COVID-19: How to Manage Your Coffee At Home or Office During Coronavirus Isolation

Manage your coffee cravings and rituals at home or at the office during COVID by investing in a superautomatic: a machine that can make you espresso, drip style coffee, and specialty coffees like cappuccinos, lattés or americanos, easily with a push of a button.

Let’s admit it: coffee is such an intrinsic part of our day. Not only does our energy and productivity revolve around coffee, but so do our daily rituals. It is the drink that helps us get moving in the morning and we all know, too well, that starting our day with a bad cup or with no cup of coffee at all can set the tone for the rest of the day. 

Coffee is indeed that drink that sets the rhythm to our day. We may start our morning with a basic drip coffee, follow up mid morning with a delicious cappuccino, and we supercharge our energy in the late afternoon with something with a little kick, like an Americano. 

All of these choices were readily available to us pre-COVID because we could stop at the local coffee shop to get the our coffee drink no matter the time of day or our mood. Now “work from home”, “stay at home”, and “social distancing” have become our new mantras. If you are looking for ways to ensure you daily coffee rituals aren’t interrupted and your coffee cravings are satisfied, here is what you can do.

Coffee Makers for Home Which Satisfy All Your Coffee Cravings

Plain coffee doesn't cut it for you. You enjoy an espresso and espresso based drinks, you are not a barista. You appreciate their skill at grinding, dosing, tamping, and pulling a perfect shot but it really looks complicated.

Making a perfect espresso at home need not be complicated: enter the superautomatic espresso machine.  Super automatics or fully automatics, as they are sometimes referred to, are easy to use and produce wonderful coffee drinks better than the ones you get at the high end cafés.

With the touch of one button, superautomatics will grind the beans, tamp, brew, and dispense the used coffee.  Some models of superautomatics will also heat and froth milk for milk based drinks like cappuccinos or lattes with one touch.

But not everyone at home likes espresso, no worries.  Superautomatics can make a drip style coffee and even make drinks for the kids, like hot chocolate.  The great thing about a superautomatic is that it can make many types of coffees, but a regular coffee machine can't make an espresso nor milk based drinks.

The beauty of a superautomatics is that they are really easy to use, provide a consistent coffee or espresso with the push of a button, can be customized to produce a coffee or an espresso just the way you like it.  

Want to learn more about espresso based drink.  Download your FREE Espresso Drink Guide, here.

Fully Automatic Coffee Machines for Home Pay For Themselves

Many people think that investing in a machine is really cost prohibitive but if you sit down and do the math, you will be pleasantly surprised. Check out this graphic that shows how superautomatics  really pay for themselves over time. Making a coffee with a superautomatic machine at home costs about 12 cents per cup. 

Here is a very popular Saeco superautomatics (shown in the graphic above) that it is very affordable and provide everything you need to create a full service coffee bar at home. 

Philips Saeco 2200 Series

• Compact, will fit easily on a counter
• Has a one touch milk system; push a button and get a cappuccino easily
• Front loading water tank makes it easy to refill
• Dispensing head can be adjusted to accommodate tall cups
• Milk carafe is composed of two pieces with no tubes or hoses so it is really easy to wash and keep clean
• Very affordable at $899 

• The machine housing (body) is a plain black plastic which is not ideal for some home decor
• The drip tray is touch shallow and will require more frequent emptying

Coffee Makers for the Office Which Satisfy All Your Coffee Cravings

Having a good coffee system at work is one of the easiest ways to boost employee satisfaction and morale, especially during COVID.  Why?  Having a good coffee system in place ensures employees don't have to leave the office. This shows them you care about their safety.  

Employees will love having a coffee maker that can make any of their coffee choice easily with the push of a button. No matter what your team likes to drink in the break room, with Saeco superautomatics your team will enjoy:

• A wide selection of gourmet coffees like americanos, cappuccino, lattés, flat whites - brewed perfectly each time.
• Less mess and less to clean up.  Sleek designs means they can be easily wiped down and disinfected.
• Saeco coffee makers are UL-listed for continuous use are built to commercial specifications. This certification ensures maximum durability and longevity.
• Coffee solutions available at various budgets.

