We upgraded from a smaller siphon coffee maker to this, and I know it says '5 cups' but our experience is that means 2 good mugs or one very large novelty mug of coffee. The coffee siphons make is so much nicer than cafetiere (which was our previous method) - it is smooth with no niggly little grains. I would recommend a fine grind, pre-boiling the water in a kettle, and making sure you always have spare methylated spirits for rhe burner as it can run out quickly.

The coffee maker is brilliant. It's very theatrical when you use it and a great piece to have to entertain guests. It also makes a good coffee. The glass feels good quality (the flask portion is thicker at the bottom so it always stands up). It is identical to the Hario version which is 3x the price - the only difference being the box and the small brand sticker on the glass which you can remove. You will need to buy some methanol to use it. The coffee looks quite weak when you make it but is surprisingly strong in flavour. I'd say the size is more 3 cups than 5 but it's not a problem.I would highly recommend this as a theatrical coffee maker but don't expect to use it to make your daily coffee. It's a slow process and the cleanup afterwards is lengthy.

I bought one of these for myself Christmas 2012 and have used it every day since then. Tried both the cloth and paper filters, latter avoid problem of keeping cloth in good condition but either method brings out the full flavour of gourmet coffee. Either is better at blocking grounds than the glass rod in a Cona machine. I replaced the spirit burner with a small butane burner -- much more control over the process, and bought a Hario hand grinder to complement the machine -- it's worth experimenting with the grind, and best to keep to low to mid-roast beans..In response to earlier reviews, yes, there will always be a little water left in the base. This means that if you make a small amount of coffee you need to add proportionately more coffee to keep the strength up.I don't understand the remarks about 'boiled' flavour -- coffee in the upper part doesn't boil, the apparent boiling is steam passing through the coffee. Users may find it helpful to experiment with the length of time between (virtually) all the water passing into the upper part and removing the heat source.A great machine at a great price.

I've become numb to the way "Good" or "Real" coffee is used to describe the new Tassimo style coffee makers, I wanted something different. THIS IS GREAT, its much easier to use that some of the internet video's make out, little cumbersome to clean, but the quality and taste of the coffee is well worth the effort! I was was mesmerised when I first used it, the whole process is amazing. For £30 and 5 minutes more of my time to brew.... this is my go to coffee machine.

For making good tasting coffee a sound machine but just could be a little bigger, most people use mugs or large cups to drink from today.