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Coffee Makers


Escoffier

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I had a total coffeegeek moment when I was in Chicago in early June: Millennium intelligentsia had a Hario Siphon Coffee option that I couldn't try because 12oz was too much for just myself.

Wow!! The old Bunn commercial coffee maker lives. If you ever ate in a diner, you may remember those stainless steel coffee pots with the plug-in siphon top. Here are a couple of alternatives to paying more than $45 for a siphon coffee maker. Siphon Coffee Makers.

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I'm totally into my newish vacuum pot, though when I'm brewing coffee for just me, I tend to use a simple one-cup drip method.

And an Aeropress, as delicious a cup of coffee as it makes, is not making espresso.

Thank you for posting this! A friend has an ancient one of these that has metal pieces, and I figured it was a design that wasn't made any more. This pot makes coffee that I like almost as well as Turkish coffee.

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Thank you for posting this! A friend has an ancient one of these that has metal pieces, and I figured it was a design that wasn't made any more. This pot makes coffee that I like almost as well as Turkish coffee.

No problem. Do a search for vacuum pots...I think I got mine from northwest something or other. Or Amazon. Around $40, and buy a couple of replacement filters along with it. The high-end Japanese pots will run more, but aren't really necessary, in my opinion.

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I am a lazy punk during the week and I get my caffeine at work through one of those make by the cup things. I know, it's not so great.

But on the weekends, when I am feeling a little indulgent, I'll break out the old school Itailan stovetop espresso maker thingie. Love it. And, if I am not feeling that adventurous, I'll just french press it.

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Just got a nice Capress Infinity conical burr grinder, doesn't seem like it's going to get plugged up like my old ones, but new problem, the ground coffee has so much static electricity it flies everywhere and makes much more mess than I care to deal with first thing in the morning!

At the same time, the gasket on the cannister I store my coffee in got chewed up in the dishwasher -- memo to self, gaskets should not be put in the dishwasher -- and while I am searching for a replacement the coffee may have dried out somewhat.

I thought I had solved the coffee storage problem by ordering a Fresh-o-lator from Community Coffee but they don't make them like they used to, it's not air tight at all.

Solutions?

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But on the weekends, when I am feeling a little indulgent, I'll break out the old school Itailan stovetop espresso maker thingie. Love it. And, if I am not feeling that adventurous, I'll just french press it.

So I keep forgetting to bring my Aeropress back home from work, leaving myself with only 3 other options to have coffee - a regular 12-cup drip coffeemaker, a french press, and a stovetop espresso maker. The thing is, I've forgotten how to use the latter, don't remember the proper proportions for the press, and the drop, well blech. Can someone remind me how to use the espresso pot, and what amount of grounds (and what grind) you would recommend for that and the press? I do like my coffee on the stronger side although maybe not quite tarry - if I make the espresso, I'll just add to whole milk to make a latte.

Oh, I forgot, I have a 4th option, my jetboil camping stove has a coffee attachment. But that's really just a french press as well. :)

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I think it's time.

I'm ready to drop some major coinage on an espresso machine.

Or maybe, I should get something else.

My Cuisinart Grind-and-Brew is fine for what it does, but it's awful for what it doesn't.

I want to pull some bad-assed expresso (yes, that's the French spelling, so don't correct me) shots. And scald me some lactose-free milk in the process.

How much maintenance cleaning is involved in owning a top-notch machine?

I like Americanos because they give me adequate "volume" without pumping up the caffeine until I'm sprinting up-and-down stairs singing the Chiquita Banana song.

They're going to be calling me Barrista Barney before long.

Okay:

1) Any advice? I'm starting from zero, and need to acquire as much information as possible.

2) Should I split this topic up, and if so, what's the logical way to do it?

Where the hell is Nick Cho?

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I've been thinking about and researching this exact same purchase for a long time, but have yet to take the plunge.  For what it's worth, my research suggests that the conventional wisdom is that your grinder is just as important--if not more important--as the actual espresso machine.  You can get the world's greatest espresso machine, but it'll do you no good without a quality grinder.  Conversely, you can make a good espresso with an excellent grinder and just an average machine.

There's a great shop called Seattle Coffee Gear that has a bunch of useful videos posted on various grinders and machines.  They're also really friendly on the phone.  When I finally do this, I'll probably buy from them.

