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A Vac Pot Primer

by Mark Prince

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Visit any "hardcore" coffee website or newsgroup these days, and you'll find mention of something called a "vac pot". They also go by the names "siphon pot", "siphon brewer", "syphon coffee maker" and several other monikers.

So what's this thing all about?

Simply put, it's one of the coolest and most fascinating ways to make coffee. The bonus is that it is also one of the best tasting cups you might ever have.

History of the Vacuum Brewer

Back in 1842, a woman by the name of Mme. Vassieux registered a patent in France for a coffee brewing device that was based on the vacuum brewing method. But she wasn't the first. In the early 1830s, a few Berliners patented vacuum brewing machines, and Richard French copied those designs in an 1838 patent. The reason why Mme. Vassieux is often mentioned as the "inventor" of the vacuum brewer is because her machine was the first to actually make it into production, and her design is strikingly similar to those in use and made to this day.

Through the 1800s, various brewing devices based on the vacuum brewing method surfaced in Europe, including the side by side design by John Napier (called a Napierian), and other modifications on Mme. Vassieux's designs. People liked the resulting coffee, but the very nature of the pressure used in these devices and the materials used (these were the days before Pyrex) sometimes made them dangerous devices. By the end of the 19th century, they started to fall out of favor.

Faberware Coffee Robot, Model 505
The Faberware was the first North American electric automatic vacuum brewer. This model is circa 1935.

Tayli Syphon
This modern day Tayli Syphon Brewer (Japanese origin) is strikingly similar to Mme. Vassieux's original design from 1842.

In the early 20th century, the mantle was taken up by American companies, including Silex, Sunbeam, General Electric, Cory and more. With the invention and perfection of heat safe glass like Pyrex, the devices became more safe. Companies like Cory and Silex (and Cona in Britain) devised a glass filter pipe with a bulbous, rough middle that also eased the use of the devices. By WWII, vacuum brewers were enjoying a good run of success in the American kitchen.

In the post war years, the vacuum brewing method, superior in almost every way, lost out to percolation and auto drip devices because they lacked convenience and easy cleaning. Americans were all too willing to give up superior taste for "okay taste" if it was automatic and cleanup was as simple as dumping a paper filter.

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