The thermal carafe coffee maker – keeping your coffee hot, without stewing it.

Thermal carafe.Bonavita drip brewer with thermal carafe.

A thermal carafe coffee maker answers the one drawback of most drip brewers.

Drip brewers with glass carafes keep your fresh-brewed coffee hot with a heated plate. The problem with this process is that the heat from the plate starts to “stew” your coffee.

It tastes fine for the first little while, and then takes on that bitter, “cooked” taste.

If you have ever poured yourself the last cup of coffee from a glass carafe that has been on the hotplate for too long, you know exactly what we mean.

A thermal carafe coffee maker addresses this issue very simply...

Instead of your fresh coffee being kept hot by a heated plate, the coffee drips directly into a thermal vacuum jug or carafe.

The best models have a “through the lid” system that means the coffee drips through the closed lid of the mug or carafe, so the absolute minimum of heat is lost.


The Bonavita BV1800 Drip Brewer.

This is the brewer we use ourselves every day. It's our top pick among drip brewers. Read our review here...


Do you want a thermal CARAFE coffee maker, or a thermal JUG coffee maker?

A thermal mug maker drips coffee into either one or two travel mugs. In other words, these machines are ideal if you are making coffee in the morning and need to run out to the car, with an insulted coffee mug filled with a fresh brew to go.

If you want to brew your coffee directly into a thermal travel mug, try the Toastess TFC-42T Silhouette Twin Coffeemaker with Thermal Travel Mug.

If you want more than one or two cups and are drinking your coffee at home, you’ll be better off buying a machine that drips through the lid into a thermal carafe.

A good and very popular coffee maker with a thermal carafe is the Capresso MT500 Thermal Jug Coffee Maker.

It won’t stay hot for ever, as every thermal container loses a little heat over time. But a cup of coffee from a thermal carafe, poured an hour after brewing, tastes a great deal better than coffee that has been stewing on a hot plate for the same length of time. 

Which coffee maker is best for  your home?

Drip brewers, single serve brewers, pour-over brewers, the French press. Find out which is best for you...

About the author: Nick Usborne, aka Coffee Detective, is a writer and long-time coffee enthusiast. Read more…

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