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<\/p>\nIf you had a cup of delicious coffee this morning, there\u2019s a good chance those beans came from Colombia, which has famously been growing and selling them for centuries. But the country hasn\u2019t produced any coffee makers \u2014 until now, anyway. The FrankOne is a clever device that puts a versatile vacuum-extraction technique in a compact, single-cup form factor.<\/p>\n
Of course,\u00a0it\u2019ll have to hit its Kickstarter goal first. Eduardo Uma\u00f1a, the designer of the FrankOne, explained that he encountered the idea one day when chatting with a Colombian roaster.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was making coffee then by using the \u2018reverse french press\u2019 method and I thought I could improve on that,\u201d Uma\u00f1a told me in an email. \u201cSome time after, I got very curious to test what high vacuum brewed coffee would taste like. I did some simple experiments and was very surprised by the rich and sweet flavor. One thing led to another and I ended up designing a new product.\u201d<\/p>\n
The FrankOne is closest in operation to the big glass vacuum drippers you might have seen in fancy coffee shops.\u00a0This interesting and quite old method\u00a0uses the gas pressure created by the boiling action to force the water upwards through a tube into the grounds, and then as it cools, the brewed coffee is pulled back down through a filter by the changes in air pressure. The siphons you\u2019ve seen are elegant but not exactly convenient.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey implement a similar principle in a very different way,\u201d Uma\u00f1a said. His device doesn\u2019t require this dance of hot and cool; you put the cylindrical device, about the size of \u201ca big burger,\u201d on the included carafe and add the ground coffee. Pour in the hot water, put the lid on and wait a bit for the oils and such to extract. Then hit the button on top and let it do its thing.<\/p>\n
A pump extracts air from the carafe, drawing the coffee down through the metal filter. In a minute or so the process is done, leaving what Uma\u00f1a says is the bitter crema up in the grounds. The result is a sweet and clear cup of coffee. Its taste (I haven\u2019t tried) is likely closest to AeroPress, as opposed to drip, due to the active force pushing (pulling, actually) the water through the grounds.<\/p>\n
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The device will accept various grinds and amounts of coffee, producing a different cup \u2014 not a possibility with French press and not advised with pourover or espresso. And it\u2019s definitely a lot smaller than an AeroPress.<\/p>\n
It does run on a battery, but with 150 cups per charge, you probably won\u2019t have to worry much about it. And there\u2019s no bait and switch with custom filters or something \u2014 you just wash the thing and it\u2019s ready to go again.<\/p>\n
Incidentally, I had to double-check with Uma\u00f1a that no one from Colombia had gone on to create a coffee maker. The industry is so old and so important there that it seemed impossible.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnbelievable, right?\u201d he wrote. \u201cIt was also very meaningful to me as Colombian to work on the first Colombian designed coffee brewer. Perhaps through this project we can bring some much needed economic development to the country by innovating in coffee; it grows right in our backyard and we can do so much more than we are currently doing!\u201d<\/p>\n
Uma\u00f1a and his company, Frank de Paula (after the second president of Colombia, who started the coffee export business there in the 19th century), are\u00a0looking for $120,000 to finance the device. At $50 for the early birds it\u2019s likely a steal, at least if you\u2019re a coffee brewing fiend like me \u2014 I collect stuff like this. Everyone needs a hobby, right? It\u2019ll cost a bill when it comes out in retail, so if you like the idea, save yourself a couple bucks and support good design with a pledge.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
If you had a cup of delicious coffee this morning, there\u2019s a good chance those beans came from Colombia, which has famously been growing and selling them for centuries. But the country hasn\u2019t produced any coffee makers \u2014 until now, anyway. The FrankOne is a clever device that puts a versatile vacuum-extraction technique in a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":3636,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"amp_status":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"This unique smart coffee maker \"FrankOne\"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[355],"tags":[323,325,320,324,135],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\n