Ahhh, cloth filters! Nostalgia and great coffee. Highly recommend the carafe is gorgeous and holds the porta filter steady. The coffee it makes is totally different from paper filters. For me is a matter of choice- I like both type, but cloth has its special flavour. My wife only accepts coffee made in cloth mow.TIP: buy a small tube (like the lab ones we use to store our Coffe on the freezer) add water, put the filter folded inside to store the cloth in the fridge- they will not get smelly with bad taste

Best cup of coffee I've had in quite some time

I kept hearing that the Woodneck brews a super clean, full-bodied cup of coffee, so I decided to take the plunge and get myself one for christmas. It completely shattered my expectations. I've been a huge supporter of the Kalita Wave thus far, and the Woodneck is the Yin to its Yang. When anyone asks me for a "bold" or "full-bodied" cup of coffee now, I'll reach for the Woodneck. In the same way that the Wave makes a good 2pm cup of coffee, the Woodneck makes a great 8am cup. I can go on and on.Versus a Chemex, the only time I'd reach for the Chemex is if I needed to brew a LOT of coffee. The Woodneck has got a similar serving aesthetic to the Chemex, so appearance is a moot point... but flavor-wise, I can't stop singing the praises of the Woodneck. Plus, it can ... MoreI kept hearing that the Woodneck brews a super clean, full-bodied cup of coffee, so I decided to take the plunge and get myself one for christmas. It completely shattered my expectations. I've been a huge supporter of the Kalita Wave thus far, and the Woodneck is the Yin to its Yang. When anyone asks me for a "bold" or "full-bodied" cup of coffee now, I'll reach for the Woodneck. In the same way that the Wave makes a good 2pm cup of coffee, the Woodneck makes a great 8am cup. I can go on and on.Versus a Chemex, the only time I'd reach for the Chemex is if I needed to brew a LOT of coffee. The Woodneck has got a similar serving aesthetic to the Chemex, so appearance is a moot point... but flavor-wise, I can't stop singing the praises of the Woodneck. Plus, it can brew up to 450ml, which generally lives in the casual-sipping-for-two range (at least in my house).Okay, let's talk downsides. The sock does take a few minutes to clean. Replacement socks are more expensive than replacement filters. And the filter needs to dry well and in fresh air. Sunlight is the ideal situation. If it takes too long to air dry, it can take on a bit of a fungal flavor, which is generally not a taste I desire from a filter? Just me?

Excellent addition to any coffee collection

I am thoroughly impressed and satisfied with the method of brewing my coffee with a cloth filter. After hearing rave reviews on the quality of the coffee using this method, I decided to try it for myself. The cloth filter brings out a flavor in between the robustness of the aeropress and the clean finish of the chemex. You taste the smoothness of the coffee in the front end and the lingering flavor profile of the coffee bean in the back end. The cloth helps keep some of the acidic and bitterness of the coffee without being overwhelmed by it. In the end, its a nice addition of the various ways coffee can be presented without having to prefer one method over another.

Excellent product and service!!!

I'm really happy with the Rok espresso maker. It feels like a quality product, is easy to clean and I'm getting pretty close to cafe quality out of it after just a week or so of using it. I had read negative reviews about the included milk frother prior to purchasing it, so I didn't expect much from it. But it actually works great as well. No idea why people have had trouble with it -- it's easy to use and clean, and I now prefer it to the steam wand on my old espresso machine. Alternative Brewing provided excellent service too. It arrived way faster than I expected, was packaged well and I received email communications throughout the shipping process. Based on this experience, I'll be buying the Rok grinder from Alternative Brewing very soon.

GREAT BREWER, PRICE A LITTLE STEEP.

Completely happy with the brewer. GF from Brazil brough a "sock" brewer with her once when she was visiting. I kind of looked askew at it, and bought her the smaller Woodneck thinking that it was a little more refined version of the same thing. When we tried it together, I remember being surprised that it brewed great coffee.Fast Forward a few years, and I watched James Hoffman's YouTube review wherein he mentions that this is his favorite way to brew and that the only drawback was that it required a bit more maintenance than, say, V60.So... I started looking for a Woodneck. I like to drink 280 ml coffees so they don't run out before I finish my toast in the morning, so I saw that I'd need the larger version.I was really surprised how much the price has varied-- ... MoreCompletely happy with the brewer. GF from Brazil brough a "sock" brewer with her once when she was visiting. I kind of looked askew at it, and bought her the smaller Woodneck thinking that it was a little more refined version of the same thing. When we tried it together, I remember being surprised that it brewed great coffee.Fast Forward a few years, and I watched James Hoffman's YouTube review wherein he mentions that this is his favorite way to brew and that the only drawback was that it required a bit more maintenance than, say, V60.So... I started looking for a Woodneck. I like to drink 280 ml coffees so they don't run out before I finish my toast in the morning, so I saw that I'd need the larger version.I was really surprised how much the price has varied-- gone UP!-- since last purchasing a Woodneck for my GF. I spent some time on the net and found that Whole latte love's price for the larger olive wood version was the best price going-- still kinda pricey, but... whatcha gonna do?So I put it into my shopping cart and started to check out. I think it was like $49.99 and the shipping was another $12 or $14. Then I noticed the "Free shipping over $50" offer and added a cappucinno spoon for a couple bucks to somewhat ameliorate the pain of the purchase.That said, I'm enjoying the brewer and only docked one start because I'm cheap and had to pay full price. Not really anyone's fault, but...I do like the olive wood trim-- a little bonus.Cheers,-- james r.

