Curmudgeonly & Skeptical presents Boned Jello: COFFEE MACHINES

Sunday, August 18, 2013

COFFEE MACHINES

TECHNO THRILLS

Mr Coffee

Well, that's over. We had a neighbor and friend who was celebrating his 70th B-day yesterday, and I elected to do a video life story. Took 40 hours to do 10 minutes of tape. Bur that's not what I'm wanting to tell you about.

With a house full of company, our coffee maker quit. It was a Frigidaire piece of crap that I bought from Woot a few years ago. One of those deals where they try to add so many bells and whistles that you can scarce make coffee. It was 1100 watts though. I tell you that because as near as I can tell, the only variable in making coffee in one of these machines is the water temp. We ran out and bought this Mr. Coffee at Kohls (for $79.95) —1300 watts. It has a feature I really liked on our old Black and Decker machine, a removable water tank. Anyway, this is the bottom line.

Been using Seattle's Finest coffee for quite a while, so have pretty good tongue memory of what it tastes like. The coffee made in the new machine, using one ounce for 8 cups, is so superior to what we're use to that I am quite blown away. And not just me. All the guests volunteered the same thing. Only thing I can think of is the 1300 Watts. And the possibility that Frigidaire was a massive liar about being1100 watts? Also, this morning I was going to heat the remains of yesterday's coffee for a quick cup before church. Guess what? The coffee was still hot. Not real hot, but warmer than warm.

You're welcome.

Rodger the Real King of France 8/18/2013 09:46:00 AM 29 Comments

"If the number of Islamic terror attacks continues at the current rate, candlelight vigils will soon be the number-one cause of global warming. "
Argus Hamilton

29 comments:

Juice said...: Coffee makers! Of all home appliances they are the worst for longevity, unless you buy a $10-special 4 cup maker at Wallyworld. Those last forever but make awful coffee as the water runs through the filter way too fast, but it has 1100 watts. In January I bought a Cuisinart DCC-1200 for $72 @ Amazon. By March all the "programmable" features stopped working. We are back with the small space Keurig our daughter gave as a gift (that keeps on costing). It been a champ but even at Amazon our dark roast K-cups average 52 cents a cup. Best of luck to your family on this new purchase. I hope it beats all the crappy ones we've purchased over a lifetime.; 8/18/13, 1:33 PM
iri said...: There's a secret to making great coffee. I don't know what it is. I researched the hell out of drip coffee makers and came up with a Bonavita. $150, that's $50 more than the Bunn I had used for years but I thought I'd risk it.
My coffee is better but still not what a good restaurant puts out. Maybe it's the brand of bourbon I'm using, don't know. After the second cup I don't care.; 8/18/13, 1:59 PM
Anonymous said...: After losing power several times this summer I wanted to have the ability to brew coffee without electricity, I bought a stainless percolator to use on the camping stove. It needs coarsely ground coffee, but my grinder can do that.
I was impressed enough with the improvement in flavor that the coffee maker is the backup for when we have guests and need more than one pot can brew.; 8/18/13, 2:00 PM
Anonymous said...: Well, you've uncontrollably stumbled into two truths. Yes it's about water temp, the hotter, the better during the brew cycle, and the brew cycle shouldn't last more than 5 minutes or the coffee will be no bueno.

Secondly, you just can't beat a carafe. They keep the coffee warm for at least eight hours, and the coffee never burns because there is no sitting on a burner. Why do you think all of the commercial units use carafes? Heat is the key during and after the brewing.

Casca; 8/18/13, 2:25 PM
Juice said...: Wait! 40 hrs for 10 mins. If so, you are one great neighbor and friend!! I'm sure it was mucho appreciato.

Did you convert 8mm to disc? Our son did that one year for our family (paid stupid money) and it was the best.; 8/18/13, 2:41 PM
Emil Nytraht said...: After years of bad coffee by the pot I turned to great coffee by the cup!..... I now use single serve Folger's coffee bags.
Alright so I burn in Hell or at least do couple hundred thousand years in Purgatory.... So be it.; 8/18/13, 4:47 PM
Helly said...: "The coffee made in the new machine,... is so superior to what we're use to that I am quite blown away."

