Verdict
If money is no object, run – don’t walk – to get the Aarke Coffee System. It includes a gorgeous Swedish stainless steel coffee maker along with a matching grinder. The grinder has 60 grind settings to handle a variety of brewing methods, and the anti-static chute eliminates messes. After selecting the number of cups on the grinder, it grinds the precise amount of coffee, taking the guesswork out of the process. There’s also an option to make the coffee stronger or weaker than the presets. The coffee maker has a simple one-touch operation and makes SCA-certified golden cup coffee. When used together, making coffee is a joy instead of a hassle.
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Choice of thermal or glass carafe -
SCA-certified -
Automatic dosing -
Excellent coffee
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Expensive -
Cable system is rather unsightly
Key Features
Introduction
Founded in 2013, Aarke is a Swedish company known for producing beautiful sparkling water makers in a variety of sizes and colours. However, Aarke recently entered the crowded coffee maker space with a bang. The sleek and intelligent Aarke Coffee System is gorgeous, and it works as good as it looks. The 64mm flat burrs provide precision grinding of coffee beans, and there are 60 adjustable grind settings. The grinder also has adjustable settings depending on personal taste. The ground coffee flows easily through the chute into a stainless-steel grounds cup – without any grounds escaping onto the countertop and making a mess.
The coffee maker is available with either a glass carafe or a thermal carafe (which costs more). It’s one of roughly a dozen brands to be SCA (Specialty Coffee Association) certified – which means that the Aarke Coffee Maker meets the association’s standards for water temperature, brew time, extraction quality, and consistency. The coffee maker is also user-friendly – with just one button. Keep reading to see how the Aarke Coffee System fared during several months of testing.
Design and features
- Grinder has 60 settings
- Strength fine tuner
- Single button coffee maker
Both coffee connoisseurs and casual drinkers appreciate the distinctly better taste of freshly-ground coffee. Some coffee makers have built-in bean grinders. However, the Aarke Coffee System includes a stand-alone grinder – that can also be connected to the coffee maker (more on that later).
The Aarke Coffee System arrived securely packaged in brown cardboard boxes, and inside of those, white branded boxes. The glass carafe is standard, and was included in the box with the coffee maker. However, I’m not a fan of glass carafes, so I also has the thermal carafe (which is $100 extra – but I think it’s totally worth it).
The grinder has the same sleek Scandinavian design as the coffee maker. The grinder consists of a generous, removable bean hopper with glass lid. Other parts of the grinder include the chute, and the start/stop button.
There’s also a stylish, stainless-steel cup designed to rest underneath the chute and catch ground coffee as it comes out of the grinder, along with a cleaning cloth, and an instructions manual.
The rest of the components deserve more detailed descriptions.
Grind size dial: has a range of 1(fine) to 60 (coarse). While a range of 20 to 35 is fine for the pour over coffee that the Aarke Coffee Maker brews, keep in mind that since the grinder is a stand-alone appliance, it can be used to grind coffee for different types of brewers.
In fact, on the grinder’s removable glass lid is a handy guide for selecting the grind size for various brewing methods. For example, the grind range for a Mocca brewing method is 10 to 20; If using an Aeropress, the range is 15 to 25. For a French press, the range is 45 to 55, and if using a Chemex, 40 to 50 is the recommended range. However, Aarke says the grinder is not optimized for espresso grinding.
Cup dial: this is where to select how many cups of coffee to brew: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, or 10 – and the grinder supplies an equivalent amount of ground coffee.
Strength fine tuner: you may prefer your coffee to be either stronger or weaker than the preset feature provides. The strength fine tuner dial can be adjusted to the right to increase the amount of ground coffee, or turned to the left to decrease the amount.
Auto-grind: Using the included connector cord (not to be confused with the power cord), the grinder can be connected to the coffee maker. Then, after filling the grinder with beans, and filling the water tank with the desired amount of water, select Auto on the cup dial, and the grinder will automatically dispense the right amount of coffee.
The LED indicator will flash when there aren’t enough beans in the hopper for the designated task, or when it’s in auto grind mode but the grinder isn’t connected to the coffee maker.
On the coffee maker, the water tank and lid are on the left side, along with the power button, and LED indicator. On the right side you’ll find the shower head, filter basket, and hot plate. Fortunately, the hot plate is intuitive enough that it only heats up when the glass carafe is in place. The coffee maker/hot plate automatically switches off after 40 minutes, or whenever the off button is pressed. However, to reactivate the hot plate, I can merely hold the power button for 3 seconds, and it will restart.