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I think it's time.

I'm ready to drop some major coinage on an espresso machine.

Or maybe, I should get something else.

My Cuisinart Grind-and-Brew is fine for what it does, but it's awful for what it doesn't.

I want to pull some bad-assed expresso (yes, that's the French spelling, so don't correct me) shots. And scald me some lactose-free milk in the process.

How much maintenance cleaning is involved in owning a top-notch machine?

I like Americanos because they give me adequate "volume" without pumping up the caffeine until I'm sprinting up-and-down stairs singing the Chiquita Banana song.

They're going to be calling me Barrista Barney before long.

Okay:

1) Any advice? I'm starting from zero, and need to acquire as much information as possible.

2) Should I split this topic up, and if so, what's the logical way to do it?

Where the hell is Nick Cho?

First question you must ask: do you want a machine that has a built-in grinder, or not? If you do, the comments below won't be as helpful.

I am looking for a new machine, because while it has served us very well, our SAECO Aroma is several years old and has just about pooped out, as inexpensive machines usually do. We have a very good Rancilio Rocky grinder, so we don't want an espresso maker with a built-in grinder. After looking at reviews on the web, I have narrowed our search down to two options: Rancilio Silvia (the highest rated and most expensive in that category) and Gaggia Classic 14101. Those two machines pretty much have to be ordered online-- I've had good experiences in the past at wholelattelove.com. The Breville EP8XL Cafe Roma is sold at Sur la Table, as well as online, but the reviews I read turned me off about that machine's durability.

On the other hand, you can make exceptionally good coffee with an AeroPress, which costs about $25, and get a separate milk foamer that you put into the microwave. We've been making morning cappuccino with the espresso machine, and afternoon coffee with the AeroPress, and I'm not sure which we enjoy more.

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I have a Capresso Impressa C9 which automatically grinds the beans, produces the steam, siphons the milk and makes one damn fine cappuccino as well as "normal" coffeel.  It is a self-cleaning maker which also makes it nice.  Unfortunately, we're going to be without for a few days while it gets a logic board updated (as part of the warranty service).

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I also had a Capresso coffeemaker, after 15+ years, some small piece broke off, & I replaced it w/ an inexpensive Hamilton Beach coffeemaker-my coffee is just not that good anymore, & I realize I need to get a better coffeemaker. I don't need one that does it all (I have a grinder), but I think a thermal carafe is necessary. I am low tech, I just want coffee that tastes good....

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I think it's time.

I'm ready to drop some major coinage on an espresso machine.

Or maybe, I should get something else.

My Cuisinart Grind-and-Brew is fine for what it does, but it's awful for what it doesn't.

I want to pull some bad-assed expresso (yes, that's the French spelling, so don't correct me) shots. And scald me some lactose-free milk in the process.

How much maintenance cleaning is involved in owning a top-notch machine?

I like Americanos because they give me adequate "volume" without pumping up the caffeine until I'm sprinting up-and-down stairs singing the Chiquita Banana song.

They're going to be calling me Barrista Barney before long.

Okay:

1) Any advice? I'm starting from zero, and need to acquire as much information as possible.

2) Should I split this topic up, and if so, what's the logical way to do it?

Where the hell is Nick Cho?

Don, what type of budget are you looking at? If you're looking to spend around $1K, the Rancilio Silvia/Rocky combo can't be beat. Like it's been said before, the grinder is just as critical in the chain as is the espresso machine. I've had a Rocky in daily use for over 10 years and it is still going strong.

Maintenance-wise, a simple backflush after use will be sufficient. Use bottled water and I would recommend descaling it every 6 months or so with this stuff. I've rebuilt a few machines and more often than not, the reason that they needed repair was for lack of regular descaling.

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It is a daily deal for Christmas, so the link will probably not be working tomorrow, but Costco has $600 off a Saeco Xelsis machine today.  Being something of a coffee philistine, I have no idea if it's a good one, but I thought it might be a good deal.

