<p>In a stove top coffee maker the water is boiled in the lower chamber, the steam pushes the water at low pressure upwards through the grounds before reaching the upper chamber, let's call it decanter. So the water is in contact with the grounds only once. Due to the high temperature there is arguably over extraction happening. In terms of flavor you can tell by the slightly bitter taste. Another factor contributing to this is that the fines are flushed out with the water, ending up in the decanter and your cup where they keep extracting bitter compounds. This can be minimized using some tweaks, but it's not preventable.</p>

<p>A percolator in comparison keeps circulating the water and brewed coffee through the grounds, reaching an even higher extraction ratio. The water and continuously the brewed coffee is heated, pushed upwards and "dropped" on the grounds before it sinks down towards the heat source again.</p>

<p>The difference in taste stems from the rules of extraction. The first substances to be extracted are caffein and acids. Caffein is bitter, but adds only partly to the bitterness in coffee compared to other compounds extracted later. The acids give coffee fruitiness, which is usually a desired quality and forms the base of the taste profile. The bitter compounds and sugars are extracted last. You want mainly the sugars in your cup to add sweetness, the bitter compounds you want to avoid. They make the coffee taste hollow, ashy, a bit like charcoal or burned rubber and leaves you with a kind of empty feeling after swallowing it. By that I mean it has no pleasant lingering after taste.</p>

<p>So basically that is what's happening with percolators. They over extract, meaning too many of the bitter compounds get in your coffee, which makes it unbalanced and just overall not really tasty. I would say it's probably one of the worst methods out there to make coffee nowadays in terms of extraction. There is of course a subjective component to it. Some people might enjoy exactly this taste. Maybe they want that burned taste, then add lots of sugar, milk and/or flavors and that's just what they like. That's of course ok, but the facts remain, that you lose complexity, fruitiness and sweetness.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-07-01T10:37:03.130Z
2018-07-01T10:37:03.130Z
avocado1
<p>short version answer is percolator is higher extract ratio but not the best way to deal with a delicate coffee bean as the coffee get boiled over and over,
moka pot is the same idea except the coffee after extraction isn't boiled </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-12-03T17:12:32.200Z
2017-12-03T17:12:32.200Z
aLcOmAnDa
<p>I don't drink coffee.</p>

<p><em>BEAR WITH ME</em></p>

<p>Still, I enjoy making coffee for other people.<br>
Could you please describe the differences between the brews from a moka pot and a percolator?</p>

<p>I know this is sort of like describing a painting to a blind man but I can only choose to get one of the two and I would like to know what the taste and feel of each brew is before I make my decision.</p>

<p>And, no, I don't drink coffee, because I can't stand coffee, so tasting isn't an option. :)</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-28T11:27:42.490Z
This question has actually been [asked before](https://coffee.stackexchange.com/questions/418/whats-the-difference-between-a-percolator-and-a-moka-pot). Check out the answers over there.
Shiri
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-28T12:20:23.930Z
@Shiri, thank you, I saw that one but since it wasn't focusing on differences in flavour I decided to ask a new question. I will edit it to show what I mean.
mathgenius
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-28T13:23:11.113Z
I would argue that percolators should not exist and they should never be used because they go entirely against the philosophy of perfecting a cup of coffee. If you want good quality coffee, use a Moka pot instead.
Shiri
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-28T13:59:22.527Z
@shiri, duly noted. Why do they go against it, though? Is it because of the repeated circulation of the water through the grounds?
mathgenius
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-28T14:40:05.987Z
Precisely. Improving brewing methods includes making sure you can replicate a brew which means that the extraction must be as consistent as possible. When recirculating water that has already passed through the coffee, you will have different rates of extraction each time the water passes through. Not only this but the extracted liquid hits the heating element and gets boiled in order to be recirculated, completely destroying the flavourful compounds in coffee. You will most likely always end up with horrible cup of coffee in terms of what I would describe as tasteful.
Shiri
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-28T14:42:23.940Z
There are some that have developed an acquired taste to burnt coffee though and prefer it.
Shiri
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-28T16:48:24.660Z
Have you considered a drip setup? Many coffee drinkers find the results from a Moka too strong and percolators' issues have been discussed in the comments above. If you could tell us a bit about the people you want to serve the coffee to, you might actually get better answers.
Stephie
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-28T16:49:18.500Z
Oh, and as it stands, it's probably really just a duplicate.
Stephie
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-28T20:38:57.770Z
@Stephie, isn't meta for posts that ask questions about the site, itself, rather than coffee?
mathgenius
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-09-28T20:40:27.857Z
@mathgenius duh - right. My bad (or a sign of too little coffee). I obviously meant [Coffee Chat](https://chat.stackexchange.com/rooms/20611/the-percolator). Sorry for the confusion.
Stephie
<moka><percolator><brewing-process>
What is the difference between the coffee brew from a moka pot and percolator?
mathgenius
# What is the difference between the coffee brew from a moka pot and percolator?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2017-09-28)

I don't drink coffee.

