When I was at the Starbucks near my workplace, I saw that they had this big clover brewing machine. There are only a few locations in the Lower Mainland that are using this machine.
It was originally created by Coffee Equipment Company, a Seattle-based manufacturer of coffee equipment, but was then bought out by Starbucks. Thus that’s why all these Starbucks locations has the Clover brewing machine.
The Clover brewing machine is used on the different Starbucks Reserve coffees. If you’re getting the usual Pike, it won’t be brewed with this machine.
The Clover brewing system uses Vacuum-Press technology to create the perfect cup of coffee.
You watch as a stainless steel filter lowers into the brew chamber. Hot water is added at a specific temperature to brew the coffee for an ideal length of time.
It controls brew time and temperature digitally based on the type of bean you put in. Apparently even small changes can dramatically affect the taste of the coffee. A thermal blanket surrounds the brew chamber to keep water within 1 degree Fahrenheit of the ideal temperature.
After the coffee brews, it is pulled through a 70-micron filter. The resulting grounds are pushed out of the top of the machine. The coffee itself flows into your cup – hot, aromatic and flavourful.
Since it was a hot day, I got it as an iced coffee. To cool it down, they fill the cup with ice.
Having it as an iced coffee was still quite strong. But then again, I did get the Sumatra single origin roast coffee. It is a full-bodied dark roast coffee with a smooth mouthfeel and almost no acidity.
It’s a lot different that their regular coffees.
All the Starbucks Reserve coffees are selected for their quality and carefully roasted to bring out their individual flavours. So you can be sure they really shine when brewed using the Clover brewing system.
Besides it’s flavour, it’s pretty fun to watch the barista use this machine. In short, it uses a brewing method similar to a French press along with a vacuum system to separate the liquid from the coffee grounds.
Website:
http://www.starbucks.ca/coffee/learn/clover
