We questioned the designers of our favorite automatic drip brewers to find out what makes them unique.
We’re not afraid to admit how much we adore our favorite coffee makers, but there’s no getting around the fact that our top picks cost more than the typical brewer. As we examined 16 models at various price points, the more expensive versions consistently outperformed the others.
We spoke with the manufacturers of the Ratio Six coffee machine, the OXO Brew 8-Cup coffee maker, and the OXO Brew 9-Cup coffee maker to find out what makes them unique and why they are more expensive to build in order to understand better why they performed better.
More potent coffee makers cost more.
High-end coffee makers are first distinguished from the competitors by their sheer power. With 1400 watts of power, the Ratio Six Coffee Machine, OXO Brew 8-Cup, and OXO Brew 9-Cup can all heat water significantly more quickly than less expensive models. According to the home brewer guidelines set forth by the Specialty Coffee Association, both brewers finished entire brew cycles in about five to six minutes. On the other hand, many less expensive brewers require more than 10 minutes to brew and are only rated at 900 watts or less. But in addition to strength, another feature that distinguishes these devices is the actual layout of the flash-heating chamber.
The heating element in both the Ratio Six and the OXO brewers is a cast aluminum coil that spirals around the chamber to heat the water to boiling in a matter of seconds before sending it up to the spray head. According to Ratio founder Mark Hellweg, “cheaper models frequently feature a horseshoe-shaped heating source that serves a dual purpose: also powering the hot plate.” These horseshoe-shaped heating elements are less effective than coil-shaped heating elements since they don’t completely enclose the heating chamber and are typically rated for lesser wattages. They are also far less expensive to produce and don’t need a cord with a high wattage, which is another way to cut costs. But, even heating components in the form of a horseshoe can eventually reach boiling temperatures, which takes us to our next topic.
They Regulate the Temperature Accurately
In our tests, the OXO and Ratio Six brewers held target temperatures of 195-205 oF throughout the entire brew cycle. These temperatures were attained during the first 45 seconds of the brew cycle. Less powerful brewers required two to three minutes to achieve a peak temperature of only 185°F, and in the last minute of the brew cycle, the temperature would soar to 208°F or 210°F, which is too high.
According to OXO category director Liz Grasing, “during development, we thoroughly tested each brewing mode to guarantee the coffee bed achieved the ideal temperature for extraction.” Monitoring the amount of heat the water gains and loses as it flows to the showerhead, as well as the amount of heat the coffee itself absorbs, is necessary to calibrate the brewing temperature. This entails gauging the length of the water lines, the effectiveness of the spray head, and even the components’ material composition. Whereas both spray heads have been tuned to give the same temperature stability, the metal spray head on the Ratio Six will absorb less heat than the plastic spray head on the OXO brewers.
They Use Special Spray Heads
Speaking about the spray heads, both brewers have them specially made so that the coffee is evenly saturated during the extraction process. Inexpensive brewers have a propensity to overextract bitter tastes by concentrating water toward the middle of the coffee bed. Both OXO brewers include a patented design they term “The Rainmaker,” which features several channels that route the water to each hole. The Ratio Six has a metal spray head with a faint spiral pattern.
In our testing, it was evident that both of these brewers equally saturated the coffee bed, in contrast to less expensive models that had large divots in the middle. High-quality spray heads might seem like a nitpick, but they significantly improved the taste of the beer in our taste testing and needed more engineering than lesser brewers’ systems did. Ratio and OXO went through a number of spray head designs and rigorous testing before settling on their final version, according to Hellweg and Grasing.
They Provide Modern Water Delivery
The integrated bloom cycle is yet another fantastic aspect of high-end brewers. The “bloom” is the instantaneous release of carbon dioxide that occurs when hot water is added to freshly brewed coffee. Both the OXO and Ratio Six brewers include internal programming that automatically blooms the coffee, and the OXO even has a proportional bloom based on the amount of the batch you’re brewing. If you’re brewing two to four cups, the coffee maker will give the right amount of water to bloom the coffee before completing the brewing process, according to Grasing. This feature makes OXO coffee makers unique since we optimize the duration and temperature based on the brew size.
They Have Better Construction Quality
The build quality of the Ratio Six is unique and a major factor in why it is the most costly brewer we evaluated. Unlike other home appliances, which have plastic bodies, the brewer’s outside is composed of stamped stainless steel, but its interior uses borosilicate glass water supply lines. They are also made to be repairable, according to Hellweg. “You’ll see screws if you open a Ratio Six.” The Ratio Six brewer’s parts are all interchangeable, thus even if a component breaks, the machine can still be fixed repeatedly. A 5-year warranty is also included with each brewer. The majority of less expensive coffee makers on the market lack this feature and are frequently discarded when something breaks.
How Come These Coffee Machines Cost So Much?
The quick explanation is that high-end coffee makers work well because the producers spend more money on premium components that have been thoroughly evaluated for performance, raising the cost of each brewer. So, even if our preferred coffee makers fall into a higher price range, we believe they are worthwhile purchases.
Other brewers offer qualities that are comparable. The Bona Vita Connoisseur 8-Cup Coffee Machine, our top selection for an affordable coffee maker, features a large sprayhead and the same type of boiler. When the Technivorm Moccamaster made its debut in 1974, it may have been the first brewer to ever have a powerful boiler (although we don’t like how narrow the sprayhead is). Although the winners of our testing were the main emphasis of this article, other brewers may also use these design aspects.
FAQs
Are expensive coffee makers worthwhile?
In our opinion, yes. While our top coffee maker picks may cost more than the majority of options, they are built with high-quality components and are performance-engineered. They outperformed every other brewer in taste testing, and they are also built better than less expensive brewers that are meant to last.
Why does coffee (generally) taste better when it comes from a coffee shop?
The quality of the brewer used by coffee establishments gives them a distinct advantage over the majority of home coffee makers. Professional coffee makers contain spray heads that evenly soak the coffee, built-in bloom cycles, and precise temperature control. Our finest automated drip coffee makers include these qualities, although the majority of household coffee makers don’t. Although they can be more expensive than some of the competition, they let you create cafe-quality coffee at home.