BALMUDA is a resident favourite brand at Mr. Gumbatron with its stylish, modern and sleek design language in the home appliance space. You might be familiar with The Toaster or The GreenFan which have won iF Design Award and Reddot Awards respectively for the brand. This ‘niche’ Japanese home appliance maker just gets it so right with every new product they release. We are hugely excited about this new product from BALMUDA, not just because it’s from one of our favourite brands but also because it involves coffee.
As a premium appliance maker (but we might also argue that they are a design studio first & foremost) BALMUDA doesn’t do things half cooked, so only after six years of research & development (thousands of cups of coffee), they have developed their own open brewing method a.k.a “Clear Brewing Method” with their first ever coffee maker. The Brew is a sleek drip coffee maker that embodies the brands design ethos of beautifully simple and functional aesthetics, bringing professional quality coffee to your home.
This is no espresso maker but rather a filtered coffee device, Japan is one of the largest consumers of filtered coffee globally after all, so you will still need to drag yourself downstairs in your pyjamas for that cafe latte or flat white if you have a more European coffee palate or if thats your thing.
With just three cup size settings (75-360ml) and three drink modes to choose from (Regular, Strong and Iced) you won’t have to worry about overcomplicating things. The setup is simple, fill up the tank with filtered water, add your pre-weighed fresh coffee grounds in the dripper with filter paper (we recommend you pre wet the paper filter to remove any unwanted parchment paper flavours), the filter will click into place, next set the coffee carafe, a light will illuminate along with a startup noise, select one of the three extraction modes and enjoy your coffee being brewed in style in front of you.
The machine takes a short while to heat up, there is a pre infusion phase and then the water flow rate is automatic and regulated depending on your designed pre-settings, the coffee grounds will bloom and fill the room with your favourite coffee aroma; the entire brewing process can take between 3-5 minutes. Theres even a convenient cleaning option inbuilt which we recommend after a few brews.
Please note you will need to have separate weighing scales and a coffee grinder or have pre ground coffee beans (ask your barista to grind your beans to a medium-course consistency suitable for filter brewing) as there is no grinder function in The Brew, after all its built with simplicity in mind.
Special design and experience details on this appliance include an glowing incandescent light, start up/finish tune and a soft timer sound, which maybe familiar to users of other BALMUDA appliances, these small details makes the ritual of brewing coffee more enjoyable.
The Brew is a stylish and compact filtered coffee maker, with its uber sleek with a uniform matte black exterior juxtaposed with select stainless steel hardware including the elegant carafe for serving. Like all BALMUDA appliances The Brew has been specifically designed to blend seamlessly into any kitchen or living room space.
One lasts thing….as with most BALMUDA products, it’s only available in Japan “For now….”.
*Images courtesy of Balmuda.jp
SPECIFICATIONS
Modes: Regular, Strong, Iced
Quantity: Up to 3 cups
Self-cleaning function
Filter type: Paper
Capacity: Carafe, 500 ml, Water Tank 490 ml.
Dimensions: 379 x 140 x 297 mm
Weight: Approx. 3.4 kg
Operating voltage: AC 100V, 50/60 Hz (* important note)
Materials: Stainless steel, PP
BALMUDA The Brew
Price: ¥59,400 JPY / $540 USD / $4300 HKD.
Availability: Japan only.
For more: balmuda.com/jp/brew/
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dress well, drink well. live well
L.M
