out of it at all. I know a lot of coffee snobs give it high marks, but I'm under the impression that those US-based snobs don't know good coffee from instant.

A french press is fairly idiot-proof especially if you have a source of water that is the correct temperature (I use 195F). In my last house I installed an In-Sink-Erator hot water dispenser at the kitchen sink and this makes the french press so so very easy to use. Just grind (or pre-grind), add the correct amount of grounds to the press, add water and stir, press down after 4-5 minutes and serve.

If you want to buy a coffee press, I suggest going to your local Starbucks store and buying a Starbucks-branded glass Bodum french press. The trick here is that if you ever crack the glass press, you can bring it back to the store and they will replace it for free. These are typically $12 online for replacements.

If you don't want to install a hot water dispenser, you can get a nice Japanese standalone one that is made specifically for teas, coffees and noodles. I use this Zojirushi at work that has the capability to set a timer so your water is the correct temperature when you wake up.

Thanks Bitt, I wasn't aware that the Cuisinart's came with a 3 year warranty. Coupled with the "1-4 cup feature" I think we'll be ordering one of them in the near future.

Sorry to interrupt the razor blade talk, continue with the hijack

LOL!

Later today I will start a razor thread, but not about razor blades. I will be looking for electric razor advice.

tanstaafl.

It came, it brewed, it is boxed up to go back.
We tried the Cuisinart DCC-1200, and while it is hotter, it isn't hot enough. Back to Amazon it goes.
Not sure what are next attempt will be. SWMBO has a dislike for french presses - too much cleaning.

We may go back to a percolator, probably where our hankering for hot hot coffee came from, but we'll avoid the Faberware ones as they start to fail after ~18 months, they start to make weak coffee which I assume is because the thermostat cuts out to soon, there is not many other parts in there.

Meanwhile we'll continue to nuke our coffee after brewing it.

Air pot and Melitta will be hot. Air pots have a "reboil" button to be sure the water's as hot as it can get.

And another hot tip, use plastic coffee cups. Ceramic ones suck a lot of heat out of the coffee. For guests, I pour boiling water in the ceramic cups, let them sit a bit, and then refill with coffee.

An espresso machine generally has a warm area on top to keep the cups warm.

Mine is not that wonderful... nor large.

I'm thinking of getting one of these, only 'cos it looks cool...

http://expaticanl.franglo.com/classifieds/index.php?page=images&id=70242&f=70242.jpg

I do have one of these...

http://timblair.spleenville.com/archives/atomic1.jpg

I'm a (very) long time empeg user and lurker on this site, but couldn't resist responding to your post. I might be one of those U.S. coffee snobs, so you might want to overlook my post. I roast my coffee each week using an RK Drums roaster, and use a Cimbali grinder and JR machine daily. It took me quite a while to arrive at my preferred roast and brewing.

For a drip machine, you might want to determine you have an adequate brewing temperature of 92-96 Celcius (around 200F,) otherwise, your coffee will be bitter. The amount of brewing time also makes a big difference (can be altered with grind.) If your machine is taking more that 5-6 minutes to brew for a drip maker, it's likely taking too long. Check how others are using your machine (e.g., coffeegeek.)

Coffee, grind, water temperature are key to good tasting coffee (and roast & freshness.)

Speaking of expresso machines, supposedly the one you linked is really good because it generates the right temperature and pressure for an expresso. It should be the same of this one, branded Illy and as such super-expensive:
http://www.illy.com/wps/wcm/connect/us/illy/at-home/Espresso-machines/Ground-coffee-machines/
(Look at the Ground Coffee Machines picture, and not at the other machines).

However, even though I have not tried it, I've read great reviews of La Pavoni Lever Machines(which I think I linked before as well):
http://www.lapavoni.com/line_det.asp?idf=1
I think that's the only home Lever Expresso Machine.
The great thing about those is that you can adjust, real time, water pressure as it flows through the coffee powder, of course by moving the lever. With some learning, you can make really excellent expresso, and/or adjust it to your tastes.

The second great thing is that, unlike other expresso machines, you can wait that water is as hot as you wish before releasing it.
So, it is a pretty "manual" machine.

Lever expresso machines are, at least here, considered the very traditional way, and the best, to make really good expresso, and in places like Naples where there's a big coffee culture (they do snob all of us from the rest of the country, admittedly :D) bars usually have big lever-machines.
I do find coffee in Naples significanlty better tasting than the one I can get in any Rome bar.
As a side note, they also keep cups sitting in hot water before they use them, so they are hot.

Again, this is for expresso coffee. Not for French or drip coffee.

espresso.

For those who have never been to Italy, or perhaps never even left their own country or continent.. Italians take coffee very, VERY seriously.

It is far easier there to get a permit (is one even required?) to sell alcohol in a cafe than to make/sell coffee, which requires special training and certifications..

This may also be true of other countries, but I only know about Italy -- never drank any kind of coffee before visiting there.

Cheers

Maybe his goes really fast?

"Espresso" = "Express"

Es-press-o .. coming from the term "press", as in to press very hot water (aka. "steam") through densely packed ground coffee..

FTFM

I always thought it was a dual meaning- "press" coming from the pressure used, and "express" coming from how quickly the action is. (Forgive me for not knowing how to say 'express' in Italian)

In any case, it's the hot liquid water that mingles with the coffee grounds, never the steam.

This might hit the spot. It was only recently released, hence the lack of reviews.

Did not know that and I am surprised. But it may very well be (out of curiosity, Mark, what's your source?)
A "caffè espresso" means, literally, in Italian, a "quick coffee", and is is commonly said here in Italy referring to coffee at the bar/coffee shop/whatever you want to call it, rather than at home. Which is because bar machines are faster than those at home.
Since it's been like this since I know of (1910s, 1920s, when first steam coffee machines were invented, I suppose), and since "espresso" is such a common Italian word (there's actually a national news magazine called L'Espresso - "The Fast One", or trains: an "espresso" train is a direct one, non-stop, to some destination, and so on), I just assumed that's where the English "espresso" word came from.
Clearly I may be wrong (and, being Italian, I may be unwillingly arrogant and think that all that is coffee comes from here, for which I apologize, should it be the case; but, that's how it is about coffee here; some sort of "national drink" or whatever... We consider it so totally Italian, and we don't even grow it here! ).

And, I did not mean to say that anybody is supposed to know what "espresso" means in Italian. I was just adding info to the conversation.

Here there's an interesting section concerning origins of the word "espresso" and seems to give credit to both theories (speed and pressure):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espresso

It also says that in English both "espresso" and "expresso" are used, which makes me, by pure chance, not so wrong.

Also, it mentions that the "espresso" word, in reference to a coffee, was first used here in Italy at the beginning of last century with the first steam coffee machines. If so, it could only mean fast. The "expressely for you" idea is a bit inaccurate. Back then, they used to say "espressamente per te" ("Expressely for you) to mean "fast ("espressamente") and just for you ("per te")", but the word "espresso"/"espressamente" still meant "fast" and neither pressure nor "for you".

In any case, whatever. I was just curious.

This is how the air pot + melitta works, and I think it makes a better coffee than a drip machine. I did always wonder why.

I can only agree with that!

Cheers!

Heh. Just because it's in used in English doesn't mean it's not cringe-worthy, if you ax me.