Let’s face it: getting up in the morning isn’t always the easiest thing to do. You know a cup of coffee is just what you need to put a little pep in your step, but getting from your bed to the coffee maker… well, that’s a struggle in itself.
What if you could bypass that zombie-like stumble to your beloved brewer every morning and wake up to a cup of fresh-brewed coffee on your nightstand? That sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it? Well, it’s not!
Barisieur coffee brewing alarm clocks are designed to produce coffee on demand according to your schedule — all you have to do is wake up and enjoy piping hot joe.
Now, slow your roll, coffee lover. It’s probably tempting to rush out and buy one of these bad boys right this second, but before you shell out any of your hard-earned cash on a new product, keep reading. Then, by the end of this review, you’ll know whether or not the Barisieur tea and coffee maker alarm clock is worth your time.
A Brief Overview of the Barisieur
The Barisieur coffee alarm clock is the brainchild of Joshua Renouf, a London-based product designer. Renouf introduced this to the world via crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo. After raising over $750,000, he was able to transform the Barisieur from an innovative idea to a real-life product.
The development of the Barisieur sparked the establishment of Renouf’s Joy Resolve, a lifestyle and homeware brand that “strikes a balance between functional design and timeless aesthetic,” as seen in the Barisieur.
The brand also emphasizes sustainability and simplicity, and this single-serve coffee maker is just one way Joy Resolve “resolves everyday frustrations through the re-examination of overcomplicated processes and devices,” as explained by Renouf on the company’s website.
How does it work?
Using the Barisieur coffee maker clock is almost as easy as ordering a cup from your favorite café. All you have to do is load your favorite ground coffee into the brewer’s metal mesh cone filter, fill the glass flask with water, set the alarm, and go to sleep.
From there, the Barisieur does the rest, and fresh coffee drips into the cup at the time of your choosing.
The brewer works kind of like a pour-over filter. Once the alarm is triggered, the water inside the glass flask begins heating until it’s pushed up through a tube and showers over the coffee grounds. The brew then drips into the included glass cup, and ta-da — morning joe!
If you think tea is the winner in the ongoing battle of tea versus coffee, you’ll be happy to know you can load your favorite tea leaves into the mesh filter instead. Rather than waking up to the aroma of the coffee, you’ll be waking up to the scent of spicy chai or earthy green tea.
Noteworthy Features
- Built-in battery that keeps the product functioning if power is lost
- Includes a milk fridge and glass milk vessel for those who aren’t fans of black coffee
- Has a handy storage drawer for coffee grounds or tea leaves
- Doubles as a cold brew coffee maker, too
Should You Buy the Barisieur?: Pros and Cons
Now that you have a better understanding of how the Barisieur brewer produces a cup of coffee, only one question remains: should you buy it?
Unfortunately, we can’t answer that for you. What we can do, though, is tell you what we like and dislike about this machine. Hopefully, our input helps you decide for yourself whether or not Renouf’s invention belongs in your bedroom.
What We Like:
Coffee in Bed
Drinking morning java is a sacred routine for many of us. Morning is the time to collect your thoughts and prepare for the day. That sounds good, but wouldn’t it be better if you could do that from the comfort of your bed?
Think about it: it’s a particularly chilly winter morning, and though you know you need to get up, get your joe, and get on with your routine, you’d rather spend a few more minutes wrapped up in your cozy blankets.
The Barisieur affords you that luxury, and though it’s a simple thing, it’s definitely a pro of purchasing the machine.
Easy Set-Up and Maintenance
Though this coffee maker alarm clock looks rather complicated and a bit as it belongs in a science lab rather than someone’s bedroom, you’ll be happy to know it’s much easier to use than it looks.
It doesn’t take much work to prep the Barisieur for brewing at night, and cleaning it up after it’s made your morning cup is a breeze.
Subtle, Soothing Wake-Up Call
Unlike the standard alarm clock or the app on your smartphone, the Barisieur doesn’t wake you up with any harsh beeping or ringing. The only sounds you’ll hear are the low rumbles of your coffee brewing.
And when the aroma of coffee beans brewing wafts through the air and reaches your nostrils, you’ll open your eyes peacefully and calmly — an exponentially better experience than being startled awake by a loud noise.
If you’re a heavy sleeper, though, and you need the screech of an alarm to bring you back to the land of the living in the morning, just flip a switch on the Barisieur; it can let out sounds like any standard alarm.
Charge Your Phone
The Barisieur 2.0 comes equipped with a wireless charging platform for your smartphone so that you can wake up to a full cup and a full battery.
Room for Improvement:
Large Size
The Barisieur 2.0 isn’t necessarily massive, but it does require more real estate on your nightstand than a traditional alarm clock would. You’ll need a bedside table that’s sturdy enough to hold the entire device and keep it relatively level, so you don’t have any spills.
High Price Point
One of the biggest complaints with the Barisieur coffee maker clock is probably its steep price tag. Expect to pay quite a bit more than you would for a separate coffee maker and alarm clock.
Coffee Maker Alarm Clock Alternatives
Now, the idea of a coffee maker alarm clock sounds cool, and this product would be a neat addition to a kitschy hotel or Airbnb. But the Barisieur isn’t the only high-quality coffee machine that can have your brew ready when you wake up. You’ve got a few other options to choose from here.
Smart Coffee Makers
Smart coffee machines may not give you bedside brew, but they can have your magic bean juice ready before you open your eyes.
These devices connect to your smartphone, allowing you to manage everything, from scheduling the brew to activating energy-saving features, from an app.
The only things you won’t be able to do from your phone fill the water reservoir, add beans, and empty coffee grounds. However, you’d have to do those things manually with any brewer.
Many smart coffee makers also have integrated coffee grinders so you can set the grind size and desired amount of ground coffee from your cell phone. You can tap the screen to alter brew strength, too.
Programmable Automatic Coffee Brewers
Some traditional drip coffee makers have auto-brew settings that allow you to schedule your joe up to 24 hours in advance. These don’t necessarily look or feel as fancy as other machines would, but if your primary goal is to wake up to fresh coffee, these machines get the job done.
Higher-end programmable drip machines give you even more options for customizing your pot of joe; you’ll just need to do a bit of research to find the coffee brewer that best fits your needs.
As with the coffee maker alarm clock and smart brewers, you’ll still need to do some prep work the night before enjoying your cup of coffee, especially if you need to grind your beans in a separate burr grinder. Still, you can set everything up before you head to bed.
Should You Give the Coffee Maker Alarm Clock the Time of Day?
Now for the million-dollar question: is the coffee maker alarm clock worth it?
On one hand, it’s a viable alternative to the pulsing, throbbing, and somewhat irritating traditional alarm clock that sits on your bedside table, and it saves you the trouble of having to walk all the way to your kitchen for a cup of joe.
But on the other hand, the Barisieur coffee and tea alarm clock is kind of pricey, so if your only goal is scheduling your brew, you may find one of the alternatives works better for you and your budget.
A smart automatic coffee maker or a programmable traditional drip machine can have coffee ready when you wake, and there are ways to choose alarm sounds that aren’t as annoying.
If you’ve got a few extra dollars to spare and you think the coffee maker alarm clock is worth the hype, then, by all means, click the “add to cart” button.
If this gadget seems like a bit too much, but you genuinely love the idea of a cup of coffee waiting for you in bed, just move your current programmable brewing system to your bedroom and call it a night!
Happy Caffeinating!
