We all need a cup of coffee to start off the morning. But how can we go about getting the best brew for a Monday morning? We test the best coffee makers for the office…
When you talk nations’ favourite hot drinks, you would usually associate Italy and France with coffee and us Brits with tea. But the fact is, we love our coffee here. We drink around 70 million cups a day.
And things have moved on since the early days of bland, instant coffee. Now you can get barista style java at your desk. But which is the best way to get the best mug?
The kettle
Like most of the coffee world, instant coffee has expanded in recent years. You can get everything from basic Nescafe to fine ground espresso-style mixes and even cappuccinos. But while the flavours and intensity have evolved and improved, they’re still a distance away from coffee shop standards.
Rating: 3/10
Coffee bags
A step up from instant coffee is a coffee bag. Much like a tea bag, these include dried, ground coffee. You simply top up and wait. They’re definitely more powerful than instant and have a deeper flavour. But they can cannot be compared to fresh espressos.
Rating: 5/10
Cafetiere
The classic still impresses, especially if you’re making coffee for a few people. The simple design allows time and space for the coffee to gently infuse its flavours into the water. But, it does have its downsides. The cleaning required is one, as is the fact that any coffee not drunk right away can quickly become too strong as the layers of flavour disappear.
Rating: 7/10
Aeropress
This is the closest you’ll get to an espresso in the office without plugging in your own machine next to the printer. And it’s considerably cheaper at just £20. You put your filter in the plastic tube, add freshly ground coffee and then water and put the plunger in. Wait for a while then push the plunger down, forcing the coffee through the filter. The taste is strong and subtle, with the pressure getting almost all the flavour notes from the coffee. The downside is that it can be a bit messy.
Rating: 8/10
V60
While it doesn’t look like much, the V60 actually produces a brilliant cup of coffee. It’s essentially a single mug filter. You simply put a special filter in the V60 ‘mug’, which sits on top of your coffee cup. Add in a large spoon of freshly ground coffee and pour in the water. Slowly, the coffee filters through, producing a balanced and tasty drink. Then you simply lift the filter, along with coffee grounds, out – no mess. It’s cheap, easy to use and produces a great-tasting mug – what more do you want?
Rating: 9/10
