Are you looking for the best coffee for filter machines? This article provides answers, explaining what to look for and how to select the right coffee beans.
Filter machines are one of the most known ways to make coffee around the world, and for a good reason: they’re easy to use, relatively easy to keep clean, and make coffee with little more than a push of a button. But when it comes to the best coffee for filter machines, how do you narrow the field?
Filter machines are a versatile brewing method, and many coffee regions and roasts work well with them. But there are a few things to remember that will steer you toward your best options. Read on to know what you should be looking for when shopping for coffee for your filter brewing machine.
Filter Machines: Simple, Straightforward Coffee Brewing
There are few coffee brewing methods simpler to operate than filter machines. Add the right amount of water and the proper amount of coffee to the right compartments, press a button, and you’ll have your coffee. However, while many roasts, blends, and regions work equally well in a filter machine, some coffees shine in that brewing environment.
In general, I tend to prefer blends for filter machine brewing compared to some other methods. Blends give you the best combination of characteristics because of the level of extraction you get from automatic drip brewing. While you can get great results on single-origin coffee, I prefer to reserve my single-origin beans for French press or Aeropress.
What To Look For In Filter Machine Coffee
Apart from looking for a blend, there are a few characteristics I think are essential to getting a great cup of coffee from a filter machine. Light roast coffee actually performs especially well in this brewing method, which is probably why the classic middle-market coffees for filter machines tend to be light-to-medium roasts.
In terms of region, there’s a lot of flexibility–especially if you’re going for blends since generally, those will include more than one region. But for my money, the best options are usually Latin American and Indonesian blends.
These coffees have enough character to come through in the filter machine method of brewing, and they also tend to be lower in acidity, which makes for a smoother cup of coffee. So with that in mind, I do have a few favorites.
The Best Coffee For Filter Machines
My top choices for the best coffee for filter machines are primarily in the light roast range, but I do like a medium roast for this brewing method. I’m sticking to blends for this article, even though I’ve had good single-origin coffee from a filter machine because I think blends shine in this environment. Here are my favorites:
Stumptown Coffee Hundred Mile Blend: This is a medium roast coffee, but it’s fairly mild in spite of that, with balanced acidity. The Hundred Mile Blend by Stumptown Coffee combines African, Central, and South American coffees to achieve a rounded brew with notes of jam and toffee. I like it for filter machines because it’s perfectly balanced between acidity and sweetness, and the blend of different beans brews a cup of coffee that is both smooth and complex.
- Contains one (1) 12 Ounce Bag of Stumptown Hundred Mile Organic Whole Bean Coffee
- A breakfast blend that offers a versatile cup of organic coffee, comprised of African, Central and South American coffee beans. 100% Arabica coffee with tasting notes of jam and toffee
Allegro Coffee Breakfast Blend: Another harmonious blend of Latin American and African beans, Breakfast Blend by Allegro Coffee puts the spotlight on Ethiopian beans, which aren’t typically roasted light. Combining sweet, caramel-like Latin American beans with the more chocolaty Ethiopian coffee creates balanced acidity that shines perfectly when you brew it with a filter machine.
Hugo Coffee New Trick: If you like your coffee with a side of helping the four-legged, New Trick is a strong choice. Hugo Coffee Roasters devotes part of all of its proceeds to dog rescue efforts, including Best Friends Animal Society and Nuzzles&Co., and the coffee itself is very high quality: Fair Trade Costa Rican and Brazilian beans, responsibly roasted for a finished result with strong flavors of chocolate, nuts, and spice.
The moderate acidity pairs well with the rich flavor, and for filter machine brewing, it comes across bright and bold at the same time. It’s a great cup of coffee for a good cause.
