Description
From the manufacturer
 |  |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cuisinart Coffee Center Grind & Brew Plus | Cuisinart 10-Cup Thermal Coffeemaker & Single-Serve Brewer | Cuisinart Coffee Center 12-Cup Coffeemaker & Single-Serve Brewer | Cuisinart Coffee Center Brew Basics | |
| Model # | SS-GB1 | SS-20P1 | SS-15P1 | SS-12P1 |
| Carafe | 12-Cup Glass | 10-Cup Thermal | 12-Cup Glass | 12-Cup Glass |
| Single-Serve Option | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Built-in Grinder | ✓ | |||
| Separate Single-Serve Water Reservoir | 40 oz. | Removable 40 oz. | Removable 40 oz. | 40 oz. |
| Strength Control | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| HomeBarista Reusable Filter Cup Compatible | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Brew Sizes | 12-Cup Carafe, 3 Single-Serve Sizes: 8, 10, & 12 oz. | 10-Cup Carafe, 3 Single-Serve Sizes: 6, 8, & 10 oz. | 12-Cup Carafe, 3 Single-Serve Sizes: 6, 8, & 10 oz. | 12-Cup Carafe, 3 Single-Serve Sizes: 8, 10, & 12 oz. |
| 24-Hour Programmable | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Auto-Off | 0-4 Hours | ✓ | ✓ | 0-4 Hours |
RockyTechRockyTech –
This review is for the 10-cup DGB-850 with Thermal Carafe (stainless steel).After using this coffee maker for over 10 weeks, we are quite happy with it overall (after learning a few lessons). Perhaps this is an updated version of the model, but we have not had any of the issues some reviews mention, like problems cleaning the grinder burrs. In fact, this version does not even have user-access to the grinder parts, based on the videos and descriptions from others with problems. This model advertises that the grinder assembly auto-rinses all the grinds from the grinder — there is no disassembly to get to the grinder itself, and it appears to work fine without access. All we do to clean it after each use is rinse out the permanent filter itself (or toss the paper filter), and wipe moisture from the holder and the housing above the coffee carafe platform.PROS:* Coffee tastes very good — grind/strength controls allows pretty good control over desired taste, by adjusting the amount of water used with each grind range (see my grind testing chart image, and table below). My wife likes coffee a bit weaker, so we use 7-8 cups of water with a 6-cup Grind, for instance, adjusting Strength as needed for the exact amount of water used.* With the thermal carafe, the heating plate below the carafe warms the stainless steel carafe as the coffee is brewed, so there is no need to pre-heat a cold carafe (which we had to do with our previous coffee maker). Works well — the heater is turned off automatically after the coffee is brewed, so it does not over-heat the coffee. The thermal carafe keeps the coffee pretty warm for an hour or two.* At least so far, we have not had any issues with cleaning the grinder burrs — easy clean-up.* We really like the ability to use either the permanent filter basket, or a paper filter. With a septic system, we cannot rinse grounds down the drain, and it is sometimes a pain to dump grounds outside in bad weather (so the paper filter is handy in heavy snow). We did not have this option with our old blade-grinder coffee maker.CONS (Lessons Learned):* Pouring water into the reservoir is a pain with the coffee maker under a cabinet. You need access to the back of the coffee maker to pour from a bit behind, since pouring from the front can let water spill out the overflow slots at the back of the reservoir.* As some reviews mention, pouring from the carafe can be a bit tricky with the lid on, if you are not careful. A full pot pours fine, but steeper angles of pour as the carafe gets emptier can make a mess. I remove the lid for pouring as the pot gets emptier.* To get just the right coffee strength for your personal tastes, it helps to understand exactly how the coffee maker adjusts the grind for the settings (Grind and Strength). I could not find this information in the manual or any on-line reference. See my «Strength Notes» below — between knowing what each combination does, and adjusting the amount of water for each setting, you can get pretty much just what you want, without wasting coffee.STRENGTH NOTES:At first, we found it a bit limiting to have fixed settings for only 4, 6, 8 & 10 cups of coffee. And I could not find any good description anywhere about exactly what the Grind control and the Strength control do — does one adjust the fineness of the grinding mechanism, and the other the amount of coffee beans ground (based on the amount of time the grinder runs)? If so, which controls which? All the manual really says is «The burr grinder will grind the correct amount of beans, and automatically adjust the coffee/water ratio for low cup settings.»So, I started experimenting with different settings to see what each does, based on the weight of the ground coffee