Vietnamese coffee filter set

Ever since I came back from Vietnam, I have been using these small "French presses", or Vietnamese coffee filter sets. I bought 3 sets for one dollar (15,000 dong) in Vietnam, and soon realized that I needed more. So, I bought a few in the U.S. (local VN grocery store) and noticed that they come in different forms. This one has the screw in press, which I don't like as much as the simple press down piece that just sits on top of the ground coffee. It works great. The screw in needs to be tighten until you hit the coffee, but don't tighten too much (low drip, or no drip) and too little (too fast), but just right. I can't figure it out.

It is much more difficult to remove the screw part after the coffee is done. Worse, sometimes it can be that it is screwed in too hard, so the water does not drain through, but now you can't loosen it, because the hot water covers the piece. That's why the simpler version works much better. I have never seen this construction in Vietnam either.

However, there is one advantage, it is that it is sturdier and lasts longer.

And this little gadget does the job much better than a Melitta style funnel and paper filter. If you grind your own you'll need to experiment a bit with how fine to grind and how tight to screw down the tamper, but after a few tries you should have the cup of coffee you want.

I have 4 now. They are pretty cool for serving coffee when you have company. I don't think the online price is outrageous, but if you are lucky enough to live in a city with a Vietnamese market you can pick these up for $3 each.

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The Vietnamese styled coffee filter is really a nice bit of kit. It makes the often mundane act of drinking coffee into a ritual.

While its origins are south-east Asian, its has a cosmopolitan use that is quite underrated. If you're like me and have several different blends of coffee in your home to choose from, its nice to offer guests their choice of coffee without having to make several pots to do so.

You can alter the strength of the coffee by how tightly you compress the top filter in this apparatus. Thus enabling a "Lungo" or "ristretto" type of taste as you would find with espresso machines. This is however, not technically an espresso maker as espresso is made by forcing water through the ground coffee beans, while this apparatus uses gravity to distill the coffee.

Many people who first experience these will be in specialty Vietnamese restaurants, offered as a traditional "Cà phê su'a dá" (translated "Coffee milk ice"), but you should be able to find this nice little filter at many oriental specialty shops for anywhere between $3-$4. Don't worry about manufacturer, as I have seen several, and there seems to be absolutely no difference in quality. So don't pay a high price for this item.

Often, the best things are the simplest, and it doesn't get any simpler than this. It should last you decades of use.

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Ever since having Vietnamese coffee at a restaurant in St. Louis (and then returning regularly to have Pho and coffee), I have wanted to buy one of these filters to use at home. The one at the restaurant uses friction to compress the coffee grinds with the insert, so this kind is a bit different in that you actually screw the insert down, but I haven't had any problems with it.

To use this properly, make sure to not screw the insert down too tightly it should be snug, but not tight. It might take a couple of tries to get this right. The coffee grounds need to be able to expand a bit. Once the insert is screwed down, pour a little bit (less than a cm) of water into the filter, and let that drip through. This allows the grounds to expand. If you don't do this step, sometimes the grounds actually escape from the filter up into the water chamber. Not too big of a deal, but the water runs through too quickly when that happens. After the small amount of water goes through, then fill the filter almost to the top with water, and cover it with the cap. About 4 minutes should pass before all of the water has gone through. Then, enjoy!

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The picture for this item shows the top of the screw on damper as flat, but the one we received has a convenient slot for a screwdriver or the flat bottom of your spoon handle. The lid doubles as a plate to set down the coffee filter after you're done with it.

Nifty Nespresso Carousel

Okay, this thing rocks. I bought this because all the other reviewers raved about this pod rack and I'm glad to say they are all correct. It would be great on my counter top, but it's small enough that I keep it on the first shelf of my kitchen cupboard right above my Nespresso machine. If you like things that are perfectly designed and well made then pull the trigger on this purchase. You'll be glad you did.

Since the product description doesn't give the product dimensions I included them in the title of the review.

I highly recommend this product! Aesthetically, it's very attractive and although it can accomodate 40 capsules, it's remarkably small. Additionally important to me is that the names of the coffee capsules are clearly visible by simply looking at them, as opposed to having to remove each capsule or having to remember each coffee type by the capsule's color. If I needed two, I'd get another one, but I don't!

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After having got the Nespresso machine, keeping track of all the capsules was a hassel. This carousel looks amazing, is super convenient and is smaller than it appears. It takes up almost no room on my counter. I absolutely love it and I would tell others, if you bought a Nespresso machine, this accessory is a must have!

