Do I actually need a coffee maker?

QUESTION:

Is medium roast, ground coffee suitable for just adding hot water and milk to, or do you have to have a French press or other equipment?

ANSWER:

Yes, you need to use some kind of coffee maker with your ground coffee. If you don't, you'll have the very unpleasant experience of feeling your mouth filling with bits of ground coffee when you take that first sip.

You can buy a drip brewer, which is the most popular coffee maker. Or, as you suggest, a French press. You can even make great coffee with a plastic filter cone from your local dollar store.

Each of these methods will make you a good cup of coffee.

That said, there is one exception. If you make Turkish coffee, you don't use a filter at all. Just hot water, ground coffee and sugar, if you want it.

The trick with Turkish coffee is that the coffee is ground very, very fine – almost like talcum powder. As a result, the coffee grinds all sink to the bottom. And even if you do swallow some, the grinds are so fine you won't notice.

Learn more about the different coffee makers on our choosing the best coffee maker page.