Ntt hou, this very subject was discussed back a few months ago. Several of us were either about to switch to percolators or already had done so. So, rest assured, you are not alone in being fed up w/ dripmakers!

I know that when my drip coffeemaker gives up the ghost, I'm getting a percolator. I'm tired of the cleaning hassle and slow brewing because, for some reason, I just loathe having to clean it.

Another reason is, as you mentioned, drip makers are space hogs. Most of them have a pretty big footprint as well as the filters taking up prime storage space.

One more plus is that with percolators, you don't have a glass carafe that can break & leave you coffee-less until you get a replacement. Hassle & extra expense.

All that and my coffee (from all the drip makers I've owned) has never been quite hot enough to suit me. I'm wondering if perked coffee is hotter?

Well, I have both,plus a french press and a Chemex. The best coffee is, hands down, from the Chemex, but I have to stand and pour the water through the grounds, so it's time consuming. Definitely not a method for a cup of coffee in the morning before work.

My coffee maker at home is a Cusinart, a very nice coffee maker. It grinds the beans and filters the water, so I can put the water and beans in the night before, and wake up to freshly ground and brewed coffee. Well, actually, I wake up to the sounds of beans being ground, because it's pretty loud. It has a metal carafe which does keep coffee hot for a while without cooking it on a burner, but after an hour or so, I have to microwave my cup.

The coffeemaker at work is a Hamilton Beach something-or-another, it was Elery's. It is one of the machines that does not have a carafe, you just push the button with your cup and it dispenses. It turns off after two hours, and it keeps the coffee pretty hot, but after a couple of hours, it's cooked.

The French Press is great and makes good coffee, but it's only one cup at a time, so if I want a single cup, it's useful. If I made more, I'd have to heat the coffee anyway, so I might as well heat the water.

Truthfully, though, first thing in the morning I'm as likely to microwave a cup of yesterday's coffee as I am to make a single cup before I go to work, so during the week I'll make half a pot with the Cuisinart. I drink one cup while it's fresh and I'm getting ready for work. The next morning I drink a cup of that coffee, microwaved. Yeah, I know, coffee purists are cringing, but I'm not a morning person and don't particularly care what it tasted like, as long as it kind of resembles coffee. When I get to work, I make a fresh pot, every day. By then I'm awake, and I care. (grin)

Annie

OH, and the coffee pot I use when the power goes out is an old Corningware percolator that goes on top of the stove. My Mother gave it to me to take camping and I just couldn't convince myself that it was a good idea to take a glass percolator camping. The coffee is good, so much that sometimes I just keep using it after the power comes back on.

I just made coffee yesterday for Ashley's shower in a big percolator type urn, 40 cups were all consumed. Everyone said how good the coffee was, but I attributed it to the fact that I was using good freshly ground locally roasted Paramount coffee instead of the usual stuff in the blue can.

Annie

This is a point of contention in our marriage. I have very limited counter space in my kitchen. We have a nice Krups drip coffeemaker with an insulated carafe. We have a big Krups coffee grinder. When we have houseguests, we haul them out of the closet and hook them up.

We have a Senseo coffeemaker that uses nice, neat pods to brew one cup at a time. And we recently acquired an 8 cup percolator because DH did not like the coffee from the Senseo.

When we were living in Holland, I could buy really great "koffie" pods and both of us loved the Senseo so we bought one when we moved back to the States. But the coffee pods here aren't as good - I have to agree with DH. He likes strong coffee. I can't drink the stuff he brews in the percolator. AND I hate the mess of the grounds.

The percolator keeps coffee hot longer than the insulated carafe with the drip maker, but what my husband likes tastes like hot mud to me.

SO - I've taken the Senseo up to our master suite and he uses the percolator. I don't clean it. It's all his. I make my coffee upstairs in the morning. Whenever I travel to Europe, I have a dedicated carry-on for coffee pods. The Senseo is very popular there. Here, it seems that the Keurig prevails in that category.

Now that's a machine that would take up about 25% of my kitchen counter.

seagrass

I've done it all.....currently the Senseo is my favorite...I prefer the espresso roast.
Hate percolated coffee....used one for years because I had one and it was easy....and then went to a non electric drip and loked it so much better...I never went back....but for that big 40 cup pot for parties.
Perc coffee tastes like re heated coffee to me....and you can never get that tube clean enough...it always has somewhat of an old coffee rancid oil taste.
And when I was using a perc pot....its eemed to be always dirty....had to be washed before I dould make another pot....and in those days we made 3 pots a day.
Nope...I'll take drip!
Linda C

The biggest plus for the percolator is the great coffee smell that fills the house. When I was a kid that was the smell of every mealtime.

