How to choose a coffee maker for home

Real black coffee is made only from natural grains: roasted, ground and cooked according to the rules. None of the sublimate will not give you the necessary supply of vitality for the whole day, but natural coffee - easily. Alas, not everyone has the talent of making a fragrant drink in a Turk, and sometimes it simply does not have enough time. But in both cases, the problem will be solved by the purchase of a good coffee maker, which in a few minutes will make you an espresso, American or latte - in general, what your heart desires.

The best manufacturers of coffee makers - which company to choose

The home appliance market is replete with coffee makers of all shapes and designs in the widest price range.

Acquisition of a model from a well-known brand guarantees you a long service life of the car, although, of course, you will have to overpay for a trademark. However, many well-known companies can find the line of available coffee machines for buyers with different income levels.

You definitely can not go wrong if you choose a model of any company from the top five of the market of small kitchen appliances:

• Delonghi;
• Bosch;
• Philips;
• Krups;
• Panasonic.

You can learn more about the most popular coffee makers of these companies in our ranking. But in order to make a final decision, it is necessary first to study the varieties and the principle of operation of these devices, because the taste of your coffee will depend on it.

The principle of operation and the device coffee makers

A coffee maker can be automatic or semi-automatic - the principle of its operation does not change much from this. As stated, it just brews coffee, that is, it warms the water and drives it through a layer of ground beans, forcing them to give the drink its taste and aroma.

How exactly this will happen depends on the chosen construction of the coffee maker: some models simply pour boiling water over the sieve with granules, others serve hot water under high pressure.

One thing remains unchanged - a set of basic elements of the machine:

1. Water tank;

2. Horn, filter or coffee strainer;

3. A heating element;

4. Power button or full control panel.

In the coffee machines, working under pressure, there may also be pumps and electromagnetic pumps, and in the most advanced models there are even built-in coffee grinders and cappuccinators.

Types of coffee makers

Electric Turk

The simplest type of coffee maker, in its principle of operation in many respects resembling an electric kettle. Ground coffee is poured into a container of heat-resistant glass, plastic or refractory ceramics, and water is poured, after which the electric wheel is mounted on a platform with a heating element.

In this coffee machine you can make from 4 to 9 cups of coffee in just a few minutes - in strict accordance with the traditional technology of cooking.

Pros:

• Small size and weight;
• No filters are needed;
• The drink is prepared quickly and easily;
• You can use the electric car for boiling water or brewing tea;
• There are battery models on sale;
• Affordable cost.

Minuses:

• Not all models have an automatic shutdown feature.

Geyser

Another type of coffee maker, only this time consisting of two compartments. In the bottom there is a heating element, clean water is poured in here, ready coffee is collected in the top. Between themselves, these vessels are connected by a thin tube passing through the filter separator with ground grains.

When heated, the water in the lower tank increases the pressure and actually squeezes itself out of the compartment. Rising through the tube, it passes through the coffee powder, brews it and is collected at the top.The finished drink turns out quite fragrant, with a steady crema that is very much appreciated by coffee lovers.

Some geyser models drive the fluid in a circle several times, bringing the fortress to the maximum (although the flavor during this time, of course, is lost). What is good about these coffee makers is their spaciousness: in the largest one can make up to 18 cups of strong coffee at a time.

Pros:

• Ease of care and use;
• Relatively compact size;
• Quick drink preparation;
• No need to control the cooking process;
• Can be used for tea brewing;
• Prepares coffee a good strength.

Minuses:

• It is impossible to cook a small portion - you have to fill the coffee pot to the maximum mark;
• In the process of boiling coffee lost nutrients and partly its aroma.

Drip

In these coffee makers, a slightly different principle is used to make the drink. Clean water is poured into the upper tank, where it is brought to a temperature of +90 .. + 95 ° C by a heating element. Then the liquid slowly seeps down through the filter with ground coffee, sucking on its aroma and taste, and flows into the coffee pot.

Drip models may differ in capacity and volume of the tank, but they all prepare equally weak coffee. At the same time, they work slowly, but in non-stop mode (until the water runs out or the pot is filled).

Pros:

• Easy maintenance and cleaning;
• With a large tank volume, you can make a lot of coffee;
• Available models with auto heating coffee pot;
• Low cost.

Minuses:

• One cup of the drink is prepared for at least 3-5 minutes;
• You can make only one type of coffee - American;
• It is necessary to regularly change the filters;
• The drink is not strong enough.

Carob (holder)

Rozhkovye coffee makers prepare flavored drink better than the above models. Here, steam from the water heated in the boiler is fed under high pressure of 4–15 bar to the horn with coffee powder pressed into it, and then poured into the cup. Everything takes about a minute.

The taste and aroma of the finished drink depends on the method of supplying wet steam and its temperature.

1. In holding coffee machines, the boiler valve opens when the water starts boiling and the pressure inside rises to 4 bar. As a result of this treatment, the drink is quite saturated, but not perfect.

2. Pump models do their job much better. Firstly, they do not boil water, but rather heat it to “correct” +95 ° C, and secondly, the built-in pump provides a maximum supply pressure of about 14-15 bar. As a result, you get perfectly brewed espresso coffee in just half a minute.