put into the filter. I weighed the grounds after brewing each pot at different setting combinations, letting them drain quite a while first (wet grounds, but well drained). The chart in the image attached to this review (also shown in the table below) shows my results — not every setting available, but enough to figure out what is happening, I believe. From visual comparisons, I could not see any apparent differences in the coarseness of the grounds themselves with any combination, so I assume that the grinder does not change the coarseness/fineness of the grind itself, only the amount of beans ground, for both the strength and grind (# of cups) settings. But with the information in the chart, and by adjusting the amount of water you put in the reservoir for each brew, you can get pretty close to the strength you want. Ground Coffee Weights, Cuisinart DGB-850 Coffeemaker GRIND STRENGTH GRAMS (avg.) ============================= 4 Cups Extra Bold 75 6 Cups Regular 91 6 Cups Bold 102 6 Cups Extra Bold 120 8 Cups Bold 122 8 Cups Extra Bold 140So, for example, we brew a slightly weaker-than-recommended pot by setting the Grind (# of cups) to 6 cups, adding either 7 or 8 cups of water to the reservoir, and setting the Strength as a kind of fine-tuning adjustment to get just the strength we want for that batch (my wife likes it a bit weaker, I like it a bit stronger — we alternate!).Hopefully this will help you fine-tune your perfect cup of coffee. Happy brewing!
Linda G.Linda G. –
First See the Photos above: positioning the lid to open on the CUP side, you can minimize grounds flinging into the cup and cupboard. With the lid in the up position it provides a lift to the basket to bring closer to the top… and minimizes coffee grounds scattered on/in the surrounding area. The second picture shows the minimal coffee grinds with the coffee basket pictured on the side of the cup above. Now I’m not an Engineer but a Design Engineer can adjust the levels and “tighten” the opening Gap between basket top and coffee Maker bottom and still allow Basket to have an easy slide into position! I love this coffee maker!
Ethan Wells –
So I purchased this to replace my Cuisinart CHW-12 Coffee Plus 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker with Hot Water System, Black/Stainless. I was very pleased with the *coffeemaker* component of this latter (its hot water system being another matter), and was looking for a similar coffeemaker that also had a grind and brew function. I have had it now for just shy of a year, and am almost entirely pleased with it. Let me address the pros and cons, both as I see them and as they have been discussed in other reviews:Pros:(1) This coffeemaker is able to produce an excellent cup of coffee in very little time.(2) The grind function allows you to control precisely how much coffee you want ground. Other models — such as the Krups KM7005 Grind and Brew coffeemaker — essentially have a reservoir for beans that are ground according to your selection of coffee-strength. Effectively, this means it uses a timer to determine how much coffee to grind. In my experience, this resulted in an imperfect and — more importantly — inconsistent cup of coffee. This Cuisinart coffeemaker, by contrast, will grind precisely how much coffee you put in the grinder. I have been surprised to find no residue, or almost no residue, in the grinder after each use. This allows you to control the strength of your coffee, and produce a consistent cup.(3) You can easily turn the grinder off. I keep a stash of ground coffee at the ready for those days when I’m running behind and want to save a step. It doesn’t save a lot of time — but it’s a nice feature.Cons(1) A number of people have noted in their reviews that this coffeemaker is a lot of work to clean. While I don’t find this in fact to be the case, it does require you to wash, in addition to the components common to any coffeemaker, the grinder after each use. The only systems with which I am familiar that do not require this are those with a coffee reservoir; the drawback of these systems, as I note above, is that it is difficult to get a consistently good cup of coffee out of them. So I think this is a have your cake or eat it predicament: if you want a consistently good cup of coffee from a grind and brew coffeemaker, you’re probably going to need to buy one requiring additional cleaning.(2) I was surprised to find how much I missed the carafe temperature control function of my old Cuisinart CHW-12 coffeemaker. I find this grind and brew coffeemaker produces coffee that is slightly too hot for my taste. That said, it is a minor drawback, easily corrected by waiting a few minutes after pouring a cup before drinking it.