No coffee machine here.

We make almost all of our coffee in Bialetti stovetop espresso makers. Dark roast from Peets or Stumptown or Catahoula. Heat and froth milk, make a latte. That's the standard coffee here. But we don't have coffee through the day - it's just that one latte in the morning.

For plain coffee (or, sometimes, tea) we usually use a French press. When we need more coffee for guests, there is a Melita cone.

I'm not a coffee snob. During the week, coffee is less of a pleasure that a need. I'm mostly looking for caffeine, heat, and the ritual chat with the guy who opens the coffee shop. I get my first cup at 6 AM, a refill at 7 AM. That's 40 oz of coffee (Stumptown dark roast, drip) a day. SWMBO is always after me to cut down, but the sleep deficit says otherwise.

If I were to get a coffee machine, it would probably be a shiny vintage percolator with the graceful swan's neck spout, perfect for after-dinner company. Or, in my dreams, a three-group commercial espresso machine, like a La Marzocca. (Alas they are about $4000 used, around here, and would occupy all my counter space.)

But realistically, if I were to become a snob about a beverage, it would be tea or maybe beer.

ntt_hou:
You should have kept the Hamilton Beach.

The new one has a screen over the rubber valve,
that always leaked when seeds were stuck under.

I am a fan of both, the Percolator and the Coffee Station.

I am not as concerned as others but I do like good coffee.

Guess, years ago; when there were only Perculators, no one made good Coffee ???

Shame you did not see the other coffee Post, a few months ago.
You may have kept the Hamilton Beach.

Lou

Thanks all for your feedbacks and letting me know that it was discussed before. I think I found that thread (link below). After reading that thread and this one, I realized that everyone has a favorite coffeemaker, depending on the individual taste. I agreed with Arley when she stated:

"Posted by arley (My Page) on Wed, Nov 24, 10 at 9:20

Coffee is a comfort food; if you're used to it a certain way, all other ways will come up short.
If you're used to perked coffee and like the taste, by all means go for it. Having said that, I find that most perked coffee has an undertone of 'burnt' that I don't like. I prefer drip or French Press. But hey, it's your palate that needs to be pleased. Chacun a son gout.

So, I am going to try the electric percolator when it arrives and see how I like it.

Lou, I still have the Hamilton Beach. It hasn't gone back yet. Thanks for telling me about the rubber valve on the new model. Does that mean my model will work ok? If that's the case, I'm going to keep it as a back up since it was only $7. Beside, I need to keep it for my brother to use it for whenever he visits. He likes to make his own coffee and rather use a simple coffeemaker that he's familiar with (a dripper).

I do have a french press too that I purchased many moons ago before it became popular. But as many mentioned, it only makes 1 cup. The thing that I didn't like about it was that by the time it was done brewed, the coffee was no longer as hot as I'd like it to be.

Ci_lantro, I've read that the electric percolator will make coffee a bit hotter than a dripper. I think it's perfect for me because I do add cream to my coffee. That should come out just about how I like it.

Here is a link that might be useful: Thread: Percolator cofee, as bad as they say?

There are bigger French press makers available, I have a 1 cup, a 4 cup and an 8 cup. They don't keep the coffee hot, though I guess you could make a big pot and decant into a heated thermos. However, for just me, considering it takes just minutes to boil the kettle and make a fresh cup, I'd rather make a new cup every time. The French press rinses out under the tap and is ready to go again in seconds.
Best part is it takes up so little room on the counter and makes really good clean coffee.

If you have a need to keep the coffee hot for a while, consider this low-tech technique: buy a good Thermos bottle and get a drip cone which fits it, like the one at the link. Alton Brown (on Good Eats) liked this technique, and he's a bit of a coffee-geek-fussbudget.

Advantage: using boiling water, you're brewing at a higher temperature than most coffeemakers achieve. It also keeps coffee good and hot for a while without burning the coffee like most coffeemaker hot plates do. Also, does not depend on electricity. If you have a gas stove, you can make coffee even in a power outage.
Disadvantage: it's not automatic, and you have to manually pour the water into the cone.

Here is a link that might be useful: manual drip coffee cone

Regardless of how big a french press is, the hot water still need to sit for a few minutes fot the coffee ground to brew well enough to make a decent cup of coffee. By that time, the heat is loss. Pouring the coffee into a thermal would be redundant in this case.