Top Coffee Machines for Offices or High Traffic Environments

Saeco Aulika Top Evo RI HSC

• High capacity: 1 kg/2.2 lbs bean hopper, 4L water tank, Dreg drawer that holds 40 spent coffee pucks
• Direct water hook-up up is included but you can always use of the water tank at the top, if you wish
• You can use either the auto foamer (cappuccinatore) or steam the milk manually
• The price of this model is exceptional considering that direct water hook up is included and the bean hopper size is significant
• Rated for approximately 100 cups per day

• The removable brew unit must be removed and rinsed every few days depending on usage. This machine may need some extra time and effort in cleaning the brew unit but it will be much easier to service

Saeco Royal One Touch Cappuccino

• It’s a simple machine to use in part because the selections of coffees it can make are limited
• An ideal machine if you are looking make mostly espresso, coffee, cappuccino, and lattés
• Dubbed as a workhorse which speaks to its durability
• Rated for approximately 75 coffees per day

• The water and bean hoppers are side by side and if both are open at the same time, it can cause issues. Water can splash into the bean hopper if care isn’t taken when refilling the water tank

Saeco Lirika OTC

 

• Compact design with an oversized bean hopper and water tank
• One Touch Cappuccino feature 
• Can be easily coupled with a Waeco Milk Fridge for a One Touch Cappuccino
• Rated for approximately 30 cups per day

• No bypass doser makes it difficult to accommodate decaf drinkers

Include NO TOUCH Milk Solutions

Being able to offer staff and clients a milk-based drink elevates the prestige of your office coffee program. The fully automatic options provided here make this an easy option. With a push of a button, you can whip up latté, cappuccino, flat whites or hot chocolate.

While you don't need any supplementary equipment, we do highly recommend adding a milk fridge.  With high traffic environments, you don't want to leave milk on the counter, waste time taking it IN and out of a fridge, and worry about spoilage. Less handling makes it hygienic and safer for everyone. 

You do want to ensure that milk stays cold and does not spoil.  There are several milk fridge options available. All of the suggested machines can  coupled with a Milk Cooler  or the Waeco Dometic MyFridge MF 1M Milk Cooler for Superautomatic Espresso Machines in order to provide cappuccino at the touch of a button.

 

 

Waeco Dometic MyFridge MF 1M Milk Cooler for Superautomatic Espresso Machines

 

• 1L milk cooler
• Sleek and elegant: silver/black
• Compatible with any tube-based milk system (Saeco, Jura, Carimali, Gaggia, DeLonghi)
• Cooling performance: Up to 22 °C below the ambient temperature
• Temperature control at +1 °C

• Limited capacity is 1L. Depending on the traffic, it could be small

MilkMate 2005⎮Milk Cooler for Office or Commercial Espresso Machines

• 1 gallon cooler or 3.78 litres
• Simply drop a whole jug of milk into the fridge
• UL and NSF approved
• Top loading 
• Dimension 15" X 9" X 12 " (L x W x H)

• The look of this a bit more commercial
• A little larger so consider the space available where it will be housed

Save Money, Follow Coffee Trends, and Hone Your Barista Skills

While part of allure of having an espresso may be going to the local coffee shop, which really isn’t practical or possible right now, making your specialty coffee drinks at home will help you save money.  There really isn't any coffee you can't make at home with the right equipment. 

A silver lining of having coffee at home is that you to hone your barista skills and explore new coffee recipes.  Check out these coffee trends that have emerged during COVID.

If you have any questions about your home or office coffee system contact us to discuss your needs. Above all, stay healthy and safe and take the time to enjoy a cup of coffee with those you love.