Holiday Gift Guide: Gear for Coffee Lovers

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You probably know someone who loves coffee: drinking coffee, making coffee, and above all, talking about coffee. If so, please accept my condolences, with a harsh truth: There is no way to cure this condition, nor to alleviate the suffering of those who suffer because of their proximity to it. Just know that while you happily sip your morning cup of whatever, the coffee obsessive in your life wakes up every day preparing for disappointment, and perhaps even despair. Espresso is a technological marvel; A delicious shot can require thousands of dollars’ worth of equipment and a lot of training, not to mention any milk or milky liquid required. But regular (or “filter” or “drip”) coffee is devilishly, infuriatingly simple. Ground coffee is mixed with hot water and then separated. What could go wrong? It turned out to be almost everything. The process can be very precise, which is what makes it fun, if you have an expansive and appropriate definition of the word “fun.” It turns out that an ordinary cup of black coffee doesn’t have to be ordinary at all, once you learn how to extract and enjoy the kinds of exotic flavors (floral, tangy, tangy?) that many coffee drinkers would sooner avoid. Best of all, this type of hobby requires only a relatively modest investment of money, along with a completely immodest investment of time and attention. If you want to improve (or perhaps ruin) the morning routine of the coffee drinker in your life, here are some suggestions.

Earth down

One reason why coffee mania is cheaper than, say, wine mania: coffee is more perishable, which means it won’t generally retain its value. Once coffee is roasted, it should be consumed within two months; Once ground, it should be brewed almost immediately. So any home brewer needs a grinder that can reliably grind coffee into uniformly sized particles: no rocks or dust. If you want to spend a lot on a grinder, you certainly can. The EG-1 ($4,095), from Weber Workshops, is a beautiful, telescope-like contraption, with a angled barrel for placing your coffee in a small cup. If you’re shopping for a serious home brewer, upgrade to a set of flat Core burrs ($250 more), for superior precision. For less than a tenth of the price, you can buy the Comandante C40 ($290), a solid manual grinder similar to a military pepper grinder. But many everyday brewers will need a reliable electric grinder, like the Ode Brew Grinder Gen 2 ($400), from Fellow; For an entry-level alternative, try the Encore ($120) from Baratza.

Drip is very hard

The most addictive way to brew coffee is also the least high-tech: put some coffee in a cone and pour water over it. By varying the speed and shape of the coffee pour, along with the size of the coffee grind, you can create a wide range of results, from mild to undrinkable, with delicious somewhere in between. The Kalita Wave 155 ($34) looks like a stainless steel cup, with three holes in the bottom to allow your brewed coffee to slowly drip into the bowl below; You’ll need a set of $155 filters ($8 per hundred), and perhaps a small glass carafe ($27). Alternatively, Hario’s V60 Ceramic Coffee Dripper 01 ($20) has a large opening at the bottom, which means coffee can flow more quickly through the filter. (This dripper gives you more control, which means it’s less forgiving.) For anyone who insists on automation, Fellow’s Aiden Precision Coffee Maker ($400) does the pouring itself, but allows users to tinker with the timing. And for true simplicity, an old-fashioned French press can still make a very delicious cup of coffee, especially when paired with a premium grinder; Buy one from Bodum ($15 and up) or upgrade to Espro ($37 and up), but don’t worry too much about insulation, because you probably don’t want your fresh coffee sitting — and cooking — in the French press any longer than it has to.

In hot water

If you are using a French press, any kettle will do. But if you’re using a cone, you’ll probably want to avoid pouring all the water into the cone at once, which means you’ll need a kettle with a long, thin spout. Many gooseneck stovetop kettles are available, although they require some monitoring: when the water boils, the neck may start to spit. Coffee lovers with enough counter space may prefer electric models, like the Greater Goods Electric Kettle ($65) or Stagg EKG ($180 and up), which feature variable temperature control—useful because many coffee brewing recipes call for water that doesn’t fully boil.

heavy

If you’re going to the trouble of carefully grinding your coffee and slowly pouring water over the grounds, you can also use a digital scale to ensure the proper ratio. (A rule of thumb is six grams of coffee per 100 grams of water, although opinions vary.) Almost any scale will work, as long as it is reasonably sturdy, and has a maximum capacity of at least a kilogram or two. The Escali battery-operated kitchen scale ($32) is stylish and functional, and has never objected to being burned or submerged. If you pay close attention to coffee shops, you might notice that many of them use Acaia’s Pearl Scale ($150), which is a large scale designed for coffee: The display is helpfully bright, so it won’t be overshadowed by your kitchen lights, and it includes a timer and gauge that shows how fast or slow the coffee is poured, just in case you’re trying to figure out what you did right or wrong.

