Buying a coffee maker is not as easy as going to the departmental store and picking one base on the price or brand. Different genres of coffee maker will cater to different users with different expectations. Too many jargons in the specifications may get a user confused, but the art of buying a coffee maker boils down to which appliance matches the science of coffee preserving the most during the extraction. Stay and read the full length of the article.
Believe us. You will be an expert after this.
What are the parameters that will affect the brew?
1. Pressure
If you are going for an espresso, you will need to have pressurised water to produce the microfoam that floats on top of the coffee. This caramel coloured foam is known as crema. The crema is the product when pressure meets the oil of the coffee. There is a purpose for this crema. It covers the aroma from escaping from the coffee, keeping everything in until you enjoy the first sip. As such, having crema on the espresso is a signature of a properly made espresso. The pressure required should be between 9-12 bars.
If you are going for brewed coffee. Coffee normally served in a more bigger cup. The extraction is longer to produce the bigger cup. As such, if additional energy, in the form of pressure, is introduced during the extraction process. This over extracts the coffee and burns off the aromatic notes in the product.
2. Temperature
Like most types of tea, temperature control is an important aspect that will directly affect the result of the coffee.
This is the part that differentiates between a good coffee maker and one which is not. If you are making brewed coffee, the precision of how you keep the temperature from getting too hot will be crucial.
3. Method
If you are doing espresso, you will need pressurised water, which usually requires a machine. If you are making brewed coffee, you will be brewing by infusion, and you won’t need any fancy tools. You do need an arsenal of gadgets to keep the brewing done slowly at the right temperature.
From the first look, it might seem that making espresso is way harder than making a good cup of brewed coffee. That’s not true, never let that affect your decision.
So the next step will be to find out what types of coffee will you like. Getting the right coffee maker to make the coffee you like, is far better than buying a gadget that doesn’t make it right for you.
What types of coffee?
- Espresso based coffee
Latte, cappuccino, long blacks and cortados are some examples. Getting an essence from the coffee by pressurised extraction within 30 seconds, gliding through a right range of temperature. Drinking it neat or mixing with fresh milk to produce different recipes. Espresso based coffee will feel thicker in texture and stronger in flavour. - Infusion based coffee
Such coffee is enjoyed in more extensive parts of the world as it doesn’t require special machines. Drip coffee, filtered coffee, pour-over coffee are some examples. Extraction is done by pouring hot water onto ground coffee directly. A filter is used to keep the coffee ground separated. Infusion based coffee is more liquid and a properly made one can better express delicate notes, similar to tea.
For infusion methods, there are many choices in the market which everyone is familiar with, most to take of is the temperature which is the parameter that might affect more. As well as the pouring speed.
If you like espresso-based coffee maker, it’s a little more tricky.
There are many types of options on the market
- Fully automatic machines
This is the most found coffee machines in the departmental store. You pour your coffee beans in the machine, press a button and it will churn out the coffee in sequence. The good part is the convenience of understanding.Pressure: Usually the pump is not restricted and allowed to be blasted at maximum strength. The pressure is usually at up to 19 bars which exceed the optimum level of 9 to 12 bars. This will mean a tremendous amount of energy is going into the coffee during extraction and increases the chance of over-extraction and burning the notes of the coffee.Temperature: Such coffee makers usually use a heating system call “thermobloc” which is an aluminium block carved with many paths for water to pass through. The heating profile for such heating system is it will heat up quickly when activated, going higher and higher during the extraction. The first few moments of the extraction, when the coffee oil is at its highest, is brewed at a lower temperature. As the extraction goes longer and longer, it goes very high in heat. In the science of coffee, this will mean that the significant part, in the beginning, isn’t correctly extracted, and the bitter ends are intensified. This leads to lesser flavours and increase of astringents in the coffee.Method: If the grinder is located on the same device as the coffee maker. The heat from the coffee maker will transfer to the coffee beans stored in the grinding unit. This will quickly deteriorate the quality of the coffee. Substantially reduce the amount of oil that produces the crema. The result is lesser flavours and thinner texture. - Coffee capsule machines
This is a new system that is very popular in the past decade as it eliminates many problems from fully automatic machines.Pressure: This inherit the same issues from automatic machines, the pump is unrestricted and going at a pressure far beyond the optimum level.Temperature: This system also inherits the same issues, as they are brew at a temperature range that sways to an unsuitable realm.Method: This is the part where this shines. Coffee is stored separately in capsules or pods. No heat is transferred to the capsule until they are used, each cup is fresh. The quality of coffee cup is better in this sense compared to automatic machines. However the issue concerned by many is the capsule is always made of either aluminium or plastic, that has a possibility of leeching toxic in every cup. The cost of coffee per cup is also at its highest. One is easily paying three times more than paying for coffee beans. - Semi-professional espresso machines
This is the same machines used by cafes that had been downsized to kitchen appliances size. They are the most expensive in the cost. However, they always hold value and increase in price every year, just like expensive watches. They are also designed to be serviceable and can be very durable to last for decades.Pressure: The coffee maker is heated by a boiler system. A lot of steam pressure is available to froth the creamy milk and to produce the espresso at the optimal pressure of 9 to 12 bars. Be careful of domestic machines that are built to look similar to semi-professional machines, but are using a thermobloc system inside.Temperature: Better semi-professional machines are using a heat exchanger or double boiler system. They are designed to have an extraction temperature hovering between 88 – 92 degree Celcius. This is the green zone that can extract the most flavours within a typical extraction time of 30 seconds.
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