Review of La Cafetiere TQ080200 Thermique 8 Cup Thermal Coffee Press, Stainless Steel

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(More customer reviews)After weeks of searching for a stainless steel coffee press and reading every review submitted--I really appreciate product reviews: good and bad--I finally found a press that I thought would work...and it does! In fact, it makes an excellent pot of coffee. It is also very beautiful. It looks like a silver coffee pot you might find on the room-service tray at a 4-star hotel: classic art deco design. The generous spout allows you to pour the coffee without dripping and the large handle makes it easy to hold securely. The pot is polished stainless steel, made in China by a British firm with, obviously, very exacting standards; there are no flaws, dents, or unfinished surfaces. It has a smooth and seamless appearing surface throughout: inside and outside and it can sit proudly on any tray or table.

Following my accident with my glass Bodum press (it exploded and I received 1st and 2nd degree burns), I was a little leery about pressing down on the plunger when I made my first pot. No need to worry; it slid down like a dream: smoothly and easily. So easily that I thought it might not have captured all the coffee grounds. (The one drawback in using a metal pot is not being able to see the grounds being pressed.) No need to worry, as I discovered when I cleaned the pot, all the grounds had been captured by the stainless, mesh filter and there was little if any water with the grounds in the bottom of the pot. By the way, this press must be hand washed and dried: it cannot be put into a dishwasher.

The only feature that did not seem to "work" for me was the keep-warm feature. I did not make a full pot (which probably contributed to the cooling down of the brew); but, I did make enough for two mugs of coffee--about 20 oz.--and I drank the second cup within ten minutes. The second cup was not as hot as the first one. I did rinse the pot with very hot tap water before putting the ground coffee into the pot and I placed it on a hot pad so my tiled counter would not cool the pot. However, this pot is double-walled and the air pocket is what "keeps the coffee warm"; it is not a thermos pot. The pot is hefty; but, not as heavy as it would be if it was a thermos or glass-insulated pot. Not having the glass insulation might be a good thing: nothing to break should I drop it; therefore, it should last a very long time. I think the warming aspect would be better triggered if one was making a full pot and using--as the instruction booklet suggests--water "just off the boil." That is, the water for this coffee press should be boiled; it will cool down when it hits the pot and the heat is absorbed by the air pocket.

Oh, yes, the coffee from this elegant press--it was the best! I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this great press to anyone. Yes, it is a little more expensive than the glass presses; but, I don't have to worry about it exploding or breaking.

July Update: I have made many full pots of coffee since my initial review and I can safely say that my coffee did stay very warm; that is, very drinkable--for up to 2 hours--and the pot stayed cool to the touch. I did use water just off the boil; I think that certainly helped. I really do like this coffee press!

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Product Description:
Practical and stylish, this double walled stainless steel thermal carafe houses a traditional French Press.Make your coffee and keep it warm in the same pot.Thermal carafe keeps coffee warm 3 times longer than a regular French Press.8 cup capacity.