The Ultimate Guide to Buying a Coffee Maker
How blissful it is to have an aromatic cup of coffee every morning? If you are a devoted coffee fan, you might even want to treat yourself with a customized coffee made on your own. Finding the right coffee maker is not easy with so many options available on the market. So, how to buy the best coffee maker for you? Just give a thought to how you like your coffee to taste, how much you want to brew at once, how much time, money, and effort that you are willing to devote.
There are a lot of other factors that you need to add to the equation in finding the best coffee maker for you. So, let’s have a look at everything that you need to know before buying the perfect coffee maker for you. Whether you are looking to buy a coffee maker for the first time or want to replace your old coffee maker with a new one, this coffee maker buying guide will help you to make an informed decision.
How Do You Take Your Coffee?
Before, thinking about which coffee maker to buy, know your coffee preferences. Think about your coffee lifestyle. Here are some factors that might jump across your head.
Convenience
How do you wish your coffee experience to be? Do you want your coffee to be ready for you by the time you wake up? Then, you might want to go for an electric or programmable coffee maker that does everything for you. But, if you are a passionate coffee maker who finds making coffee fun and interesting, you might be happy with manual pour-over coffee makers.
You can also think about a partly automated coffee machine which will make life easier for you with less attention on your behalf.
Taste of coffee
What is your favorite – dark coffee with a strong taste or a mild one? If so, you can buy either a coffee maker or an espresso machine. But, if you love both and want to have a variety in your coffee lifestyle, buying both types of machines separately will be costly and will consume more space in your kitchen. So, it would be great to have a hybrid machine that brews both types of coffee. But, it is often impossible to get that authentic coffee or espresso flavor in these hybrid machines. So, if you are a serious coffee drinker, better not go for a hybrid option.
Frequency
If you are an all-day coffee drinking fanatic, keeping your coffee hot throughout the day is what will matter to you the most. So, you might want to have a coffee maker with a thermal carafe in it. If you are just a morning coffee drinker, or someone who gets only two or three coffee doses per day, a glass brewer with a warming plate or pod machine would suffice.
Remember that knowing your preferences will ease your buying process.
What is the Best Coffee Maker for You?
You might be already wondering what espresso machines are and what are these hybrid machines. Well, if you are unsure about what these exactly mean, let’s have a look at the common types of coffee makers that you will find on the market.
Coffee Brewer
Coffee brewer is the type of coffee maker that you will find in most homes. The fact that it comes in many shapes and sizes allows you to choose something that matches the space on your kitchen counter. Some call this the drip coffee maker.
Using these machines is very easy. You just need to add in the water and coffee grounds to the allocated spots, switch it on and the coffee brewer will take care of the rest. They are also affordable to buy and use due to the fact that the filters are usually not expensive and you won’t need to replace them for a long time. However, you cannot expect anything fancy from these machines other than a basic cup of coffee.
Pod Coffee Maker
You already heard this name in this article, but you might be wondering what it is. This is a new type of coffee maker that you can find on the market. It got its name from the single-serving pods and K-cups that are used to make coffee. So, sometimes, these are also called single-serving or one cup coffee makers. You can easily find these pods in different flavors to suit your taste.
Using a pod machine is simple. You just need to drop them into the maker, pour in water, and start the machine. Using a pod machine gives you fewer worries than a traditional coffee brewer. Here you don’t have to mess around with coffee grounds or filters because you are using pods. Single serving machines often come with decent price tags but the cost of usage will be high. This is because coffee pods are generally more expensive than a bag of coffee grounds or beans. But don’t let this stop you from buying one because there are so many new options out there that allow you to use coffee grounds instead of pods.
French Press
The French press is one of the oldest and simplest types of coffee makers. You just have to decide on the number of coffee grounds and the water you want, add them to the machine, and press down the lid of the machine. Remember that you have to use boiling water when you are dealing with a French Press.
It is not wrong to say that this is the cheapest choice of coffee makers. You do not need to buy any filters and the machine does not use any electricity. If you are worried about the price, French Press is undoubtedly one of the most economical choices for you.
But, it has its downsides. You cannot get those fancy flavors by using a French Press. And in case you do not brew for the right amount of time, you will end up with a cup of coffee that has loose grounds floating in it. So, this might not be the best option for those who are serious about the quality of their cup of coffee.