Saeco makes very good espresso machines. I have had good luck with two Saeco "bottom-of-the-line" non-automatic machines. They don't last forever, but each has given us 4-5 years of daily excellent espresso beverages.
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Given Don's recent post on grinders and my recent coffeemaker troubles, thought I'd move this one up.  My Cuisinart DCC-2800 Perfect Temp recently broke.  I liked the coffee it made, but it only lasted about 18 months (leaked).  Looking for a good, reliable drip coffee machine for weekday morning coffee.  I've looked at Consumer Report and they recommend the Cuisinart and then this Mr. Coffee drip as their top two.  Just bought the Mr. Coffee, but don't love it.  I've got a separate grinder, which I prefer to built-in grinders for when I grind coffee.  Any suggestions/recommendations?  

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We've been happy with this Cuisinart for everyday use:

We are actually on the second one -- the first lasted for many years (it actually had a stainless steel rather than the current plastic body panels). I think our current one is at least 5 years old.

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I'm on my second Cuisinart Grind & Brew, and I have to say, I'm not buying a third. The grinder is lame, the water doesn't get that hot, and I'm going "Finklestein" - I'm too old to be having anything less than awesome coffee. One thing that was nice about it was the "Pause and Pour" feature (where you can yank the pot out as it's dripping, to avoid having to wait for the entire thing to finish), but the downsides outweighed the upsides, and it was pretty tough to clean. I'm going high-level grinder, and either pour-over or French press, with a subscription to Qualia's coffee beans - I know, I know, $50 a month for coffee beans is nutso, but I honestly think it will be worth it (plus I can always stop) - hell, I probably spend $1,000 a year anyway on mostly lousy coffee that I drink only to get caffeinated; the last time I had a truly great cup of coffee was at Qualia, a couple of months ago - I had a decent cup at Caffe Aficianado, but I haven't had a genuinely great cup of coffee since March.

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My feeling is if you are going to use expensive beans don't settle for mediocre methodology. Invest in a high quality grinder. With practice a pour over system, French Press or Aeropress- all of which are cheap - will get you coffee shop quality brew. That said, I also love my Nespresso machine for speed and ease of use to quality ratio. Now that the pods are off patent in Europe there are some well made refillable pods that can be ordered and I imagine with some ingenuity you could hack a great espresso.

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We are suddenly in the market for a good coffee maker.  Seeing as how the most recent post is 9-1/2 years old (sorry about that, I guess I was on the first page of the thread, not the last), I am wondering if anyone has something newer on the market that he or she is pleased with.  Grind and brew or brew only are both options, what I am mainly looking for is one that will heat the water to an appropriate temperature to brew an entire pot of coffee, and that I won't have to replace on a yearly basis.  TIA.

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33 minutes ago, JBag57 said:

We are suddenly in the market for a good coffee maker.  Seeing as how the most recent post is 9-1/2 years old, I am wondering if anyone has something newer on the market that he or she is pleased with.  Grind and brew or brew only are both options, what I am mainly looking for is one that will heat the water to an appropriate temperature to brew an entire pot of coffee, and that I won't have to replace on a yearly basis.  TIA.

Read "A Chat with Joel Finklestein" from start to finish - you'll be glad you did.

If you order a good grinder from him, you'll *never* look back.

Just think when you're paying $5 more for a grinder through Qualia when you could get the same thing through Amazon: He educated you, and you're helping to support an honest business (as opposed to buying one from Caffe Aficiando). Joel gets my money every single month, and I'm *delighted* to give it to him.

---

This one post in particular "cuts" to the heart of grinders (a small part of the post, quoting Joel):

"Hands down, the best way to experience coffee is to buy it fresh and grind it right before you use it. A good grinder (we carry Baratza burr mills) will make a noticeable difference in the coffee you make at home, but the difference between grinding at home and preground coffee is so significant, that I encourage customers to buy whatever home grinder is in their budget. Buying good quality, fresh roasted coffee preground is like buying a nice wine then serving it warm in a dixie cup.

I like Baratza grinders because they are a good value, ranging in price from $129 up to $900, they tend to offer a lot of bang for the buck compared with competing products (i.e. Rancilio Rocky, which I can confirm porcupine I have also had a rocky relationship with, pardon the pun). But generally, I don't suffer brand loyalty. However, I generally discourage my customers from buying any burr grinder that costs less then 100 bucks. Why? Because there are a lot of burr grinders out there for half the price of a good one that both don't work very well and don't last very long."

