Description
Two things I don’t know are what Dutch coffee even is and how to make even a cup of regular old coffee in the regular old coffee maker in our staff kitchenette (in fact, an office-wide vote has forbidden me from touching it). But one thing I do know is I sure would like to have one of Dutch Lab’s cold drip coffee brewers. Part masterpiece in culinary design, part possible fuel cell for Dutch Lab’s new race of hairless cat cyborgs, these intricate brewers are some of the most showstopping kitchen gadgets I’ve ever seen.
Dutch or slow drip coffee uses gravity instead of electricity to percolate its grounds. The process is a long one and, like Dutch Lab’s brewers, as much a work of art as a means of getting juiced up on caffeine. At their foundation these coffee machines consist of 3 flasks aligned vertically. The top one takes water, which trickles through a calibrated, user-controlled valve into the second tank, containing coffee grounds loosely packed beneath a small round filter. Once the dripping water passing through the first filter and grounds, it passes through a second filter on the bottom, and then through another valve. The flask at the bottom of the machine holds the finished brew, a nice drum of fresh coffee. That only took, like, 6 hours to make.
Seriously. Dutch Lab recommends that those who intend to use their machines for the practical purpose of making coffee in addition to the practical purpose of showing off their $5,000 steampunk coffee maker to friends begin the drip process before bed so it will be finished by morning/guzzling time.
Dutch Lab notes that Dutch coffee is much stronger than regular drip, and should be consumed or mixed with hot water/milk as you would espresso shots.
The cold drip coffee brewers come in over a dozen different designs and a fairly wide range of prices. Simple models start in the hundreds of dollars and look like ultra-modern chemists’ gear, while more complex, architectural designs creep into the thousands, and look like models for apocalyptic movie sets. Or, in the case of Dutch Lab’s King Kong and Star Wars brewers, models from cinematic classics.
Muchas danke to Manny for the Dude Product Tip.
