Watch This BEFORE Buying a Siphon Brewer!

Whether you already own a siphon and are looking for the best way to brew one, or you've been admiring the beautiful glass coffee brewer and wondering if you should buy one, we've got the video for you! We walk through the equipment needed to make siphon coffee, our favorite siphon recipe, and whether or not these brewers are worth it. Hint....kind of?

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0:00 - Introduction
0:45 - Science
1:50 - Equipment
5:33 - Brew Guide
9:55 - Pros & Cons
14:07 - Taste Test

[HomeGroundsCoffee]

If you own a siphon, what are your thoughts on the brewer? Did we miss anything important about this brewer? Let us know!

[gluckes]

this is possibly the most inefficient, most time consuming and unnecessarily difficult way of making a cup of coffee.... I need one, now!

[willjamesklein]

I received one of these as a gift and didn't have a clue as to how to use it...the directions in the box were at best vague. After having watched a couple videos I happened on yours and found it to be overall the most educational and informative. Thanks so much for taking the time to go over this process for folks who've never seen one before.

[Psycho-Stuey]

I feel like eccentric coffee brewing methods like this aren't for use in the mornings on your workday, they're for a late morning, mid-day cup on the weekend when you want to have some fun.

[alanfarris]

I have a Kona Coffee Siphon Brewer. I discovered it at an actual 5-star restaurant that charged a mortgage for dinner. They finished the evening with this piece and we were quite impressed. It does make delicious coffee for sure, but it is more of a statement piece and not a daily brewer for certain. The one thing I will say is that the clean-up is very simple and there is no filtration needed because the glass system does it for you very cleverly. Thx for the video

[willinwoods]

Me and my lady, we got hooked on siphon brewers a couple of years ago. It really helps that the Bodum -- sometimes rebranded Nilsjohan -- "Don Pedro" used to be quite popular here in Sweden a couple of decades ago, so you can often find complete or almost complete sets for cheap at thriftshops. The added pros for this type, is a _plastic_ filter that's much easier to maintain compared to cloth, and that the pot actually goes directly onto your regular electric stove (of course, induction requires that special plate). The cleaning of the upper apartment is much, much more convenient than cleaning a french press or a moka pot, imho. The used grounds are usually very dry and easy to get out. And once you got the rhythm, the brewing actually doesn't take more time either. The cons, just like you said, is that the "coffee pot" is harder to clean, but as long as it is in pretty regular use, that doesn't seem to be much of a problem. Baking soda and hot water usually does the trick. And yeah, you do want to take it really easy with metal spoons in pyrex coffee gear in general... But as far as I'm concerned, as long as you don't mind the liquid touching plastic, the Don Pedro is _the_ way to go. And _nothing_ tastes quite like siphon coffee.

[livewiki]

If I’m not mistaken, the beads on the bottom of the filter spring are supposed to be used a nucleation points to help the water boil, so should be in when trying to heat.

[menace]

I bought one of these about 24 years ago in Japan. I use it every day. However the paper filter is much better as I found the cloth filter gave a musty taste after some time. It's my favourite way of making coffee. i don't certainly don't find it stressful or difficult to clean.

[pablomeza]

If you don't like the cloth filter and you can't find the paper filters, V60 filters do the trick as well

[paperdummy]

Great video, and you did everything so well and with such care! Allow me to alleviate some of the "cons." You can get a vintage Cory Silex stainless steel setup if you like. You don't get the visual marvel of watching the coffee come back down the tube, but you don't have to worry about breaking it. With this setup, you can use a modern steel (or steel and ceramic) filter, such as the ones for the Yama and Hario pots. You don't need to have a cloth filter that needs maintenance and soaking and so forth! These filters unscrew for cleaning, so they're much easier. You also don't need to wait until the water boils to put the top chamber on! You're waiting for air pressure to escape—and the filter doesn't prevent that. If you put the coffee and everything together before you heat the water, you get a longer brew time. Yes, your way probably does keep the fine silt away from the filter, but this is less of an issue if you aren't using the cloth.

