Of all the coffee commercials to grace our screens this year McDonald’s poke at hipster cafe culture was the one that really hit the nail on the head. Coffee has become so complicated of late. If you like your matcha lattes with soy milk or your non-fat frappuccinos with extra whipped cream and chocolate sauce then you’re well catered for, but those who prefer a straight-forward good quality mug of black coffee are becoming increasingly marginalised.
As I wrote here, coffee has fallen victim to the glamorization of the food industry. Thanks to social media we rank pretty foods above good foods, and therefore coffees that don’t have a pretty leaf on top are scoffed at. As the fellas in Shoreditch will attest, if it ain’t served in a test tube it ain’t worth drinking. But for my money we need to go back to basics and get the simple things right.
Which is why I was pleased to see Bonavita launch into the UK with their new thermal carafe coffee brewer. For a start, my lifestyle is made to fit machines such as this. It has one touch brewing and makes and stores coffee in bulk which means I can get my hands on a top up whenever I need. But there are no compromises on taste. It features a pre-infusion mode to evenly saturate coffee grounds for optimal flavour, and its powerful and precise 1500-watt heater maintains optimal brewing temperature of 91°-96°C for the very best in coffee brewing.
It is also a thing of beauty. The stainless steel lined carafe wouldn’t look out of place in a high-end restaurant, and it’s sleek design means that it doesn’t take up an endless amount of kitchen space. The see-through water tank also allows you to accurately measure how much coffee you want to brew, giving you marked measurements for an all-around soothing experience.
But perhaps the most refreshing thing is the simplicity of it all. As the maker’s remark, “the ingredients for great coffee are simple: fresh coffee, pure filtered water, and you.
“At Bonavita we believe simple is good, so we’ve refined our coffee brewers down to the essential elements needed to brew great coffee. Simple operation means it’s easy to brew a quality pot of coffee every time.”
Amen to that.