Arley, the technique you're describing is basically controlling the flow of dripping coffee. A thicker filter is functioning like a slower dripper which allow the grounded coffee beans enough time to seep through and open up its flavor. This means that one must pour the water over the grounded beans steady and slowly in order to prevent overflowing. Using 2 filters in a dripper coffeemaker is pretty much giving a similar effect. This is what I've been doing with my current dying dripper coffeemaker. Due to my disability, this technique is simply not feasable and would increase my chance to scorch myself with hot water.

Although, your replies have been interersting to read, and thank you all, please don't forget that the question was: "Do you have a percolator?" and "what are the Pros and Cons of one". It wasn't whether I should be considering other techniques or coffeemakers? Believe me, I have done my homework on it. I just haven't tasted a home-made perk coffeemaker. If it brew coffee like the hotel kind, then I'm going to like it.

ntt_hou :

Look in the bottom of the carafe; on the inside, where the water comes out.
There should be a screen about one inch round , over the rubber outlet valve.

You will have to get the right amount of coffee worked out for the brand you are using.
I use about 4 scoops and one half for a little over 6 cups of water.
But I use a blend of Maxwell House, Folgers and Starbucks.
Sometimes grind my own beans.

Good luck with the Coffee.
LOU

Thanks Lou. I'll check on it.

I usually prefer most any perked coffee to drip. Drip makers are never cleaned often enough and once the hose starts to deteriorate, you get a real rancid taste but hit happens gradually so people grow used to it.

A percolator is a simple thing. I've used many different kinds. I like the ones with the glass pots - I just think it tastes better. Stainless steel next, and after that the speckled "camp style" stuff, whatever that's called. My mind fails me. Aluminum comes dead last. That approaches drip.

Percolator pros: IMO better taste. Otherwise, nothing major. Just a different way of making coffee. And I guess you can unplug it and bring to the table with you.
Percolator cons: There is some more disassembly to do each time for washing, but I don't find it a big deal. As you said, hand wash, but it's so quick when you know what you're doing it really isn't a big thing to me, course, I don't have a dishwasher.

Either way I use a coffee filter, (technically not needed according to some) on the percolator and I usually put the coffee into a vacuum bottle to keep it hot and save electricity and make it more portable. It also won't spill if knocked over when I have it next to my chair. And when the power goes out, I'm usually not thinking about making coffee or baking a cake so the gas stove argument goes out the window here real quick.

Don't stress over a $30-$40 purchase. If you don't like it, donate it, give it away, keep it as a spare, use it as an electric kettle or toss it. Either can make coffee or anyone but a true coffee snob. If you like it, great, if not, try something else. What I like you might not and vice versa. Both styles do the same job in the end, just a different way. Personal preference comes into play.

Here's a thought, if you buy it somewhere that has a no question's asked return policy like Macy's or Kohl's, if you hate the thing you don't have to be out the money...just take it back!

I had the best cup of coffee of my coffee drinking life just this last weekend. I was at a wood stove cooking workshop and the instructor made the coffee in an old enameled coffee pot. He said this technique works just as well on a modern stove. Here's how he did it. Bring a pot of water to a boil and remove from the heat. For a 12 cup pot take about half a coffee mug of grounds and crack in an egg, shell and all. Mush it around so that the grounds are all moistened by the egg. Dump the mixture into the hot water and let stand for about 15 minutes, do not reboil.

This coffee tasted like coffee smells, and all he used was the stuff from the blue can. The only drawback was there was a bit of sludge in the bottom of the cup, kind of like what you get with espresso. He said the secret was that by not boiling it as a percolator does, you don't extract all the acids and bitter oils. I will never make coffee any other way. And, that coffee was just as good three hours later as when freshly made.

Steve

So skeip, do you pour that through a strainer, a strainer with a filter in it or what? I wonder what the egg is supposed to do? That's just strange but hey if it works...

It depends on your French Press. I have two that are stainless and insulated. No problem with heat loss.

Ann

Why egg in coffee?

http://scandinavianfood.about.com/od/beverages/r/eggcoffee.htm

http://blog.khymos.org/2010/08/04/norwegian-egg-coffee/

dcarch

dcarch, you're right, he said it was a Scandanavian thing. Arkansas girl, I guess the egg coagulates the grounds and prevents them from being so loose in the brew. I would pour it thru a filter just to take out the sludge.

Steve

I did not read Dcarch-s http-s , yet, have to leave.

Is that something like , egg in your beer ???
LOU

PS:
Steve, I went through all that about 60 years ago.

