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No ice needed.
(Credit: Bed Bath & Beyond)While nothing beats enjoying a cooler full of ice-cold beverages at the park, beach, or backyard barbecue, there is a bit of a downside risk: wet cans. As drinks are plucked from the murky depths of the ice chest, ice that is no longer ice clings to the can. It's something even cold-activated cans cannot fix.
Since the dawn of mankind (or at least the invention of the tailgate party), people have looked for a way to enjoy the crisp, clean taste of their favorite drinks without the inconvenience of wet fingers. Now, finally, there is a way.
The Wine Enthusiast Koolatron Rechargeable Bar On Wheels provides a way to cool your drinks anywhere, without the use of ice. The rechargeable cooler cools contents to a "near refrigerator" temperature of 40 degrees F.
Plugging into a standard home outlet, the 41-pound portable cooler also includes an AC/DC adapter for vehicle charging. One charge is good for up to four hours of active, quiet cooling, and for easy portability, two wheels are attached at the base.
With three removable shelves and space for in-door bottle cooling, the portable party-maker has a versatile interior capable of cooling all types of beverages. Complete with a flat work area on top and a hanging basket for accessories on the side, this cooling solution is sure to be a hit at your next outdoor event.
But it will cost you--$449.99 in at least one listing we saw. What do you think? Is saving the ice for putting in your drinks instead of on them worth that tag?
What's the first thing you do with a new kitchen appliance? In our house, I go for the instruction manual, but my husband tends to plunge right in. This has resulted in more than a few mishaps over the many years of our marriage.
The Primula Speak n' Brew, the world's first talking coffee maker, aims to simplify the coffee brewing process and eliminate the need to push a dozen buttons to program the machine. Instead, you can just tell this 10-cup stainless steel coffee maker when you want your coffee made.
It's pretty straightforward: press Talk, then tell the machine you want to set the coffee brewing time, and tell it when to brew. The machine repeats the time back to you as confirmation, and then, at the proper time, it goes to work.
Too tired to talk? The machine also uses old-school button-type programming.
It's available now for about $80.
Don't look now, but your coffee is ready.
(Credit: Hammacher Schlemmer)They say a watched pot never boils, and in the morning it is especially true. Waiting for the water to get hot enough to pour over coffee grounds can feel like an eternity. If you are using a French press for your morning brew, you know exactly what I mean. But it is not just the coffee addicts who must wait to get into hot water; tea drinkers suffer the same fate. Either way, in the end it comes down to needing hot water for your beverage. But what about the people who prefer coffee and tea?
More water means more waiting, but at least with the Complete Coffee And Tea Station, it's all in one place. While the press pot steeps the coffee, the integrated electric kettle could be brewing tea. (Or heating up water for the next round of coffee with no waiting.) The kettle may not make water boil faster, but unlike a pot on the stove, it knows when to stop. With the capability to provide water at temperatures specific to distinct drinks, the kettle heats perfect water for brewing coffee (198 degrees F), steeping tea (190 degrees F) or making hot chocolate (165 degrees F). A warming plate under the press pot keeps your beverage warm until the next round.
I'm not sure of the math, but I would like to believe that if a watched pot doesn't boil, two somehow makes it quicker. While that may not be true, at least the integrated timer will beep when it is ready.
Tame the taskmaster.
(Credit: Kalorik)It's a good feeling when at the end of the workday all that is left to do is to go home. While a pile of completed tasks and jobs may appeal to our inner need to check things off of a list, our productivity needs fuel to sustain its drive. Hunger can be a powerful distraction, as well it should be. But sometimes, its too powerful. A 2-hour lunch break is nice, but sometimes you've just got to bear down and plow through the day. Next time, don't settle for a candy bar to power your way through those long afternoon hours; instead, make a meal.
The Kitchen Outpost (aka Kalorik Breakfast Set) is a small desk or countertop appliance that provides throughout the day. Featuring a coffeemaker, a toaster oven, and a griddle all in one, the multiuse appliance measures 20.25 inches across and 9.3 inches in depth, with a height of 9.25 inches. With such a degree of usefulness, you'll be sure to revisit the device many times a day. Use it to heat up a prepared sandwich, or create your own. The integrated coffee maker supplies the ever-important caffeine fix throughout the day. With such conveniences right in front of you, your productivity is sure to shoot right through the roof--just be sure to come up for air every now and then.
Ready to go.
(Credit: Hammacher Schlemmer)The chaos of the morning can be a time-crunching affair. We fall out of bed, slam the alarm clock off, and proceed to get ready for the day. Most people enjoy a set routine and stumble through it on autopilot. Anything that shaves a moment or two off the routine gets us out the door that much sooner. (In theory, at least; in reality it just translates to extra time in bed.) Instead of waiting for the coffee to be ready, you can save a couple of minutes by taking it with you and have it when you're ready.
The French Press Commuter Cup is a 16-ounce travel mug that also happens to brew your morning beverage. Add freshly ground coffee or loose-leaf tea to the bottom of the mug, pour in hot water, and head out the door. Sometime down the road, hit the plunger and the grounds are separated from the resulting brew. The double wall construction along with an incorporated rubber grip ensures that it is easy to grab this beverage cup while on the go.
