Looking at these new coffee pods, someone had the idea to package individual servings of coffee in a similar way that also allowed people to use the pods, or bags, without an accompanying coffee machine. Of course, doing it without a coffee machine required making use of instant coffee.

It doesn’t matter which way you look at it, instant coffee simply isn’t real coffee. Some people like it, and that’s fine. But if you are looking for the taste of freshly brewed roasted coffee, instant coffee crystals do not deliver, and neither do the coffee bags that use them. It makes little to no difference that real coffee grounds are included in the bags.

Additionally, coffee bags must steep in hot water for five minutes. That effectively eliminates the “convenience” factor. It is just as quick to brew a small pot of coffee with your drip coffee maker or even to prepare and steep freshly ground coffee in a French press.

Why anyone would want to use coffee bags is simply beyond me.

But there is another use for the word, and that is as a “large metal container with a tap, in which tea or coffee is made and hot,” to quote the New Oxford American Dictionary.

Yes, we are talking about those big metal coffee dispensers you often see at weddings, hotel dining rooms, corporate gatherings or any other large event.

But coffee urns today don’t only store and keep coffee warm, they actually brew the coffee. If you are planning to have a lot of people over for whatever reason, this is a great way to make sure they are all served a hot beverage at the same time. Without a coffee urn, you could find yourself making pot after pot with your percolator, with little time left to socialize.

Most people will think of a 100 cup coffee urn while reading this post. After all, it is those coffee-making-and-storing behemoths that most of us have seen at public events. But there is a wide variety of coffee urns makes and sizes, some of which are even suitable for regular home use.

A simple home coffee urn is designed to make just 10-20 cups. And while you could pretty easily make that many cups with your standard drip coffee maker, the coffee urn has the added benefit of keeping the coffee at an optimal temperature for just about as long as you desire. Most other electric coffee makers keep the pot a tad too hot, meaning that the coffee eventually burns.

Nor are coffee urns all that expensive. A typical 20-cup coffee urn costs around $30 – not much more than a large drip coffee maker.

Even after being convinced of a coffee urn’s usefulness, I was still convinced the coffee made and stored for long periods by such a device couldn’t possibly be as good as what I made in smaller batches with a normal coffee maker. That simply isn’t true. Making coffee in a percolator is the same regardless of the quantity. Just make sure you get a stainless steel coffee urn, as other metals can infuse various bitter flavors into your coffee.

If you want to get really fancy, a silver coffee urn looks fantastic and very “old school.” However, silver coffee urns are a royal pain to clean, as you constantly have to polish discolorations out of the silver plating.

The only real down side to coffee urns is finding coffee urn parts when you need to replace something. And it is not uncommon to need to replace the spigot, as it is very difficult to clean fully and therefore can become defective long before the rest of the machine.

With the abundance of ready-to-brew coffee available, some people may wonder why in the world they would want to go through the trouble of grinding whole beans when they want a cup of coffee.

Without getting into too much detail, the main reason to grind whole coffee beans before dumping them into your drip, French press or single-cup coffee makers is that whole beans stay fresh much longer than pre-ground coffee.

Coffee’s flavor comes from oils contained inside the coffee bean. As soon as that bean is roasted, the oils come to the surface and start to escape. Now, you want those oils to come to seep out of the bean in order for your coffee to taste delicious. What most people don’t realize, however, is that a roasted coffee bean is at its peak flavor 48 hours after being roasted. From there, the flavor only diminishes.

After two weeks, roasted coffee beans have lost much of their original flavor, and after a full month, they are almost a different product all together. Grinding the roasted beans only accelerates this process by exposing even more of the precious bean oils to the air.

Most people simply don’t realize that they have been drinking stale coffee all their lives.

Ok, so you are convinced that buying whole roasted beans and grinding them before each use is a good idea. But why use a manual coffee bean grinder and exert all that energy when an electric coffee grinder will do the same job in a fraction of the time and with very little effort?

Most electric coffee grinders use rapidly spinning blades to slice up the coffee beans. This works well for quickly reducing the beans to the fine grinds you need for your coffee maker, but it also reduces flavor. When the blades slice through the bean, they trap some of the oils inside the coffee grounds.

Manual coffee grinders, on the other hand, use rough burrs to slowly crush the beans as you turn the handle. In fact, these are true coffee “grinders.” The electric type described above would be better referred to as “coffee slicers.”

Yes, there are electric coffee burr grinders available, and they do work well. But manual coffee burr grinders work the beans more slowly, thus disturbing the delicate flavors less. Plus, they give a much more rustic, authentic feel to preparing your coffee!

Percolating, or drip coffee makers do their job well, and advancements in filters have largely eliminated the introduction of foreign flavors like metal or paper into the coffee. But it is still hard to beat the bold richness of a properly prepared cup of coffee from a French press.

Also known as a press pot or coffee press, a French press works by using coarsely ground coffee beans and letting them brew in a cylindrical glass jug for several minutes before depressing an affixed plunger to trop the grounds at the bottom of the jug, leaving a beautiful brew for you to enjoy.

Without question, the best coffee makers in the French press arena come from Bodum, a Danish company whose name has become almost synonymous with the French press.

One important thing to remember with a French press: you will need a top notch coffee grinder (or alternatively have your local coffee shop properly grind the beans for you). Like the filtered percolating options on our list of best coffee makers, a French press also requires a specific grind size.

In fact, grind size is even more important with a French press. Too fine a grind and the grounds will easily pass through the wire mesh and find their way into your cup. To large a grind and the richness of the coffee could be affected.

The X1 Espresso Machine is presented in what the manufacturer calls “retro-futuristic” style, and comes in a wide variety of colors. This heavy-duty machine is a bold and commanding presence in any kitchen.

Some of the X1′s features include a wire holder to warm coffee cups waiting to be filled and a gauge for precise temperature control. The X1 works equally well with packaged coffee pods or ground coffee, and can also dispense plain hot water for making tea.

Happy customers describe the X1 as one of the easiest espresso machines to clean, as well as one of the easiest to operate.

Oh, and the coffee’s not bad either. The FrancisFrancis! X1 Espresso Machine produces thick, frothy espresso, and has a superb foamer for those who prefer cappuccino.

The price tag for the X1 is a bit steep, and FrancisFrancis! does make cheaper models of espresso machines. But if you are looking for a top of the line espresso machine, as well as definite conversation starter, then the X1 is one of the very best coffee makers for you.

Keurig is a subsidiary of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, and creators of the popular K-Cup single-serve process. A K-Cup is a prepared single serving of coffee packaged in a small plastic cup with a plastic and foil-sealed top. Inside the K-Cup coffee is packed into a small paper filter. K-Cups fit into all Keurig coffee makers, which when activated puncture the foil and plastic K-Cup lid as well as the bottom of the cup and force hot water through the coffee.

K-Cups come in a variety of flavors, and are today produced by a number of different coffee companies for use with this unique addition to our list of best coffee makers. That is very good news for lovers of flavored coffee, as you can easily try one flavor and then another without worrying about wasting half a pot of coffee.

Keurig coffee makers are sleek and modern in design, easy to clean and maintain, and produce a perfect cup of coffee every time, making them literally some of the best coffee makers around, provided you don’t need more than one cup at a time. In addition to being great for home use, this unique function also makes Keurig machines the best coffee makers for offices.