water

Nobody likes watery coffee, which is why coffee drinkers sometimes say they take their coffee “strong.” (In fact, the perceived strength of a cup of coffee may reflect its concentration, degree of extraction, or level of roasting — three separate, though interacting, qualities.) But of course water is the main ingredient in coffee, which means that if you care a lot about the taste of your coffee, you should also care a lot about the taste of the water. I enjoy the taste of New York City tap water, but not everyone likes what comes out of the tap. One easy solution is to start with distilled or demineralized water, either from a filter or from your local supermarket, and then add the minerals back in to improve the taste of your coffee. Apax Lab makes a set of three mineral concentrates in dropper bottles ($65), which you can add in varying amounts. When I’m somewhere where tap water is suboptimal, I prefer a simpler approach: small packets of mineral powder ($17 for a dozen) from a company called Third Wave Water; Simply add a packet to a gallon of distilled water, shake well, and start brewing.

Coffee to go

Coffee shops are everywhere, but if you become the type to brew coffee using a digital scale, you might find that Delicious Coffee can be difficult to find. For coffee lovers on the road, one must-have tool is the AeroPress Go ($40), a small, lightweight plastic cylinder that brews very nice coffee by immersing hot water through a layer of beans over a paper filter. (It also makes a delicious cup of iced coffee—just use half the water, then put an equivalent amount of ice in your cup.) The KINGrinder P2 ($44) is a lightweight manual grinder that slides comfortably inside the AeroPress Go, though AeroPress also sells its own compatible travel grinder ($200). You may also need a portable scale (Weightman Espresso Scale, $14), and perhaps a portable kettle — do not, under any circumstances, attempt to brew real coffee using warm water from a hotel Keurig machine. Brentwood makes a funny-looking but practical folding kettle ($26), and a number of other companies make cylindrical versions. The one from Sekaer ($28) is more streamlined, but also a little heavier. By far the most important product for coffee lovers in transit is the thermos. The Kinto Travel Mug ($34) is a beautiful vessel available in a number of colors, with a lid that snaps on tight and enough insulation to keep a cup of coffee warm all day long.

In an instant

Maybe you know someone who wants to make coffee without a brewer? A somewhat contradictory desire, but clearly a constant one. Instant coffee is more than a hundred years old, and although coffee companies always claim to have improved their making process, and although many high-end coffee roasters now sell their own instant coffee, I have yet to taste a flavor more flavorful than the brown liquid you’re likely to get from, say, a flight attendant with a rolling cart. In the pursuit of convenience, a company called Steeped is putting ground coffee into tea bags, working with roasters including La Cabra ($31 to $35 for a “seasonal pack” of a dozen bags); All you need is boiling water, plus enough patience to immerse vigorously and then wait for about five minutes. The best version of instant coffee comes from Cometeer, which sells small packages of frozen coffee concentrate that are at least comparable to real coffee; It is available in selected supermarkets and cafés, or online, where the order price (gift packs start at $100 for thirty-two capsules) includes the cost of dry ice packaging.

finally . . . coffee

None of these coffee tools are useful if you don’t have coffee to brew. (I have sometimes found myself in this pathetic situation.) A lot of coffee drinkers enjoy a medium or dark roast, which tends to pair well with milk and other adulterants. But the black coffee craze sometimes gravitates toward ultra-light roasts, which are a bit more polarizing and, not coincidentally, can be harder to find. Hydrangea, a premium small roaster in Berkeley, California, specializes in “light, fruit-forward experimental coffees.” The basic subscription ($27 per shipment) provides one eight-ounce bag every four weeks. If you want to please and insult the coffee lover in your life at the same time, consider getting a gift from People Possession, a Parisian roaster known for its weird, delicious coffee, and unjustifiably obnoxious marketing. Many coffees are sold in cans, for no good reason; Iridescent Coffee ($35), a tea-like coffee from Panama, is sold in a crumpled carton, although the roasters point out that “this process is completely useless and in no way changes the taste of the coffee you are about to consume.” ♦