Nice but simple coffee machine to be a gift for a professor's lab.

August 21, 2024 3:37 PM

Choosing a coffee machine to be a gift for a professor's lab - think postdocs burning the midnight oil. Goal is to get them something nicer than their old plastic Mr. Coffee, but also easy to use/maintain/refill. (I.e., not espresso, no required subscription). Assume no water hookups available. No budget limitations. Any suggestions?
posted by bluesky78987 to Home & Garden (17 answers total)

If there's no budget limit, the machines which have a built-in grinder are super nice.

My office has a Breville Grind Control and I totally love it. Very easy to use — all you need to do is dump out the old filter, put in a fresh filter, top off the water and beans reservoirs, and push start. Perfect coffee every time.

Maintenance is minimal — it needs to be descaled every few months, and the chute between the grinder and filter occasionally gets clogged and needs to be poked out with a chopstick once every month or two, but that's pretty much it.
posted by mekily at 3:55 PM on August 21

For about $500 you can get a simple commercial machine that will be an absolute workhorse and make everyone happy. Not advocating that brand or model necessarily, just the idea of looking to a commercial machine. When our office upgraded from a home class coffee maker to a commercial maker I felt very stupid for wasting our time with anything else. They just... do the job. No bells, no whistles, just endless pots of beautifully consistent coffee, all day long, every single day, without fail.
posted by phunniemee at 4:09 PM on August 21

I think the moccamaster look nice and makes great coffee. I would not recommend any of the models that has a carafe thought. They are a PITA to line up just right and if you get it wrong it makes huge mess.
posted by phil at 4:32 PM on August 21

I have had a Bonavita 8-cup brewer for a long time now in the office and it is just about perfect: simple, no fuss, well-built.
Key points: one button, silent - NO POINTLESS BEEPING, and no hotplate to cook old coffee to oblivion.
posted by niicholas at 5:22 PM on August 21

I have this 14-cup Cuisinart machine and I love it. It has just enough bells and whistles (Bold brew strength, adjustable coffee hold temp, auto-off, can be programmed to brew at a certain time) without being absurd; there's a reusable filter, and I think it makes great coffee. If there are no budget limitations, throw in this coffee grinder and really treat the postdocs right! MeMail me and I'll treat them to a bag of beans!
posted by epj at 5:29 PM on August 21

My graduate lab had an espresso machine, and it was great! It doesn’t take long to pull a shot, and you can make exactly as much fresh coffee as you want. I don’t drink espresso otherwise, but that setup was nice.
posted by momus_window at 6:44 PM on August 21

We used Nespresso machines in my grad school labs. They were very low maintenance, which was a huge plus.
posted by kickingtheground at 8:25 PM on August 21

If you can swing it, like if there are really no budget limitations, the current hotness is the Xbloom. Bean to cup (i.e. grinder integrated) fully automated pour over.

Or you can go for a lower end superauto but there’s more cleaning and maintenance required. James Hoffman would say be sure to check out how to dial it in.
posted by supercres at 10:08 PM on August 21

On the other end, always having a pot of coffee ready to go instead of single cups on demand, I agree with phunniemee to go with a commercial maker. I hate diner burnt coffee so I’d opt for something that brews into a thermal press pot like this. Unfortunately then you either need to accept lower quality with pre ground and vacuum sealed coffee, or add on a grinder. Commercial grinders like those from Bunn (grind right into a filter basket) work well enough.
posted by supercres at 10:12 PM on August 21

Our actual professor lab uses a dual Moccamaster. In a country with one of the worlds highest coffee consumptions.
posted by Iteki at 11:45 PM on August 21

Where do they get their beans? Grocery store or delivered by a service? If the latter, the service might have equipment options.
posted by SemiSalt at 4:45 AM on August 22

For sporadic luxury coffee, I'd love a super automatic espresso machine instead of something that brews a whole pot. There is some easy routine maintenance, empty the used grounds, run a descale every so often, but not that onerous. Don't get one with a milk frother for a lab unless someone is committed to taking care of it.

This Jura E4 is nice and can also pour a hot water for lab folks who want tea
posted by advicepig at 6:20 AM on August 22

I should add that the Jura I linked can make espresso shots, but also makes a cop of coffee or my fave, a double coffee.
posted by advicepig at 6:22 AM on August 22

I would echo the moccamaster. They make great coffee, they're simple, and in my experience pretty indestructible even with heavy use. A separate grinder would make the setup even better (and still lets them use preground beans if that's what's available on hand)
posted by mosst at 6:41 AM on August 22

I love my Moccamaster KBT which has a thermal carafe.

Contrary to a statement above, it is not at all difficult to place the carafe correctly, and in fact the machine will not turn on until you do so.
posted by sriracha at 10:26 AM on August 22

Yeah I would go for either of the Moccamaster options (the KBG-V Select has been my personal machine for years now and works as well as the day I got it), depending on how much coffee you want. The 10-cup version with the heated base is great, but some prefer the carafe version.

Getting a $50-$100 burr grinder would be a good addition. I bought this OXO one recently and it's good, but you might want something bigger.
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 12:31 PM on August 22

I got this one Ninja CP307 Hot and Cold and it has changed my morning routine .

No fuss - easy refilling for the water., removable water tank
Brews Coffee 12 cups or 1 cup, espresso, cold brew or simple cup without any issues.
Brews tea - so if somebody is looking to cut back and doesn't want to guess temp/time for oolong, green or black tea - it works on them too.
Affordable and durable - Been using it for 3 years almost every morning and never had any issues.
posted by radsqd at 8:28 PM on August 22