Keurig Coffee Maker Comes Home

My hairdresser makes a great cup of coffee. So good, in fact, that I look forward to my hair appointments – not for the new do but for the new brew. (ok, I know – stick to the story!)

So, how was a decidedly non coffee business able to turn out the perfect cup of joe? The single word answer – Keurig.

What is Keurig?
Put simply, the Keurig Coffee Maker is a single serve coffee system. In actuality it is so much more. More aptly described as a beverage center, the Keurig brews coffee, tea, and hot chocolate instantly.

Keurig says it best in their company data:

Keurig was founded in 1992 by coffee lovers who believed that coffee should always be served fresh, whether at home or at the office, just as in a gourmet coffee house. They noticed that people were constantly leaving the office in search of a fresh cup of coffee and asked themselves: “Why do we brew coffee a pot at a time when we drink it a cup at a time?”

Based on this need Keurig created the patented K-cup. This is an individual serving of coffee packaged in an airtight container. This little K-cup container is coffee (or tea) and filter all in one convenient package. Whenever you desire a fresh cup of coffee, just pop a K-cup in the Keurig coffee maker and press brew. The coffee maker punctures the K-cup and presses water from the attached reservoir through it to make a fresh cup of coffee in less than a minute.

Businesses have long been aware of the convenience and ease that Keurig offers, and people began to request a Keurig coffee maker model for home use. In 2002 Keurig entered the home market. Today there are 3 models available for busy households. But despite the availability of this wonderful technology, many homes continue to use their traditional coffee makers with their antiquated 12 cup pots.

Keurig recently gave me the opportunity to review their B70 coffee maker and I have fallen head over heels for this amazing machine. After seeing the Keurig one cup coffee maker in action, I know that every busy home would benefit from this system. Here are my thoughts:

How the Keurig Coffee Maker Works

Without rehashing what I’ve already said, out of the box the Keurig is easy to set up. First, fill up the removable attached reservoir with water. Then you need to prime the machine before your first use (basically just run a brew cycle without a k-cup – the instructions are clear and easy). The Keurig does not heat up the whole tank of water but rather one cup a time. The machine can remain on all the time – so a hot cup of water is always available for coffee or tea. Or you can program the B70 to turn on in the morning and turn off at some point during the day when you are finished with your daily java jolts. Manually turn the machine on and off is also an option but it may take a minute for to be ready to brew – not a big deal.

Coffee Variety

Now comes the fun part! Keurig has partnered with some of the leading names in the coffee and tea industry to offer a large variety of k-cups. The list includes k cup coffees from Green Mountain, Diedrich, Gloria Jean’s K Cups, Timothy’s, Van Houtte, Celestial Seasonings, Bigelow, Tully’s, Twinings, Newman’s Own K Cups, Coffee People, and Caribou Coffee. The range of offerings goes from the most basic breakfast blends and columbians, to the exotic kona’s and sumatra mahdheling. For a flavor twist you can choose a caramel vanilla nut, butter toffee, chocolate almond, and dozens more. Organic options are also available. Tea choices are just as varied with a diverse selection of everything from English Breakfast Tea, to green tea, to chai, to many herbal varieties in both regular and decaf. The possibilities are endless!

Finding your favorite combination is an enjoyable process of trial and error. The B70 Keurig coffee maker allows you to choose from 4 different cup sizes. You can pick the smallest cup size which makes a 5.25 oz. serving for a strong cup of coffee all the way through the largest cup size which brews an 11.25 oz. serving. The k-cups also come in different roasts. The extra bold k-cup contains 30% more coffee than the regular k-cups – and will make a strong brew even on the largest cup setting. I prefer the medium roast coffees using the middle cup sizes. It is all a matter of taste.

The beauty is that once you find a combination that you love, you will be able to make a consistent cup of that coffee time after time. The Keurig coffee maker takes all the guesswork out of making the perfect blend. Questions like – should I use a heaping scoop of coffee or a flat scoop? and how many cups of water should I use? will no longer exist.

Another plus to the Keurig coffee machine is it’s ability to accommodate everyone’s tastes. In our house I drink regular coffee and my husband likes decaf. But making a separate pot of coffee for each of us was not really an option. Now we can each have our coffee and drink it, too. (yeah, yeah, stick to the story!) And if one person is feeling mocha java-ish and the other a little french vanilla – no problem!

I was also pleasantly surprised with the tea k-cups. I love a cup of afternoon tea, but given my hectic afternoons making tea was an ordeal. While the kettle was set to boil I would get involved in some project or another and shut it off, finally when I turned it back on and got my hot water, I would set the tea to steep and get involved in something else. I would come back to my, now ice cold and extra strong tea, fix it up and stick it in the microwave. If I didn’t get distracted I could have my tea. Otherwise it would sit in the microwave. Sound familiar?

The Keurig makes tea as quickly as it handles coffee – and I truly appreciate this. It is a big time saver!

Other Uses for the Keurig Coffee Maker

But the benefits of the Keurig coffee maker don’t end there. The Keurig can pump out plain hot water as well. With the Keurig coffee maker in your kitchen, you no longer have to wait until the kettle boils. Hot water is available at the push of a button. Very convenient for making instant oatmeal, Ramen noodles, and instant soup.

Keurig is the leader in the single serve coffee industry and a must for any busy home.