Along with Mr.Coffees, Perculators on the Range, Electric Perculators, Silex and even one that was in M.A.S.H.
That was Alluminum with a wide bottom ( about 8 inches ).
It sat on the small heater in the tent.

In the army ( Korea, you probably heard of that place ),we ( Cooks )had a box with a screen on the bottom .

Put the Coffee in it, with egg shells and poured boiling
water thru, into a pot.

That Coffee was good. Maybe I am not too particular ???

I remember when it was Rationed and now I am thankful that we can have a cup.

LOU

Egg in coffee? That brings me back 50 years. We had a friend that entertained a lot, she's still around but not in great health. She put out a "perfect" cup of coffee. One day I asked her secret and she said it was the egg shells she put in the coffee pot. She used a stove top percolator, she said it didn't matter what you use. She threw in the egg shells with the coffee grounds and percolated away until the color was right. She did it camping in a pot or kettle and it all turned out the same. She didn't strain the coffee, grounds settled on the bottom, I don't remember any sludge. And, she always had a pot of coffee on the stove that tasted like she just got through making it. I never did try it, DH and I always had it at work and I could always take it or leave it. I wised up when I started having extreme headaches on weekends when I was skipping the coffee, jeeze.

I do and Ilike it.

Updates: I received the percolator today. Will try and make some soon.

I know some of you will not like this and will tell me otherwise. I'm one that would make a pot of coffee, drink a cup (mug) and will put the rest in a glass container and refrigerate it. For about 3 mornings, I heat the coffee in the microwave and consumed it. So, my next batch would probably be Monday or Tuesday :o)

I do understand all about "best when fresh" but it's not always possible. I'm living with a disability and convenient, when make sense, is a must if I want to continue to live independently. So, that's my excuse and I'm sticking with it... LOL...

Btw guys, the egg shells thingy sounded interesting. Are they been washed first and then added to the grounded coffee? And then, that website showed the whole egg and that's when I got confused.

ntt hou:
Was there a screen in the bottom of the Hamilton Beach ???
******************************

I make a pot and shut in off, take out the grounds.
When I want a cup I put it in the Micro Wave for a minute.

It works for me !!!

Way back when there was always a Perculator going.
I think we went thru 5 or 6 pots a day.

Now I get heartburn (:(

LOU

Lou, I'm looking at the Hamilton Beach and got all confused with your instruction. When you said carafe, do you mean the glass pitcher? The glass pitcher has no film of any kind at the bottom.

Well, my nephew's graduation (MBA) was this morning and he txt messaged to let me know that I could watch it live on the internet. He's in Colorado and I'm in Texas. How cool was that?! I couldn't be there due to my health. I was so thrilled to be able to watch him graduating live. I am a very proud auntie.

I was so motivated and made my first cup of coffee with the new perculator. The coffee was wonderful! I made 4 cups and it was pretty quick! This percolator is a keep :o) With this electric percolator, I don't need to take the coffee ground out. It will automatically stop brewing when it's done, and will keep the coffee warm until I unplug it.

I've read that by using a regular filter with the perk would minimize coffee ground in the coffee. It really worked. I used a regular round coffee filter and punched a hole in the center with a paper hole puncher. Once I added the grounded coffee, I folded in the edge of the filter. No coffee ground in my coffee :o)

ntt_hou :
Sorry I thought your-s was the Hamilton Beach, " Brew Station "
The Carafe is the removable container, used to measure the water and pour it into the Coffee Maker.

The coffee is brewed and held in a compartment.

You can draw out a cup, by pushing it against the lever below.
It opens the valve; I was talking about, that gets stuck open, because of the grounds.

They now have a small screen over the valve, so that the grounds can not clog it,
causing the coffee to keep flowing.

I Googled yours and saw it was altogether different.

But it looks like a nice coffee maker.

LOU

Thanks anyway Lou. I appreciate your replies.

I'm very happy with the electric percolator and decided to return the Hamilton Beach dripper. I read a few reviews mentioning that this Hamilton Beach model does not have a long life, (up to 2 years). Even for the price of $7 is not worth keeping it.

I'm going to get an inexpensive stovetop percolator for using when power goes out and as a back up.

My grandmother was hugely into entertaining; think it has to do with living through the depression and food being scarce, but it wasn't later. She always made percolated and everyone loved her coffee. Even from the blue can.

Shrug?

Oh no Rob, your post is still interesting to read. When I first learned about percolators, I didn't realized how ancient it has been around. I always enjoy reading about how perk coffee brings back fond memories. I seem to go backward as I grow older :o)