*BEAR WITH ME*

Still, I enjoy making coffee for other people.  
Could you please describe the differences between the brews from a moka pot and a percolator?

I know this is sort of like describing a painting to a blind man but I can only choose to get one of the two and I would like to know what the taste and feel of each brew is before I make my decision.

And, no, I don't drink coffee, because I can't stand coffee, so tasting isn't an option. :)

**Tags:** moka, percolator, brewing-process

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: This question has actually been [asked before](https://coffee.stackexchange.com/questions/418/whats-the-difference-between-a-percolator-and-a-moka-pot). Check out the answers over there.  
> **username_0**: @username_1, thank you, I saw that one but since it wasn't focusing on differences in flavour I decided to ask a new question. I will edit it to show what I mean.  
> **username_1**: I would argue that percolators should not exist and they should never be used because they go entirely against the philosophy of perfecting a cup of coffee. If you want good quality coffee, use a Moka pot instead.  
> **username_0**: @shiri, duly noted. Why do they go against it, though? Is it because of the repeated circulation of the water through the grounds?  
> **username_1**: Precisely. Improving brewing methods includes making sure you can replicate a brew which means that the extraction must be as consistent as possible. When recirculating water that has already passed through the coffee, you will have different rates of extraction each time the water passes through. Not only this but the extracted liquid hits the heating element and gets boiled in order to be recirculated, completely destroying the flavourful compounds in coffee. You will most likely always end up with horrible cup of coffee in terms of what I would describe as tasteful.  
> **username_1**: There are some that have developed an acquired taste to burnt coffee though and prefer it.  
> **username_2**: Have you considered a drip setup? Many coffee drinkers find the results from a Moka too strong and percolators' issues have been discussed in the comments above. If you could tell us a bit about the people you want to serve the coffee to, you might actually get better answers.  
> **username_2**: Oh, and as it stands, it's probably really just a duplicate.  
> **username_0**: @username_2, isn't meta for posts that ask questions about the site, itself, rather than coffee?  
> **username_2**: @username_0 duh - right. My bad (or a sign of too little coffee). I obviously meant [Coffee Chat](https://chat.stackexchange.com/rooms/20611/the-percolator). Sorry for the confusion.  

---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2018-07-01. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

In a stove top coffee maker the water is boiled in the lower chamber, the steam pushes the water at low pressure upwards through the grounds before reaching the upper chamber, let's call it decanter. So the water is in contact with the grounds only once. Due to the high temperature there is arguably over extraction happening. In terms of flavor you can tell by the slightly bitter taste. Another factor contributing to this is that the fines are flushed out with the water, ending up in the decanter and your cup where they keep extracting bitter compounds. This can be minimized using some tweaks, but it's not preventable.

A percolator in comparison keeps circulating the water and brewed coffee through the grounds, reaching an even higher extraction ratio. The water and continuously the brewed coffee is heated, pushed upwards and "dropped" on the grounds before it sinks down towards the heat source again.

The difference in taste stems from the rules of extraction. The first substances to be extracted are caffein and acids. Caffein is bitter, but adds only partly to the bitterness in coffee compared to other compounds extracted later. The acids give coffee fruitiness, which is usually a desired quality and forms the base of the taste profile. The bitter compounds and sugars are extracted last. You want mainly the sugars in your cup to add sweetness, the bitter compounds you want to avoid. They make the coffee taste hollow, ashy, a bit like charcoal or burned rubber and leaves you with a kind of empty feeling after swallowing it. By that I mean it has no pleasant lingering after taste.

So basically that is what's happening with percolators. They over extract, meaning too many of the bitter compounds get in your coffee, which makes it unbalanced and just overall not really tasty. I would say it's probably one of the worst methods out there to make coffee nowadays in terms of extraction. There is of course a subjective component to it. Some people might enjoy exactly this taste. Maybe they want that burned taste, then add lots of sugar, milk and/or flavors and that's just what they like. That's of course ok, but the facts remain, that you lose complexity, fruitiness and sweetness.


---

### Answer by username_4 on 2017-12-03. Score: 0

short version answer is percolator is higher extract ratio but not the best way to deal with a delicate coffee bean as the coffee get boiled over and over,
moka pot is the same idea except the coffee after extraction isn't boiled


---

