|
|
|
|
The Automatic Coffee Maker
When a product of technology becomes so commonplace in our lives that we eventually take it for granted, you can be sure that it has changed society on a major level. Take elevators, for instance, or indoor plumbing, and even cars; how different the world would be without them. It's the same way with those ubiquitous drip machines that can be found in most homes, the automatic coffee maker. Unthinkable as it may seem, the automatic coffee makers have indeed changed the world as we know it. The Drip Method Long before the era of the automatic coffee makers, coffee at home was made using a device called a percolator. If you don't even remember what those old coffee pots were, then count yourself as lucky. Percolators had several main components: an outside pot that sat on the stove and held water; a basket perforated with holes that sat above the water inside the pot and held the ground coffee; and a tight-fitting lid that showed the coffee squirting up through a glass tube at the top. Preparing the coffee involved boiling the water inside the pot, causing pressure to build, forcing the hot water through the grounds inside the basket and back down. This process was repeated until the pot was removed from the stove or in the case of electric percolators, the set period by the timer was done. The finished coffee was often bitter, which was the result of the hot water's repeated exposure to the coffee grounds, and the taste was usually broken down by keeping the pot warm. In contrast, the automatic coffee makers of today utilize a drip method, which involves heating the water in a container above the coffee grounds. The water is then filtered through the grounds once and gravity does the rest, forcing it to drip down the pot below. This vastly different process not only results in better-tasting coffee that's ready in no time, but has also done away with the tedious trial and error percolating process that eventually lead to burnt coffee in the past. The automatic coffee makers have truly changed our coffee-drinking lives, with more people enjoying coffee, more knowledgeable coffee aficionados and more varieties of coffee widely available. These new coffee makers also require a finer grind that becomes easily stale, but fresh whole beans and home coffee grinders can now be found almost anywhere. And since the problem of coffee burning on the stove has been solved, just think of microwave popcorn as a substitute horrible odor for the home and office. Yes, this is truly the age of the automatic coffee makers -- so pull up a chair, drink up and enjoy.
|
Home page
Where to buy
Types coffee makers
About coffee
Basic types of coffee
Misc. information
Disclaimers
|
|
, Pour Me a Cup.com |
