Single Cup Coffee Maker

Mustafa October 23rd, 2009 (#):

In the spirit of full disclosure, I am a coffee freak. I roast my own coffee. I have a wide variety of exotic coffee beans in my reserve, from blueberry harar to monsooned malabar (no kopi luwak though). My brewer collection includes everything from a lowly plastic “cup top” to an alcohol fueled vacuum brewer with 24k gold fixtures (and everything in between). I have no excuse. I consume coffee at modest levels. And yet I use the same coffee grinder in my kitchen that Starbucks uses in their stores.

So what possessed me to buy a K-Cup machine, when they are not exactly known for producing great coffee? A love of stainless steel? Impulse? Discovering a few square inches of empty counter space in our kitchen? I’m not really sure.

When I saw it at a certain well known gourmet chain store, it was a brand new item. And much as I love all of my coffee toys, sometimes I just want a quick and easy cup of coffee. What the heck, it was just one more interesting coffee machine. So I bit and I bought.

When I got home with it and set it up on the counter, there was no question that it was a nice machine. And I already knew that it claimed to have the temperature control so critical to brewing a proper cup. But would it perform?

First I tried some of the coffee that came with it. I was not impressed. I played with temp and brew size. Still not impressed. Next I ordered some of just about every coffee Keurig had available in order to try them (back then there was no such thing as finding K-Cups locally).

I have to say that I threw away a lot of bad cups, but found a few interesting ones along the way. Eventually I settled on some offerings that I found drinkable. And the convenience is hard to beat. So I do find myself using this machine. My wife is less critical of her coffee, and she uses it every day, and loves it.

So, if you are looking for the ultimate home brewer for the perfect cup of coffee, this probably isn’t it. Try a Technivorm Technivorm Moccamaster KBT-741 Thermal Coffee Brewer, a vacuum brewer Bodum Santos Stovetop Glass Vacuum 34-Ounce Coffee Maker, or the Yama Tabletop 3 Cup Vacpot Coffee Siphon & Vacuum Pot or try the famous 1970′s era Chemex Chemex 6 Cup Coffee Maker. Maybe even a good Melitta 64007B Single Cup Coffee Filter Cone ( BLACK ) cheap, cup-top.

However, if you want an absolutely simple and moderately elegant way to generate a passable cup to clear your head in the morning, then the Breville may indeed be a good choice.

Here are a few tips after a couple of years using the Breville:

> Yes, you can get good hot chocolate out of those little cups. Here is how. First tap the K-Cup on the counter a few times, the chocolate tends to clump. Second, open and close the brew head several times, rotating the cup K-Cup each time. This will allow the water to pass through multiple holes, and dissolve all of the chocolate.

> Always wash the K-Cup holder between uses. If you don’t think this is needed, and have been using your machine without doing it, try placing the holder in a bowl of vinegar. Watch the vinegar turn to something which looks like tea. Wipe the inside of the cup with a paper towel and look at the crud you got out of it. Now rinse thoroughly.

> Use good quality filtered water. Do NOT use RO water unless you use a mineral cartridge to restore the mineral content. Do not use distilled water either.

> If the coffee from your Breville tastes over extracted, lower the temperature. You may also wish to experiment with the brew size. (You can add a little hot water if you need more volume, or poor some coffee off if you need less – the goal is getting the right extraction.)

Want to learn so much about coffee that you need a good cup of coffee to digest it all? Start with Espresso Coffee, Second Edition: The Science of Quality

Just be careful, or you could end up being a coffee freak too !

Bimala October 23rd, 2009 (#):

Yeah! I now have a hot beverage station on my kitchen counter for guests to pick whatever they want, be it coffee, hot chocolate, tea. I’ve just set my machine up and I’ve already had two cups! Yum.

Here are a few quick tips:

1. I put a small amount of dairy (or soy milk) in a mug and microwave for 30 seconds to heat it up, then put mug on the Breville machine and press brew – beverage stays much hotter for longer period of time.

2. Have a kitchen towel on hand to wipe occasional spatters unless you’re using a really tall mug, and clean under the spout too.

3. It does vibrate loudly, so I put a soft rubber coaster in the drip tray (with still enough room for drainage just in case) and the vibration from your mug and the metal tray is substantially reduced.

One design drawback…you can’t keep the neat blue light on without keeping the machine constantly on, which heats the water and is a waste of energy. Oh well. In all other respects, this machine is amazing. But what really sold me is the refillable K-cup so I can use my own ground coffee; I have gripes about consumables like with inkjet printers…so that’s a nice feature to have. Yeah, it’s pricey, but I spend on average $5 at a local coffee shop daily because I also buy something to eat…but bringing the coffee shop home and eating my own food is helping to recover the cost here and save money in the long haul. Plus, Chicago winters are brutal so I don’t even need to leave the house for a good cup of coffee! A big plus.

I hope this review is helpful to you.