Pros:

• Prepare the "right" coffee - fragrant, tasty and strong;
• Quickly fill cups;
• Large selection of models from 200 ml to 1.5 l;
• Often come with additional options, such as a cappuccino maker or a second outlet.

Minuses:

• Take up a lot of space in the kitchen;
• Difficult to care;
• Requires particularly fine grinding of coffee;
• Noisy.

Capsule

This is a relatively new type of units, but they can be called full-fledged coffee machines.

In the work, capsule models often use the pump principle of preparing a beverage under pressure, only here the wet steam is passed through a special capsule with the finished powder.

The whole process is fully automated, and even the used casings of the coffee maker itself are dumped into a special container. Themselves as capsules or pods for such devices need to buy separately, choosing the type of drink that you prefer.

Pros:

• Fast and fully automated coffee making process;
• Elementary care - just wipe the machine from the spray and rinse the pan;
• Coffee and tea are brewed in different varieties;
• They have relatively small dimensions and weight.

Minuses:

• Many capsule coffee makers work only with “native” pods;
• Decent cost of capsules;
• You can make only those drinks that are on sale (and there are not so many of them).

Coffee machine selection options

Power

It depends not only on the speed of preparation of the drink, but also its strength, and often the volume of the finished product. The higher this figure, the less time it takes for the machine to brew a portion of coffee to you, and its taste will be more saturated.

1. If you like very strong coffee, choose a device with a capacity of 800 W;

2. For a large family of coffee men or for an office, you need a more serious device that consumes at least 1 kW;

3. If the cooking speed is not critical for you, 400-500 watt devices will be enough.

Nuance: when buying a drip coffee maker, it is better to choose a model of small power, not exceeding 700-750 watts. Yes, it will cook more slowly, but it will have time to collect the maximum amount of substances contained in the ground grains.

Pressure

This indicator is important for rozhkovyh apparatus, since it affects the speed of preparation and strength of the drink.

Manufacturers of some machines indicate in the accompanying documentation the ability to raise the pressure to 17 bar, but in fact, even with 7-9 you will get excellent espresso. So you should not chase after big numbers if you don’t want to overpay.

Tank volume

The capacity of the water-heating chamber must be paid attention to by those who are going to make coffee often and in large volumes.

1. In offices, units are installed that are capable of delivering at least 2 liters of ready-made drink at one gas station.

2. For home use, models with a capacity of up to 400-500 ml are usually enough - they are more economical both in terms of energy consumption and the consumption of coffee powder.

The volume of the tank is especially important for geyzernoy coffee makers - you can not pour less water into it than is necessary for pushing through the inner tube. That is, if you buy a 500 ml machine, you will always have half a liter of coffee at the exit.

Additional functions

1. “Drop-stop” stops the preparation of the drink, if you remove a coffee pot or a cup from the tray. Work will continue as soon as you put them in place. A convenient feature for those who can not wait for the entire portion, but it is especially necessary in drip models.

2. “Timer” works as a delayed start, that is, it allows you to set the start time of the coffee maker so that the flavored drink is ready for your awakening.

3. "Control of the fortress" - this feature will be useful for a family of coffee lovers, where everyone has their own requirements for coffee.

4. “Overflow protection” will turn off the appliance if the coffee pot is full and there is still water in the tank.

5. The Auto Heater feature keeps the drink warm for 30 minutes after the end of the brewing process.

Which coffee maker to choose

1. True coffee lovers, as well as all those who like to experiment with different varieties, cannot do without electric Turks of a small volume - a maximum of 500 ml. It is desirable that it had an automatic shutdown function, otherwise your coffee will run away regularly.

2. The best option for those who like a weak drink, but consumes it in large quantities - is drip or geyser models. Select the capacity at your discretion, but the larger it will be, the higher the power of the device should be. The only restriction is that for home drip coffee makers it is better not to exceed 750 watts.

3. Drip and geyser devices are also suitable for office, but with an increased volume of coffee pot: up to 10 liters in the first case and up to 1.3 liters in the second. Here you will need high power and additional features, such as Drop-Stop, Auto Heater and Fortress Control.

4. Fans of strong espresso should take a closer look at the pump carob installations (it is possible with a complete cappuccinator). Such an apparatus, though more expensive than filtration or geyser counterparts, but prepares coffee quickly and tasty.

5. If funds allow, feel free to buy a capsule coffee machine. Preference should be given to models of well-known manufacturers, as well as to universal devices capable of working with pods of several types.

How much does a coffee maker

1. Electric Turks have the lowest prices in the range of 650-1600 rubles.

2. The cost of drip devices for home use starts from 400 and comes to 27 thousand rubles.Large professional cars of the same type are even more expensive - their ceiling is 230 thousand rubles.

3. Geyser coffee makers can be bought from 1,000 to 20,000 rubles.

4. Capsule coffee machine will empty your wallet in the amount of 2 to 200 thousand.

5. The biggest run-up price for rozhkovyh machines. On the market, you can find home models for 1-40 thousand or take a cool professional unit worth up to 1.3 million.