Bodum Cold Brew Coffee Maker: The New Era Of Simplicity

Let’s review the Bodum Cold Brew Coffee Maker!

There are few better ways to cool down in the hot summer than with a delicious and smooth glass of not-hot coffee. But it can get expensive and time-consuming to head down to your local coffee shop for a daily cold coffee.

So, why not make a cold brew at home? Bodum’s cold-brew coffee maker is designed to make it easy. But is it all it’s cracked up to be? I bought and tested one to find out, and the answer comes down to what you’re looking for in a cold brew coffee maker.

From the unboxing to making a cup of cold brew, I’ll dive into my experience with this Bodum maker so you can decide if it’s right for you.

The Full Bodum Bean Cold Brew Coffee Maker Review

Bodum added a cold brew dedicated brewer to its BEAN lineup. But is another French-press-style Bodum brewer really worth it? Here are my thoughts.

How We Rated It

• Design
• Ease Of Use
• Coffee Flavor
• Capacity
• Cleaning
• Price

4.5

• See On Amazon

Design – 4/5

The Bodum Cold Brew Coffee maker looks, at first glance, like a large French press, which is a pretty accurate assessment. It isn’t wildly attractive, but it’s sleek, practical, and functional. The carafe is BPA-free plastic. The lid, handle, and base are silicone, which comes in an assortment of fun colors, like green, cream, pink, black, and white.

The unboxing of the Bodum cold brew maker.

Upon opening the box, I was greeted with the brewing carafe, two lids (one with plunger and one without), a coffee scoop, and a small instruction booklet.

The plunger lid has two substantial upgrades from a typical French press: a locking lid and a button for your thumb to open the pouring spout. As someone who has been known to spill a coffee or two, I appreciated these touches.

The locking lid

The spill-proof mechanism

Ease Of Use – 5/5

Cold brew coffee should be easy to make. After all, you only need water, coffee, and time. There isn’t much in terms of fancy extraction or pouring technique.

So, I’m usually skeptical of these kinds of coffee makers. They tend to overcomplicate the brewing process. But not this cold brew system!

You just have to follow the simple brewing instructions. Add grounds, then filtered water, then wait 12-24 hours. I was a little disappointed the instructions didn’t come with a cold brew recipe. Sure, I can just Google it, but if you’re going to include a coffee scoop, it makes sense to provide a recipe using that scoop in particular.

The instructions that come in the box.

Your brew time will vary depending on your grind size, whether you brew in the fridge, and your preferred taste (1). I’d suggest testing every few hours after the first 12. I like to brew mine in the fridge for around 20 hours.

Couldn’t I just use a French press?

This was honestly my first question when I saw this product. I already have the Bodum Brazil French Press; do I really need another piece of coffee gear that looks so similar? Maybe not if you only rarely enjoy cold brew. But if it’s a regular fixture in your summer drink rotation, this dedicated cold brewer is worth it.

Bodum’s cold brewer VS French press

For one, when making cold brew in a French press, the plunger lid generally sticks up and prevents you from fitting the whole thing into the refrigerator. But this Bodum comes with a dedicated brewing lid without a plunger. That means it fits easily into the fridge, and you only have to swap lids when ready to press.

The filter itself is also different between the two brewers. Because it doesn’t even get hot, the cold brewer uses a one-piece mesh filter with rubber around the outside to form a seal. I much prefer it to the three-piece metal design of my French press, both when brewing and cleaning, though I suspect it is less durable.

Coffee Flavor – 4/5

Fancy machines are only as good as the coffee they produce, right? So it makes sense to scrutinize the quality of the brew you’ll get from the Bodum. The good news is that cold brew is really tasty and potentially even healthier than hot coffee (2).

I tested both light and dark roasts to get a well-rounded feel for this brewer.

In both cases, the coffee was exceptionally smooth. With the lighter roast bean, the cold brew process tempered the acidity, highlighting the sweet fruit and floral flavors. When I tried it with darker roasts, I ended up with a brew with very little bitterness that really emphasized chocolatey notes.

