$11,000 Coffee Maker,! How much for the coffee? The Clover Coffee Maker.

How much do you think a cup of coffee would cost from a new $11,000 coffee maker on the market, the Clover? You might think a lot, but as the Economist Magazine points out the Clover costs about as much as the typical espresso machine found in a coffee shop. Given this description in Slate it sounds like it takes about as much work to make a cup of coffee in a Clover as it does to brew an espresso. So the costs are similar to an espresso drink so given the plethora of coffee shops the price should approach costs or price of espresso drinks. So not surprisingly coffee from the Clover goes for $3.50 a cup.

But if you pay $3.50 a cup for clover coffee and $1.75 for a regular non-clover cup, there must be something different between the two. In the description of the Clover it seems the real key is the ability to control the coffee making process so the same great cup of coffee can be made each time. This allows coffee shops to use high end beans and distinguish the difference between regular beans.

It looks like (link) Alexandria’s Grape and Bean is the first DC area coffee shop to get one. Perhaps a field trip is in order.