Sampling "The Clover" Buzz

The company that helped teach America a whole new coffee lexicon is in trouble. Starbucks recently announced that it will close 600 stores in the coming year, leaving some loyal customers without their six-dollar grande sugar free vanilla lattes with soy.

The reasons behind the giant coffee chain’s troubles are varied and debated. But in a leaked memo, Starbucks founder Howard Shultz stated his opinion clear and simple – the company had stopped focusing on the basics. While customers could buy breakfast sandwiches, fancy milkshakes and John Mellencamp records, the quality of Starbuck’s main beverage wasn’t standing up to competition.

That’s where "The Clover" comes in. The high-tech, highly-regarded $11,000 coffee machine has developed an international following, and will start making appearances in stores around the country. Some say it brews the best cup of joe in the world, and Starbucks is banking on it.

Writer and coffee connoisseur Mathew Honan wrote about "The Clover" for Wired Magazine, and is here to fill us in on the details.

We also look at a different kind of coffee maker. It’s not new, it’s not necessarily expensive, but some die-hard fans say there’s no better coffee machine out there. It’s the vacuum brewer, and writer Corby Kummer is a huge advocate. He recorded this piece for the "Design for the Real World" series on public radio’s Studio 360.

(Photo by Adam Kuban)