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How timely!  We have an AMEX gift card that we've been wanting to use on a grinder, but every time I do research and think I know which one I want, I see something in a review that makes me doubt. So I will read Don's link above and see if that helps :)

Also-we recently purchased the same OXO linked above, at BBB at a ridiculous sale price, and are loving it. I like it even for heating up water for tea as I can heat to a lower temp and don't need another piece of equipment just to have heat water. Can't wait to try it with a good burr grinder!

 

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2 hours ago, squidsdc said:

How timely!  We have an AMEX gift card that we've been wanting to use on a grinder, but every time I do research and think I know which one I want, I see something in a review that makes me doubt. So I will read Don's link above and see if that helps :)

Also-we recently purchased the same OXO linked above, at BBB at a ridiculous sale price, and are loving it. I like it even for heating up water for tea as I can heat to a lower temp and don't need another piece of equipment just to have heat water. Can't wait to try it with a good burr grinder!

I will never go back from a Baratza grinder - be careful what you wish for. You know as soon as you pick it up that it's extremely heavy-duty, and will last for a long, long time - mine is over a year old, I use it almost every day, and it's as if it's still brand new. I'd be very surprised if this didn't last ten years, at least - and that's ten years of professional-level grinding. And it's *so easy* to clean - perfect engineering combined with a maniacal quality of assembly. Look at The Don Rockwell Idiot Kit - I give this my absolute highest recommendation ... life's too short not to drink world-class coffee every single day, when it's *so easy* to do. Also, those Zojirushi coffee cups are like nothing of this earth - they're the only things I didn't buy from Qualia, but they're the greatest coffee "cups" I've ever seen - they are almost literally perfect.

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On 11/8/2016 at 11:31 AM, DonRocks said:

"...Also, those Zojirushi coffee cups are like nothing of this earth - they're the only things I didn't buy from Qualia, but they're the greatest coffee "cups" I've ever seen - they are almost literally perfect..."

Howdy, have Google'd and Amazon'd, could not find.  Link?

(purty please)

(and hi, everyone)

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On 11/8/2016 at 0:31 PM, DonRocks said:

I will never go back from a Baratza grinder - be careful what you wish for. You know as soon as you pick it up that it's extremely heavy-duty, and will last for a long, long time - mine is over a year old, I use it almost every day, and it's as if it's still brand new.

I hope you have better luck than we have had with Baratza.  We have owned a Baratza Preciso for almost three years.  The quality of the grind is great.  After the first year, though, the micro grind selector broke and we had to send it in for service.  Then, last month, the grinder shut down mid-morning grind.  I think there is a short, and we will need to send it in again.

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On ‎11‎/‎8‎/‎2016 at 0:31 PM, DonRocks said:

 Also, those Zojirushi coffee cups are like nothing of this earth - they're the only things I didn't buy from Qualia, but they're the greatest coffee "cups" I've ever seen - they are almost literally perfect.

If I didn't know better, I'd guess this was from The Onion.  What makes a coffee cup other worldly and almost perfect?  And why "almost perfect"? 

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4 minutes ago, Bart said:

If I didn't know better, I'd guess this was from The Onion.  What makes a coffee cup other worldly and almost perfect?  And why "almost perfect"? 

Because nothing is perfect, but I can't think of anything I would add to, or take away from, this coffee "cup" (or, more accurately, "drinking device") - it is an engineering marvel.

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Can we get a link?  I googled "Zojirushi coffee cups" and came with a metal to-go cup with a push-to-drink button.  I'm assuming you're talking about something else because pushing a button to get a sip is certainly not an improvement to a standard coffee mug where you just sip.

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8 hours ago, Bart said:

Can we get a link?  I googled "Zojirushi coffee cups" and came with a metal to-go cup with a push-to-drink button.  I'm assuming you're talking about something else because pushing a button to get a sip is certainly not an improvement to a standard coffee mug where you just sip.

When you push the button, the top part of the lid flips all the way back, and it stays open and out of the way.

The colors are great, too - you could spend $500 on a coffee mug, and I don't see how it could be much better than this.

The pictures (and the video) on the left side of the page are the most useful, but just trust me on this one.

Do yourself a favor and get the 16-ounce size.

The only drawback I can think of is that it doesn't microwave, but it doesn't need to since it holds the temperature all day long - if the beverage isn't hot enough to begin with, I put it in a ceramic cup, microwave, and make the transfer.

People who say it leaks just don't know how to screw it shut - it doesn't leak at all: You can hold it upside down if you want to.

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