Okay, to some the idea of using a French press coffee maker is a little too precious, bordering on snobbishness. I used to be in that boatuntil a few hours ago.Tonight on a whim, I purchased this Bodum French press.Now I should warn you readers that it is generally NOT a good idea to test out your shiny new french press when you are getting home at 10:30pm on a Monday after spending way too much money at Target when you just ran in to get "dog food".I write this review so heavily caffienated that I will probably stay up until dawn tonight re-organizing my closets or alphabetizing my CD collection or doing some other useless task.Despite being a dailycoffee drinker (of the muddy variety the office's Bunn machine churns out), one cup from the french press has knocked me into the stratosphere, and that alone is worth giving this product 5 stars.
My caffiene overdose aside, this press produces the best coffee I have ever had at home, and it truly rivals or surpasses coffee I've had at coffee houses.It's slightly more involved than using an automatic maker, but not difficult at all. The unit itself is pretty sturdy, and looks lovely.
French press coffee is a great alternative to using those smaller 1-2 cup automatic drip makers.Being single, I've gone through my share of those, and the coffee they make alway seems about ten times worse than the coffee from a normal-sized drip maker.If you like to make a large pot of coffee and drink it throughout the morning, I would suggest picking up a good quality carafe or thermos to keep the coffee warm.
Pros:
-Best tasting coffee you'll ever have at home, period.
-Strong, full bodied flavor
-Pretty easy to prepare
-Impress your friends with your snobby european coffee-making ways:)(looks good on your counter too)
-Great for making small amounts of coffee, for one or two people.
-Priced about the same as a ho-hum auto drip coffee maker with noextra bells and whistles, yet makes coffee a million times better.
Cons:
-More cleanup than using a automatic drip maker
-No heating element to keep coffee warm.Use a thermos/carafe if you want to sip several cups over a few hours.
- 8-cup capacity is based on a 4oz beverage size.Not really a "con" but something you should be aware of.If you had a large group you were making coffee for, it might get a little tedious to be constantly making a fresh batch of coffee.
Couple other notes:Coarsely ground coffee is recommended.This is no problem for people that already buy whole bean and grind their own, but it will be an extra step for some people.Also, I recommend picking up an Aerolatte milk frother if you want to make truly effortless cappuchino.I find that there's plenty of time to warm some milk in the microwave and froth it up while the coffee brews for 4 mintues. A $20 Aerolatte milk frother + $24 french press = coffeehouse coffee at home, whenever you want it.That's really a tiny investment for coffeehouse quality java!
I also purchased a smaller 1-cup Bodum press to take to work.Tomorrow I plan to smile smugly while my co-workers chug down the crap that comes out of the Bunn machine.If my boss is really nice, I may let him use it too.Maybe.
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Bodum Chambord French Coffee PressProduct Description: Brewing a perfect cup of coffee is easy with the Chambord coffee press.Just add one scoop per cup of water, add hot water, wait 4 minutes, then press and enjoy.Pressed coffee is measured in European cup sizes, so the 4-cup press brews four 4-ounce cups of coffee, or about a mug and a half.Perfect for home or office, the Chambord 4-cup press makes brewing simple and easy.To clean up, just compost the grounds or dump them in the garbage and rinse the press.The entire unit is dishwasher-safe and the parts are replaceable.Press coffee is accepted around the world as one of the best ways to brew coffee because there are no paper filters to soak up the essential oils that provide the balance and flavor.In addition, the press combines excellent surface-area contact between coffee and hot water, producing the best extraction process.The key ingredients of a good cup of coffee are freshly roasted coffee that has been freshly ground, surface-area contact with water that is just off of a boil to maximize the extraction process, and contact time, to allow the extraction to complete.The Chambord coffee press meets all of these requirements, and the entire brewing process is quick and easy, yielding a balanced and flavorful cup of coffee time after time.
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I am very pleased with this tea kettle.I was hesitant after I read some reviews that indicated it poured sloppily and dripped.I trust KitchenAid so I bought it anyway.I don't know if these users were trying to pour through the whistle hole or why they had trouble.I open the whistle top over the spout (it has a silicone covered lever) and have had absolutley no problem pouring from this tea kettle. It heats water quickly and pours easily without dripping and has a great warranty.It also comes in great colors!