This is what happens to your tongue memory when you let boogers build up for years in warm, moist areas.; 8/18/13, 5:01 PM
Emil Nyteaht AKA JMcD said...: Ummmmmm! Coffee by the cup is so good!...Or maybe it's the amyl nitrate....Oh well.; 8/18/13, 5:15 PM
Anonymous said...: Keurig. My Keurig just sits and gets rewarded with a green tea k-cup erry once an' a while. That's because I like my tea not-too-hot. I hear on the more expensive models you can brew hotter. I hope so because mine is a pansy when it comes to temperature.
oy vey ole'; 8/18/13, 5:42 PM
Anonymous said...: I'm a single guy, so It may not work for you folk....but I use an Aeropress. Have not had better coffee.....ever. Also easy to make a second cup for those sleepover mornings....

http://aerobie.com/products/aeropress.htm

Fred Jameson; 8/18/13, 5:47 PM
iri said...: Second cup? Wake up and smell the coffee Fred. It takes at leas six to make a morning worth getting up for in Obama's Uhmerika.

Srsly, I've heard that's some good shit but it's too much damn trouble. Same deal on the single serve. I don't want to fuck around for ten minutes I just want to poor a good cup of Joe the easy way.; 8/18/13, 6:05 PM
Anonymous said...: When you say one ounce for 8 cups, is that one ounce volume or weight?
I like really strong coffe and use 5 ounces by volume for 10 cups in my DeLonghi maker. But I also live at 6000 feet above sea level and water boils at a lower temp.

jim; 8/18/13, 6:36 PM
Tom Smith said...: Not sure its a secret but I worked for Dunkin Donuts in the corporate office and went through basic training and learned that all water is filtered first and it allows the coffee to bond with the water better. I use a Brita filter outta the tap. Dare ya to try it if you dont already.; 8/18/13, 7:11 PM
Rodger the Real King of France said...: I use one ounce by weight. I also have a whole house filter attached to the bar sink that I use for coffee.; 8/18/13, 8:39 PM
Anonymous said...: -----------
The biggest thing I found about coffee making is to religiously clean the filter basket assembly to remove any oils. I do this either by running it through the dishwasher or running vinegar through the maker.

bullseye

-----------------; 8/18/13, 10:15 PM
Fred Z said...: You Americans are the greatest and strongest people ever.

This is largely because you eat and drink vile things to strengthen yourselves. Surely a man who can eat a Pizza Hut pizza is indomitable. A soldier who can drink coffee from a maker that "has been warmed for keep the coffee warm for at least eight hours" will surely have the strength of 10 and bad temper to match.

Your food is execrable. Your coffee is a hell brew so vile it has enabled your soldiers to smash all others. No doubt Osama Bin Laden died with a good cup of Arabica to his lips, killed by an American Navy Seal enraged and hyped up by many festering, acidic cups of "Folgers" brewed in an automatic coffeemaker, uncleanable, unsanitary, and poisonous.

The best coffee in the universe comes from an Italian espresso maker, a French press, saucepan of cowboy coffee or a German manual filter cone. That's because those maker can all be thoroughly cleaned. All your talk of running vinegar or detergent or whatnot through your automatics, washing filters, etc. etc? Lies, damned lies and foul lies.; 8/19/13, 12:37 AM
Anonymous said...: LOL Fred. Italian espresso is too strong (we have an espresso machine, only use it when guests specifically want it); French press coffee tastes like ass, because the water doesn't stay hot long enough to brew the coffee properly; I have no idea what a German manual filter cone is -- sounds like an engine part in a Tiger II tank.

Rodge: one word: Keurig. Hot well-brewed coffee on demand, cup by cup.

We used to use a Bunn (commercial model -- yeah,we're coffee freaks), but the apparent savings on a cost per cup basis are illusory, because of all the stale coffee you end up throwing away. Taking wastage out of the equation, Keurig K-cups are actually cheaper than a pot of brewed coffee through the Bunn.

And the array of choices of K-cups is bewildering, which means you can drink whatever kind of hot drink takes your fancy, if you don't feel like just another cup of joe: hot chocolate, hot tea, iced tea, hot apple cider, flavored coffee, decaf, whatever.

