-Bonavita 8 Cup Coffee Maker, One-Touch Pour Over Brewing with Thermal Carafe, SCA Certified, Stainless Steel (BV1900TS)

There is a reason that many home baristas and coffee magazines and coffee “influencers” consider this the best batch brewer on the planet. There is a reason I own 2 for home and one for the office and have for almost 10 years. It is the best batch brewer on the planet. From the bloom feature to the large shower head and flat bottom basket (my preference) to the thermal carafe, it makes better coffee and is less fiddly than a lot of the brewers out there…for a remarkable price. Don’t be frightened off by reliability rumors…my guess, most people having difficulties simply do not clean their coffee makers on a regular basis. Particularly if you have hard water, scaling buildup can cause thermal and brew issues. Just keep it clean and it will last you a decade or longer. And reward you with better coffee than you can get pretty much anywhere…from anyone. I suggest you spend a little time learning how to make coffee…from the grind to your water to water temperature to the proper coffee/water ratio for the coffee you are preparing…but that effort will be rewarded here with the best coffee you have (or will) ever have.

I will hopefully educate some of you into a good coffee maker, through my research and trials. I am just your average consumer looking for the best cup of coffee I can find, without having to go to a specialty store such as Starbucks. I usually don’t write to many reviews but this coffee maker tops them all. I have purchased and have used many coffee makers over time, but I think I found the one. I have used and owned various coffee makers. Here is the list of what I have personally used and tested. I use filtered water through a Pur Led 11 Cup Pitcher and a Capresso 560.04 Inifinity Conical Burr Grinder. With that out of the way, we are off to look at each coffee maker. Technivorm Moccamaster KBT 741 Let’s start out with most expensive coffee maker I have purchased to date. While this is the most sturdy and well-built coffee make I have ever used, and will no doubt last the test of time, it lacked a few options I would like to see. Such as a pre soak feature to allow the fresh coffee grounds to bloom prior to finishing the brewing cycle. I found myself standing by the brewer, with the brew basket shut off, letting it fill with a cup or so of hot water then stirring the grounds to make sure they were all saturated. The shower arm has many holes, but water did not come out each hole consistently. Noticeably coming out just the end of the shower head. I would find myself moving around the basket way too much to get all the grounds wet. This will end up on Ebay. BUNN NHS Velocity Brew BUNN GRB Velocity Brew I loved these brewers! The rich full taste is hard to beat. The con’s on these two is I didn’t have the thermal carafe and the coffee started to lose its flavor quickly. I kept the GRB model for a backup coffee maker, just in case the Bonavita has any issues Keurig B60 Special Edition They got me on the convenience aspect, but the cost of the pods was killing stroke for me. Yes I did have the pods I could load with my own coffee, but they were too messy and time consuming. And I usually drink more than one cup. It was great for making hot chocolate for the kid, but in the end, it made its way to my closet. Cuisinart DCC-1200 Brew Central This coffee maker made excellent coffee minus the richness I was missing from the Bunn coffee makers. I sacrificed flavor and richness for a timered unit. But it did the job, if you’re looking to pre make your coffee the night before. But what I was looking for was overall taste. It is next to the Bunn And Keurig in the closet. I will most likely sell this one eBay as well. Now while this list is an expensive list. And cost doesn’t always equal a good cup. Coming from a farming family I have grown accustomed to the flavor of the Bunn coffee makers and let’s be honest they do make a delicious cup of coffee. The coffee makers are quick and stay within the time frame for the Specialty Coffee Association of America brewing times, but not the water temperature constancy during the brew cycle. Needless say I still love the cup of coffee these makers put out. The Bonavita makes a much better cup of coffee than the Bunn or Technivorm. And for the cost you can’t go wrong. Sure the price in between the costs of the two, but it’s a lot cheaper than the Technivorm. I wish I would have had a review to read that was just made by a plain consumer like myself. So hopefully this helps someone with their decisions. Good luck!

