On 8/15/2010 7:20 PM, phaeton wrote:
> My some-years-old Black N Decker drip coffeemaker sprang a leak while
> I was vinegaring it out yesterday, thus destroying the delicate
> ecosystem of my countertop. I'm considering replacing it with an
> electric percolator. I see them for around $40 at misc stores, such
> as Sears.
>
> What made me think of this was last weekend, when at my girlfriend's
> aunt's cabin, she made us all coffee in an oldish electric
> percolator. She used just regular unspecial Folgers ground coffee and
> it was the most lovely cup I'd had in quite some time. Bold tasting,
> well bodied, had some octane to it but wasn't too strong or acidic
> tasting*.
>
> Anyone here use one of these?
>
> 1) I assume that the new modern ones will automatically switch from
> "brew mode" to "keep warm mode" when it's done (hence the indicator
> light). This is important because I don't want something I have to
> keep an eye on. I want to be able to load it, flip it on and ignore it
> completely until after i've come out of the shower. Also, I tend to
> brew small amounts most mornings (just enough for a cup to drink and
> fill my travel mug). My B&D Drip model could begrudgingly brew small
> amounts but for some reason it never tasted as good as the times when
> I make a whole pot. IIRC most drip makers recommend making at least a
> half a pot. The box that percolators are in say they'll make 2-12
> cups and it's all the same. I don't want a "one cup" drip model.

For what you want to do, consider a different approach. Most
authorities agree that for optimal coffee you want three things--freshly
ground beans, 195-205 degree water, and in a drip machine an extraction
time of about 5 minutes.

There's only one consumer-level machine currently on the market that
hits the temperature and time targets (Technivorm--tests of the others
that claim they do show that they don't) and it's around 300 bucks.

The Melitta pourover drip devices (there's a 1-cup, a 6-cup, and a
10-cup) are very highly regarded and dirt-cheap (under 20 bucks), but
you need to heat water for them. You can do this in a kettle on the
stove, or you can use a Japanese style automatic boiler for 90 bucks or
so (Zojirushi CD-WBC30 for example although there are many others). Add
a whirligig grinder (Krups fast touch for example) for 20 bucks and a
bag of Dunkin' Donuts whole bean coffee (don't laugh--Dunkin Donuts does
a good job both on selection and roasting) and you should see a
significant improvement in coffee quality over what you've been drinking.

> 2) I seem to remember seeing different grinds for percolators. Is
> that still necessary?
>
> 3) I know I can get another crappy drip model (like a 5-cup one) for
> about $10 and it'll make coffee for a few years just fine before
> blowing up. The percolators I'm looking at are 4 times as much.
> However, it looks like the way percolators are made that they'll last
> decades. Am I wrong?
>
> Thanks for any help and advice.
>
>
> *When I first moved out on my own I had a stovetop percolator that
> made the worst coffee ever. Maybe the water was bad or at 17 years
> old I just didn't know how to make coffee, but it was always weak,
> burnt tasting and acidic like i brewed it with vinegar instead of
> water. Yet every time anyone saw it on my stove or heard that I had
> one they'd say "those make the BEST coffee you'll ever have".