In our Essentials series, we like to feature things that may seem difficult at first but are fun and rewarding once you get into them. Today, we’re going to take a look at what you need to get started with a great cup of coffee at home.
I recently visited Italy with a few friends, and it was my first time in the country – and my first time trying their coffee. I’ve always been someone who believed that most coffee tastes the same and as long as you add enough sugar and cream you’ll be able to enjoy any cup of ‘joe’. After trying more Italian coffees than I can count, my mind was changed. Once you have a good cup of coffee, it’s hard to go back to the pre-ground and (usually) bitter coffee that I had been drinking.
Once I got back to the States, I decided to build an ideal home coffee brewing station and after much research decided on the setup you’ll see in the article and video below.
There are a lot of ways to make coffee at home, and while a French Press or pour over system can make some great coffee, if you’d like to keep things simple a standard drip coffee maker is the way to go. A drip coffee machine is the standard maker you see in most homes; hot water drips over ground coffee, absorbs its flavors and chemicals, and then flows through a filter into a carafe that catches the coffee for you to drink. They’re simple, quick to use and clean up, and as long as you pick a good model they make excellent coffee. When you’re looking for a drip coffee maker, you want to make sure you’re checking off the five items from this list:
After researching a wide variety of models, we decided to go with the Technivorm Moccamaster KBG. After researching a wide variety of models, we decided to go with the Technivorm Moccamaster KBG. We believe, as do many others, that this is the best coffee maker on the market.
If you’ve never used a high end coffee machine, you’re probably going to be very surprised about how much better your coffee tastes. I’m not a coffee expert, and I can really taste a difference from my old Ninja coffee maker. The Moccamaster tastes much smoother and more flavorful, and because of the regulated temperature settings you never get a burnt coffee flavor.
Every one of their models are handmade (and then tested before they ship them) in The Netherlands, they have a 5-year warranty, and are certified by both the European and American coffee associations. Every machine is set to brew at 200 degrees Fahrenheit which is the optimal temperature, and you just need to push the on switch to start. The only other button on the KBG model that we use is a switch to change the hot plate from low to high heat mode (175F / 185F). This keeps the coffee warm without burning it. Plus, all of the heating elements are made of copper so they’ll stay precise for the life of the maker.
We think the Moccamaster looks amazing on our counter, it’s simple to use, easy to clean, and makes the best cup of drip coffee we’ve ever had. Plus, it’s great to put fresh ground coffee in the basket and see it bloom – you can check that out in our video below.
Moccamasters are available in several different versions but the main differences are the sizes and whether you prefer a thermal or glass carafe. The thermal carafe will keep the coffee warm for a good amount of time, but there is no hot plate with these models. We tend to drink our coffee over a longer time period so we went with the glass carafe version.
If you’re going to invest in a quality unit like this, make sure you get whole beans and a grinder as well. If you’re just going to use stale pre-ground beans you won’t be using this to it’s full potential. But if you want the best cup of coffee you can make at home, the Moccamaster with fresh ground beans is as good as it gets
There are a wide variety of grinders available for coffee. At the most basic level, you can choose between a manual or automatic grinder. You’ll get a better grind for your money with the manual versions, but we’ve found that it’s not a lot of fun to crank a grinder for several minutes each morning to make coffee. So for that reason, we were willing to shell out a little more money for a quality burr grinder – please, don’t ever buy a blade grinder. Why?
There will always be tradeoffs if you don’t want to spend $2,000 on a grinding system – which, almost no one does. But the Breville Smart Grinder Pro fills an important niche in grinding great drip coffee beans.
There are a few other things you’ll want to pick up to make sure you can enjoy a great cup of coffee – we’ll give you the highlights here, and you can watch the video below to see a more in-depth look at how we use them.
So there you have it – our choices for the best home brewed drip coffee. While there is an initial expense for these products, over time you’re going to save a lot of money compared to drinking coffee from coffee shops. Plus, it’s going to taste better and is fun to make. Enjoy your brew!
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