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Review: Capresso Coffee Maker/ Burr Grinder

Burr Grinder, Capresso

It grinds, it brews, and it’s easy to clean. What more can a caffeine addict ask? I have a few small complaints about the Capresso Combination Coffee Maker/ Burr Grinder, but they are nit-picking complaints. This coffee maker is definitely superior to the Cuisinart I used to own.

The Capresso has the grinding and brewing parts next to each other, and moves the coffee basket between them. To grind and brew, swing the basket under the grinder and press the start button. The machine grinds beans and then moves the basket under the brewer’s hot water dispenser. This avoids the soggy mess that rising steam creates in the grinder of other combination grinder-brewers.

Price:
Shop wisely and look for coupons. The usual price is $199, but I had a 20% off coupon from a local gourmet shop, so I only paid $160. The savings bought a lot of coffee beans.

Features and comments:

* Choose 2, 4, 6, 8 or 10 cups and select mild, regular or strong brew.
* 10-cup (50 oz.) capacity. That’s 10 dinky dinner-size cups or 4 typical commuter’s car mugs of coffee.
* The grinder compartment holds enough coffee beans for 4 full pots at a medium grind.
* You can have two different brew settings: one for using pre-ground coffee and one for grinding beans. This lets you make a small pot of one and a large pot of the other without changing settings.
* The grinder uses solid steel conical burrs, which grind coffee with less flavor-robbing heat build-up. It can produce a finer, more uniform grind than blade grinders.
* Four grinder settings compensate for various bean roasts. Dark roasted beans are oilier and require a coarser grind.
* An AM/PM Programmable Clock/Timer lets you set the time when to grind and brew automatically. Nothing says good morning like hearing the coffee maker starting while you are lazing in bed.
* The extremely legible display shows the time of day and the grind and strength settings.
* The coffee maker comes with a charcoal water filter, but I have not used it. An electronic filter indicator shows when to replace the charcoal filter (it isn’t magic, it just counts how many brewing cycles you have done).
* A special setting for brewing small quantities claims to “maintain aroma. I never brew less than a full pot so I can’t evaluate this.
* The filter has a washable metal filter basket, or you can remove the metal basket and use the common size 4 conical filter papers in the basket support.
* A safety shut-off turns the heating element off after 2 hours.

See also  Product Review: Capresso Infinity Burr Grinder

Cleaning:
The metal filter and filter basket are removable for washing by hand or in a dishwasher. Cleaning the grinder is easy: turn one screw, lift off the cover and brush out the coffee.

Operator Errors:

There may be other ways to fail to make coffee, but I haven’t found them. This can be a very messy coffee maker.

* If you forget to refill the grinder, you will have weak coffee.
* If you forget to move the basket under the grinder, you will have a pot of hot water.
* If you forget to put water in the tank, you will have no coffee.
* If you forget to replace the metal filter or use a paper filter inside the metal filter, the coffee will overflow all over your counter.
* If you forget to empty the used grounds before you make another pot, the coffee will overflow all over your counter.

My complaints:

There is no way to control the length of time the heating element is on, or even a way to prevent it from coming on. I would rather reheat cold coffee in a microwave than drink coffee that has been kept hot for 2 hours.

The carafe dribbles no matter how carefully I pour from it. I’ve never owned a coffee maker with a carafe that poured nicely.

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