June 2013 update: Just found this as part of synching with new iPhone and just posting now. Coffee pot is working well and consistently, and I have learned that I do not need to drink one full liter of coffee every day :)
When my Braun Aroma Master coffee pot died a few weeks ago, I needed to find my back-up four cup Mr Coffee brewer until able to find a replacement. While it is usually functional, I have to be very vigilant in placing the filter, minding the grind (not too fine) and measuring the coffee or it overflows coffee and grounds onto the counter and in the coffee grounds, necessitating a refiltering before drinking. This is the reason the still functional pot sits in the back of the storage cupboard, reserved for emergencies.
Which brewer shall be the replacement? I like the Braun, it has served me well, and first look at a updated Braun model. There is one that looks great, with many of the same features that attracted me to my recently defunct one some 15 or 20 years ago. Alas, none of this brand are currently available in the US. Then I remembered the great coffee I had visiting Ele (Rosenheim) and search for the Krups 458, which forces the water, placed below the pot up and over the grounds. It seems to be perpetually out of stock in the US, so I wrote to the company in Germany for guidance, and in what I am coming to see as a pattern in German service, was given a website to go to, along with the assurance that of course it was available. The website does not sell to the public, all links there did not sell the item, and the coup de grace was that a couple days later, the item disappeared from all Krups sites. Olcotts, a California company listed it for sale, so I ordered it, only to receive an email three days later that the item was non longer available. Screw you Krups. This model is your highest rated one, consistently getting rave reviews, and this is the one you aren't producing to meet demand?!
I did not want to get something made in China, so the search continued. I finally settled on a model made in Holland, the Technivorm, which comes with a 5 year warranty. It has different features than my former machine, the neatest of which include guaranteed precise temperature of the water and a thermal carafe with NO heating element. That may sound odd, but I will not have to worry about leaving the coffee pot on all day (it's happened more than a couple times). A coffee bean company in Connecticut serves as the importer, and offered a nice deal a, including two pounds of coffee, a packet of filters, coffee maker cleaner and no shipping. Ordered, and now on the way, the tracking information states I will have my Christmas present to myself on Tuesday. I'm really looking forward to forming a relationship with my new machine.
Update: the machine as arrived! First pot--WAY too strong for me. Second pot--better, but still too strong. Today's pot--discovered that the measure scoop that came with the machine is equal to two of my former scoops (a tablespoon). I used my tablespoon sand tried to guess what I'd need, since I was used to either 6 or 8 oz cups and this model is based on 4 oz cups, and the water measure is based on 1 liter. I cannot do math before coffee, and the result is as bit weak, but really full flavored. Definitely on the right path, I'll add a bit more tomorrow.