I found it was particularly important to use coarse ground coffee with this brewer. This is true of all cold brewers, but this one seemed especially prone to letting fines into my brew if my coffee grounds were too fine. I wouldn’t recommend using standard medium pre-ground coffee unless you plan on doing a second filtration.

Cold Brew or Iced Coffee?

Remember, cold brew is very different from iced coffee. Iced coffee is hot coffee that gets poured and served over ice. Cold brew is coffee that is brewed at room temperature or colder. That’s a huge difference. Hot water extracts coffee much faster and actually extracts more than colder water. That’s why you need to steep it for hours instead of minutes and why it will be smoother and less acidic.

Capacity – 5/5

I know from personal experience working in the coffee industry that people who love cold coffee tend to consume a lot of it. Plus, cold brewing’s extended brew time means you need coarse grounds and more coffee. That combination takes up a lot of space! So a large capacity is particularly important with this brewing method.

The brewer easily fits in the fridge.

The Bodum has a capacity of 51 ounces, which yielded enough cold brew concentrate to last me at least a week. That’s huge compared to many other brewers of comparable prices, and it’s a nice treat to not be brewing constantly.

There might come a point where these brewers have too much capacity for one person, but given that the concentrate lasts up to two weeks in the fridge, we’re not there yet.

Cleaning – 5/5

Cleaning is important because coffee residue can alter the flavor of your brews. If a brewer is inconvenient to clean, that’s sometimes enough for me to advise against buying it altogether.

The good news is that cleaning the Bodum could hardly be easier. Every piece is dishwasher safe. That’s the storage lid, the plunger lid, and the container itself. But if the dishwasher isn’t your thing, or you want to use a gentler soap, you can always hand wash all the parts.

I personally prefer hand washing my coffee brewers to save them from getting jostled in the dishwasher. But it’s up to you.

Price – 4/5

The price of this Bodum doesn’t stand out as either a crazy deal or too expensive. It’s a pretty standard price and a good value for what you get. It’s plastic and silicone rather than glass, which feels a little less premium but is also much more durable. And the fears around hot water and plastic don’t apply in this case.

The bigger question is whether the price makes sense for a specialized coffee maker. I would say it’s a great deal if you regularly drink the cold stuff. Getting a daily driver coffee brewer for this price is an excellent deal. I’d hate to tell you how much I’ve dropped on middle-of-the-road hot coffee brewers.

For those reasons, I think the price of this brewer is very fair, if not a really good deal. But if you’re on a tight budget, the Takeya Cold Brew Coffee Maker will save you a few bucks.

Do Not Buy Bodum Cold Brew Maker If…

• You already have a French Press: A good French press can also be used to make cold brew. So it’s not worth buying this Bodum cold brewer if you already have a French press, unless you make enough cold brew to warrant a dedicated brewer. A great alternative is a set-and-forget style brewer like the OXO Good Grips Cold Brew Coffee Maker.
• You want the cleanest cup of coffee: The Bodum uses a plunger to remove coffee grounds, not paper filters. Plungers and metal filters are less effective at filtering out every last coffee ground particle than paper filters (3). If getting the cleanest possible cup of coffee is paramount to your decision, look elsewhere. My recommendation for this problem is the Bodum Travel Mug.
• You only drink a little cold brew at a time: This brewer has a pretty big capacity. So, if you only have a cold brew here and there and don’t want big batches of the stuff taking up room in your refrigerator, you might want to look for a smaller alternative like the Hario Cold Brew Bottle.

The Verdict

The bottom line is that the Bodum Cold Brew Coffee Maker isn’t going to replace your entire coffee setup. But it will become a staple in your cold brewing top lineup for years to come.

It’s simply the best option for someone looking to make big batches of coffee quickly, easily, and without taking up too much room. In fact, I might even go so far as to say that this is one of the best cold brew coffee makers that money can buy.

And speaking of price, it’s a pretty great deal.

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