Coffee and espresso deals are plentiful this Black Friday
Black Friday Deals for the WIRED Gear Team: The Aiden, Wacaco, Picopresso, and a Heavy-Flavor Espresso Maker
Black Friday is a perfect moment to update your coffee game with the best new gear and accessories at discount prices. We went through a lot of Black Friday deals to find the best buys on our highest-rated coffee gear. We have live Black Friday Deals and tips for navigating the day.
The coffee industry has a lot of hype for the coffee machine, and it’s the most talked-about device this year. The Aiden looks better than it is. The Aiden is easy to use, even though it is hype. According to Pete Cottell in his rave review of the Aiden, a coffee machine’s ability to brew delicious coffee with as littlefriction as possible should be the primary litmus test of greatness. Its real strength is that it makes beautiful, café-quality drip or pour-over without being any harder to figure out than than a grimy old Mr. Coffee from the 1970s. You can get a brew setup with the WIRED gear team’s favorite bean grinder at a steep Black Friday discount. (You can also just spring for the Opus, a terrific grinder, and get the same 20 percent off discount.)
The Breville Barista is the WIRED Gear team’s favorite premium all-in-one espresso maker that’s priced within reach for mere mortals—and this weekend it’s significantly below list price, with potential rebates that could push the price down still further. What do we like about the Barista? It’s a sturdily constructed, mostly metal machine that’s easy to use and easy to froth your milk with. You can see water pressure on its included gauge, and it will grind your beans for you. It has lived happily on the shelf for more than five years.
Wacaco’s Picopresso is the best portable espresso maker that we’ve tested, with excellent extract and it’s compact, lightweight, and solid. It’s a tiny device with delicious results, offering very little bitterness and a nice crema. The device is not good for those with joint pain or repetitive stress injuries due to the fact that you have to apply a bit of manual pressure to get it to work. The results were not quite as good as the earlier one, but still, we had good results.
In the price range under $100, no automatic grinder beat Oxo’s Brew in our testing. The brew has a lot of features and a nice range of beans, with a price in the double digits. The slim profile means it is not a space hog. It is about 16 inches tall, which is in line with the clearances for cabinets, and it is also very heavy, which may mean that you need to find counter space with open sky.
We won’t be overselling this blade grinder, it won’t give you the same level of consistency or fineness that a high-end conical or flat burr grinder will. If you are a default coffee drinker and you hear people talking about separation of flavors or even the opposite, you will cross your eyes. Well, this sturdy little KitchenAid will grind your beans without complaint. If it doesn’t make your eyes cross, you should plising.
The French press is an essential and portable tool in any coffee lover’s kitchen, a low-tech default for countertop or camping. The Secura is the most popular French press because of it’s sturdy, insulated nature. Which is to say, the hot stuff stays hot and the cool stuff stays cool. Is this the right time to mention it’s the WIRED Gear team’s favorite French press to make cold brew?
The “you didn’t know you needed one until you got one” folder is a sweet spot that makes the smart warmer a nice stocking stuffer. This mug warmer isn’t “smart” because you need an app to use it, or because it records your conversations. It’s smart because it’s smart. If there is a flat-bottomed mug on top of the device, it will warm it to 130 degrees Fahrenheit, which will save you the endless dance of either chugging down your coffee or topping it off. The device turns off when the mug is removed. The easy is not appreciated.
WIRED: Freezing all air and oxygen with a twist-action vacuum storage container for cold, savory, and non-Americano coffee
Vacuum bean storage makes coffee taste better, longer. If you’re using fresh, premium beans from a local roaster, a vacuum storage container will better preserve the investment you’re regularly making in your beans. Drop your bag into this container, then turn Atmos’ twist-action pump. The device will remove all air and thus all oxygen, freezing the sad oxidation process that would turn your once delicately aromatic coffee into acrid cardboard. This is the lowest price we’ve seen for the year, so it’s a great gift for coffee lovers.
If you’re an Aeropress lover, swap out the cap on the Aeropress for a thicker one, and you’ll take on a lot more pressure in the brew. During testing, the WIRED team found this offered a cleaner cup, a bit of aeration, and even more satisfying cold brew. Science! Though this Black Friday deal isn’t a whopper, it still matches the best discount we’ve seen this year.
Technivorm’s Moccamaster drip coffee maker has been handmade in the Netherlands since 1968. The big, sturdy, and technically precise drip machine will keep the water at the right temperature during the entire brew process. Note that to get this Black Friday deal, you may have to compromise on color. If you click around among the different colors, you can see if one you like is on a discount. Chances are it will stay around for a long time.
Joe Ray of WIRED had to assure readers that Oxo 8-Cup was the real deal when it came out a few years ago. It’s still a good coffeemaker. You can make just one cup of coffee, instead of a whole pot. Still also a great idea.
The Terra Kaffe is a pricey hunk of coffee machinery and has its bugs, but it’s one of few on earth to offer not just quality espresso and macchiato, but also true drip coffee that’s not Americano in disguise. The package contains a smart screen and everything else you would need to clean it. Just like a remote starter on your car, you can start warming the machine up using a phone app. If you sign on for a coffee subscription, there is an extra hundo off the top. Matthew Korfhage is a person.
A classic AeroPress is portable. It’s even more travel-friendly. It’s the WIRED gear team’s favorite portable coffemaker. It’s completely self-contained, is lightweight and a little bigger than a coffee mug. Another plus for people on the go is that an AeroPress is by its nature quite forgiving. Throw in some grounds, stir it up, and plunge away: Chances are it’ll be a pretty good cup of joe. Aeropress is having a 25% discount on most models for Black Friday.
If you don’t buy it as part of Fellow’s Aiden Grinder kit, the Opus is well worth buying all on its own. It’s the WIRED Gear team’s favorite overall grinder (9/10, WIRED Recommends), a quiet device with a consistent grind even at the finest espresso settings. It also competes with grinders that cost much, much more, at less than $200.
Sure, the Tally (9/10, WIRED Recommends) will weigh your coffee, if that’s all you need. But it’ll also start a timer to track the progress of a prourover, and calculate the weight of water you’ll need to add to it. Consider it a third-wave coffee pourover aficionado’s true companion. The Tally is 20 percent off at the moment.
