asobu Coldbrew Portable Cold Brew Coffee Maker With a Vacuum Insulated 34oz Stainless Steel 18/8 Carafe Bpa Free (Black)

We’ve purchased several cold-brew coffee units and this one is pretty well designed.PROs: The directions are pretty straight forward - the biggest issue is getting your grind to allow est extraction with least coffee residue after filtration. It’s a 24 hour process - so patience in helpful :)Cons: The cone shaped stainless steel filtering part seals with a loose fitting silicone gasket - which can tend to capture and trap coffee grinds within.Design needs updating: Moreover - the lower part of this this cone unit (which just barely covers the edge of the crucible that holds it up amidst the steeping coffee liquid) can easily slip about - rather then being held steady by the crucible - which can allow coffee grounds to drop right into the otherwise filtered coffee! This is possibly the more frustrating part of an otherwise straightforward design.The only other design change which the manufactures might also take a look at - which one other unit we have tried employs is a recirculating pump - which, by timed pumping the already steeped / filtered coffee back up over the grounds - effectively shortening the steeping time.

Based on CR's rating, I bought this off Amazon this week. CR'r review was spot on!Using Costco KS Colombian Whole Beans, ground fresh before preparing, this makes great cold brew, very smooth and delightful flavor. (Bit of a cheat here: I have been buying Costco's canned cold brew coffee made from the same stock, and they taste about the same. If anything, this maker produces slightly smoother taste, but I may be making it a bit weaker.) Takes 12-24 hrs to steep; I've let it steep about 18 hours so far to make good dark brew. This device is 100% manual, and you will likely have to pour water over the grounds bit by bit until the top section is full. Water has to settle into and through the grounds after they "bloom." Once full, you set it aside roughly overnight, then open the air vent, release the fill valve, and delicioso cold brew drains into the carafe which you can then put in the fridge to chill.The top portion dismantles and can be practically rinsed out under warm water for next use. Soap hardly needed (maybe once a week). The carafe cleans quite easily with an OXO or similar brand soft nylon bottle brush. Take especial care of the gaskets ... one fell out during unpacking, it was very simple to put back in place. Don't overtighten and I'm sure they'll last a long time. The more expensive models may offer convenience, but frankly, this is like making ice tea or lemonade, it's not rocket surgery. If the output isn't enough for your household, you can buy two for the same amount of money of a fancier "automatic" model that perhaps doesn't make that much more. I might even do that if I switch to cold brew every day for the summer months (idea!). The all-black model looks very sleek and cool IMHO.Based on performance and taste, I bought a second maker in copper (and it briefly came with a pour spout top), and bought another for my daughter Christmas. With a second carafe, I can have a batch chilled in the fridge and make a fresh batch at the same time. I don't know if the replacement carafes come with a lid, but if they do that would be an economical enhancement.

I initially purchased this because I’m always interested in coffee tasting better. I must admit that when I first started using I was frustrated by the change in routine to creating coffee a day in advance and wasn’t sure that the difference was worth it. And I stopped using it for a couple of months.Then I considered getting rid of it because I wasn’t using it and I decided to try it again.I think what really stopped me from using it is that I really don’t like cold coffee, first thing in the morning, and I was comparing that to the hot coffee I had been drinking. But on a whim, I decided to microwave heat the coffee after the 24 hours of brewing, after I poured it into a cup. Takes exactly 2 minutes. Just to see what it was like.I’m not sure why I missed doing this the first time around, but there’s no comparison in the flavor when you brew with boiled water vs with cold water then heated 24 hours later. The difference seems to be that the acidic citrusy flavor which I don’t like in coffee is gone with this appliance. Now I can’t even imagine wanting coffee where I boiled the water to brew it. And the funny thing is, that until I tasted of the difference, I didn’t even realize how acidic the hot-brewed coffee tasted.One last thing that’s worth mentioning. I inadvertently messed up part of this machine. Perhaps there was a defect. I’m not sure. But I suspect it was user error. And I contacted the company to find out how to replace a part that I admitted to them I messed up. All I can say is their response was quick and amazing, from an apologetic email I sent them.Also I initially hesitated to purchase because I saw reviews of people complained about leaks, a clogged photo or whatever. I can tell you that I never have a leak issue and I simply loosely tighten the container And I never have a clogged filter, but of course, I use the course grains that they say to use; I suspect the fine ones are the problem when people do that. And maybe they’re not properly cleaning this filter, as I do it after every use with the supply brush and sometimes sponge.So you can imagine, I feel I made the right choice. And I want other people to know. Which is why I decided to write this review.