If you like your coffee on demand, this could be worth a second look. While big carafes make brew cycles easier, it tends to alter your brew’s taste whenever you leave it sitting for a while. This is often what you give up when you keep your coffee warm for a long time. One of the top features of Cuisinart equipment is that they have the needs of the consumers in mind. Made for ease of use, the water reservoir is a breeze to refill when the water supply is low, so you can get back to brewing.
Since it is a thermal carafe, there’s no need for a hot plate. You should still be able to pour a great cup of hot coffee long after the brew cycle is completed. The downside is that it’s a bit smaller than the glass carafe, holding only about ten cups of joe at a time. Cuisinart Coffee makers make good coffee on demand for their price-points. However, as with all things, they have features that correspond with their prices.
In the US, Cuisinart offers a huge range of coffee makers, but in other countries the selection is smaller. I hope my Cuisinart Coffee Center review helps answer any questions you had about this particular model. I think it’s nice to have the option of brewing a single serve or a full pot if only to make having company over for coffee a little easier.
Before you buy, be sure to measure the space where you plan to keep your coffee maker, as well as how much room you have below your cabinets. Keep in mind that even if your machine fits under the cabinet, most Cuisinart coffee makers need to be pulled forward so you can load them with water and ground coffee. If you’re looking for the best value from the brand, this 12-cup model is the one to choose. In spite of its relatively low price, the Cuisinart DCC-1100BK is attractive and offers the same basic perks as the more expensive models. It’s programmable, so you can set it to have the coffee ready the minute you wake up or walk into the house.
For single-serve machines, our engineers evaluate the temperature and size consistency of individual cups of coffee. And for cold-brew coffee makers, engineers assess ease of cleaning, and taste testers judge each brew. The manual advises that if brewing four cups or less, you should add 1½ scoops of coffee beans per cup, so we added six scoops. We also hit the 1-4 cup button for this brew; it isn’t essential that you do this, but Cuisinart says it will improve the flavor of the resulting drink.
We take specifications into account as well to find the makers which have the most to offer. We compare cup capacity, strength controls and any special features to find the most versatile and functional designs. Finally, we consider value for money to produce a final list of the best Cuisinart coffee makers. We found this coffee maker simple to use and set up, and unlike espresso machines there are no tricky skills to master.
Using ground coffee is easier than adding beans to the grinder – you simply add the ground coffee directly to the filter. You will have to remember to hit the “grind off” button, or the grinder will continue to spin. Brewing with ground coffee is quieter, with the Cuisinart Grind & Brew Auto hitting a maximum of 50dB on our noise meter. A full 10 cup brew took just under 10 minutes, which is similar to the brew time using whole beans, while a four cup brew took a speedier five minutes. We found that using pre-ground coffee resulted in a stronger drink, but it was also far more bitter – although again, this will very much depend on the coffee you use. The uncomplicated control panel displays the time and allows you to program the coffee maker to brew coffee at any time in the following 24 hours.
This isn’t the most attractive coffee machine we’ve seen. That said, the stainless-steel exterior is inoffensive, but it does mark easily with fingerprints, which is frustrating. Setup was easy, however, with us quickly able to figure out how to assemble and start up the coffee maker.
Turn the coffee maker’s programmable function knob to Auto-Off. You can make selections to have the coffee maker automatically turn off zero to four hours after a brewing cycle has finished. Once you have selected the appropriate time between cycles, allow the time to stop flashing; this will lock in your time until changed.