Hario cloth pot pour over

I recently got the Hario Woodneck Pour Over Coffee Drop Pot 480 ml (cloth filter), as I was curious to see how it brewed. It was a natural next addition to my ever-growing coffee brewing family. First off, I have VERY happy I went with the 480 ml size. I can't imagine now getting the smaller size. With this one, I can have one American large mug of coffee- which is what I like.As for the taste- it was wonderful!I ended up using the beans that I had been using for my other devices. Over the past week I wasn't really blown away by the beans, BUT- when I used the cloth filter pour over, all the sudden I was getting notes that were muted using my other brewing devices. I think that I might have gotten my best brewed coffee so far using this guy! I am very happy with ... MoreI recently got the Hario Woodneck Pour Over Coffee Drop Pot 480 ml (cloth filter), as I was curious to see how it brewed. It was a natural next addition to my ever-growing coffee brewing family. First off, I have VERY happy I went with the 480 ml size. I can't imagine now getting the smaller size. With this one, I can have one American large mug of coffee- which is what I like.As for the taste- it was wonderful!I ended up using the beans that I had been using for my other devices. Over the past week I wasn't really blown away by the beans, BUT- when I used the cloth filter pour over, all the sudden I was getting notes that were muted using my other brewing devices. I think that I might have gotten my best brewed coffee so far using this guy! I am very happy with my purchase. The little carafe that it pours into really resembles a little mini Chemex which is fun.This requires a slightly bit more mantainence as you have to clean the cloth filter pretty well. They suggest that you also keep the filter in a small container of water in the fridge to keep the filter. I have done that, as well as just hanging up to dry. They say over time, drying it will eventually lead to a bad smell and/or flavor. I don't know about that. But, so far, I am very happy with this device. A great buy and great brew.

Ok. Not great.

I have this and a Flair Signature. The Rok is made of beautiful metal and looks great in your kitchen but doesn’t really deliver. It’s picky about grind size, leaks, and is much harder to dial in than a Flair.After multiple attempts using scales and carefully adjusting grind size, ratio and brew time the coffee I produced still tasted under extracted and thin compared to a Flair. I think maintaining thermal mass is an issue and careful preheat is a must. Third shot always better than first shot though no matter how much you preheat.If you are cross shopping this against the Flair do not even consider this unless you have a high end grinder and need to make multiple coffees at a time. Can’t see this getting much use sadly.

Simple and Elegant

Pros:I really enjoy using this pour over dripper. It's simple to use, makes making coffee fun to make every morning and makes me feel like I've had a part in the process of brewing albeit, this is a simple brewing method with clean, fantstic results. It leaves 0 grit at the bottom of each cup allowing you to drink until the last drop.Cons:Some issues I do have with it is the cloth filter is not very simple to clean after use. It says it slips on easily but, once wet, it tightens up and makes it pretty difficult to get on and off without a little extra effors. I'm not sure how this could be imroved but, there has to be a simpler way. Also, it only comes with 1 filter so, you'll certainly have to buy extras in the weeks or months to come if you plan to continue ... MorePros:I really enjoy using this pour over dripper. It's simple to use, makes making coffee fun to make every morning and makes me feel like I've had a part in the process of brewing albeit, this is a simple brewing method with clean, fantstic results. It leaves 0 grit at the bottom of each cup allowing you to drink until the last drop.Cons:Some issues I do have with it is the cloth filter is not very simple to clean after use. It says it slips on easily but, once wet, it tightens up and makes it pretty difficult to get on and off without a little extra effors. I'm not sure how this could be imroved but, there has to be a simpler way. Also, it only comes with 1 filter so, you'll certainly have to buy extras in the weeks or months to come if you plan to continue using it. Also, the metal crossover at the back bend really easy so, after you take it on and off a few times, I pretty much just stopped clasping it in the back as it may overstress the metal over time. Lastly, the grip is quite small and a little shaky. It's 2 seperate pieces of wood held together by one drawsting leather strap that needs to be removed everytime for cleaning. This can get a bit annoying taking this on and off as the glass is quite hot after making a new batch. Have to wait to clean.Overall: I frigin love this pourover dripper. It's simple, elegant and produces a FANTASTIC cup(s) of coffee. Only things I wish could have been upgraded are adding a few extra cloth filters and a better quality wood/grips.I WOULD BUY THIS PRODUCT AGAIN!

This took a little bit

This took a little bit of a learning curve - making sure everything is really hot prior to the pour-over is a process, picking up the glass carafe when it’s full of coffee by the wooden ring is somewhat awkward. However I’ve had some very good results, when carafe, filter and cup are fully heated up to the max!

great once I figured out how to keep everything hot

It's really important to make sure the device is thoroughly hot before making coffee. This means expressing two or three lots of boiling water through the empty coffee holder first, as advised by ROK.I find that it's also essential to express the coffee into a heavy ceramic cup which is itself not just warm, but quite hot. Those lightweight and double-layer insulated cups don't do the job.Now that I've worked this out--especially the second part--I can now make coffee as good as that I get from the better coffee shops.