Thread: Percolator Coffee anyone ?

Originally Posted by ChrisL

You're killing me with this coffee talk. I quit coffee/caffeine about two months ago and have been able to stay away from it.
......

There was a recent study that blood pressure went down
with the smell of coffee. No need to drink it just the smell.

While I am a Militta filter type I know that perking coffee
has the best house filling aroma of any brewing method
I know.

Also a pot of torch boiled coffee out at a shot hole
drill rig in the middle of the Wyoming desert with a freezing
cold wind a blowing from the west is hard to beat. Even if it
smells a bit like diesel and bits get in yer teeth.....

*raises hand* Yes! I love me a percolator!

I don't care if it's "passe." It works and it works well, and there is nothing on earth that wakes me up in the morning quite like the smell of butterrum coffee being stewed in a good percolator.

But since I've been abroad, they're hard to find, and I'm broke. I've been settling for French press, and sometimes, when the going gets REALLY rough... I've even had to resort to instant. I know, I know. I hate myself.

One of the things I miss about the States is good, cheap percolators widely available to all.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Yes there are many percolaters still on the market and I'm not going to be judgemental here however I'll just say that the number one reason for terrible tasting coffee is having the water go through the grounds again and again. That's exactly what the percolator does very well.

Does anyone know if percolators were ever used outside of the U.S?

I know people had those when i was a kid, but i think they never were common. Still these pop up every now and then in flea markets.

We still have one (non-electric stove top type) and use it when we go camping.

Nowadays we have all kinds of choices when it comes to making coffee from all kinds of drip machines to vacum to press pots to percolators and all kinds of espresso machines.

The fact is in the 1800s ond before people here used all these differing types of machines and once people started with electric makers they all disappeared in favor of the perc as a matter of convenience. The coffee we used here also degraded and in most other parts of the world coffee drinking in the U.S was laughed at. Many of the makers of better rigs in europe wouldn't even export their products because they thought Americans like terrible coffee.

That's all changed now and it really all started with the Mr Coffee machine. Now of course you can buy all kinds of coffee and beans and all kinds of machines.

Personally I will skip on the perc though.

After some extensive research (aren't we blesses with the internet) I just ended up ordering a Yama 8 cup vacuum brewer.

The vacuum brewer still seems to be favorite #1.

Originally Posted by Maximilian

After some extensive research (aren't we blesses with the internet) I just ended up ordering a Yama 8 cup vacuum brewer.

The vacuum brewer still seems to be favorite #1.

I will say the few times I've had vacuum brewed coffee I thought the flavor and overall cup was exquisite. All the flavor of french press without the opacity. Plus, it's so cool to watch the process.

Even though, at least for now , I'm living vicariously through you guys, let me know how you like the vacuum, Max.

Chris L

I've been in the appliance business for over twenty years. You name it, I've sold it and or repaired it. I've witnessed the decline of American manufacturing and the decline of overall quality first hand... it's all very sad.

Vintage appliances are the best. I make my toast in a 1953 Toastmaster Powermatic toaster every morning. I make the morning coffee in a variety of machines I've restored over the years. Some vintage percolators make great coffee. The Sunbeam AP series of the 1950's is very good. The GE series of the 1950's are great looking units, but yield poor coffee. Corning Ware electric perks make great coffee. The Farberware units made in the Bronx are also excellent... I could go on and on.

One last word. The Sunbeam Vacuum Master coffeemaker. It makes the best coffee and it is also a masterpiece of American design and maufacturing.

I would just like to add that whoever said the Bunn machines were just expensive drip machines, or words to that effect, they're not. They are actually pourover machines, which are essentially the same as commercial coffee makers, in that they have a heated tank inside, so the water is always about 200 degrees, and ready to go. It only takes about three minutes or so to make a whole pot, and they have a fluid nozzle that distributes the water, evenly soaking the grains for consistent flavor. No matter to me if you want a percolator, but almost everybody who gets a Bunn never goes back. They're quality.

Well, for retro nostalgia value plus the fact that you can make it strong, I think I'm going to root around in the basement when we return from our travels in a couple of weeks and see if there's a percolator down there. I remember that sound and smell. There was even a TV commercial that incorporated the sound into its theme music.

~Rich