Wednesday, August 18, 2004


vac pot considerations

the ever-delightful fatcatchef asked the crucial question: which vac pot's right for you? the retro-chic vac pot has the advantage of brewing fantastic coffee, and doing it against gravity, which provides a really cool show.

as long-time readers know, almost all vac pots, whether the common vertical type, or the lovely balancing syphon side-by-side type feature two containers or sections in a linked system.

the "bottom" holds the water; the "top," the coffee. there's a filter and usually a gasket in between.

as you heat water you create steam; as the "bottom" section of the pot fills with steam, the pressure in the two sections becomes different.

this pressure differential between the two parts of the coffeemaker literally forces the water "up" or "over" into the coffee container.

but there's no more heat once it gets there. the steam cools and falls back into water, brewing the coffee.

and it just happens that it does so at the perfect temperature range for coffeemaking. this is why vac pot coffee is so yummy.

to clarify the coffee, all you do is remove the pot from the heat source. with no heat to maintain the pressure difference, the weight of the water in the top section succumbs to gravity and the delicious liquor falls thru the filter back into the bottom, leaving the grounds behind.

vac pots used to be very common in the past, but were eclipsed by "improvements" like the horrible electric perculator. these tended to boil the coffee (shudder), but were easier to wash. . .

most vac pots contain some glass, and so are fragile. also, you really have to watch a vac pot to ensure it doesn't foam over on the stove or boil dry in the bottom section.

and you do need a baby bottle brush to clean them. finally, vac pots require a grind just a little finer than cafetiére or french press, and work best making a full or 2/3s full pot.

with these caveats in mind, here's a range of common vac pots and how i feel about 'em:

  • the royal balancing syphon pot: balancing syphons are especially elegant versions of the vac pot idea. the royal, with its hand-blown belgian crystal and artisanally made parts, is the ultimate coffeemaker. with alas, a matching price.

    get it when only the best will do and it fits in with your formal decor. notice the royal doesn't sit on the stove. like many vac pots, it relies on a little spirit lamp to heat the water.

    this allows you to leisurely make coffee at the dinner table. the situation here is leisurely: it can take 15-20 mins. for that little lamp to heat the water, so some people jumpstart the process by pre-heating the water in a kettle on the stove.

    cleaning it takes time. but with something so beautiful, who cares? you handwash your best china, right?

  • the cona: this english brewer is another beautiful design, possibly the most handsome vertical vac pot. if the royal's continental formality is too much for you, go with the cona's art moderne look.

    this pot has a unique filtering system, a glass rod with a kind of spiral groove. it works amazingly well, to surprise of many. and this pot is relatively easy to clean. a fabulous pot.

  • the hario or yama: the hario japanese pots use paper filters and are also quite striking in design. some say the hario has better quality glass than the taiwanese yama.

    the pedestrian-looking yama also uses cloth filters, which can be a little tough to clean and can be bought from sweet marias; some people make their own replacements from linen.

  • the bodum santos stovetop: cheap, works well despite its weird plastic filter, and did i say cheap? it's fragile and clunky-looking, sure.

    this is the one i own, but it's not for clumsy people or those with pre-teen children. did i forget cheap? and since it's by bodum, it's available everywhere.

  • the electric bodum santos: finally, an acrylic vac pot with an electric heat source you don't have to watch every moment! on the other hand, its owners sometimes find the automatic heat cycle doesn't stay on long enough to keep the water up top long enough to brew properly.

    there are workarounds for this, however. the nylon screen/filter cleans easily with a brush.

    oh, and i think it's really ugly, unless you like the color(s). but again, it's not too expensive and is readily available.

  • the nicro: this is a food-service vac pot. works great, unbreakable and dead ugly.

  • the antique electric vac pot route: since this was a popular method in the past, it's possible to hang about ebay and get your hands an antique pot, like an old silex or cory. since they were made in the "good old days," most of 'em still work perfectly.

    if you like that retro-chrome/retro-chrome-n-glass thing, this could be a good option, but it ties you to ebay and other collectors when you need a new gasket.

    these antique pots are quite prized, thus not cheap. but the little tiny electric heaters many sit on are so cute!

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