It arrived today. This thing is lighter than I thought it would be. My wife was floored. She was also unsure of the gold filter that I got for it as well. She was so exited that She has already brewed a pot at 4PM to try it out. She was very impressed and she now wants to find a good source of quality coffee beans online that is not available in stores.
I told her to check Roastmasters and Seattle Coffee Works. Any other recommendations?
Special thanks to Everyone that suggested Technivorm. ![[thumbs-up.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/f/f84c5acc11486ee4baba6dee6cf61dbd133abb18.gif "[thumbs-up.gif]"){kind=small}
After many hints like “I would really like a Brazen”, I received one for the holidays. Still tweaking temp, grind, etc, but the unit is terrific.
I’d love to hear more about it down the road!
Me, too, the Brazen might be the most interesting/exciting thing on the coffee maker market in a decade…i’m very interested in hearing how it works, etc…
the Brazen looks great–even a two year warranty–looks like it was very well engineered both in concept and execution. The 40 oz capacity is really just under 7 cups of coffee, not the claimed 8, but all else looks great. (6 oz is traditional for a cup, not 5, right?)
alan
My Brazen is performing quite well, even though the drip from the carafe means I must pour it sloooowly into the mug.
Other than the weak design of the carafe’s spout, there is at least one issue with a few of the Brazen units, detailed on the last 3 of the 75 pages about the Brazen on Coffeegeek.com. Here is the link to page 75:
http://coffeegeek.com/forums/coffee/machines/577567?Page=75
It relates to the fact that some units do not disgorge all water into the grounds before shutting down…up to an inch of water is left behind, according to one poster.
It sounds like a fixable issue, though, and I continue to be a fan.
Mine is performing well, but yes the carafe spout is of poor design. Pour too quickly and it’s on the counter.
No problem with water disgorgement here.
I was sooo close to getting Brazin (seen several reviews about carafe issues) and I pass on it for Technivorm. Glad I did.
Just be careful you don’t slice your hand on the knife-life top of the Technivorm thermal carafe; I’ve done so twice, drawing blood. When I called the company they said “they’d take note”.
FWIW, after having the Technivorm and a Newco for years…I prefer the Newco’s pour-through brewing function much more. (And, Brazen has a pour through.) With the Technivorm…you have to brew with no top; put the independent stopper into the top (being careful not to slice your hand on the metal rim), and take it on and off each time you want a cup. What a pain!! Technivorm did sell an expensive top that you could pour through and, I thought, brew through like the others. But, when I got it I realized that you could not brew with it on, so it didn’t eliminate that pain in the neck.
The significant extra cost of the Technivorm, their indifferent customer support…and the greater convenience of the machines with pour through thermal brewing…make me less than enthusisastic, as does the extensive use of plastic in the Technivorm machines.
The Brazen seems to me a real step up…and significant cost savings. And, with the adjustable brewing temp, an ability to calibrate to one’s own coffee preferences. and seemingly much sturdier/less plastic construction…makes me wish it were around when I bought the other two. But, I can’t justify buying one…yet.
Though, to be clear, I think the coffee that comes out of the Technivorm and/or Newco is fine…though…both use a spray head for the water that will NOT provide a wide enough shower to wet all of the grinds…without a manual stirring (look at them sometime; some will be dry). The Brazen has a real showerhead effect…and the ability to let the grinds rest after initial soaking to let the grinds bloom…and then start automatically again. http://www.finecooking.com/item/30758/making-automatic-drip-coffee-better-by-blooming Though I am not convinced it is necessary for good coffee from these top machines, I do stop the machines to manually stir coat the grinds to let them bloom for a minute or two when I have time. (And, many sources say this blooming is really beneficial.)
I guess I don’t see why there is so much love for Technivorm. But, I also don’t understand why there is so much love for Leroy and Dom. Romanee Conti burgundies…and other such trophy wines, especially given the extra cost involved.
I’d swear that, on a prior thread, you were a huge Technivorm advocate. The thermal carafe now has a top w a small hole so you can brew with it on and the java stays hot. I have been happy w it after 3 Capressos that stopped heating the water hot enough. The Technivorm heats the water real well. Haven’t cut my hand yet, either.
alan
Alan,
I will support that had moved firmly in the Newco camp before I even purchased my Technivorm, which is putting us back to about 2008-2009. Other than that I can’t comment. Love my uninsulated old glass version of the Technivorm.
I also have the current version of the thermal carafe Technivorm. You can brew and pour through the top, and I couldn’t cut myself on the lid if I tried (maybe they did take note of Stuart’s phone call).
-Al
I guess the question is for me…Yes, I was a huge fan of the coffee from the Technivorm, which was the only one on the market of the ones I think are great, when I bought my first in 2004-5, I think. Then Newco created one somewhat later (2007-8?), which was cheaper and , frankly, looked better/easier to keep looking clean, with the same great coffee, made by the high heat boiler. (I know Alan W. got one and didn’t like it). I like them both still, though, I find that rim around the top dangerous. (I wonder if they did take note? It is knifelike on mine.)
But, this Brazen seems like a real step upward and spaceward…with all its features. There are taste tests on Youtube and the net which conclude the coffee is as good as the Technivorm, too. I really like those features and could see how they would make great coffee, and easier… The Technivorm is significantly pricier, and like with trophy wines/labels, I say though they are probably terrific, I’m not into paying a premium for the label/trophy. And, this Brazen really is intriguing, by comparison to both the Newco and the Technivorm, which used to be the two highest rated ones out there by the coffee organization.
Above all, just like with wine, I am most interested in a great tasting experience. Both the Technivorm and Newco, and, I assume, the Brazen seem to provide that. I just don’t like several things about the Technivorm, including the price premium…and the inconvenient manual brewing process. (It does sound like they have improved/made safer some things since I bought mine, though the price is much higher now, too!)
couldn’t cut oneself on the current Technivorm carafe if you tried. Wish it had a timer, though. Cost about $200. I am happy w it, more than Newco or Capresso.
alan
Can’t find a price lower than $279 for the glass carafe…and $299 for the thermal. You musta did well…
that is what I get for relying on memory-- wife says we paid $279.
alan
You got thermal or glass, Alan?
And, if thermal, if you could email me a picture of top rim of the thermal container, I’d like to see it…to see if it’s indeed changed, which it sounds like.
thanks
thermal–will email pic.
alan
+1.
Alan, why not get a digital timer for it? Plug the Technivorm into it and leave the switch on. Let the digital timer come on when you want it too. Voila your coffee is ready. Digital timer turns itself off.