The Mrs. drinks strong Colombian (too strong for me) whereas I prefer medium roast (eg. Tim Horton's or Dunkin Donuts Regular, too weak for her). So with the Keurig we can indulge ourselves without having to put up with the other's preference.

Kim; 8/19/13, 1:10 AM
Rodger the Real King of France said...: Ah Kim. I wish I was a rich man too. sigh Keurig; 8/19/13, 7:29 AM
Emil Nytraht said...: Simple answer to a good cuppa, Fred Z, is a coffee (single serve) bag..... Only thing that you clean up is your cup.; 8/19/13, 7:29 AM
Emil Nytraht said...: I didn't believe it either til I tried it.; 8/19/13, 7:31 AM
Anonymous said...: Is anybody out there using the refillable 'K-cup' for Keurig?
Seems like the best of both worlds. Fresh cup when you want, brewed using your favorite blend. I 'binged' for "refillable k-cups for keurig" and got 214,000 hits. Looked at Amazon.
There may be something to it, or not.
tomw; 8/19/13, 9:22 AM
Anonymous said...: Well, I thought I posted about the re-usable K-cups, so went and found this:
"I guess Keurig didn't want to make the re-usable filter better tasting than the K-Cups or you'd stop buying the K-Cups. Pulling the rubber washer down to the tip of the metal point that pierces the K-Cup fixes the water overflowing. However, the water still flows too quickly and brews a weak cup of coffee. To fix this, I took a USED K-Cup with the hole in the bottom, removed the foil from the top, removed all the plastic liner inside the K-cup, then placed the "hollowed" K-Cup into the filter housing. You may need to turn the housing upside-down on the counter and press firmly to get it to go in far enough. Then put the removable filter basket in and put the lid on. This slows the water flow to make the coffee stronger. Very happy with product now."

A comment/review from:
www.buzzillions.com

tomw; 8/19/13, 9:37 AM
Anonymous said...: ---------------------
Fred mentioned a French Press. I have a friend who is in very decent shape but his cholesterol was high. He was using a french press. I mentioned that I heard that the design of those allows oil with cholesterol to come through.

He switched to a filtered coffee maker and his levels dropped. Couple be a coincidence but...

Bullseye

------------------------; 8/19/13, 9:59 AM
Anonymous said...: My Keurig has adjustable temp. Didn't know this till I made a cup. Did the burning tounge dance for five min. LearNed to read inst. At that time. Still talk like Kate Hepburn once in a while.

Lisping x; 8/19/13, 1:44 PM
Drew said...: For those looking for a refillable cup for keurig, Ekobrew is what I use. Works like a charm.

http://www.amazon.com/Ekobrew-Refillable-Keurig-Brewers-1-Count/dp/B0051SU0OW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376934669&sr=8-1&keywords=ekobrew+keurig; 8/19/13, 1:53 PM
Anonymous said...: Starbucks VIA wins hands down for instant coffee. About fitty cents per cup.
c.umulus n.imbusi iii; 8/19/13, 3:15 PM
LindaF said...: Black & Decker - 2 BIG cup maker - fast, and VERY good coffee. LOVE it.; 8/19/13, 7:40 PM
drew458 said...: Hotter the better with the water; the Kuerig can be set for 192°F, which is nearly right. 198° would be better IMO.

We have the SoloFill refillable k-cups for our Kuerig. Pricey, but inside 2 months you're saving money compared to the K-cups. I use my Puerto Rican espresso (Caribe brand, which is just about the cheapest coffee on the market) and brew up rich, robust cups of rocket fuel. So good.

Our water is pretty decent out of the tap, but the coffee pot always get the stuff from the 3 stage super duper water filter. After 2 years of daily use, we have no scale buildup at all.; 8/19/13, 10:00 PM
Greg said...: Okay, you got me in trouble. After reading this, I had to run up to Kohls and get one. It worked fine and I enjoyed my coffee yesterday, but my wife came home from work and informed me that Kohls put them on sale for $53 the day after I bought it...; 8/22/13, 3:15 PM

Sunday, August 18, 2013

COFFEE MACHINES

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