I asked for this for my Christmas present from my husband and I got it. Pre infusion, yes! Hot water, yes, up to 195 degrees! But I was very disappointed, in myself, for not checking details better. It doesn't have a timer to set the night before. Somehow in choosing between products and functions I missed the absence of a timer so I could have hot coffee when I get up! Thermal carafe is there, as I wished, but it holds more then the 8 cups brewed. So when the coffee is finished the carafe isn't full. I think this effects the coffee from staying as hot as it should. Somehow it seems that when they made this model they didn't take the time to design a carafe that fits. I'm also bothered by the need to change out the brewing basket to put on the carafe lid. My old Starbucks model had a button in the carafe lid for the coffee to go through, direct from hot coffee to carafe. Maybe I'm just not a coffee snob, and don't enjoy the details of making a fine cup of coffee, but while this does what it says, its not a great model for a busy working woman. I could have returned it, but hubby destroyed the box Christmas morning, doing the wrapping paper clean up, so I couldn't ship it back. I decided to just get used to it and I will continue to use this, but it still bothers me every time. Yes, it does what it says, pre infuses and gets hot water up to 195 degrees, (I checked it with my instant meat thermometer). So, I fill it the night before, like I would if it had a timer, but I have to wait 7-8 min before its ready to drink in the morning. Come on, for the price I paid for this it should be more convenient; the carafe should be designed to fit the amount of coffee brewed, and I shouldn't have to change out the brew basket for the lid. Oh and don't pour the coffee directly from the carafe before putting on the lid, it will not pour in a nice flow, it will spill on the counter, unless the cup has a nice wide mouth and you pour fast. So I give this a 3 because it does what it says, but the picture doesn't show the carafe lid sitting around or the brew basked looking for a place to be. In my house the brew basked sits up on top of the water resevoir for the rest of the day. Sigh... Feb 26, I've had this Bonavita since Christmas, I'm adding now a deeper disappointment, it stops brewing at 0.8 Liter and I have to depress the start button again, then at about 0.3 it stops again and I have to press the start button again. 3 starts to get a pot of coffee! I need to change my star rating to a two star or possibly a one star. I've unplugged it in an attempt to "reset" it and that doesn't help. Any ideas?

Pros: Easy to clean carafe and basket Easy to fill with water and check fill lines Stainless carafe means that there is no warming plate to burn out over time Specialty Coffee Association approved Quick and consistent brew time (see above point) No bull$&!+ features or buttons. You fill the basket with grounds, fill the reservoir with water and push the On/Off switch to On. No delay timers, no brew strength buttons, no cleaning buttons, no clocks. Just On/Off. It turns off on it's own when it's done brewing. I love things that are this simple. I think it looks good and it has a small footprint on my counter Both pro and con: The carafe has a lid that needs to be unscrewed and completely removed in order to place the coffee basket for brewing. It's annoying to have to store a lid somewhere else and attach every time after brewing. The positive side of this (which in my opinion far outweighs the negative) is that the seal on this lid is perfect and the lever activated pour spout gives a perfect pour every time. Press to pour, release to stop. No nonsense. Cons: So much plastic I worry about it long term. The bottom of the coffee basket was discoloured after 2 uses. Discoloured spot hasn't grown or gotten whiter since but it is something I am monitoring. If I leave my coffee maker plugged in between brews at least a day apart I can't start the second brew without needing to unplug from the wall and leave it for at least 2 minutes. If I don't and I push the On/Off switch it makes a click noise and it turns itself off within 1 second. Maybe mine is defective. Maybe I didn't read the instruction manual and it's supposed to be unplugged all the time.

Got it out of the box, plugged it in, and it never worked. Brand new and KAPUT. We are very happy with the Mellita Look.

