Lengthy have I coveted my neighbor’s Moccamaster. It helps, in fact, that the neighbor in query is a good friend who has generously served me numerous espresso from the butter-colored model of the mid-century trendy machine over time. For the uninitiated, the Moccamaster has been lauded by coffee-obsessed folks because the gold customary for drip espresso machines that brew with consistency, particularly when you’re on the lookout for an equipment that cuts a smooth, trendy silhouette. Gwyneth Paltrow famously has one in her impeccably adorned Montecito, California visitor home, and you will have noticed a silver-colored Moccamaster in Carmy’s kitchen in The Bear.
Lately, the machine has arguably gone viral. Moccamaster has been trending on social media, with greater than 75,000 posts popping up beneath #Moccamaster on Instagram and tens of hundreds of likes on TikTok amongst espresso nerds and folk who simply need a simple strategy to blast off with caffeine.
Not a lot has modified about this percolator because it was first launched by the Dutch firm Technivorm in 1968, however once I realized that the KBGV 10-cup mannequin is available in dozens of colours, I knew it was time to convey my private favourite, the statement-making Yellow Pepper mannequin, house for testing.
Under, we’ll break down every part it is advisable to learn about Technivorm’s KBGV 10-cup Moccamaster mannequin, from transport and unboxing to brewing to and general upkeep, to see if that is, in actual fact, a espresso maker that your descendants will struggle over within the will. We’ll particularly be seeking to grade a couple of key metrics: ease of meeting, whether or not or not it may possibly really brew 10 cups beneath six minutes, and simply how uniformly the espresso is brewed. Oh, and in addition if it’s simply as cool-looking in particular person as it’s on-line.
What makes a Moccamaster so particular?
It’s hardly shocking that the Moccamaster is trending proper now. The studies are in, and Gen Z is uninterested in chasing the hyper-fast development cycle; it appears like everyone seems to be attempting to squeeze their greenback proper now, however quite than purchase low-cost stuff that inevitably breaks after a 12 months, which means investing in home equipment which can be as timeless and dependable as attainable, and received’t price us much more cash in the long term. The Moccamaster was intriguing to me as a result of it presents a caffeinated exit from that Sisyphean client expertise; it’s designed to operate as each a sturdy, serviceable equipment (that means, you’ll be able to register your Moccamaster and contact the crew to assist substitute or repair any components) and as a machine that’s intuitive to make use of (there are solely two switches on the KBGV mannequin).
Each Moccamaster remains to be handmade and inspected within the Netherlands, the place it was initially designed by Gerard-Clement Smit within the Sixties, and packs some lovably retro design options comparable to a scorching plate and brand typeface not not like that of Playboy within the Sixties; my good friend who owns the butter yellow iteration has described its meeting as “like placing collectively a LEGO set for ages five-and-up.”
Smit’s modular machine — a real hallmark of peak-MCM type with its geometric shapes and utilitarian edge — can also be distinctive in that it was one of many first to make use of a copper heating factor to hit a constant, optimum brewing temperature (between 92 and 96 levels Celsius is the candy spot for a clean, non-burnt roast). As Smit stated in a 2008 interview, “I all the time begin with the espresso. Espresso comes first, and the easiest way to make it may be scientifically decided.” Even the phrase Technivorm comes from the Dutch phrases techniek and vormgeving (kind and performance, respectively), additional emphasizing Smit’s dedication to performance.
First impressions of the Moccamaster
Even earlier than it was unboxed, my Moccamaster made fairly the doorway. All the pieces concerning the machine’s packaging feels considerate, from the Mad Males-style drawing of the percolator on the field’s exterior to the Moccamaster-branded tape sealing it shut. This felt refreshing, as a result of I’m used to receiving squished, semi-open, design-bereft Amazon packages.
I’ve an irrational and embarrassing dislike of establishing home equipment. I blame the frequency with which my mother freaked out over, say, the duty of adjusting an ink cartridge in our printer rising up (though, in her protection, there was no YouTube again then to assist). For weeks, my Moccamaster lived in its field as a result of I used to be just a little afraid of it.