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I love this little gizmo. It is solidly built and doesn't take up much space. The picture makes it seem like it's going to dominate your counter but quite the contrary...it is pretty small...about the same height as your Nespresso machine. Also, and obviously, it spins around.

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I had been searching for a handy way to store Nespresso pods, and this carousel is amazing especially for the price. After looking at other storage systems, this one is simply the best. No need to mount it on the wall or slide pods onto a weird track system. My husband and I had been using the gift/display box we bought with our first order of pods... which is nice, but it takes up way too much space on a counter top (it also holds 36 instead of the 40 this carousel holds). This sits right next to the machine, looks great, and turns smoothly!

Did I mention the price is awesome? Well, it is.

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Nespresso D110 Citiz Limousine Black Automatic Espresso Machine

Perfect espresso or espresso drinks every time. I have purchased two of these: one for me and one for my daughter. Starbuck's doesn't come close to what you can do with this machine...and you probably save $$$ in the long run!

Vev Vigano 8306 Vespress Inox 6-cup Coffee Pot - Made in Italy

I love it. I'll probably get the 12 cup pot soon. Its perfect for the average american caffeine abuser when making one large cup, but two caffeine abusers will want the 12 cup pot. The one cup = one shot.

Happy

This is a beautiful product. Looks even better than in the picture. Shipment was fast and the entire purchase process went very smoothly.

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Primula Tempo Coffee Press 6 Cup - Black

My experience with the Primula Tempo ended after 4 days of use due to a long crack that developed in the glass beaker. The crack was not due to mis-use as I will explain.

I want to be clear that in my review I "compare" it to a Bodum French Press that costs about $10 more than the Primula. However my rating of 1 star is not how well the Primula "compares' to the Bodum, it is based on the fact that this French Press is of poor quality and craftsmanship regardless of its price.

I have used a French Press to make coffee for years. It's one of my favorite ways to make coffee primarily because it makes an excellent cup of coffee with a minimum of equipment. Before the beaker cracked, the Primula Tempo made as good a cup of coffee as any French Press would make. The filter did as good a job as other French Presses I've used in keeping the grounds out of the coffee.

I do not find clean-up of a French Press to be as much of a chore as some people make it out to be. Although Primula claims this is dishwasher safe, I hand wash the beaker after each use; less chance that it will hit something during the dishwashing cycle.

The French Press that I've used for years is a Bodum. Naturally, I compared the Primula Tempo to the Bodum since it was a convenient point of reference. If you are interested in seeing my review of a Bodum French Press which includes instruction on how to make coffee in a French Press you can see it here... http://www.amazon.com/review/R1G2ALAYSFI1YO/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm

Here is what I discovered in my experience with the Primula French Press:

-Overall, the Primula Tempo is of a lesser level of quality when compared to the Bodum.

-The glass beaker in the Bodum has a capacity of 34 oz, whereas the capacity of the Primula Tempo is 32 oz. That is not useable capacity but the maximum amount of water you can put in the beaker to fill it to the very top.

-The Primula Tempo glass beaker feels fragile. The glass beaker of the Bodum weighs 284 grams vs 245 grams for the Primula Tempo. Although the Bodum beaker is 2 oz larger in capacity, the thickness of the glass is greater and that is a difference you can see and feel.

-When I compare the visible glass quality of the Primula Tempo beaker to the Bodum, The Primula Tempo glass has visible vertical lines in it and does not seem to be of an equal quality to the Bodum beaker.

-The Primula Tempo mesh filter is of a thinner gauge wire and feels less substantial. The wire mesh filter in the Bodum weighs 5 grams, whereas the Primula Tempo filter weighs 4 grams.

As with any glass French Press you are not to use boiling water. The water should be just off-boiling. When you pour the hot water into the beaker you should give the grounds a stir but never with a metal utensil. Only use wood or plastic otherwise you risk scratching, chipping, or worse, breaking the beaker. I have used my Bodum French Press for many many years. It's still going strong. The Primula Tempo beaker cracked on me after the 4th use. I did not damage the beaker due to mis-use and used the practices I've discussed.

I have contacted the company that distributes the Primula Tempo (Epoca International) to get their response and will amend my review once I've heard back from them.

It should be mentioned that the Primula Tempo is Made in China.

UPDATE: 12-4-2012 : I have tried several times to email someone at the company and so far have not gotten a response. I used their website contact form and also an email address that I found. So if you also want to count "customer service" as a criteria an whether you want to order this, the lack of response speaks for itself.

UPDATE: 12/6/2012 I finally received an emailed response from the distributor and they are sending me a replacement beaker. I'll update my review as necessary.

