This Tiamo kettle is similar.

Tiamo Drip Kettle HA 1606

I thought it was a Tiamo but didn't really paid too much attention .. it's pretty cool, should work nicely in a busy/small coffee shop setting.

Tiamo is competing with Kalita on who currently makes the coolest new coffee toys, they have their own version of the "wave" dripper in steel and ceramic but also collapsible silicone. And one of their pour over kettles, has lid specifically designed to allow inserting a thermometer.

bigbad wrote: rippled filter to discourage side permeation (at least theoretically... I would like a scientific explanation of this phenomenon) .

Why do you think they are rippled "to discourage side permeation" and not because its way easier to create a flat peice of filter paper and bend it?

I don't know... I think I could make a cone shaped paper myself by simply curving a flat piece of paper... not sure how I would go about a rippled cone with a flat bottom.

Then again, I'm not in the paper manufacturing business, so I wouldn't know what's easier. I don't think Kalita cares either, 'cause they're not the ones folding papers. They just come up with the concept and pay someone to mass produce it.

As for discouraging side permeation, it's what the company claims - "Wave filter shape encourages an even brew, flowing downwards instead of out the filters' sides." It also says that the ripple allows better insulation.

http://vimeo.com/25068779

chang00 wrote:This Tiamo kettle is similar.

Tiamo Drip Kettle HA 1606

Wow, that's a really cool concept, although I'm not sure about steaming water with a wand I used to steam milk... and I wonder about the temp drop with an open lid during a 2:30+ pourover.

bigbad wrote:I don't know... I think I could make a cone shaped paper myself by simply curving a flat piece of paper... not sure how I would go about a rippled cone with a flat bottom.

Then again, I'm not in the paper manufacturing business, so I wouldn't know what's easier. I don't think Kalita cares either, 'cause they're not the ones folding papers. They just come up with the concept and pay someone to mass produce it.

As for discouraging side permeation, it's what the company claims - "Wave filter shape encourages an even brew, flowing downwards instead of out the filters' sides." It also says that the ripple allows better insulation.

http://vimeo.com/25068779

Maybe i mis understood what you were referring too. If we are talking about the kalita then a cone filter wouldn't work, it would have to look like a cylinder(for the most part). Kalita is the one selling the filters, and while they may not be folding them themselves. They definitely care whether they filters are abnormally expensive or not to produce.

Seems to me like a filter that hugged the walls would allow less channeling than a rippled one...? I think they are just trying to put a positive spin on a design limitation.

bigbad wrote:You can't really compare the visual cues of extracting espresso and drip coffee. If you've ever tried to extract espresso with less than 9 bars, you'll notice you don't get the nice, syrupy funnel.

That said, you make great points. I think you can force some "restriction" by playing around with the grind, though.

At the end of the day, neither brew options are perfect. I just find that the Kalita is more scientifically solid. Flat filter bottom + flat bed of coffee + rippled filter to discourage side permeation (at least theoretically... I would like a scientific explanation of this phenomenon) > conical filter + choice of high/dry grounds or flat bed of coffee (which goes against conical shape).

Thanks mate... I am definitely not married to these ideas but it's my frame of mind at the moment - even more than espresso, brewed coffee seems to have many unknown factors that we are merely (but informedly) brainstorming about.
I've limited experience with my wee lever and a naked portafilter - but I'm thinking mainly about initial extraction distribution rather than a pouring cone. Even with very low pressure brews and cold water I've managed to get even-ish espresso distributions... If we were to go "scientifically" we really shouldn't be arguing about brew eveness through visual cues anyway... testing of the resultant coffee bed a-la David Wash's theotherblackstuff.ie/thoughts/at-odds-with-unevenness/ would really be the way to go.. failing that, side by side brew taste comparisons.

I was about to start a post asking "why do drip methods not resemble a giant portafilter?" until I saw this thread. The cone is inherently a bad design imo. Less water pressure at the top, and more at the bottom. No control of the extraction at different levels etc. It seems like an espresso basket takes care of these issues a little better. Then I got to thinking that a french press really has the best total extraction going on, but the absence of a cloth filter is a bit of an issue because fines get through and overextract in your cup. The evolution from there would be the aero-press, and the Clover machines with smaller holes. Nevertheless, there seem to be two methods missing in the home market.

1. A giant espresso basket (cloth filter or not) pourover.
2. French press with tiny little holes for a faster extraction and less fines.

Any thoughts?

From what you've outlined, seems like the Clever dripper is the perfect brewing device for you.

I haven't tried the Clever yet, but there isn't much manual work to it, so I'm betting it's very consistent. That said, I've never tried a cup from a Clever, so I can't really do a taste comparison between it and pourovers/siphons.

I also haven't French pressed in quite a while.

These aren't brewing options offered at my work, so I haven't really had much chance to experiment with these cup for cup, but yeah, they seem like totally viable brewing methods.

The pourovers are more visually appealing to the customer, so that's probably why most cafes feature it. Something like the French press or Clever look really easy to replicate at home, so from a marketing standpoint, the customers won't find it as romantic and craftsmanlike.

Heck, I often get asked how much it is for a V60 cone or Chemex glass or siphon setup, 'cause the customer wants to make the same coffee at home. A lot of 'em have no idea how much technique is involved to make a really good cup of pourover coffee, let alone when I tell 'em about the other investments they'll have to make, like a grinder and precision spouted kettle, etc, they usually reply something along the lines of, "I already have a kettle/I can have you guys grind the coffee for me." And I tell them to just get a french press, 'cause it's the simplest coffee device anybody can use.

If you want a french press without all the sediment, I'm sure there are other filter options as well. I guess if there was a knock on the french press, it would be that you can't really agitate the grinds... they're just gonna be floating up top during the entire extraction. Then again, I guess you can always press it. Yeah, it does seem like the french press is the best brew option for evenly extracted coffee.

V60 is my preffered method for brewing coffee, though I often do a chemex and own a clever. I've done everything from pouring high in the filter with a very fine grind to pouring very low with a course grind. I used to always give in to the temptation to push the nice pretty grounds on the edges back in because I didn't like the idea leaving perfectly good coffee in the grounds, however the cup never ended up as good. As for pouring really low to end up with a flat bed of coffee, I sometimes find that the cup is a little over extracted when I try that. Could be that I needed to go coarser? These days I stay somewhere in the middle. I think it let's the grounds interract with the water better.