Need a new coffee maker (with built in grinder)

[chuckw951]

I like my Bunn-o-matic coffee maker (see below) but I'd really like something with a built in grinder. Any recommendations?

[concentric]

Not with a grinder, but how about this one?
Porsche design, too.

http://www.boschappliances.com/small_appliances/small_appliances_542.asp

I have a Braun stand-alone grinder that rocks. I've been using it for about 6 years now.

Jason

[chuckw951]

Wow, that thing weighs nine pounds.

[mikester]

Personally for my morning cup (I only have one so if you have more this may not work) I grind the beans and use a french press.

If you like you can call it a "freedom press" though.

It's great for making one or two cupes of coffee at a time and it's easy to clean and cheap.

[LeeH]

No grinder, but my wife swears that her Bodum Santos makes the best coffee on the planet. Plus it's fun to watch.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00006F2LY/qid=1095289672/sr=1-3/ref=sr_1_3_etk-kitchen/103-7551661-7105426?v=glance&s=kitchen&n=284507

Seems like you take a risk when you buy combination appliances. What do you do if one half breaks?

[joehahn]

give up. i have tried this for years and tried everything up to makers costing several hundred dollars. I drink at least a pot a morning. there is just simply no way to make and serve coffee super hot and robust as if you were getting it in a restaurant. don't get me wrong...i WANT the answer i just have searched and searched and can't find it. even tried the ones with the "temperature setting" and what have you. currently we just buy and use a $25 cuisinart until it just wont work that well anymore then pitch it and get a new one.

PLEASE PROVE ME WRONG. SOMEONE WEIGH IN WITH THE ANSWER.

anxiously (over caffeinated) awaiting,

joe hahn

[chuckw951]

Joe,

That's what I'm talking about. There has to be a way to brew the perfect pot of coffee at home. I guess I don't need the built in grinder, just better coffee!


Chuck

[trj911]

I have a cuisinart that grinds and brews and I am quite pleased with it. I put in the beans the night before and set the timer and at the appointed time, it grinds and brews and I have hot fresh brewed coffee waiting for me. Cuisinart DGB-600BC

[Mule]

I spent about 10 years working for a coffe co. Keep your Bunn, none better. As for the grinder, if you have access to high quality brands of coffee, no need for a grinder. As long as you keep your coffee sealed up & out of the refrig or freezer, the grinder buys you nothing. Besides, most grinders don't really grind they shatter the beans like a blender. The big expensive grinders like you see in the grocery actually grind tne coffee to a uniform size, much better.

[joehahn]

ok mule, i was hoping someone in the restaurant industry would weigh in and you are the closest thing we got sooooo, how is the coffee brewed so hot? why does it taste so much better at shops? in particular, after eating a good meal at a nice restaurant why does that scalding hot after-dinner cup taste so friggin good?

when i started here where i work i insisted that we order a nice coffee maker. we did, and it looks like the ones at restaurants with double burners, warmers, etc and I still can't get it hot enough. i may be the only guy in the world that pours a freshly brewed cup of coffee into cup and then puts it in microwave for 30 secs (never boil though).

help me.

joe 68 L

[Mule]

The reason it's hot is because Starbucks became trendy. The reason it tastes better is because most national brands are crap. In New orleans where there are 4 or 5 local roasters, there has been good coffee for a long time & "boutique" coffee is much less of a big whoop. I worked for Community coffee out of Baton Rouge. They bought coffee "by the field" in Columbia. Think about this for a minute. These Columbians have been supporting themselves for generations by selling to big co.s. Do you think they sell the crap to the guys who provide them with a livelyhood & save the good stuff for some guy buying 3 sacks? If you like, dark (aka French aka expresso) roast, you can get as fine a coffee as exists from Community's web site. As for flavored coffees, they're like flavored cigars, more crap.

[joehahn]

I'm sensing you don't like coffees like "Snickerdoodle vanilla" and "smooth irish cream" etc? What about the stuff Cafe du Monde serves? Chickory? THAT is awesome.

[jgbnm]

If you want an easy cup of coffee that tastes DRAMATICALLY better than any drip coffee. Go with a superautomatic. Make your own coffee drinks, espresso, americano, cafe creme, etc... Quick and easy. Pays for itself if you regularily buy your coffee at Star!ucks...

[Moses]

I have a serious addiction. The Capresso Jura S9. The Porsche of superautomatics. Costs about the same as a pair of leather Recaro Pole Position racing shells. Amazing brew.

[vash]

moses!!?? that is your coffee maker? damn!

i still use my $9.00 kettle, $20 coffee press, and $15 coffee grinder. the parts that add up are the beans. IMO, i wouldnt get a grinder/brewer unit. too much could go wrong. unless, you are one of those that absolutely need the beans to be pulverized right before the water bath, and you use the timer function. to be honest, the money and time i have spent waiting in line at peets could get the high end machine.

[djmcmath]

Don't get started on the coffee slope. You thought owning an early 930 was slippery? Wait until you get into this. I asked some coffee questions a little while ago and ended up at CoffeeGeek.com. It's mostly focused around espresso, but that's clearly because espresso is the optimal coffee extraction method -- it's actually possible to produce a drink that is neither bitter nor sour, and actually tastes like the beans smell before you brew them.

The downside is that the process is fantastically precise. The serious types will spend $250 on a burr grinder like a Mazzer Mini or the like that can come up with unmatched grind consistency. The grinder, BTW, is absolutely critical to good coffee. Just as the driver is the most important thing to improve to make a car faster, having a good grinder makes more difference even than having a good brew-pot. The second most important thing is the freshness of beans. Beans are best brewed between 3 and 7 days after roasting. I can tell the difference between week-old beans and month-old beans when brewing, seriously.

But back to espresso -- you'll find that the grind and tamp go together as critical elements. The machine, then, is required to produce a precisely regulated temperature, pressure, and flow rate of water through the puck. My machine has two self-installed digital controllers, one for each boiler, and produces absolutely fantastic coffee. If I had spent another $100 on the grinder, I'd probably get more consistent results, too.

Is it all worth it? Your call. Some people can't tell the difference. My room-mate, when we started, couldn't tell if I fed him a shot of used Swepco. Now he makes comments like "Is this last week's beans, or did you pull it half a degree lower than usual?"

Dan

[joehahn]

Oh my God. Moses, I googled your coffeemaker. Costs as much as my first Porsche! (75 914).

joe 68 L

[tabs]

DJ is right on the money....

Try...www.salvatore-espresso.com or www.wholelattelove.com

My choich is the Salvatore and Mini Mazzer..total cost was $1820.00...I use them evey day and love em...

[Moses]

Originally posted by joehahn
Oh my God. Moses, I googled your coffeemaker. Costs as much as my first Porsche! (75 914).

joe 68 L

It is truly my only ridiculous extravagance. I was all set to buy a Salvatore like Tabs, but I rarely have time for the sweet ritual of a manual machine. (Maybe when I retire?)

The Capresso Jura is amazing! One push of a button and my cup is ready. I drink mostly cafe crema, thats a whole 8 ounce cup of coffee pulled through the espresso at high pressure. You get a thick head of mahogany colored "crema" without adding milk. It is pure heaven. My wife likes cappucino and latte, and that is quick and simple with the Jura.

If I stay out of Pete's for a year, the machine is paid for!

[tabs]

Believe me with good quality machines you will never go back to Starbucks or whoever else is out there...

I took the hood off my Salvatore....it's all Brass and Copper ....theres only a 1" piece of vinyl tubing in the whole machine..and that from the reservoir to the pump and thats so U can reprime the pump by squeezing it, if the need should arise...thats it....