The Best Coffee Maker: French Press, Drip or Espresso?

If you're a coffee lover, there is no doubt that you have spent some time debating which type of coffee maker is the best. It's not an easy decision to make! After all, each method has its own set of pros and cons. In this blog post, we will discuss three popular methods for brewing coffee: French Presses, Drip Coffee and Espresso Machines.

The French Press uses coarse ground beans with water heated at lower temperatures than other methods to provide rich flavor without bitterness or acidity. You have complete control of the process from batch to batch. You decide the temperature of the water and how long the grounds are in contact with the water. The downside? The extreme flexibility and control of this method allows for a significant margin of error. A coffee newbie could easily make the water too hot, steep the coffee too long or worse not long enough! The machines also require a more in depth cleaning process since the entire apparatus must be taken apart to dump the grounds and clean it properly.

Drip coffee is a little more convenient (and the fail safe brewing method) because you can have different beans and ground levels to choose from, but no control over brew speed. The coffee drops through the filter as fast as it can and will give a consistent cup. The downside is that this lack of contact time with the grounds causes a lack of flavor when compared to the French Presses. The machine also requires constant cleaning due to the need for a paper filter.

Espresso machines are great if you want higher volumes but they also require a lot of maintenance and you can't really adjust the taste. The downside of this type is that the process requires a lot more time and care than other methods. The coffee must be ground very finely, placed in an even layer at the bottom of the machine before pumping hot water through it to extract flavor for about 30 seconds. It requires patience, skill, and many hours of practice to do correctly without burning the espresso. When you are finished, you also have to clean out all those tiny crevices!

Each method has its own pros and cons, but no matter which method you choose, make sure you start the process with Salty Sailor Coffee!