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Cafe Du Chateau vs County Line Kitchen Side-by-Side Comparison
Our Verdict
Overall Verdict
- Brew Quality (50%)7.3/10
- Design (15%)7.6/10
- Ease of Use (35%)8.3/10
- Brew Quality (50%)7.8/10
- Design (15%)9.6/10
- Ease of Use (35%)9.2/10
Both the Cafe Du Chateau and County Line Kitchen are cold brew coffee makers made from glass with stainless steel filters. That aside, they are very different in design quality and practical usage.
The Cafe Du Chateau is an attempt to emulate a French press design. It fails in that the device is too heavy, badly weighted for easy pouring, and the stopper is either too loose or too tight. The brew quality, at least, is average.
The County Line Kitchen, on the other hand, is a fairly lightweight and eminently practical mason jar design. The stainless steel mesh-like filter has a brew ratio of 1:9 and produces a comparatively good brew. The brewer comes with a BPA-free plastic screw-on lid, with or without a handle. To pour, you simply flip up the cap, and most conveniently, the water-tight brewer can also store on their side after decanting.
Cafe du Chateau Cold Brew Coffee Maker
- Bouquet (10%)6.0/10
- Drinkability (70%)7.0/10
- Sediment (20%)9.0/10
- Bouquet (10%)7.5/10
- Drinkability (70%)8.0/10
- Sediment (20%)7.0/10
Bouquet
After 18 hours of brewing, the Cafe du Chateau produced a noticeably weak bouquet despite a reasonable brew ratio of 1:8. The bouquet did, however, have a distinctively earthy note. Overall, there was very little complexity and sweet notes were indiscernible.
The County Line Kitchen mason jar brewer produced, at a best, a medium-strength bouquet. We detected a slight nuttiness as well as more subtle sweet notes. The results were not as good as we had hoped for, but promising nonetheless.
Drinkability
Considering the brew ratio, we diluted the concentrate with one part water to one part coffee. The final serving was smooth to drink, but the aftertaste was neither rounded nor satisfying. It had a defined roasted and somewhat earthy flavor, but lacked character. Overall, the Cafe du Chateau produced an average to reasonably good brew, but it didn’t excite.
We diluted the concentrate with one part coffee to one part filtered water. It had a dominant roasted flavor, but with a slight sweet aftertaste. The drink lacked nutty and fruity flavors that our top brewers were more successful at producing. Although smooth to drink, it lacked body and was not as satisfying as a cold brew can be.
Sediment
After allowing the concentrate to settle, we decanted the contents of the Cafe du Chateau. The filter, made of laser-cut 304 stainless steel, did a good job overall. There was not much sediment and it was mostly fine with some powdery grains. All considered, the filter seemed not porous enough to produce a high quality brew.
We brewed according to the County Line Kitchen manual’s instructions. This means we did not shake the vessel before putting it in the refrigerator. After allowing the brew to settle and then decanting, we were surprised to see a relatively significant amount of sediment.
The filter is a rough mesh rather than a laser-cut stainless steel filter as seen in other types of brewers. Although this brewer did better than average in producing a sweeter brew, we suggest additional decanting to remove excess sediment. Either that, or run the coffee through a paper filter.
Cafe du Chateau Cold Brew Design
- Stopper / Lid (30%)7.0/10
- Filter (40%)8.5/10
- Build Quality (30%)7.0/10
- Stopper / Lid (30%)10/10
- Filter (40%)9.0/10
- Build Quality (30%)10/10
Cafe du Chateau Cold Brew Maker In the Box
- Fully assembled unit
- Use manual and brew guide
The Cafe du Chateau was one of the few cold coffee brewers we bought that came with styrofoam packaging. It’s very secure and comes fully assembled. The user manual and brewing guide come together as a high-quality glossy booklet. Both the box and booklet feature a convenient QR code for the customer support email. They promise hassle free replacement for any damaged product. In terms of first impressions, we were well satisfied.
- Assembled unit
- Warranty card
- User brochure manual
The County Line Kitchen 1-quart cold brew coffee maker comes in a really neat box. There’s no superfluous packaging and zero disposable plastics. The brewer comes fully assembled and the brochure outlines six easy steps to brewing and three suggested serving recipes. The warranty card directs you to their website to register your product, after which they provide a sales support email. There’s no QR code, so you have to do it the old-fashioned way.
Cafe du Chateau Cold Brew Decanter
- Height With Stopper Lid:9
- Base Diameter:5
- Width:6.5" (16.5 cm)
- Weight:29.5 oz (836 g)
- Material:borosilicate glass & stainless steel
The brew decanter has the look and feel of a solid and durable product. However, on closer inspection it’s not without its flaws. For one, we found it a bit on the heavy side even when empty. We filled the decanter with water to test pour it, and it poured rather heavily. It also felt unbalanced and the grip was somewhat slippery. The manual says the glass decanter can detach from the stainless steel sleeve, but it was difficult to do, so we left this for the cleaning stage.
- Height With Stopper Lid:7.7
- Base Diameter:3.5
- Width:6.3" (16.0 cm)
- Weight:17.0 oz (482 g)
- Material:glass
The brew decanter is just as robust as any mason jar. The inner lid has a silicone gasket for a perfect seal. A handy notch lets you easily pluck the gasket out for cleaning. When sealed, even if you shake the jar around, no liquid spills and the flip cap stays secure too.
Stopper / Lid
- Diameter:3.9 in (100 mm)
- Material:stainless steel
- Additional Features:silicone seal
The stopper has an airtight when brewing, but is rather loose with the filter attachment removed. Furthermore, the silicone seal is very rubbery, deforms easily, and is overall not the best quality.
