How to choose Coffee Maker? Automatic Drip Coffee Maker

Types of Coffee Makers

There are three types of coffee makers available for home use:

Percolator

The water is heated to a boil, it rises through an Aluminum tube and fall in a basket containing coffee grounds. The high temperature damages the flavors of the ground coffee beans. These are just things of passé, still sold in the stores.

French Press

Ground coffee beans are put in the pot. Hot water (near 180º F) is poured over coffee grounds. After about four minutes, a plunger made with stainless steel mesh is pushed up and down to filter the coffee. This provides a good flavor of coffee but lacks the advantages of Automatic Drip coffee makers

Automatic Drip Coffee Makers

These are the most common coffee makers used in United States. The coffee grounds are placed in a filter basket, the cold water is poured in the machine. The coffee maker automatically heats water to desired temperature, pours hot water over the coffee grounds through a shower head wetting most of the coffee grounds uniformly in the filter basket, and collects the filtered coffee in a coffee pot.

Automatic Drip Coffee Maker Features

Size

This is an important consideration in choosing a coffee maker. If the size is too large, it could result in a lot of wastage.

Single-serve

This is an ideal choice to make a single cup of coffee. It takes about 3 minutes to brew coffee in to a small glass coffee pot or an insulated mug.

8-Cup size

This is the most common size being sold in United States to meet needs of a typical family.

10-Cup and 12-Cup sizes

These models are suitable for families that consume multiple cups of coffee per day, small parties and offices.

Coffee Filters

Most coffee makers allow use of paper filters. Some come with permanent filters. Permanent filters eliminate the need to buy the throw away paper filters. Paper filters tend to lighten the taste of coffee.

Coffee pods are becoming available; a predetermined amount of coffee is enclosed in a paper filter. Coffee pods are available for single-serve and 12-cup coffee makers. Coffee pods eliminate the need to clean the messy spent coffee grounds.

Timer

This allows to set up the coffee maker up to 24 hours in advance to brew coffee. This is useful to wake up to a fresh brew coffee. The disadvantage is that coffee grounds may be exposed to air for up to 24 hours. This can be minimized by using coffee pods.

Pause and Serve

This feature allows you interrupt brewing cycle to pour a cup of coffee before the brewing cycle has completed, and then resume the brewing cycle.

Automatic Shut off

Sometimes, we forget to shut off the coffee maker, resulting in a messy clean up job of the coffee pot. This feature automatically shuts off the coffee maker, normally two hours after the coffee has completed the brewing cycle.

Better Coffee Maker features

Water filter

The Chlorine in the tap water can really ruin the taste of coffee. Better quality coffee makers are equipped with water filter, which need cleaning and replacement.

Insulated Carafe

Coffee glass pot is replaced with a thermally insulated Carafe that may keep coffee hot for up to six hours.

Hot Water Reservoir

This is a good feature for a party or office. The coffee maker keeps reservoir of hot water. When a pot of cold water is poured, the coffee is brewed from the hot water from this reservoir. The cold water replaces the hot water and is heated for next brewing cycle. This reduces the brewing time by using pre-heated stored water.

Attached coffee grinder

Some of the coffee makers include attached coffee grinder so that the beans are freshly ground for each brewing cycle.

Miscellaneous

Strength selector, Warmer plate temperature control, Cleaning Cycle, Audible alarm when brewing cycle is complete.

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