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Primula Burke vs Coffee Gator Side-by-Side Comparison
Our Verdict
Overall Verdict
- Brew Quality (50%)6.6/10
- Design (15%)8.1/10
- Ease of Use (35%)9.2/10
- Brew Quality (50%)7.2/10
- Design (15%)8.9/10
- Ease of Use (35%)9.2/10
The Primula Burke and Coffee Gator cold brew coffee makers have a few things in common. Both are glass jug-type brewers using a plastic and nylon immersion filter and each tries to create distinct value. However, only one of the brewers passed our rigorous testing procedures.
The Primula is a nice-sized 1.6-quart brewer for a larger brew volume. However, a major oversight is the filter design. The nylon filter is too fine, thus limiting the cross flow. The resulting brew is weak and insubstantial.
The Coffee Gator is a smaller 1.4-quart, more slender brewer that can easily fit in the door bin of a small refrigerator. Its brew quality, while quite acceptable, is not the best. Like the Primula, it has a twist-to-pour lid but the real added value is an included stainless steel measuring spoon and a nifty silicone funnel.
Primula Burke Cold Brew Coffee Maker
- Bouquet (10%)6.0/10
- Drinkability (70%)6.0/10
- Sediment (20%)9.0/10
- Bouquet (10%)7.0/10
- Drinkability (70%)7.0/10
- Sediment (20%)8.0/10
Bouquet
The bouquet of the Primula was decidedly on the weaker side. It was light and sweet but our testers did, however, pick up a faint roasted note. This indicated that the brew was probably sub standard.
The bouquet of the coffee gator was of a slightly medium strength. We detected a mild roasted note, as well as a definite woodiness. There was a slight hint of caramel. This suggested that the extraction was either average or a little under par.
Drinkability
With a typical one-to-one dilution, the final drink was very light, watery, and somewhat sweet. In fact, even without dilution, it was still watery with little complexity. There was a slightly sour aftertaste, so not so satisfying. Although the brew is drinkable without dilution, it lacks excitement or complexity, which also means that the Primula is uneconomical for the amount of coffee ground used.
With the Primula, we would suggest a longer brewing period or brewing at room temperature. Either that, or using the hot blooming method to get a more substantial and richer brew.
The Coffee Gator produced a mild to medium strength brew. It had a dominant roasted flavor, but no real complexity. The aftertaste had a very slight sourness with a watery finish. It’s a nice enough brew especially if you prefer a little sweetness added. We don’t recommend diluting it, but the addition of a little milk or mixed as a smoothie or protein drink would work fine. You may want to brew for longer than 18 hours.
Sediment
Having to filter a large quantity of liquid means cold brewing can be time consuming. Convenience, however, comes at a price. Our repeated testing has found that the permeability of an immersion filter is key to producing a quality brew.
The Primula recorded very little sediment, which at the same time betrayed its fundamental flaw. The filter, as good as it was, lacked the permeability to produce a worthwhile cold brew coffee concentrate. In this case, the cost of a perfectly filtered brew was the quality of the brew itself.
After decanting the brew, there was a moderate amount of fine granular sediment remaining. This was typical for the type of brewer and filter, or as good as one could expect. If you prefer, you can decant the brew a second time, but there is no grittiness to the final drink.
Primula Burke Deluxe Cold Brew Iced Coffee Maker
- Stopper / Lid (30%)10/10
- Filter (40%)6.0/10
- Build Quality (30%)9.0/10
- Stopper / Lid (30%)10/10
- Filter (40%)8.0/10
- Build Quality (30%)9.0/10
Primula Burke Cold Brew Coffee Maker In the Box
- Box WHD: 7.9 x 9 x 7 inches
- Fully assembled unit
- Multilingual user manual leaflet
The Primula comes securely boxed with place holders and minimal plastic, but the package is nothing fancy. The unit comes fully assembled with a user manual inside that unfolds with instructions in English, French, and Spanish. Brew instructions, product care, and a few suggested recipes are included.
- Box WDH: 7 x 5.1 x 12.2 inches
- Borosilicate glass jug brewer
- Stainless steel measuring spoon
- Silicone funnel
- Instruction and message card
Our first impressions of the Coffee Gator cold brew setup were very positive. The carafe has a solid look and feel, the black and white design is very catchy, and it’s not heavy to lift. The stainless steel spoon is something you won’t get with other brewers, and the silicone funnel for pouring in grounds was very thoughtful.
We liked the personalized message card and instruction card too. The box had a seal saying ‘This product is not dishwasher safe’. The box also says if you register for a Platinum Membership, you get an additional year’s warranty, priority access to new products, discount codes, and coffee masterclass brew videos. They have full social media profiles and you can view their videos on Youtube.
Primula Burke Deluxe Cold Brew Decanter
- Height With Stopper Lid:7.9
- Base Diameter:4.7
- Width:7.4" (18.8 cm)
- Weight:19.5 oz (553 g)
- Material:borosilicate glass & plastic
The decanter or brew carafe is made of thick borosilicate glass and enclosed in a plastic jacket. The jacket doesn’t detach and also forms a base cushion. While cleaning, we noticed that there is an additional silicone seal on the base of the decanter.
- Height With Stopper Lid:10.2
- Base Diameter:3.9
- Width:6.7" (17.0 cm)
- Weight:19.3 oz (547 g)
- Material:borosilicate glass
The decanter is of excellent quality and the glass is quite thick, but not heavy. The full capacity is 1.2 liters. The plastic neck handle screws on tightly and the only fault is the handle. It’s a little short and uncomfortable while the grip is not so secure.
