Evolution of the Coffee Maker

Boiling and infusion were two of the earliest methods of coffee making in 17th century Europe. Water and coffee grounds would be boiled together, with the grounds often left unfiltered in the resulting brew. Infusion involved submersing ground coffee via a tea-bag like device steeped in hot water. But the application of technology to coffee making begins with the Biggin.

In the Biggin-ing
The Biggin has taken many forms, but in its basic manifestation, this 19th century coffee maker used hot water poured or trickled through a cloth bag or metal container that held the coffee grounds inside the pot. The coffee grounds could thus be separated from the brewed coffee.

The effectiveness of this primitive coffee making system was dependent on the quality of the grind: too fine and the water wouldn't flow through properly; too coarse and the grounds wouldn't hold the water.

Vacuum Coffee Makers The vacuum coffee maker or vacuum brewer first appeared in Europe in the 1830s, and remained popular through the mid-20th century. Glass vacuum pots looked sort of like hourglasses. Water would be heated in the lower glass. The upper glass contained ground coffee. As the water boiled, it entered the upper glass through a small tube. After a minute or two of steeping, the vacuum coffee maker was removed from its heat source. The ensuing vacuum in the lower bowl pulled the liquid down through a filter, leaving the grounds in the upper bowl. Vacuum coffee makers were effective, although the glass in older models had an alarming tendency to explode under pressure.

French Press Coffee Makers
The French press coffee maker is an interesting device that first appeared around the mid-19th century. You'll find it still in use today, especially among yuppie coffee aficionados who present it with great flourish in their Pottery Barn kitchens. It's also known as a coffee plunger because of its design: a cylinder in which coffee grounds are steeped in hot water and then filtered out by pushing down a plunger that traps the grounds on the bottom.

A French press coffee maker produces coffee that is richer, stronger, and thicker because of the direct contact of the grounds and water. The coffee also tends to be sediment heavy, and becomes bitter if not served right away. The thinner and lighter design of French press coffee maker doesn't hold heat as well, but is useful as a portable coffee maker.

With percolator coffee makers, water would be heated in a chamber until it boiled. The heated water was drawn up through a long tube and into a perforated filter basket, where it was passed over the coffee grounds. The brewed coffee then dripped back down into the water. This cycle would be repeated up to the boiling point.

Pod coffee makers are a great example of the future of coffee making. A pod coffee maker can make a single cup of real fresh coffee in about 30 seconds. Coffee pods thus reduce waste and save time.