Finding the perfect coffee maker has a lot more to do with what the coffee maker can do rather than how it looks. We know, we all have an inclination to find a coffee maker that looks best in our coffee stations, but to thoroughly enjoy your coffee and the process of making it, you should understand the types of coffee machines out there.
As an at-home barista, how much of the coffee-making process do you want automated? None of all? All of it? Today, we’ll help you find out what type of machine works for you.
Manual Coffee Makers
There are two major categories to out for: manual and automatic. Manual coffee makers let you control every aspect of the coffee-making process, starting from the size of your coffee grounds all the way down to the temperature of your water. As such, coffee newbs might run into all sorts of difficulties when experimenting with different ratios, temperatures, and extraction times.
So, why would you manually brew your own cup of coffee if automatic coffee makers take the guesswork out of the equation? Simply put, a manual coffee maker allows you to fine-tune your drink to suit your palate, whereas automatic coffee makers typically come with preprogrammed settings that the general public can enjoy.
Of course, there’s a ton of experimentation that goes into making your ideal cup of coffee, especially for those who are still greenhorns of the coffee world. Now, that’s not to say that you need to go through extensive barista training to make good coffee, but if you want to get the most out of your dark brew without figuring out complicated ratios, you might want to take a gander at automatic coffee maker options instead.
Automatic Coffee Makers
The phrase “automatic coffee maker” pretty much describes what the machine can do. A simple press of a button or tap of a touchscreen will pull a shot of your favorite milk-based drink for you in record time. Automatic coffee makers can be further divided into three sub-categories: semi-automatic, fully-automatic, and super-automatic. Let’s look at each one by one.
Semi-Automatic Coffee Makers
Semi-automatic coffee makers feature an electric pump that shoots water through a puck of coffee grounds with up to 9 bars of pressure. Semi-automatic machines eliminate the need to measure water volume and extraction time while also producing a full-bodied drink in under 60 seconds.
As its name suggests, semi-automatic coffee makers still require a bit of manual labor. You have to grind your beans or purchase them pre-grinded, measure out the beans before tamping them, froth your own milk, and so on.
With all that in mind, these machines remain one of the more popular versions of coffee makers, especially in coffee shops where baristas know how much force to apply when tamping coffee grounds. If this still sounds like too much work, perhaps you’d be more interested in a fully-automatic coffee maker.
Fully-Automatic Coffee Makers
In terms of design and function, you might have trouble differentiating semi-automatic coffee makers from fully-automatic coffee makers. But if you ever get your hands on such a machine, you’ll instantly find out that these machines are a lot more convenient, especially for those who have other things on their mind.
Fully-automatic coffee makers automate the entire coffee-making process, starting from applying just enough pressure to make the perfect puck of coffee grounds. Each pull will apply enough pressurized water to extract maximum flavor and aroma with the excessive bitterness, producing a golden cup of coffee before your very eyes. So, if you’re doing multiple things at once, these single-touch machines will have your drink ready anytime you’re jonesing for milk-based liquid gold.
Despite its name, the entire coffee-making process is not fully automated. You still have to think about getting the right grounds size and milk frothiness levels. This is where super-automatic coffee makers come into play.
Super-Automatic Coffee Makers
How much more automated can the coffee-making process get, you ask? Surprisingly, there’s still quite a lot that a fully-automatic coffee makers can’t do.
Super-automatic coffee makers are also known as bean-to-brew machines. You simply place your whole beans in a hopper before a built-in grinder cuts the beans down to the perfect size. These machines can come with a pre-grind bypass for your decaf lovers out there.
Next, it takes the grounds and packs them into a puck before pressurized water passes through to extract the most amount of flavor. Some machines even have built-in milk frothers that let you steam milk to the perfect consistency, giving your drink some much-needed richness to cut through the bitterness.
These machines brew fresh cups of coffee at various water, temperature, and flavor levels, starting with whole coffee beans. Making the perfect cup of espresso doesn’t get much easier than using a super-automatic coffee maker!
–
