# Sowden



## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

Where is the best place to buy a Sowden James 4 cup (grey or blue lid)


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## CallumT (Aug 23, 2013)

Just bought a 2 cup James today from home institute for £35. Looking forward to a few stealth brews in the office


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## Phil104 (Apr 15, 2014)

The home institute seem to carry the best stock of the 4 cup size, too but by now you have probably looked.


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

http://www.sowdenathome.com/coffee/

Email them and moan about the prices and they'll sling a discount code


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## Southpaw (Feb 26, 2012)

CallumT said:


> Just bought a 2 cup James today from home institute for £35. Looking forward to a few stealth brews in the office


Bought mine from there as well. £5 voucher can be had by signing up for newsletter.

Not stealthy though, I get comments every time I take it in.


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## CallumT (Aug 23, 2013)

Can't be as bad as the regimented aeropress at work ; I still have nightmares...


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## Southpaw (Feb 26, 2012)

Of the questions you got from using the aeropress?









I thought I could shake the coffee nob badge with the sowden but it backfired... Coffee is good though


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## Yes Row (Jan 23, 2013)

Not quite what you are looking for, but a good price with free delivery and discount

http://www.whittard.co.uk/outlet/all-outlet/james-8-cup-coffee-pot.htm?utm_source=affiliatewindow&awc=3355_1412104553_416a37acb918c549f45fe6ce8ae61db8


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## CallumT (Aug 23, 2013)

@southpaw if only they could understand. Will report back with the social implications of public sowden brewing when it arrives


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

I just get 'that's a fancy teapot' which is better than the penis pump comments of the aeropress


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## Xpenno (Nov 12, 2012)

Sorry to go a little off-topic but where do these sit against the likes of pourover with regards to flavours/body etc...? A big one might work well in my office and I could grind at home and bring it in. I suppose the issue is that the coffee would continue to steep after the 4 mins brew time which I don't get with the office drip machine.


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

Time isn't an issue with these, fill them up, leave them indefinitely.


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Xpenno said:


> Sorry to go a little off-topic but where do these sit against the likes of pourover with regards to flavours/body etc...? A big one might work well in my office and I could grind at home and bring it in. I suppose the issue is that the coffee would continue to steep after the 4 mins brew time which I don't get with the office drip machine.


I do fine a fine aeropress / espresso grind

I steep for anywhere between 30-50 minutes

If you pre heat the Sowden it keeps heat pretty well

Mine brew I would characterise as sweet and with more body than say chemex etc.

Depending on grind you might get some silt in the cup .

Where is the king of the sowden ,when you need him


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

Mrboots2u said:


> Where is the king of the sowden ,when you need him


I imagine he'd be sitting down after just starting off a Sowden steep, if there were such a character.

Xpenno: They give a reasonable result with preground, it's very forgiving as long as not too stale & grind doesn't cause too much silt (which will normally be less than a typical French press - water in 1st, then coffee, dunk to wet, don't stir). Benefits in the office are you can share your brews & don't have a tiny window time-wise to stick to when brewing. Might not go down well with folk who just have to have their coffee *hot*, always preheat mugs.

Flavour wise I'd say pretty transparent (less shift than from a paper filter, better clarity than a French press), on the sweet side & with acceptable body on a longer steep. I like mine around 54g/l (less for dark roasts), compared to pourovers around 60g/l, Clevers around 65g/l. I'm more concerned about hitting the sweetest spot than concentration.


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

Full immersion long steeps for the win!


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## Southpaw (Feb 26, 2012)

jeebsy said:


> I just get 'that's a fancy teapot' which is better than the penis pump comments of the aeropress


Glad I chose the Sowden over the aeropress!


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## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

Sowden on the way I LOVE IT IF A PLAN COMES TOGETHER


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## Big_Fat_Dan (Aug 21, 2014)

My bad. Wrong thread.


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

....musical threads...when the music stops, nobody knows...


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## MellowCat (Jun 7, 2013)

any preferences between the James and the Oskar?

I'd ordered the 8 cup Oskar and waited patiently for it to arrive from Germany (via amazon) only for it to arrive and find a hairline crack running from nearly the top all the way to the bottom edge and around the bottom, causing a slow leak all over the counterspace.

So after the headache of having to return a cracked coffeepot to germany to get the refund, i'm now back in the position of: Oskar or James?

I like the white porcelain look of the Oskar, but I saw that the shaping pulls away from the cylindrical filter at the bottom, thus leaving a gap in the brewing 'space', while the shape of the James appears to follow the shape of the filter more closely. Anybody get what I mean?


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

Not compared an Oskar to a James, but I like the white porcelain Oskar, as I watch the brew as it comes out the spout & at the end of the brew you can see when you're picking up suspended particles & adjust your pour.

If the filter fills more of the brewer, it can make immersion more efficient, my smaller Oskar (800) seems to extract a shade quicker than the larger one (1200) with more space around the filter, but we're probably splitting hairs here...neither will be particularly fast.

Good observation.


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## urbanbumpkin (Jan 30, 2013)

The White does look cooler, but is more expensive.


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## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

urbanbumpkin said:


> The White does look cooler, but is more expensive.


Don't be tight, spoil yourself and have one of each:rolleyes:


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