a coffee klatsch of coffee makers

for years now, ann has been on a mission for finding the perfect coffee maker. not necessarily the fanciest nor the most expensive, in fact, her criteria includes the following not-so-demanding characteristics:

• brews strong coffee
• brews hot coffee
  
• durable
  
• convenient
  
• easy to make a small amount (afterall, this is one obessession she happens NOT to share with dabney. in fact, dabney, loves the aroma of coffee, can't stand the after effects on ann's breath.)
  

that's not so much to ask, is it?

long ago, it was this much-loved doohicky that brewed ann's morning cuppa joe.


while it was a tasty concoction, ann hated that she had to make a full pot to get full flavor. plus, she kept breaking the darn things.

perhaps even fancier was the way to go, so she bought an espresso maker.

after about six months of grinding, tamping, frothing, and pouring, the fun wore off. even the discovery of the little espresso pods that made the grinding and tamping go away were quickly overshadowed by their hefty pricetag.

so she moved on to the regular automatic drip makers - the vanilla ice cream of coffeemakers. a conventional choice, yes, but she thought millions of americans can't be wrong (except, of course, in the 2000 election and then again, in 2004 - but that's another blog entry).

while she loved ease of the auto drip and the ability to brew a quick pot for a group of people, the coffee never seemed HOT enough - a big no-no in ann's book. back to square one.

so now, she has moved on this little number.

and so far, so good. ann's morning clumsiness hasn't put a dent in this tank. the brew is STRONG. so strong, in fact, that ann dilutes it americano-style with the help of a kettle. yes, chez superette, two burners are going at 7 am.

whatever is next, dabney knows, will be something along the lines of what the incas used to brew their mud, but 'til then, she just has to let ann do her thing. for some its shoes...