Ratio Six Coffee Maker
It was just a few weeks ago after a long shift at the hospital that my wife asked me the forbidden question - “Do you think we could get an automatic coffee maker?”
I gasped. “An automatic coffee maker?” I exclaimed within me, “Does she even know who I am and what I stand for?”
You see, my wife is a midwife which means plenty of all nighters at the hospital or at home. Babies don’t respect anyone’s schedule, so she’s often called out in the blink of an eye at an ungodly hour.
My workdays look a lot different than hers. I work a standard 9-5, so when my alarm goes off at 5:45am I know exactly how much time I have before I need to go to work. I turn my kettle on from bed with my phone and by the time I hit the kitchen my water is hot and ready. Every morning I make myself a single pour over, sit down on the couch, and enjoy it for as long as I’d like.
Although Rebecca enjoys those types of mornings when she can, it’s not often she has that opportunity. She needs a coffee maker that does the work for her but can also do her coffee justice. Thankfully she’s got some options, and I think the best option is the Ratio Six coffee maker.
Ratio Coffee
Ratio as a company has been around since 2012 and exists to answer the not-so-simple question, “In the age of super premium espresso machines, why hasn’t the automatic coffee maker evolved?”
And that’s exactly what automated coffee maker’s need, an evolution. They exist, but do they do specialty coffee justice?
Ratio answered this question in 2013 with the Ratio Eight, arguably the world’s most beautiful (and pricey!) automated home brewing device. Made of choice components like stainless steel, hardwood, and hand blown glass, the Ratio Eight sets itself apart from other coffee makers in both the aesthetic and performance categories. Ratio is small company with high standards, and they proved that with their first product.
A more affordable option
Just recently their next evolution of the home coffee machine was announced, the Ratio Six. This time around Ratio went the way of a Kickstarter campaign, and the response was affirming. 153 backers pledged $31,924 of a $20,000 goal to help get this new iteration off the ground, and the first units should start shipping soon.
Mark Hellwig, founder of Ratio describes the Ratio Six as his “attempt to offer an incredible easy-to-use, beautiful-to-behold, pleasure-to-own coffee maker, at a price point that more people can afford”.
I was privileged to receive a pre-production model to get my hands on, and I was nothing less than impressed. I have a Ratio Eight model at my office, so my expectations were set. What I didn’t expect were some thoughtful improvements to the Ratio brewing system that would lead me to prefer the cheaper model over its big brother.
Big brother is not better?
Similar to its big brother, the Ratio Six is built sturdily out of stamped stainless steel, borosilicate glass, and high end BPA-free copolymers. All of the materials are backed up by a 5-year warranty, proving that this coffee maker is made to last. This high quality design not only serves for longevity, but also for the longing eyes of the guests in your home.
Every time someone walks through the door and into our kitchen, they make a loving remark about this beautiful piece of brewing equipment on my counter. When it comes to the counter, one of the benefits of the Ratio Six is its small footprint. This coffee maker fits comfortably on our counter and under our cupboards, and will fit most kitchens in the same way.
Sure it feels good, looks good, and fits good, but how does it brew coffee?
Well that has to be my favourite part. Both Ratio brewers are intelligent in the way they brew but simple in operation. All there is for you to do is touch one button to initiate the brew cycle and the coffee maker does the rest.
What sets the Ratio series of brewers apart is this very thing - the brew cycle.
The Brew Cycle
After you’ve pressed the brew button, hot water begins to ascend up the handblown glass tubes virtually instantly. I’m not sure how this happens so fast, so let’s give the points to science. The hot water then comes through the precision engineered shower head to be evenly distributed over the bed of grounds to bloom. The Ratio does the same blooming process that you do manually when you brew your coffee by hand, letting the bed of coffee rest to saturate fully before continuing the brew cycle.
Over the next few minutes, 200F water comes out of the shower head in clever and continuous pulses, ensuring an even extraction to produce a few great cups of coffee. The Ratio Six boasts a flat bottomed basket that I find drastically improves the extraction when brewing multiple cups. If you prefer the conical carafe of the Ratio Eight, that’s also compatible with the Six but I find it more prone to choking at high volumes. The Ratio Six is capable of brewing up to 40 ounces of coffee, although you can brew smaller volumes by simply using less water.
The flat bottomed basket sits atop a new thermal carafe that will keep your freshly brewed coffee warm during breakfast, a meeting, or any old afternoon.
The future of automation in coffee
The future definitely holds more automation in coffee, and if I’m being honest I’m not sure how I feel about that. So much of the coffee making experience for me is the tactile nature of the routine. In some cases though, automation is necessary. I think Ratio has done a brilliant job of creating a machine that eases some inconveniences of making specialty coffee at home while maintaining the dignity of the product it produces.
I’ve heard it said that a happy wife makes for a happy life, and I can confirm that Rebecca is ecstatic that she can trust the Ratio Six to make her coffee for her while she’s getting ready to run out the door. That makes two of us then, because even if she didn’t like it I’d be overjoyed to have this automated coffee maker on my counter forever!
