How To Choose Your
Perfect Coffee Maker

Often overlooked in the search for the perfect cup of coffee, is the coffee maker itself. We spend days tracking down just the right blend of coffee beans, with just the right touch of Brazilian (or Turkish or some other gourmet import brand) flavor, while giving little thought to the coffee maker. While it's true that today's coffee makers do a generally good job across the board and one won't dramatically affect the taste of your coffee over another, there are still some considerations to keep in mind.

But before we even get into the various features of different coffee makers, you might want to understand that there are a variety of coffee brewing approaches. For instance, the most common is the drip coffee maker. You probably have one in your home already. They make a full pot of coffee by dripping water evenly over ground beans. This often adds an intense flavor to your coffee.

Then there's the vacuum style coffee maker, which uses two stacked glass containers and no filters. You add hot water to the lower vacuum chamber and attach the upper chamber. Pour the coffee grounds in the upper chamber and put the entire unit on the stovetop. As the water boils, steam rises to the upper chamber and saturates the coffee grounds while creating a vacuum in the lower chamber. After you turn off the heat, the brewed coffee is sucked back into the lower chamber.

Pod coffee makers force hot water through a pod of ground coffee beans at high pressure. These are particularly convenient, mess-free, and a make a single cup of coffee in no time flat.

These next two are likely the way your grandparents made their coffee. The first is a percolator, which involves adding grounds to a filter basket that fits inside the urn, then boiling the water on the stove for five minutes. Not the best tasting coffee. Stovetop coffee makers are similar in that they traditionally boil water on the stove. However, there are newer models for espresso and cappuccino.

A French press is a brewing device popularized by the French. A French press consists of a narrow cylindrical jug usually made of glass or clear plastic, equipped with a lid and a "plunger" which fits tightly in the cylinder and which has a fine wire or nylon mesh acting as a filter. Coffee is brewed by placing the coffee and water together, leaving to brew for a few minutes, then depressing the plunger to separate the coffee at the bottom of the jug. Its operation is simple and it produces a stronger coffee than other devices.

Today's coffee makers come in all shapes, sizes and functions, designed to deliver the specific coffee brew that serves your personal tastes. We've explored some of the various brewing methods above. There are also glass carafe coffee makers and thermal carafe coffee makers. Plus you can brew single cups; three, six or nine cups, or even two pots at the same time. Espresso makers take three different approaches: steam, pump or piston. Your choices are nearly unlimited.

So the first question to ask yourself is this: how do you like your coffee prepared? Do you prefer espresso or cappuccino? Do you use a specific blend of coffee beans, and if so, which brewing method turns out the best taste in your opinion?

Once you've determined your brewing choice, then here's some basic questions you'll want to answer:

• Will a single cup coffee maker do the job or do you need something bigger? If you're making coffee for the family, you'll want a small coffee maker than if you're making coffee for the office. Either way, be wise. Don't go by how many cups you normally brew, go by how many cups you normally consume.
  
• Buying a coffee maker with a water filter can make a difference in the quality of your coffee. This is especially true if you don't have a water purifier in your kitchen.
  
• A glass carafe is probably your best bet if the coffee will be consumed relatively soon after brewing. A stainless steel carafe will keep the coffee hot for an extended period of time.
  
• There are a number of features you can look for: automatic shut off, timer, strength selector, warm plate temperature control, alarm when the brewing is complete.
• Is there a grinder attachment? This can be convenient if you prefer to purchase coffee beans instead of ground coffee.
  
• Do you prefer paper filters (they're cheap and convenient but can water down the taste of your coffee), or a permanent filter (they're easy to clean up and better for the environment).

   

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  Black Low Profile Coffee Maker Space saving coffee maker with 1 lower and 1 upper warmer