Espresso Makers
Espresso Makers are the kings in the coffee maker world. You will have a very wider choice of models and sophisticated features to get the perfect cup of coffee that you are looking for. You can get the strongest and the delicious output. With all these features and benefits, it is not surprising that Espresso machines come with the highest prices. But, if you are a serious coffee lover, the price will be worth it.
Many Espresso makers will allow you to make one shot at a time. But, now you will find newer models with two cups at once.
Espresso Makers will generally let you make different types of drinks like cappuccinos, mochas, and lattes.
Cold Brew Coffee Makers
Cold Brewers are different from the other types of coffee makers. As the name suggests, they use cold water or ice water to extract the magical flavors from the coffee beans. You can easily make a ready-to-drink cup of coffee. If you wish, you can even make it thicker by adding less water and more beans.
The specialty of cold brewers is that the coffee you get will taste less bitter than a traditional coffee. Often, it will taste less acidic giving you a perfect coffee sensation. However, these machines have a long sleeping time. Generally, they take up to 12 to 24 hours to make coffee. So, this will mean that you have to either plan beforehand or make a large quantity and refrigerate to be used later on. But the coffee you get will definitely be refreshing.
What to Look for in a Coffee Maker?
Since you have now got some basic idea about the types of coffee makers, you might want to know more specific factors to consider when buying a coffee maker. Here are some essentials that you must never miss.
Capacity
Whether you are looking to make a single cup of coffee for yourself, or your entire family, the right coffee maker for your needs is awaiting out there in the market. If you are living alone or each one of your family has a different coffee preference, you can go for a single cup coffee maker. But, if you want to brew coffee for the whole family or just want to party with your friends and neighbors, then you can check on family-sized coffee makers or even larger ones. There are also commercial-sized coffee makers that will do the job right for you if you are a small shop owner. But remember to check the number of cups labeled on the machine and the servings per cup.
Sizing
Most coffee makers come in decent sizes but some come quite big. So, in case the machine does not fit in with space, it will cause a lot of headaches. When it comes to the size, it is not just the length and the height that you have to look into. Make sure to check where the openings are to add water and coffee grounds. If the opening is on the top, there has to be enough space above the machine. If you are looking to buy a machine for your shop, check your mug sizes. If the mugs are too tall, they might not fit under the brewer. So, to have a carefree coffee experience, remember to check the size.
Brewing options
If you want to be a coffee architect and love to try out different coffees, it is great if you can choose the brew strength and the water temperature. But, you will not get most of these value-adding options in basic coffee machines. Technically, you will only be able to select the quantity of water and grounds. So, when buying a coffee maker, make sure to check the custom brewing options.
What are the Benefits of Having Your Coffee Maker?
It’s pretty easy to buy a coffee on your way to work or back home. But, if you think that your day can never begin without a cup of coffee, having your coffee maker will be a great option. By making your own, you can decide which coffee beans to use, which flavors and sweeteners to add, and the thickness of the milk or cream. Think about the savings that you can make by making your coffee rather than buying from outside. So, if you have your coffee maker, there is no doubt that you can craft the perfect cup of coffee tailor-made for you.
Other Coffee Maker Features
If you are an avid coffee lover, you might not be happy with an ordinary coffee maker. You will seek out something unique and exclusive. There are so many high-end coffee machines out there that will give you the perfect coffee experience that you were looking for. Time-based brewing, auto shut off, alerts and notifications, inbuilt cleaners are just to name a few of such sophisticated features.
Some coffee makers even have their built-in carbon filter. Some have multiple warmers to help retain the heat for the longest time. There are advanced coffee makers that come with programmable settings, where you can save the settings for future use. You will find most of these amazing features in espresso and hybrid machines. There is no doubt that these features will make your life easy. But, on the downside, the prices are also high.
The Brand
More than any of the above fancy features, it is vital that you look at the brand name. The durability and the quality of the coffee maker will have some relation with the reputation of the brand. Especially since you are spending several bucks on the coffee maker, it is safe to go for a well-known brand like Keurig, Bunn, Krups, Gaggia, DeLonghi, or Jura-Capresso.
Buying a coffee maker is not as easy as you think with so many options. You might get easily carried away by the attractive looks and the amazing features that these coffee makers offer and end up paying high dollar for something that is not the right for you.
My hope is that after reading this article, you can make a smart decision that will benefit your family or business!