Think a $4 latte is expensive? Try a $11,000 coffee maker. That’s what the single-cup brewing machine known as the Clover retails for—at least twice the price of a standard commercial-grade brewer.
Designed by mechanical engineering grads Randy Hulett, ’96, MS ’97, Zander Nosler, ’94, and Jorah Wyer, ’94, the high-end machine allows precise control over every aspect of the extraction process, from grind size to water temperature to brew time. The variables can then be tailored to the particular type of bean, drawing out flavors that would never make it into an average cup of joe.
Coffee fanatics hope the technology will increase appreciation for brewed coffee. So how does java from the Clover taste? Surprisingly clean, with notes and balance that approach the complexity of wine. “I’m trying to limit myself to three cups a day,” Nosler says with a laugh. Talk about a job perk.
—MARIE CANNIZZARO, ’06