Aarke also includes a measuring spoon, cleaning cloth, and instructions manual. While the grinder and the coffee maker are sleek and stylish, keep in mind that you’ll have cords from both items going into the wall – and if you use the connector, that’s another cord, and the whole setup starts looking like a rat’s nest of wires.
Performance
- Optional bloom feature removes carbon dioxide
- SCA-certified brewing temperature ensures gold cup coffee standard
- Thermal carafe keeps coffee hot for well over an hour – without hotplate
Although the Aarke Grinder and the Aarke Coffee Maker are similar in appearance, functionality is much different. Obviously, one grinds coffee beans and the other brews coffee, but that’s not what I mean. They’re different in terms of the first appliance having a lot of customization features, whereas there are none on the second appliance.
On the grinder, I can select the grind size, the number of cups to brew, and then fine tune the strength. However, on the coffee maker, there’s only one button. Based on the previous selections, there’s really not anything that needs to be done on the coffee maker.
The generous shower head does an excellent job of saturating the coffee grounds in the filter basket. And I do have the option of using the bloom feature. By pressing the start button for 3 seconds, I can active this function. So, what’s the significance of the bloom feature? As soon as the hot water makes contact with the ground coffee, the carbon dioxide that has accumulated in the coffee grounds is released. This bloom time allows all of those gases to escape, which results in more flavorful coffee.
Since the Aarke Coffee Maker is SCA-certified to deliver a golden cup experience, it’s also guaranteed to keep the water between 90°C and 96°C (195°F and 205°F), and this is the best temperature range to extract flavors without burning up the coffee grounds and making the coffee bitter. The coffee maker uniformly and consistently maintains this standard, and the uniform extraction makes each pot of coffee a pleasure to consume.
I made coffee with and without the bloom feature enabled. I also made large and small quantities of coffee. Every single time, it came out perfectly. I’m sure that this is due – in part – to the heavy lifting by the Aarke Coffee Grinder, which recommends grind sizes, and adjusts grinder amounts based on the number of cups brewed, in addition to providing a strength fine option for more or less coffee depending on whether I want a stronger or weaker coffee experience. And, of course, being SCA-certified certainly makes a difference.
The thermal carafe eliminates the need to use the hotplate, since the vacuum-insulated, stainless-steel jug can just sit on my countertop and can keep coffee hot for well over an hour – but not quite two hours. Also, the thermal carafe has a non-drip spout that makes it easy to pour coffee and eliminates messes.
All of these precise features result in an extremely user-friendly and reliable experience every time I brew coffee. Even when using different types of beans and grind settings, the coffee sysem always adjusts to accommodate my changes.
Should you buy it?
You want a high-quality, one-touch coffee maker that looks impressive on your countertop
As user-friendly as coffee makers get, while being only one of dozen or so that make SCA-certified coffee brewers.
You want a built-in coffee grinder
This machine doesn’t grind directly into the coffee maker. And since the grinder is standalone, it also takes up more countertop space.
Final Thoughts
I can’t lie – the Aarke Coffee System is quite expensive – even for a coffee maker and a coffee grinder. The fact that the items can be used separately still might not justify the price. However, if you happen to be in the market for a new coffee maker and grinder, it’s worth taking a look at the Aarke Coffee System (and perhaps checking to see when it might be on sale).
You can purchase a grinder for less – but will it have 60 grind settings? Admittedly, the question could be asked, “Do you need 60 grind settings?” Probably not, but the grinder has enough range to handle any type of coffee bean you can toss into it, and it can grind beans for other types of coffee makers as well.
Regarding the coffee maker, it doesn’t get simpler than pressing one button. However, some people might feel that at this price, the Aarke Coffee Maker should offer more functionality. I can’t argue with that – but I also can’t argue with the consistently great SCA-certified golden cup coffee that the machine produces so effortlessly. If you want different style of drink, read the guide to the best coffee machines.
How We Test
FAQs
The thermal carafe keeps coffee hot without heating, but you can’t see the coffee; the glass one arguably looks nicer, but needs the hot plate to keep the coffee warm.
Test Data
Full Specs
| Aarke Coffee System Review | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | – |
| Size (Dimensions) | 170 x 322 x 375 MM |
| Weight | 3.5 KG |
| Release Date | 2021 |
| Model Number | Aarke Coffee System |
| Coffee Machine Type | Filter |
| Number of boilers | 1 |
| Water capacity | 1.25 litres |