Es una cafetera muy simple para bien: Le pones café de preferencia recién molido, le pones agua, colocas la jarra y presionas el botón. Si tienes tiempo de esperar un poquito más puedes usar el modo pre-infusión, sujetando presionado el botón tres segundos hasta que pite dos veces y luego presionando otra vez para iniciar la cocción, la diferencia en sabor es leve pero suficiente, el café es delicioso en ambos modos, el segundo le da un poco más intensidad. PROs: - El tanque trae medidas de peso de café en los aforos de las tazas, por si se te olvida o quieres preparar una cantidad distinta a la habitual. - La cocción es relativamente rápida, el agua no tarda mucho en bajar y cae con la temperatura correcta para hacer un café delicioso. - El portafiltro es extraíble por lo que es más fácil de limpiar. - La jarra mantiene el café calientito como por tres horas, suficiente para tomar café toda la mañana o la noche. Contras: - El hecho de que la cocción sea abierta quiere decir que durante la cocción la cafetera avienta un montón de vapor para arriba, lo que no es conveniente si lo querías poner en un muele de madera como es mi caso, estás avisado. - La jarra sostiene un resto a la hora que la vacías, inclusive si la enjuagas se queda con agua, quien haya diseñado la jarra no quería que se quedara sin agua nunca. - 8 tazas no es tanto, suficiente para hasta cuatro personas, si necesitas servir a más gente o tomar más de una vez tienes que preparar otra vez o bien mejor comprar la que sigue que es más grande.

Machine smart and looked great in kitchen. Very easy to use then taste...most disappointing despite using correct grinder. Impossible to empty flask, liquid ie coffee gets stuck under rim. Probably rinsed 6 times and then to return had finish with numerous kitchen towels. The rim also oozed coffee down outside. Returned after one four cup use....I should add did not retain heat over 3hrs period.

I've had this coffee maker for months now. Initially, I was pretty happy with it. It was very straightforward to use and I like the fact it also came packaged with a good supply of starter filters. The learning curve was quite quick and simple, but there a few tips to keep in mind. If you are like me, one of the main reasons for considering this unit was the fact it was recognized by the Specialty Coffee Association (https://sca.coffee/) as a "SCA Certified Home Brewer". The SCA Certified Home Brewer program was "developed by coffee science experts and professional coffee tasters, this program reviews brewers designed for in-home use to determine if they meet the rigorous requirements of brewed coffee quality as determined by the SCA. These requirements are based on decades of industry knowledge and research by the Coffee Brewing Center. All SCA Certified Brewers have met these requirements, which are based on proper water temperature, brewing time, and ability to brew within the SCA Golden Cup recommendations. If a brewer passes all of the tests as described below and conducted by the SCA, that brewer will be recognized as an exemplary home brewer and join the short list of SCA Certified Brewers." There are 2 tips that you should note when using this coffee maker 1) The brewing temperature of the unit falls within the SCA recommended guidelines. This is a feature that was very important to me as I bought and returned a 'nice-looking' Braun coffee maker unit just before this one which did not brew at those higher temperatures. However, if your intention is to brew more than one cup, with the hope of having the thermos maintain a hot temperature you should be aware that the company recommends you try to brew a higher number of cups (max about 10). I found that the thermos did not hold temperature very well, that is, until I started brewing a higher number of cups based on the recommendation of the manufacturer customer service. That helped significantly. Furthermore, you can step up temperatures and hold times further by pre-heating the brewer thermos with hot tap water before your brew cycle. Finally, be sure to attach the screw on air lock lid immediately after the end of the brew cycle to lock in that heat. 2) The second, more subtle, tip that I overlooked is the 'pre-infusion' mode. You can set this mode by holding the power button down for five seconds at which point you will see it blink twice. "Normal mode" is just the default when first plugged in and it immediately brews until the water runs. In Pre-infusion mode, the brewer will first wet the grounds and allow them to infuse and swell. This is ideal when it comes to a really fresh coffee brew, because it allows that coffee to eliminate of all the built up C02 that's built up that's lingering in the coffee grounds. It will then basically pulse the water throughout the brew (which takes a few minutes longer). The result is a notably much richer, fuller tasting cup of coffee. (Note that if you unplug the unit, it resets to the default normal mode...so you'll again have to hold down the brew button initially for 5 seconds to reinitiate Pre-Infusion mode.) In a very minimalistically satisfying way, it does what few other coffee brewer do, which is to simply produce a quality cup of coffee. The superfluous bells and whistles of many other machines often really add more money to your order and little to nothing to the brew quality of coffee. All in all, I really like and recommend this coffee maker.