UPDATE: 12/10/2012 I received the replacement beaker today. It is flawed. There are at least 3 or 4 sharp bumps of glass on the inside of the beaker and several apparent scratches in the glass. Total crap. I am reducing my review to 1 star. This is a very poor quality French Press.

I've only owned one other coffee press, a Bodum Brazil 8-Cup French Press Coffee Maker, 34-Ounce, Black which I've enjoyed using for a couple of years now so I'll use it as a comparison point.

This coffee press makes 6 4 oz. cups of coffee, which is about the equivalent to 2 standard American cups of coffee. The large flat knob on top of the plunger feels sturdy, which I like better than the small round ball on the Bodum. I've found this press just as easy to use and clean as the Bodum.

We have used this coffee press nearly every day for the past two weeks and I haven't seen any signs of rust. We have been hand washing it and haven't put in the dishwasher. I don't put the Bodum in the dishwasher either even though it's dishwasher safe too. I feel by hand washing these, it extends the life of them since my dishwater has a high temperature wash cycle which will start to dull plastics.

The glass isn't very thick and has the same thickness as the Bodum. This press is made of borosilicate glass as is the Bodum. According to Primula's website, borosilicate glass is made to withstand extreme temperatures, temperature changes like going from boiling hot water and adding ice, and is used to make European Pyrex dishes.

I couldn't find any information on whether the plastic on the beaker is BPA-free so I'm going to assume that it isn't. The Bodum is BPA-free.

After two weeks of near daily use, I have had no problems with this Primula coffee press. The coffee made with this coffee press is just as great as the Bodum. This coffee press is the perfect size for an individual or two and for the price of 10.00, it's worth it if having a BPA-free products isn't a requirement.

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Brewed perfect coffee quickly, with very little grounds in my coffee mug. The glass is fairly thick, and the mechanism works smoothly. The whole thing fits together well.

I have used coffee presses before, and I was leery that this one wouldn't work as well because it was a cheaper press in terms of cost. However, I was impressed as it works as well as the more expensive presses I have used. There isn't much more to say. I bought this to take on trips, so I could drink my own coffee instead of having to drink weaker coffee. It works perfect for this function! I would buy it again, unless it breaks easily, but only time will tell.

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None of my roommates nor I had ever tried to make coffee with a french press. So we were excited to give this one a try. First of all after much arguing we were able to figure out how the thing worked (no instructions were included in ours not sure if that is standard or if ours were just left out). So we went off of what was printed on the box put the thing together and were ready to try it. Now they aren't kidding when they say you can't use the store bought pre-ground coffee. Our first try ended up with a mucky swampy mess. (we poured it into a coffee filter over a cup and were able to actually still consume it).

So after a trip to the store we tried again and were successful in making coffee. Now I know it says 6 cups but we were able to get two full coffee cups out of it. The coffee tasted great and it was a lot of fun to do.

I asked my two roommates what they thought:

The Hippy "I think you could probably make a really excellent cup of coffee once you figure out how long to leave it in there for your taste, it will require more experimentation to find the ideal mix and time"

The Car Guy "I don't see a difference other than the mess and how long it took, it's not very convenient"

Me (the lone female in the house)It would be good for weekends when you aren't in a rush, and just want a single cup or two.

I don't have anything to compare it to but it does seem very cheaply made, I don't expect it will last very long in our house. The following weekend coffee was made in the regular coffee pot, even though the press was sitting right next to it.

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I received the Primula Coffee Press through Amazon Vine. The product came in one piece with all the pieces including instructions in writing and pictures. (I usually require both). My first attempt at making coffee with a coffee press went off almost without a hitch. The only mistakes I made were to pour boiling water into the beaker, which appears fragile, and I used a metal spoon to stir the mixture but was careful not to touch the glass beaker with it. Plastic is recommended.

Even though I used coarse granules as suggested, the coffee did begin to have a dark brown slick (I used French Vanilla Cream which lightened the brew and gave away the granules) as I began to empty more and more of the cup's contents. This told me the coffee would not be completely bottomless, and it wasn't. A trail of brown fragments ran up the cup to the lip as the last drops were devoured.

Cleaning the pot was easy. I followed the urban legend that dumping coffee grounds down your drain will unclog and clogs. (It won't). I then faced the residue of nasty grounds that refused to budge and those in the filter. They departed with a wet sponge and more water pressure.

I am unaccustomed to making coffee this way, and I know I like to see mine very hot. Pouring in less than boiling water and waiting four minutes seems to be an eternity for a lover of hot Johann.

I'm impressed.

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