Brewing Coffee Manually

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Tag: product review (Page 1 of 3)

OXO 8 Cup coffee maker with stainless thermal carafe

Need a New Coffee Maker?- OXO 8 Cup Coffee Maker Review

December 14, 2020 / / 22 Comments

When OXO approached me about sending me their new 8 cup coffee maker for review, I was a little leery. This is a manual brewing blog after all and I have been championing manual brewing methods for the last six years. After some deliberation, I decided a sponsored OXO 8 cup coffee maker review could be fun. The auto drip coffee maker scene has seen some changes since I last visited the subject in 2014. Let’s see what this new wave of automatic brewers is all about. 

2026 Update: Five Years Later, I’m Still Brewing with the OXO 8 Cup Coffee Maker

I originally published this article in 2020. After using this machine pretty consistently, I wanted to revisit my thoughts on the brewer and share some observations from years of use.

It has been more than five years since I first reviewed and the OXO 8 Cup Coffee Maker and I have to admit that it has occupied a spot on my counter for most of that time (see What Gear Earned a Spot on My Coffee Counter for Five Years?).

My overall evaluation of this coffee maker remains mostly unchanged. It has proven durable and reliable through years of consistent use. Surprisingly, I have rarely used the single-cup brewing option. In fact, I’m not even sure where I put the single-brew attachment. I appreciate that single-cup brewing is an option with this machine, and it might persuade some people away from K-cups. If I am making one cup of coffee, I would prefer to make a pour-over instead of setting up the machine for single-cup brewing.

One issue that I have encountered a few times involves the thermal carafe. Because the opening where coffee enters the carafe is relatively small, it can occasionally become blocked by coffee residue, oils or a haphazardly placed coffee ground. A few times, this has resulted in my coffee overflowing onto the counter instead of flowing properly into the carafe.

The solution is pretty simple. The opening needs to be kept clean and clear for the carafe to function properly. My personal workaround has been even simpler. When brewing, I usually remove the carafe lid entirely and switch the brewer to single-cup mode. This disengages the automatic stopper in the filter basket while eliminating any possibility of the carafe opening becoming blocked.

After brewing hundreds of pots of coffee with the Oxo 8 Cup Coffee Maker, I can still recommend it. It remains one of the better automatic coffee makers I’ve used and continues to brew an excellent pot of coffee with the push of a button.

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Atlas Coffee Club subscription box spread

Atlas Coffee Club Review- Exploring and Tasting Coffee Origins

October 12, 2020 / / 1 Comment

Last month, Atlas Coffee Club sent me some samples of their geography inspired coffee subscription program for feedback and as a possible blog post topic. I found their program and mission statement to be interesting and thought it might be something my readership would enjoy.

Since I started roasting my own coffee, the impact of geography on nearly every aspect of how a coffee tastes has fascinated me. Many consumers have a tendency to overlook the importance of coffee origin on the final product.  Climate, altitude, available facilities, local traditions and access to water are all part of the coffee story. These geographical factors (and many more) have a significant influence. Coffee travels a great distance and is touched by many hands before it ends up in your coffee mug. 

Atlas Coffee Club is on a mission to change how consumers think about coffee by spotlighting the coffee-geography link.

What is Atlas Coffee Club?

Atlas Coffee Club is a monthly coffee subscription service with an emphasis on the places where coffee grows. This company is hoping to move coffee lovers away from buying coffee at the grocery store and introduce them to single origin coffees from some of the fifty plus countries where coffee is grown.

They source their coffee through direct relationships with farmers and specialty coffee importers. So far the company has featured over twenty different countries including some pretty unique origins— Myanmar, Zambia, Ecuador, Malawi. Atlas coffee club cups over 300 specialty coffees a year and only shares their 12 favorites.

The coffee of the month subscription box is designed to feature a single country every month. They are self proclaimed  “coffee tour guides” desiring to showcase coffee destinations. Each month you’ll get the opportunity to explore a coffee region by sampling high quality coffee. These coffees are sourced with seasonality in mind and to highlight the qualities each locale has to offer. 

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Bean Box Coffee Subscription Review

August 7, 2018 / / 3 Comments

If I were to ask what comes to mind when you think of Seattle, coffee would no doubt be one of the top responses (along with rain and grunge music?). Seattle is renown for it’s coffee. Bean Box, a subscription company that focuses on Seattle area coffee roasters, sent me a sample of their subscription service (and more goodies- keep reading). I enjoy experiencing different coffee subscriptions and was excited to try out the service. Here are my thoughts on the Bean Box subscription service as well as their one time purchase “World Coffee Tour” which they also sent me. 

What is Bean Box?

As I mentioned above, Bean Box is a coffee subscription service that ships out Seattle (and Portland) area coffee on a monthly basis. You select a roast preference, a size preference (Four 1.8 oz tastes or one 12 oz bag) and receive coffee that is a scant few days out of the roaster. 

The site also features quite a few one-time coffee purchase options. These coffee bundles range from one-time small sampler tastings to the impressive World Coffee Tour Box, which features 16 coffees from around the world. 

Bean box boast a line up of 27 coffee roasters. Some of my favorites that they represent are Roseline, Kuma and Slate. There are also many other notable names like Coava, Dapper and Wise, Blue Beard… (you can find the entire list about halfway down their homepage).

Having a large pool of roasters to draw from creates a chance for the consumer to experience variety and different takes on coffee roasting. They even offer a Seattle Coffee Tour which, similar to the World Coffee Tour, features coffee from 16 different Seattle roasters. 

While there are quite a few companies that curate coffees and have them shipped to you super fresh, Bean Box’s subscription model gives them a leg up on delivery speed and personal touch. Because all of the coffees they ship are sourced locally, they can personally ship the coffee to you. With whole bags of coffee, this isn’t a huge difference but with the sample packs this means you may be getting your coffee several days to a week sooner than a company that has roasted coffee shipped to them, then repackages it and sends it out. 

If you are looking for a subscription company that delivers coffee quickly after it is roasted and like getting a variety of small samples, Bean Box should peak your interest. 

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