Customer Reviews

Hourglass Cold Brew Coffee Maker System

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

If you already love the smooth taste of cold brewed coffee, you will never go back to brewing coffee after using this machine. For too long, I made cold brewed coffee by putting grounds and water in a big jar and then straining it through coffee filters. I ended up with as much coffee on the kitchen counter as I did in my cup. The hourglass cold brew system is a delight. It's made from BPA free plastic and is simple and clean to use. All you do is measure the grounds and water into one of the brew chambers and then let it sit on your counter for 12 hours. When done, you simply turn it over and the grounds stay in the brew chamber and the coffee runs into the second brew chamber. Done! No mess! The directions say you can re-use the grounds if you put more water in right away. I've done this every time and the second batch tastes just as good as the first. All in all, I think by using the grounds twice, the system becomes quite economical. I read the reviews of the other systems and decided to spring for the Hourglass because even though it is more expensive, it seems to have addressed the issues that other reviewers complained about (no lid on the fridge container, plastic, etc.) This machine is worth every penny. See [...].

Makes good coffee. I have to watch my caffeine and acid levels (I had a gastric bypass) so I use 50/50 caf/decaf beans with a coarse burr grinder. Better coffee bean quality does make a difference. It also makes convenient super great healthy iced coffee with skim milk and stevia sweetner.

I also had a problem with leaking and locking at first but there are a couple of tricks that work for me. First, after you fill with water gently screw the base together. Carefully leave the top part a little loose. The problem I found was that if you screw the thing tightly together right after you add the water, the water is still absorbing into the grounds and will create a powerful vacuum over time! So if you seal it up tight right away, over time the whole thing locks down tight! I am a big guy but still could barely open the thing after 24 hour cycle! Just leave it loose, just enough for the whole thing to stay together and 24 hours later you'll be fine. This seems to also alleviate some of the leaking problems too because when you do tighten it down the seal will be fresher (if that makes sense). You may get an occasional drip after that but you will learn to be careful and pour CAREFULLY into the bean canteen over a sink. I have very few dripping issues now.

I do wish it were less expensive.

The stainless steel filter is what swayed me from the Toddy to the Hourglass. Some people complained about leaks, some did not. Mine leaked significantly. Upon careful observation...(story shortened)...the factory does not always trim down the bowls enough to let the center piece tighten against the rubber gasket. I sanded the lip of each bowl down to the start of the threads. Now there is a tight seal against the gasket. No more leaks! The factory should do a better and more consistent job to eliminate this issue. An alternate solution would be to acquire an extra set of gaskets and use two on each bowl.

The hourglass cold brewer is a beautiful piece of kit, it looks great.
The coffee it produces is much smoother than heat brewed.
The formulas are very useful for cold brewing and not something I would have considered before.
It's great for making a usable amount of coffee (I've tried cold brewing with a french press and it feels like more effort when it has to be done more often).
However, it takes up a lot of space on a small countertop.
The hourglass concept is unnecessary (you can cold brew in a mason jar if you want) and the pieces tend to lock together.
If you don't tighten the blue ends to the center it leaks while you're pouring the coffee, but if you tighten it it locks. I've sprayed coffee from one side trying to unscrew the other. I'm afraid to use too much pressure to try and unscrew them in case they break. The black center piece could have been made with some form of grip instead of smooth.

The included container for the brewed coffee has a useful measuring cup lid, which only measures half a cup of coffee at a time. The lid could have held a full cup, with a half mark. On the other hand the whole screw top lid gets coffee into the grooves and has to be cleaned after each pour. I've purchased a pour lid container with measuring marks on the side and it's easier to know when to brew again.

So, the intellectual property is probably the best part of the purchase. If the company had put more effort into the function of the piece it would be a better product.

I bought this maker a few months ago and absolutely love it. I have missed drinking coffee due to my acid reflux and the Hourglass makes low acid coffee which I love and it's the only way I can drink coffee. I have used other cold brew makers but they are so complicated and messy I stopped using them after a month or so. The Hourglass is easy to use, easy to clean and allows me to re-enjoy coffee again.

