Sunday, February 05, 2006

Coffee

Today's Stuff
Mother Superior TIVO'd  a show called ''The Shopping Bags'' on Fine Living Channel because they were doing coffee makers, and she wants me to get a new one.  I'm the coffee drinker (she's tea) and have been using a Black & Decker Space Saver for several years, and it still works.  I have to replace it because it ''looks dirty.''  Yup, coffee stains on white plastic do that.  What ever maker we get has to fit on the counter, under cabinets, and have a swing out basket.   I also like the removable water reservoir for easy filling and cleaning.  Black & Decker  still makes the Space Saver, but only in white, alas, and she wants black.

Anyway, here are the coffee makers the panel tested ... Take a guess?
The most important factors in making good coffee are (this according to their experts) -

  1. Hot heat ... look for a maker with an element at least 1000w (The Black & Decker was the only one that did)
  2. The proper grind for the maker ... critical
  3. Clean basket, and carafe

The hands down winner was the $30 Black & Decker, which astounded everyone. It received every vote.   The two worst were the Melita, and the Starbucks coffee press.  So, there you go. 
2/05/2006 11:04:00 AM 14 Comments

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14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Heh - No glitz, no bling, no status, just gets the job done better. File that under "why we win."

Lt. Gen. Tailgunner dick

2/5/06, 11:09 AM
Anonymous said...

This is pretty cool. I toasted the last coffeemaker a year ago, and bought a Black and Decker to replace it. Quite satisfied, but I'm not overly picky. Like the automatic brew feature.

2/5/06, 12:10 PM
Anonymous said...

Couldn't you just paint the one you have black?

2/5/06, 12:50 PM
Anonymous said...

Rght on for Black and Decker Space Saver! Been using the same one since the late 80's, still works great! Have you considered just cleaning it?

2/5/06, 12:54 PM
Anonymous said...

Gah. My biggest problem with coffee makers has been finding ones with caraffes that aren't 'dribble-pots.' I wound up finding a $50 Hamilton Beach Brewstation, which is a caraffe-less coffeemaker (it's essentially a spout-pour). Works effectively for me, but wouldn't work for your purposes since it's top-loading.

I notice that they didn't look at the supposed top-of-the-line Capresso brand Grind-and-Brew (which is different from the Cuisinart, which has had several design flaws in each version -- one of which, apparently, was that its heating element would melt the electronics of the grinder). It's a thousand plus watt (fourteen hundred watt, actually), has a burr grinder instead of the usual basic grinder, and has a timing feature. I don't like the caraffe, though, which is why I didn't buy one, and it's much more expensive then any coffee maker should be (about $200, as of six months ago when I was in the market for a new coffee maker myself) but I'm curious how it would have done against that competition. Again, however, I don't think it would fit in the space you describe.

Nor would that particular model of Black and Decker, either, from what I can tell. Hm... I think I like the 'buy the one you want and paint it' idea.

2/5/06, 1:03 PM
Anonymous said...

It doesn't meet most of your criteria, but it DOES produce the best cup of coffee in an automatic machine I've ever tasted. And the winner is....the Zojirushi EC-BD15. Its main secret is the nuclear element that actually gets the brewed coffee to the critical 195 degrees (almost all other makers DON'T, which is why the straight-pour cone & carafe makers like Chemex and Melitta have ruled. Now it's the "Zo." Don't believe the prices you see at first. I got mine on Amazon's Friday sale for $50.

2/5/06, 1:51 PM
Anonymous said...

Rodger,

In general, I don't care for the grind&brew models since the grinders I've seen don't produce a very consistant grain size, tends to grind into powder which makes for bitterness & residue in the cup. BUy a separate mill grinder and grind just prior to brewing for best quality.

If you can't tell, I'm a complete coffee snob and picky about my joe, but I can confirm that the B&D SmartBrew does, indeed, brew great coffee. Water temps are where they should be, delivery rate is just a bit high (compensated for by adding an extra scoop) but totally acceptable. The sweet spot tends to be six to ten cups @ one rounded tbsp coffee per "cup" of water. (B&D cups are 6oz, IIRC).

Brewing less than 6 cups, or more than 10, IMO, produces weak or bitter brew, respectively.

Only one thing to watch out for -- make abso-damn-lutely sure you have the carafe centered on the plate so that the flow valve is opened and the top is completely closed, otherwise it will overflow all over the countertop.

In a fit of rage I threw mine into the trash the 30th time that happened, but it did brew great coffee for the two years I had it. Got sick & tired of cleaning up coffee stains off the floor, countertop, drawers, etc.

Had to buy & return several others before finally ending up with a ~$110 Cuisinart that I don't like quite as well just to match the brew quality of the "cheap" B&D.

You made a good choice. Drink up!

2/5/06, 1:53 PM
MoFiZiX Gr4FiX said...

I cannot believe how grown men fuss over a "perfect" cup of coffee! My favorite cup of coffee would likely repulse most of you commenting here. My grandpa showed me how they made coffee in the field and ever since I was a little kid, I've always like it that way (not that I get to have it that often). You grind up 1 cup of beans in a small mill, add the beans to a quart pot of boiling water and cook it to your desired strength. Remove the pot from the fire and take a raw egg, crack it and put the contents into the pot of coffee. The egg adds a nice flavor to the coffee and keeps the grounds down on the bottom of the pot. Pour off slowly into a tin mug and drink up. DO NOT USE MILK OR SUGAR! I like my coffee like I like my women - strong and black!

2/5/06, 9:07 PM
MoFiZiX Gr4FiX said...

Uh, on second thought...

2/5/06, 9:09 PM
Kim du Toit said...

Rodge, quit pissing around and buy the best once, and never have to buy another coffee machine again.

Bunn.

We have the two-warmer version, and it's wonderful.

2/5/06, 11:47 PM
Kim du Toit said...

Sorry, we actually have this one.

2/5/06, 11:51 PM
Kim du Toit said...

Yeah, I know, it's not low-profile and won't fit under your kitchen cabinets. So what? Be a man, and find somwhere else to put it, like I did.

2/5/06, 11:52 PM
Rodger the Real King of France said...

Hey Mofuk, that's the way we did it while fighting the Kaiser .. I'd forgotten adout it.

Kim:
I'm not in charge of the countertop - or anything else actually. :((

2/6/06, 11:51 AM
Kim du Toit said...

Me neither.

Oh, wait... I get to decide whether to use Hoppes #9 or CLP to clean the guns, but that's only because She doesn't clean the guns.

2/6/06, 1:20 PM

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