Stopper / Lid
- Diameter:4.9 in (125 mm)
- Material:plastic
- Additional Features:open/close function, silicone seal
The lid comes in three parts. The outer section has a silicone seal for an airtight fit. The filter attaches to the bottom and you simply press it into the carafe. With the inner lid removed, you can easily pour in the water and then seal the carafe for brewing. When storing decanted coffee, you can open this lid to stir the contents before pouring. To pour, you turn the lid handle to the open spout position.
- Diameter:4.3
- Material:BPA-free plastic
- Additional Features:2 white silicone gaskets
We loved the design of the Coffee Gator lid. It’s made of clear see-through plastic with a silicone gasket around the inner rim. It fits very neatly into the hole of the screw-on handle rim. The rim handle has an additional silicone gasket for proper air-tight sealing. If you turn the lid slightly to one side, the spout opens up to pour.
The lid design is very practical, however, it’s practically identical to that of the Coffee Bear. Upon reaching out, we confirmed that there is no relationship between the two coffee brands.
Filter
- Length:6.7 in (170 mm)
- Diameter:
- Material:polypropylene and nylon mesh
- Additional Features:detachable base
The filter is solid and well-made. In terms of design for a cold brew coffee maker, the plastic jacket appears to be limiting. It is uncertain how much permeability this kind of filter design will allow for proper brewing. In test brewing, we found the filter design to be fundamentally flawed.
- Length:7.8" (19.8 cm)
- Diameter:2.5
- Material:White plastic & nylon mesh
- Additional Features:Detachable base
We loved the refreshing white design of the filter, and how it clips securely into the rim. The base of the filter unscrews and comes off for cleaning. Since the brew ratio is only 1:14, and the filter had a fair amount of solid plastic, we wondered how well it would actually brew. The mesh filter seemed porous enough on first inspection.
Build Quality
Overall we love the high quality of the materials and the convenient design. The mid-range 1.6 qt capacity is also very convenient, and we like how the brewer is wider rather than taller. The only fault is not so much the build quality, but rather the ill-conceived design of the filter.
The overall build quality is really good. The carafe is solid and the lid an excellent design. On the downside, the handle lacks a solid grip and feels uncomfortable. The silicone gaskets seem good quality, and the stainless steel measuring spoon and silicone funnel add excellent value to the product.
Primula Burke Cold Brew Review
- Brewing (45%)9.0/10
- Decanting (35%)9.0/10
- Cleaning and Storage (20%)10/10
- Brewing (45%)9.5/10
- Decanting (35%)9.0/10
- Cleaning and Storage (20%)9.0/10
Brewing
The Primula filter takes around 3.5 oz / 100g of coffee grounds, which means about an inch to a half below the filter rim. After securing the filter onto the outer lid, you insert both into the decanter. Next, pour enough water to wet the grounds. After a couple of minutes, you slowly continue pouring water until the rising water hits just below the top of the plastic jacket. That’s about 40 fl.oz (1.2 L) or 6 measuring cups. Finally, screw in the top lid so that the spout is also closed.
The brew decanter can sit in the door of your average 33- or 36-inch refrigerator but may be too big for an apartment-sized refrigerator. Brewing was relatively straightforward except for the lack of markers on the vessel. We also found the full carafe to be a little heavy. It weighed 4 lbs or 1.8 kg, so make sure to grip it firmly and avoid letting children handle it.
The addition of the silicone funnel and the measuring spoon made brewing practically effortless. The recommended amount of grounds is 75 g or 2.6 oz, however, we put in eight spoons to top off some of the space. One level spoon is 11 g, so the total weight was 88 g or 3.1 oz.
The silicone funnel was also perfect for pouring water around the edges so the flow was more gentle and gradual. If you pour too fast, liquid and grounds will move up the funnel, so be careful when you take the funnel out. You can use a teaspoon to push any grounds around the edges into the filter. The lid also made for a perfect air-tight fit.
Decanting
We found that decanting worked best by simply lifting up the outer lid with the filter attached. Because the base of the filter is not permeable, it’s best to let the filter stand in a dish as quite a bit of extra brew still trickled out.
You can immediately remove the filter from the lid. We found a few granules of coffee had gathered around the edges so it’s best to completely rinse off the lid before putting it back. Once again, make sure the spout is closed to prevent coffee odors building up in your refrigerator.
Like any immersion filter brew, decanting was effortless. All you need to do is pop off the lid and carefully twist loose the neck ring. We detached the filter immediately and left it to rest in a jar to collect the last few drips. After rinsing the screw-on neck ring, we immediately resealed the carafe to protect the flavor and aroma. We returned the brew to the refrigerator to await our brew score testing.
Cleaning and Storage
Cleaning the Primula is effortless all round. It separates into seven parts. The filter parts and the lid can go on the top rack of a dishwasher while the decanter on the lower rack. It’s probably best to just rinse off the silicone seals. While cleaning, we discovered an additional seal at the base of the decanter. The plastic padding on the base gives a comfortable feeling when placing on the table, and peace of mind when storing away. We loved the quality of the decanter, except that it can be heavy for some when full, but the grip and pour is good.
To clean the filter, you need to rinse out the grounds and then gently clean with a bottle brush and a small amount of liquid soap. We noticed a fair amount of coffee oil that required soap for cleaning. Also, the filter lost its pearly white appeal after the first brew. However, you can see the residue oil to wash off more easily than with a black-colored filter.
The carafe itself also cleans easily. We had no problem getting our hands inside, but larger hands may be a problem. You can put the glass carafe in a dishwasher, but Coffee Gator recommends hand washing.