I wake up, put water in the bottom (leaving some air space) and coffee in the top, then turn on the stove. Once the water boils up to the top, I stir. When the bubbles stop, I turn off the stove. Then I can go take a shower or whatever. After four minutes or so, the coffee flows back down into the tube and my day begins! Easy peasy, alligator!

[MetalSStar]

Basically, a bong, but for coffee! Whoot!

[smokey_beard]

Thank you for that! I really like the real and honest review. Do I want one? ABSOLUTELY. Am I going to use it after your review? Nope. Its the cleaning and filter that get me. Thanks! Can't wait for the next review!

[kadmow]

knock - after 2 years, lol...

- clear explanation, of course the definition of siphon is a little altered in this context - siphon usually involves moving materials under gravitational potential action from a top vessel to a lower one - up and over the edge of the upper vessel (with liquids exhibiting low surface tension, usually require a continuously filled "leak free" path through (throughout the "sub atmospheric" pressure length at least).

(Some liquids self siphon - high surface tension - and some solids can siphon too (chains) - air pressure plays no part in these materials.)

The vacuum infuser uses modified vapour pressure to lift the liquid and then the cooling vapour created a pressure differential causing / allowing the liquid to return. The vapour to atmospheric pressure differential causes a faster and more complete return of the liquid to the lower chamber resulting in less water remaining in the coffee than gravitational potential fighting surface tension achieves in a drip extraction method.

Not really a siphon, but I think we all accept the common use of the term...

In 2024 I recently picked one up (not a historical coffee geek, but totally in with chemistry-lab style glassware) - as it was cheaper to purchase an economical version than travel vast distances to experience the "experience" - NB, enough of a geek to think it would be fun - a steel filter has given me less filter bypass. (I have also used a pre-ground espresso coffee I happened to have - and the fines in the cup afterwards are very low - similar to a fine pour-over - with drier resulting grounds)..

Experimenting is fun - those who don't like experimenting probably don't cook much either.

[shekador]

for cleaning the bottom pot, you could use lemon + salt + hot water and swish it around by hand, that's what we did in a restaurant I worked in

[randyng-a-fook]

This was an awesome video. Every aspect was covered. Keep up the fantastic work. Cheers.

[danknoise]

The Hario siphon (and that style of siphon) is a very difficult and time consuming system, esp. with the cloth filter. The first thing I would recommend anyone that has one and wants to use it is to purchase a glass filter rod. They are not difficult to find and make cleanup a million times easier.
As far as the delicately balanced upper chamber: don’t fill the lower beaker so full, let the water come to a boil and THEN put the upper chamber in the beaker and seal it to the beaker. No stress.
To clean the bottom beaker the best thing to do is to get barista backflush cleaning detergent (like Joe Glo), fill the beaker with water, add the recommended amount of detergent for water used and let it sit for 15 minutes. Do this every 5-7 times, rinse well after every use and all is perfect.
On the other hand, try to find a Cona Siphon instead of the Hario. The Cona siphon brewer is a much better design in every way and comes stock with the glass filter rod mentioned above. Probably difficult to find in the US but here in Germany I bought one for 25€ minus the filter rod and a filter rod for 10€, 40€ in total. And the Cona makes the Hario siphon look like a POS, seriously.

[Thatgirl]

Thank you! I had no idea what a siphon brewer was (thought it might be close to an old 'perc' maker). After 4 videos that ended up being only about the burner-not even showing the 'maker', I found your video. My anger subsided. I like the way you make your videos, fun-yet informative. I don't feel like I need to be a scientist to understand. Thanks again, all the best!

[dennismulgannon]

An easy way to clean the pot is to fill it about one quarter full with ice. Pour in salt, then add a drop of dish soap. Swirl the ice around for about 30-seconds, then rinse. The salt scrubs the sides, while the dish soap cleans any residue.

[AR-xyjy]

Cona Coffee Makers have an even nicer design and use a kind of glass stopper instead of the filter cloth and spring. Everything that touches the coffee is glass and will not change the taste. Oils won't get filtered out by the cloth and it is easier to clean.

[fftt]

I recently bought a 400ml beaker mug so this is a must to complete the look