- Diameter:6 in incl.handle (150 mm)
- Material:polypropylene plastic
- Additional Features:silicone gasket
The lid of the County Line consists of three parts. The handle is molded onto the crew-top lid. The handle is easy to grip with an inner thumb groove. To pour the liquid, you simply clip the flip-lid open which also detaches for easy cleaning. Inside the lid is also a gasket for airtight sealing. Although the handle is convenient, you can also opt for a simple screw top without a handle for a more compact option.
Filter
- Length:6.7" (17.0 cm)
- Diameter:4
- Material:laser-cut 304 stainless steel
- Additional Features:silicone seal
The filter is made from laser-cut 304 grade stainless steel and comes with a ‘lifetime warranty’. It appeared well-machined and the edges were not sharp. However, like the decanter lid, the silicone seal around the filter top was not such great quality. The filter, however, did allow for a relatively decent brew to develop and the sediment produced didn’t require additional decanting.
- Length:5.5 in (140 mm)
- Diameter:3.2 in (82 mm)
- Material:stainless steel
- Additional Features:silicone seal
Compared to other stainless steel filters we’ve examined, the County Line Kitchen’s looks and feels heavier. It matches the sturdy solidity of the mason jar and adds to its old-fashioned country feel. Although a fair bit of sediment is produced, our tests revealed that the brew produced is relatively good quality.
Build Quality
The materials used, except for the silicone seals, are generally good quality, however, the design is not well executed. The brewer is all-round cumbersome to handle, the lid and seals are poorly designed, and it is weighted badly for pouring. Overall, this has been one of our least favorite cold coffee brewers to work with and will probably gather dust on the shelf.
It’s difficult not to like the design of the County Line Kitchen cold brew coffee maker. If you like the solid practicality of a mason jar, it fits the bill. The part count is minimal and all components fit well. We also appreciate the option of buying a lid with or without a handle.
Cafe du Chateau Cold Brew
- Brewing (45%)9.0/10
- Decanting (35%)8.0/10
- Cleaning and Storage (20%)7.0/10
- Brewing (45%)10/10
- Decanting (35%)8.5/10
- Cleaning and Storage (20%)8.5/10
Brewing
Like its design, brewing with the Cafe du Chateau has its unique points. No measuring is required because you just fill the filter with grounds to about 1 cm (less than ½ inch) below the top.
Then, you gradually pour water through the grounds but you don’t push the filter completely in. The filter has an upper chamber which makes pouring water very easy. The filter itself is very fine so you must wait for water to seep through. The last 200 ml of water takes a little time to pour.
Once the water is just below the 1-liter mark, you push the filter unit completely in and do the same for the lid. Despite the cumbersome design of the silicone seals, they do a pretty good job. Most air is completely compressed out of the brew decanter. All in all, the brewing method seemed very sound and we looked forward to the brewing results.
Brewing follows six easy steps. Simply load the filter with coffee grounds — one cup per quart (reaching about one inch from the top) — and place the filter in the jar. Then, you slowly add water until the grounds are completely covered and the water level nears the top of the filter.
Allow to stand for a few minutes while the water makes its way through the grounds. Top up with water as needed, screw on the lid, and place in the fridge to brew. We found this process completely effortless with no need for weighing or measuring.
Decanting
As with all similar immersion brew filters, all we had to do was remove the filter and place it in a glass to catch the remaining liquid. The stopper comes off with the filter attached. To separate the stopper, you’ll need to hold the filter tight, twist and pull forcefully.
Additionally, the decanter lid doesn’t fit so snugly when the filter unit is removed.This means that your fridge may become contaminated with coffee odors and the concentrate may oxidize and spoil faster.
Once the filter and grounds are removed, you should have around 700 ml of cold brew coffee concentrate. The overall volume is 900 ml (30 fl oz) with the difference being taken up by the filter and grounds while brewing.
We found the screwable cap may require a little force to remove depending on how tightly you put it on. The filter, though, is easy to grip and remove without any grounds dropping into the vessel. Like similar long-funnel filters, you can always place it in a cup to catch the last few drops. It’s best to rinse the lid of any grounds before replacing and putting the finished brew in your fridge. Because of the amount of sediment produced, we recommend recanting for a second time once the brew has been allowed to settle.
Cleaning and Storage
Cleaning the Cafe du Chateau filter is easy enough. Use a standard non-abrasive sponge. You can reach to the bottom of the filter and the edges are not sharp. The decanter itself is easy to reach inside.
The user manual states the glass decanter is fully removable from the stainless steel jacket. Even after running under hot water, however, we were unable to remove the decanter. We didn’t want to exert too much force and break the glass, nor injure ourselves, so we didn’t succeed in separating the parts.
All components except for the silicone seals can go into the dishwasher.
Once dried, the brewer can be stored fully assembled. It looks nice on a counter and should easily fit in a standard cupboard or a shelf space. The filter also stands well on its own for storage when the decanter is in use.
For deep cleaning, you need to remove the flip cap and the lid’s inner gasket. The silicone ring seal for the filter simply slides off. The filter rinses out easily and you can use a gentle bottle brush if you wish. We found the small 1-quart jar a little narrow for hand cleaning, so we used a bottle brush there too.
All parts are dishwasher friendly, but it’s probably better to just rinse off the silicone filter seal and lid gasket. You’ll periodically need to soak the filter in a mixture of water and baking soda, vinegar, or citric acid to unclog coffee oils and remove odors.
After brewing, you will need a small space to store the filter. You should place it upside down so the silicone seal stays safe. When you are not using the jar, everything conveniently stores as a single unit.