(3) Unlike the CHW-12, there is no transparent window that allows you to see how much water is in the reservoir from the side of the coffeemaker. Instead, you have to look down into the water reservoir, at a series of steps marking 2, 4, 6, 8 and so forth. This makes it difficult to fill the reservoir to, say, 3 cups or 5 cups or 7 cups etc. Why? Because when you are looking down, you lose the perspective necessary to determine when the water is halfway between, say, 4 and 6. This is a minor inconvenience that can be worked around by trial and error.(4) I agree with those reviewers who say the grinder is not large enough to make an entire pot of strong coffee. This doesn’t make the least difference for me since I only make half a pot per day. To make half a pot of coffee at my desired strength, however, I do need to fill the coffee grinder well more than 1/2 full. Upshot: a 12 cup pot of coffee is likely to be weaker than I would want it. So: if you want 12 cups every morning of strong coffee, this grind and brew coffee maker is likely to fall short of your expectations. If, on the other hand, you only occasionally make a full pot of coffee, I’d recommend that, on those occasions, you turn the grinder off and use the appropriate amount of pre-ground coffee instead.Overall, I would deduct a 1/2 star for cons (2) and (3). That not being an option, however, I have given this coffeemaker a 5 star rating since 4 stars would certainly not do credit to its many fine features.**UPDATE 05/12/2020**I have had this unit for just over a year. I stand by my original assessment. It is far and away the best coffee maker I have ever purchased, at least for my purposes.
B. Ulm –
This is my 3rd grind and brew so obviously I love them. Each has lasted 5 years or more and when they eventually die (my last one grinder started to leak dust a bit) I replace with the same thing since they work so well and brew such great coffee. Its a bit more work to clean than a standard brewer (literally 1 additional part) but so worth it. This is simply a more refine version of my last one from about 5 years ago, with a cool blue display, more modern button layout but the same awesome coffee brewer. Get one — you will not be disappointed.
Philip ThomasPhilip Thomas –
We bought this Cuisinart coffeemaker to replace one we lost in a disaster. We were looking for one with an insulated carafe and the whole bean grinder, and we really love it! We just started using it and I discovered how much easier it is to clean than the old one. Everything that the coffee contacts is removable and it was such a breeze to clean thoroughly! It is also programmable to brew automatically, but be aware that if you program it for a fresh pot in the morning, the unexpected noise of the beans grinding may scare your family!! Totally recommend this coffeemaker though!!!
Ray Cone –
Freshly ground coffee, brewed in a single serve machine. Wow! Yes!!! I love coffee, plain and simple. I don’t; however, love contributing to landfills to coddle my caffeine affair. For my purposes, this machine provides me a guilt free single serve option along with the capacity to go to the dark side with conventional Keurig pods when a quick and easy option is necessary. Geez, this sounds like my dream coffee maker…because it is. I highly recommend it ? ☕️
BT –
A single serve grind and brew! I’ve had mine for a few months now and I’m really digging it. I’ve been using K cups for convenience but this coffee brewer blows those away. I’m back to enjoying gourmet coffee beans again. My only small gripe is that the grinder session tends to drop a bit of grounds under the grinder but I just use a tiny condiment dish to catch wayward buggers. Enjoy a single, gourmet cup of Joe, without all the mess.
Sabrina Benavides –
Disclaimer. Do not overfill the water reservoir it will literally come out the back of the coffee machine. I’m not sure if this is intentional by the manufacturer but the first time I accidentally overfilled it the water started pouring out from behind the machine. After i never did that again. I’ve had no problems. Follow the directions! And run once before using it. Very very hot!!! The water burned my hand i prefer really hot coffee so this was not a flaw to me. But some may find the temp to hot. My product is the cuisinart grind and brew plus!
Jim Hickey –
The grinder works great and a whole pot is easy. I’m Experimenting a bit with making smaller batches to my taste. Looks good and easy to clean
Amy Thies –
I’m so glad I bought this!! It keeps coffee ridiculously hot, which is fantastic when you use creamer like I do. Grinder isn’t as loud as my stand alone and is much faster. The option to shut off the grinder and use grounds is super handy too! I really like this coffee maker. I know 2 others with one, they’ve both had them for years. I searched for a month for just the right coffee maker, this was a big win.
Laurat –
Very well written! The points discussed are highly relevant. For further exploration, check out: LEARN MORE. Keen to hear everyone’s opinions!