As to the OP's original question, "why drip", I agree with Steve - more subtleties in the cup. Plus you get to enjoy the cup a little longer, so different flavours come out at different cup temperatures.
Vac pot, cafetières, moka pots, etc. - nearly all methods can produce a cup of coffee. Not espresso, but enjoyable in their own right. Phil has a good point - different beans, different methods.
zix wrote:In the rather famous coffee website on the other side of the pond, [..], the webmaster has written a little
article about drip coffee. He likes cloth filters the best. Better than the swiss gold ones, he claims. To my eyes his Hario filter looks a lot like a cloth filter we use for tea at home. Interesting, I think - could this be the same cloth as the one that is used in tea filters? If what he says is true, this would be a great solution for making good filter drip coffee. Papers are worthless, I think - vac pot is soooo much better, and so is presso.
Anyone here that has used cloth filters for drip coffee?
Although careful readers may have spotted that, for some reason, Mark uses the cloth filter inside out (compare his pix with those on the Hario site), it's actually a pretty decent write up. I don't bother stirring the "slurry", but the article does inform the uninformed how to make a proper drip coffee. I certainly second his recommendation of "7 grams of ground coffee for every 120ml".
Regarding the cloth versus ... issue, I think this falls in the same category as different beans, different brewing methods. The Melitta filters do a good job, the Chemex are a little better (certainly stronger) but much more expensive. SwissGold filters have their merits, but let some sediment through. We all need fibers though
I find cloth filters mute the brightness a bit, and let some of the earthy, and spicy notes come out better. Very nice for a powerhouse Lintong or Yemen.
In case anyone's interested in trying the Hario brewers...
I've not a clue who sells these in Europe, but fortunately Hario Japan is happy to ship their goodies over to us, and the "woodnecks" are quite affordable. Hario can be contacted via the service email at:
http://harioglass.com/ The coffee gear is listed under "Taste" (well, obviously
)
The single cup brewer (DPW-1) does indeed make no more than one cup (300ml, tops). The 3-cupper (DPW-3) can hold about 500ml max, that's perhaps three polite cups.
WRT use and cleaning - I rinse the filter with boiled water, then store it in a freezer bag in the fridge. Every few days, I soak the filter in hot water with a few teaspoons of bleach to rid the nasties, rinse thoroughly after and let it dry. Although cloth filters go a long way, you might want to order a spare set of filters.
Cheers,
HV