Brew News
6 March 2010  www.specialty-coffee.com Bunn Trifecta Sightings In preparation for its launch at this year's SCAA, Bunn-O-Matic Corp. has installed several of its new Trifecta, high-tech single coffee brewers at independent shops nationwide. NewYork City, San Francisco and St. Louis shops are currently testing what Bunn hopes will be the successor to the fabled Clover, an $11,000 brewing machine once touted as the secret weapon for independents competing with Starbucks. NewYorkTimes Dining section blogger Oliver Strand describes the machine he saw at Cafà Grumpy's as a more muscular Clover with better lighting, though the two are significantly different. The solid, cylindrical machine looks like it came from the design studio of James Dyson, and when the brew cycle is running, it's illuminated from within. He writes that after loading fresh grounds the barista pulls down a macho clamp that seals a plastic tube against the basket, then pushes a button to start a preprogrammed brew cycle with three stages (the Trifecta), which Bunn executives term preinfusion, turbulence and press-out. The turbulence provides the theater. After the tube fills with water, the coffee is agitated with an air jet  think hot tub  to facilitate extraction. Every stage is programmable. For instance, the turbulence can be adjusted by intensity, duration and number of cycles. Starbucks purchased Clover from its Seattle inventor in March 2008 effectively closing the market to independents. Bunn, headquartered in Springfield, Ill,, is marketing the Trifecta to independent shop owners to meet demand for a single-cup machine that offers greater control than traditional brewing methods. The company is silent on pricing but it will likely be much less expensive than the Clover. Bunn intends to roll out the Trifecta at this year's Specialty Coffee Association of American tradeshow in Anaheim, April 15-18. GMC, Ashoka inspire community action