I drink the cold brew hot (by adding hot water) but my daughter loves the iced coffee she can make. It's very versatile and I love the comments I get when people come over and see a giant hourglass on my counter.

Try this coffee maker!

EASY. This cold brew system is really easy to use and clean and not having to buy replacement filters and cheap plastic parts makes this the cold brew system for the long run. I noticed that I only have leak issues if I overfill the unit with either coffee grind or water. You need to ensure the measurements are exact. The hour glass is actually functional for an optional mid-brew flip and flip back which i found did give the coffee a bolder taste in less time. The coffee tastes amazing and I was able to give up cream and sugar as a result. The container was perfect for taking to work and storing on a tight shared refrigerator shelf

This is one of those "why didn't I think of it myself" devices that cured my Starbucks iced coffee habit. The Hourglass system consists of 4 parts (excluding the little coffee storage carafe) that fit together to create the hourglass shown in the product photo. Much easier and less messy than a French press. I was somewhat concerned about other reviews that mentioned problems with leaking. However, my Hourglass has never leaked.

Just fill the stainless steel filter (no paper filters required)with course ground coffee and place it in the bottom half of the Hourglass (the "brew chamber"). This piece then screws on to the other two pieces, the black plastic funnel and top chamber. In 12 hours your coffee is "brewed" with no heat or electricity. You turn it over (yes, just like the hourglass in the Wizard of Oz, but with better results) and let the coffee extract drain into the other chamber. The funnel has a spout, enabling you to pour your incredibly rich, smooth, low acid coffee extract into the carafe and store in the fridge. I haven't tried it hot yet, but it makes scrumptious iced coffee. I make mine with 2% milk, and it is a rich-tasting, refreshing, yet still healthy treat.

The price seems a little steep for what is essentially five pieces of plastic, plus the filter. But the $ I'm saving on retail coffee drinks is more than making up for it. Plus you can use your coffee grounds a second time, unlike hot brewed coffee. The ease of use was a big selling point for me, admittedly.

love the concentrates convenience and flavor...the hourglass is very difficulte to seal to keep it from leaking, otherwise, it is a quality product that works as advertised..the shatter proof materiel is great for doppy people like me

Maybe it is just the one I received, but this thing leaks something awful. I do not have it too tight or too loose. I tried it different ways. I have no problem reading instructions either. I suppose this one might be defective but I am sending it back. I did not buy it from Amazon but from Cutlery and More. Not crazy that I have to pay return shipping either. I am going to try the Filtron, as the cold brewed coffee is quite good. I just lose most of it all over my counter with this brewer.

I love cool brew coffees, but this Hourglass Brewer is nothing but a mess. The manufacturer was focusing on design esthetics and not design function and the product shows this. The pot assembles as directed, but when you turn it over (as directed) coffee leaks out all over the counter, and you can do this multiple times during the process.

There are no consumer fixes for design flaws. In my opinion, this is a product that shouldn't be on the market with these sorts of innate design problems. It needs a built-in pour spout, as it's impossible to pour the extract from the brew chamber over the threads without it going every where. You certainly can't pour the extract into any of the containers supplied with the coffeemaker. As to the various chambers, they screw together straight and tight. I'm not having a problem doing this. However they are not making an airtight seal; so again coffee goes every where.

There should also be a snap on lid, so you can put just the brew chamber with the grounds in the refrigerator while it's "brewing." I would think the process would stay fresher this way.

Then after the process you have 2-1/2 cups (the required amount) of wet coffee grounds that stick in the brew chamber to deal with. How do you get them out (no paper filter to help) without adding more water as a flush? and you have to do it multiple times to clear all the grounds. Problem with that is, you can't put any of the grounds down your sink plumbing or even a garbage disposer; so what do you do with this sludge? Also consider that some of the residue from the grounds makes it into your new brew, are you going to try to filter it? I tried that, and it only made the coffee weaker.

I'm NOT HAPPY with this product. Believe me, it's a whole lot easier and cleaner to buy the Cool Brews already made and pre-bottled. Amazon sells them. They have a richer consistency and none of the mess.