Featured picture by Vasilieia Fanarioti
The world of precise home coffee brewing. The xBloom is a brand-new machine that lets you enjoy the best that coffee can offer at home, while having complete control over the various aspects of your making. The brewer has been getting lots of interest, and even the highly sought-after CES 2023 Creation Award.
This groundbreaking machine utilizes advanced technology like beans recognition, automatic calibration and intuitive features in the app to help you more than to brew a great cup. I recently took the xBloom out for the test drive and am thrilled to share my impressions.
The Design
Let me begin by saying that the xBloom pourover machine is a true beauty. Every component has been designed to look and function as a work of art starting with the anodized aluminum (the same material that Apple MacBooks are constructed from) body, to its elegant black accent. It’s a true countertop statement piece.
However, it’s not aesthetically pleasing. It’s a brewing system that’s all-in-one equipped with smart scales and a specific coffee mill for each bean and even its own pod system. The xPods utilize a unique, encrypted radio-frequency identification (RFID) system that stores all the data about each bean. The RFID stored data includes an automated brewing method specifically designed for each bean. It’s as if each aspect has been carefully designed to make the perfect cup of coffee every time.
Furthermore What’s more, the xPod is made from sugarcane bagasse, and has built-in filters. Once you’re done, can use your empty pods to make seeds to start your windowsill. That’s the plan I’m taking! I also found the app’s design and interface extremely user-friendly. Each step of the brewing process is broken into easy, simple steps.
Setup and Use
People who enjoy watching videos rather than reading a manual be delighted to know that the xBloom includes an instructional video that makes it simple to install the application and get the device operating.
The reservoir for water is easy to fill up. The xPod dock comes with an opening with a magnetic clasp to guarantee a tight fitting. To begin working with, users may choose to benefit from the automation feature.
There was just one thing to be aware of before I started making my first batch of brews that was the button. The xBloom has only one button on the side on the back of the unit. It lets you do different things, based on when and how you’ll use it. Beginning with the setting of Bluetooth pairing to halting the process of brewing This button will be your entry point to everything coffee-related.
It took a few times to learn each function however, once I had it I was able to use. Overall the initial setup and experience with xBloom left an impression that was positive.
Brewing Drip Coffee with the xBloom
With the xBloom, users can select between two brewing modes. The Automatic Mode lets you to make it a habit to forget about it. Its Get Creative mode allows you to tweak the settings for your personal coffee cup.
No matter which one you pick the procedure must be followed at minimum two steps. First, put your xPod on the sensor pad in order to activate the recognition of beans. Then put the beans in the coffee mill, and then place the xPod on the dock.
If you push the dock downwards it will automatically switch to Automatic Mode. Because of Bean Recognition the settings automatically adjust to align with the xPod that you can examine and alter through the app if would like. If you select the auto mode, you’re placing the roaster in the driver’s seat. These are recipes that are specific to beans and tested by the roaster who roasts or curates the coffee. So the brew will provide scents exactly according to the way roasters planned it.
If you opt for Get Creative Mode Get Creative Mode, you can modify your own settings for a vast variety of variables, from the size of the grind and temperature, to brew ratio and the pattern of pouring. You can also select the quantity of pours, or choose an agitation. What’s the most interesting aspect? You can solve these issues for each brewing stage and not in the whole. It is also important to note that you can prepare as many as 10 pours.
Finally I was able to modify my coffee preferences exactly how I wanted them and then hit start. The machine provides you with the option of saving your recipes within the app. I thought this was an excellent feature since it allows you to keep track of your coffee brews as well as keep a coffee diary.
The xBloom redefines brewing drip coffee and we love this new concept. I recently stumbled across an article on how to make drip coffee with an auto drip coffee maker. Simple, but the xBloom will give you a pour over, in an automatic way.
Extracting Like a Professional Barista
The thing that really struck me about xBloom was the fact that you can make use of it to highlight each coffee’s distinctive particularities, while also finding out more about the background of the beans.
xBloom has joined forces with a variety of roasters that are well-known such as Onyx Coffee Lab and Verve Coffee however, they also work with emerging ones, to provide various coffees that can be brewed by the machine, resulting in amazing outcomes. I’ve tried espressos made by Onyx, Regalia Coffee, and La Cabra Coffee, and every time the effects were outstanding. xBloom promises to to add new roasters to the board in the near future.
I was able taste the subtleties in each coffee–from the tropical fruit notes to cocoa-like, nutty flavors. This is something I’ve not encountered with other automatic pourover machine.
The RFID tag on the xPod allows the machine to recognize and adapt its settings to each individual coffee. It likewise provides the user with valuable information on the origin of the beans, the roasting level, the recipe method, and the tasting notes.
For a coffee nerd like me, this was remarkable way to play around with variables and understand the impact that each of them has on the taste of a coffee.
Grinder Calibration and Maintenance
The xBloom application has an auto-calibration function that lets users to calibrate their grinder to ensure it’s always providing maximum performance. In terms of clean-up and upkeep, I utilized an unclean, damp cloth to remove the dust, and also the included cleaning brush to get rid of any coffee mill debris.
I also drained any remaining water using”back” for 10 seconds. This recipe that you can find here. The app can also let you know when to remove the scale from your machine with step-by-step directions.
In the end, xBloom is an ingenuous and simple-to-use device which gives you complete control over all aspects of the brewing process. The user-friendly app lets users to store recipes and draw attention to the unique qualities of each coffee, and gather valuable information about the beans.
If you’re looking for an amazing homebrewing experience that doesn’t mean the loss of flavor and quality, xBloom is the best choice.
This article was first published at Barista Magazine, an online magazine dedicated to baristas and coffee professionals. The original author, Vasileia Fanarioti (she/her) is a senior online correspondent for Barista Magazine, and a freelance copywriter and editor with a primary focus on the coffee niche.