After I lastly unboxed it, I felt rather less intimidated. There weren’t that many components, and it even got here with a really Nineteen Seventies-feeling brown-colored espresso floor spoon. At 14 inches tall, it additionally wasn’t as imposing as I apprehensive it could be, though it definitely pulled focus in my kitchen. As my companion responded once I texted them a photograph, “It’s giving Black + Decker. It’s giving Dewalt energy instruments. I like it.”
How simple is it to arrange a Moccamaster?
The set-up packet feels harking back to an IKEA booklet in the easiest way attainable, with diagrams and numbered components clearly seen. Regardless, I did what I all the time do with a brand new merchandise as a visible learner: run to a YouTube tutorial. Seems, the espresso machine is really easy to arrange that a lot of the tutorials are “Moccamaster hack” movies; this one, for instance, encourages you to show the machine off briefly to unfold the grounds round evenly within the filter throughout the brewing course of, which sounds astute, however that I’d solely do if I used to be a contestant on Love Island with no web and nothing to play with besides breakfast meals and mirrors. In different phrases: Let the Moccamaster do its job. It’s good at it — I promise.
These are my solely gripes: The Moccamaster KBGV is a filter-based espresso machine, and I feel it might be a pleasant contact for Technivorm to throw in a handful of No. 4 filters with this $300+ buy (costs are inclined to differ on Amazon, for instance, by colorway). I additionally want I had a greater espresso grinder to make a extra uniform batch of coarsely floor beans, however that’s on me (and the Baratza Encore, maybe?) to unravel.
In a kitchen-appliance first, I really turned away from my flight of YouTube movies and located the booklet far more simple. Meeting time was about 5 minutes, all issues thought-about, and I stuffed up the water tank to make a full 10 cups (you may make half of that batch and modify the brewing setting with the second change on the underside, which has two choices: huge espresso pot and little espresso pot). I switched the machine on, which is all it takes to start out brewing, and voilà.
How shortly does the espresso really brew?
Did I time my Moccamaster’s brewing talents like a crazed bookie on the races? Sure and sure. Technivorm proudly claims that the Moccamaster could make 10 cups of espresso in a 4–6 minute vary, and I wished to place that to the check. The joys was value it; my Yellow Pepper steed quietly produced 10 cups of espresso in round 5 minutes and 30-ish seconds, or so long as it takes to observe the “Complete Eclipse of the Coronary heart” music video.
I switched the machine off as quickly because it was achieved brewing, however relaxation assured that it has an computerized shut-off function as soon as the water reservoir is empty, and the hotplate additionally turns off after 100 minutes.
So, is the Moccamaster value it?
The style of the espresso from my Moccamaster has been clean and constant, akin to the sensation of occurring cruise management on a newly paved highway. Clearly, that is additionally the place the kind of espresso you’re consuming additionally comes into play, nevertheless it did a tremendous job elevating my Kirkland Signature mix. Once more, I set a six-minute timer, and inside moments I heard that acquainted, heat diner gargle of espresso that made me crave buttermilk pancakes, a Route 66 roadtrip, and a Twin Peaks rewatch. The hotplate additionally does a pleasant job of conserving my brew heat with out ever burning it, which is right for somebody who principally works from house.
Moccamaster calls itself the “espresso brewer for coffee-lovers,” and it’s proper. I began consuming espresso in highschool, and swiftly moved from consumption through an enormous, industrial Bunn espresso brewer match for an condominium of 5 faculty college students, to making ready my single cup pour-over espresso with a near-religious sense of ceremony, as one did in San Francisco throughout the peak Hayes Valley location Blue Bottle Espresso days; nevertheless it’s 2025 and I not weigh my beans out like a medieval alchemist whereas listening to She & Him. Previous to proudly owning my Moccamaster, I principally drank Moka pot espresso, however, as an more and more booked and busy particular person in my thirties, this powerhouse Dutch equipment has delivered me from fussy prep and small batches of espresso — all whereas trying trendy and grown-up.
If you’d like extra espresso and a simplified life, I say brew away.
The Moccamaster KBGV 10-cup espresso maker is obtainable at Amazon, Crate & Barrel, Williams Sonoma, and extra retailers.
