What is the Ratio Eight Series 2?
A drip coffee maker designed to be seen, which brews like a pour-over with one button.
The Ratio Eight Series 2 heats water and pours it over the coffee through a stainless steel showerhead, with an automated bloom at the start. It has one button, two recipes, full batch and half batch, and brews up to 40 oz, which Ratio describes as eight 5 oz cups. It is built from borosilicate glass water lines, a hand-blown glass carafe, stainless steel, a matte polymer base with a metal internal structure and solid walnut trim. Ratio sells it for $699.00 and gives it a 5 year warranty.
Ratio says the Series 2 brings a new stainless steel and glass hot water path, the dual recipe programmes and a more durable matte surface to the original Eight's design. This review is based on what Ratio publishes. We have not tested it hands-on.
How it brews
Good drip coffee needs the same things as good pour-over: water hot enough, coffee wetted evenly, and a pause at the start so the fresh grounds can release carbon dioxide before the main brew. That pause is the bloom, and the Eight Series 2 does it automatically. How drip coffee makers work, and why most do not brew well, is explained in what is drip coffee.
The water is spread by a stainless steel showerhead, which Ratio says saturates the whole coffee bed evenly. It lands in a double-wall stainless steel basket with a flat bottom. A flat bottom keeps the bed of coffee level, so water flows through it at a steadier rate than it does through a cone, and the double wall holds heat in. The full and half batch recipes are each timed for their size, so a small pot is not simply a large recipe stopped early. Ratio says a full brew takes 8 to 10 minutes.
Filters
The basket takes 8 to 12 cup flat-bottom paper filters with a minimum height of 5.75 inches, the same size as the Ratio Six, or Able's stainless steel basket filter for a paper-free option. Paper gives a cleaner cup with less sediment and oil; metal lets more of both through and a fuller body with it. The differences between filter types and sizes are set out in paper coffee filters.
Materials and carafe
Much of the Eight Series 2's price is in what it is made of. Once brewing starts, the water path is stainless steel, aluminium and glass, and the tank is fed through a 304 stainless steel fill under a cast stainless steel lid. The walnut trim is solid wood, hand-finished. Ratio's argument is that a coffee maker kept on the counter every day should be built from materials that look better with age, and the visible glass water line is part of that.
The standard carafe is hand-blown borosilicate glass. There is no hot plate, and Ratio explains why: hot plates keep cooking the coffee and make it bitter. The trade-off is that a glass carafe of coffee cools, so Ratio recommends serving it straight away or moving it to an insulated vessel. Its double-wall stainless thermal carafe, which Ratio says keeps coffee hot for 90 minutes, is a $100 addition, and buying it gets you both carafes.
Living with it
- Controls. One button. A long press switches between the full and half batch recipes. There is no timer and no strength setting.
- Capacity. Up to 40 oz, or 1.25 l.
- Cleaning. Rinse the carafe and dripper after each brew. Ratio says not to put either in the dishwasher or microwave, or submerge them.
- Size and weight. 13.5 x 9 x 14 inches and 14 lb, with a 39 inch detachable cord.
- Power. 1400 W at 120 V.
- Finishes. Matte Black, Linen and Cypress.
Ratio Eight Series 2 vs Fellow Aiden
The Fellow Aiden is the other premium brewer most buyers consider, and at $399.95 it costs $300 less. It is SCA certified, brews from a single cup to 10 cups with a showerhead that changes its coverage for small batches, schedules brews in an app and comes with a thermal carafe.
The Aiden has more features; the Ratio has better materials and fewer decisions. The Ratio's glass, steel and walnut are designed to be looked at, its flat-bottom stainless basket holds no plastic, and one button replaces the app. It also carries a 5 year warranty against the Aiden's 2. If you want to brew a single cup, schedule coffee for the morning or adjust the recipe, buy the Aiden. If you want a beautiful machine that makes the same good pot every day with one press, the Ratio is the one.
Ratio Eight Series 2 vs Technivorm Moccamaster KBGV Select
The Technivorm Moccamaster KBGV Select is the long-standing benchmark: handmade in the Netherlands, certified to brew both a half and a full carafe to the SCA's Golden Cup Standard, and backed by a 5 year warranty and replacement parts. Like the Ratio it has a half or full selector and no timer. Unlike the Ratio, it keeps its glass carafe on a hot plate, which switches off after 100 minutes.
The Moccamaster is the choice for someone who wants a proven, certified brewer and coffee kept warm. The Ratio is the choice for someone who wants a flat-bottom stainless basket, an automated bloom, no hot plate cooking the coffee and a design that works as a centrepiece.
Is the Ratio Eight Series 2 worth it?
At $699.00, the Eight Series 2 costs more than any other drip coffee maker we cover, and on features alone it offers less than machines costing half as much. It has no timer, no strength control and no single cup mode.
What the price buys is materials, simplicity and a long warranty. It is worth it for someone who brews a pot of good coffee most mornings, values a machine that looks at home on the counter and wants one button rather than a menu. It is poor value for someone who wants coffee ready on waking, brews single cups or buys supermarket coffee, where a cheaper machine will taste much the same. Like any careful brewer, it depends on fresh beans ground well; see burr against blade grinders.
Who should buy the Ratio Eight Series 2 (and who should not)
Buy it if
- You want pour-over style coffee without standing over a kettle.
- Design and materials matter as much as features.
- You brew full or half pots and serve them soon after brewing.
Skip it if
- You want a timer so coffee is ready when you wake.
- You often brew a single cup.
- You want coffee kept hot for hours without buying the thermal carafe.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much coffee does the Ratio Eight Series 2 make?
Up to 40 oz, or 1.25 l, which Ratio describes as eight 5 oz cups. A half batch recipe makes a smaller pot.
Does the Ratio Eight Series 2 have a hot plate?
No. Ratio says hot plates overheat coffee, and offers a double-wall stainless thermal carafe as an option instead.
What filters does the Ratio Eight Series 2 use?
8 to 12 cup flat-bottom paper filters at least 5.75 inches tall, or Able's stainless steel basket filter.
Does the Ratio Eight Series 2 have a timer?
No. It has one button that starts a full or half batch.
What warranty does the Ratio Eight Series 2 have?
Ratio gives it a 5 year warranty.