Everybody needs a time-saver in the morning, and one that helps us to grab our coffee to go is an added bonus. No added parts are necessary, as the plunger features a built-in screen, so getting out the door becomes a breeze. At the end of the day, you're going to want to wash this commuter contraption by hand, unless of course you want to add it to your morning routine.
Anamorphosis refers to a distorted image that only appears normal when reflected from a special device--generally a cylinder with a highly reflective surface placed the in the center of a painting lying face up. This visual play, popular in 18th century Europe, has been modernized in the Anamorphic Cup, created by American-born designer Ross McBride, now living in Tokyo.
The cup is stainless steel with a polished mirror finish. Its porcelain saucer is printed with a distorted image. Separately, the cup and saucer are ordinary--an unlikely match, even. But put them together, and that indecipherable graphic is suddenly reflected in the surface of the cup to reveal a word--coffee, tea, his, hers, and so on.
The cups are great conversation pieces--but a little hard to track down in the States. You can, however, find them abroad, or contact the manufacturer directly for a special order.
As awesome as the kitchen is, sometimes you have to leave it. And if you've invested in a great home coffeemaker, you've got a cup of great coffee ready to go with you--but perhaps your hands are too full to carry your joe. What do you do?
Whip out your Beverage CADDi, of course, and off you go. The CADDi is a fun new gadget that does one thing really well: it lets you hold onto a drink with one finger.
Here's how it works: instead of the thick cardboard sleeve the coffee shop places on your cup to let you carry it without scalding your hand, the CADDi is a sleeve made from soft vinyl, with nylon strings secured to it. You slip the sleeve onto any tapered coffee cup, all the way up to the rim, and slip the strings over your finger, as shown.
Choose from 10 designs, and snag one for just $5.50.
There for you in the morning.
(Credit: Williams-Sonoma)The neverending search for the perfect cup of coffee is a well-traveled quest. Sometimes the journey takes us to the perfectly hot cup of coffee, other times to a place with full-bodied flavor. Perhaps the occasional espresso brewed to perfection makes an appearance. But one thing matters most when that coffee first hits your lips in the morning: you should know what you're getting.
The corner coffee shop may deliver a consistent brew, but for those who cannot wait, a home brewing machine is the only answer. The Krups Power Brew Coffeemaker is a solid alternative to the corner cafe. Featuring 1,400 watts of power, the coffeemaker belts out a pot of coffee fast and hot, delivering it between 195 degrees F and 205 degrees F. A showerhead-type nozzle gives full coverage of the grounds, assuring a brew that is well-rounded with full coffee flavor.
The stylish coffeemaker is decked out in a piano-black finish and features an easy-to-read angled LCD control panel. Programming options exist for weekday and weekend cycles, along with a small-batch setting. The glass carafe holds up to 60 ounces and is easily accessible at any time during the cycle, due to a brew-pause feature that lets you sneak out a cup before brewing is complete. Save yourself a trip to the coffee shop; even though getting there may be half the fun, it is more fun to have a well-brewed cup of coffee waiting for you in the morning.
While there are some fancy wine bottles out there, decanting your wine into the right carafe can make a statement. The Rocking Carafe, made by Sagaform, definitely falls into that category: it's a hand-blown glass carafe that can rock back and forth while you appreciate you wine. As long as the carafe is set on its accompanying silicone stand, it won't tip over or roll away. There's a reason behind the style incorporating a unique, rounded base, rather than a flat base, though. The large base allows for maximum wine oxygenation, while the neck is designed to make pouring wine simple.
The Rocking Carafe can hold up to three wine bottles' worth of wine (more than half a gallon), making it a good option for a dinner with several friends or another get together. It doesn't hurt that the movement of the Rocking Carafe can make for an interesting discussion. Luckily, this carafe isn't so different from a Weeble Wobble: it will wobble, but it won't fall over. Your guests can safely pour their own drinks. The Rocking Carafe is available for around $35. It is available in a gift box and can make for a good present for a wine aficionado.
Between tailgating, entertaining and the rest of the get-togethers we go to, a bar on wheels can come in handy. The BarGoGo Transformer Portable Bar folds out of a suitcase about 31.5 inches by 23.25 inches by 13 inches and weighs about 62 pounds. In that package, you get a fold-out bar, complete with food-safe polypropylene storage containers and a speed rail so that you can mix up just about any drink request you get. It's sizable enough when open that you won't feel cramped behind the bar. The main body is fireproof MDF and the outer frame is aluminum alloy. It also has a pull-out handle which makes transportation much easier. You don't have to worry about carrying the bar around--you just have to wheel it.
The BarGoGo Transformer Portable Bar doesn't come stocked, unfortunately, but it does make it much easier to entertain if you want to take the party outside of your kitchen. It's also an option for those events that take place outside. If you want to tailgate with a better drinks menu, you can just pull out the BarGoGo Transformer Portable Bar and skip the same old beer. It's priced at approximately $970.
