Coffee Maker Reviews

If you're shopping for a coffee maker, it's a good idea to check out at least several models from several manufacturers before buying. It doesn't matter whether your budget is $40 or $800. Chances are good that you want to buy a coffee maker and be happy with it, not wonder why you bought in haste and hassle with returning a less-than-ideal purchase.

The idea is to gather input from experienced coffee buffs, your own friends and acquaintances, and a variety of objective sources. Just as you want balance in the aroma and taste of the coffee you drink, you want to make a sensible investment. With the variety of forums there are online these days, you can also pick up good information from those dedicated to cuisine and coffee lore.

There's no one-stop shopping for this kind of information. You're looking for technical comparison sheets and personal feedback. Start with friends and colleagues, neighbors and coffee bar visitors. Ask someone behind the counter serving you that caramel latte.

Making Sense of Coffee Maker Reviews

As you gather and sort and begin to filter all this input, however, put your own wish list check list out there in bold face. Compare against it. Do you brew for one person or four? How often will you be making espresso or cappuccino? Is it critical to prepare the night before so that you can wake up to the aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafting throughout the house? Do you prefer a manual coffee maker or a fully automatic one?

Think realistically of your day-to-day lifestyle and how the coffee maker will fit into it. There's a big difference, after all, between the Sunday morning "cuppa cappu or two" over the newspaper and bolting out the door at 6:45 in the morning five days a week with a thermos cup in your hand. One size doesn't fit all, as we all know too well. You might also want to consider two machines--one for the everyday morning and another for special brews.