Long the home of quality coffee beans, Colombia could soon have a claim to fame as the inventor of a new method of making coffee. The FrankOne, designed by Eduardo Umaña, is a device which combines a vacuum-extraction technique in a single-cup solution.
“I saw someone making coffee by using the ‘reverse French press’ method and I thought I could improve on that,” Umaña said. “Some time after, I got very curious to test what high vacuum brewed coffee would taste like. I did some simple experiments and was very surprised by the rich and sweet flavour. One thing led to another and I ended up designing a new product.”
In theory, the FrankOne operates as any other vacuum extraction method. Pressure created by boiling water forces water up into the grounds, which, as it cools, is pulled down through a filter. The FrankOne eliminates one aspect of this process, using negative pressure to force water through a bed of ground coffee, extracting more of the flavours that coffee has to offer, while reducing bitterness. FrankOne leaves most of the crema out of the coffee, resulting in sweeter, better tasting coffee.
Different grind sizes mean the possibility of preparing a wide range of brew types and cup profiles–from coffee to cold brew, all with the same machine.
FrankOne is currently searching for funds through Kickstarter, and has so far raised $27,000 of a hopeful $200,000.
