Cuisinart DGB-600BC Grind & Brew, Brushed Chrome
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Cuisinart DGB-600BC Grind & Brew, Brushed Chrome
Customer Review: All looks with no character
Summary: 1 Stars
After pining over this machine for more than a year, my new husband and I were lucky enough to get one as a wedding present...or so we thought. After THREE trials yesterday and another blatant failure this morning I began to wonder if we had gotten a lemon. Certainly this beauty couldn't be capable of such "uninspired" joe. I decided to turn to the ever-faithful Amazon.com Review site to prove me wrong. After reading posts from several others in agreement, I have to admit I remain disappointed and deflated. I have resigned myself to the fact that our lone machine is not the lemon - this entire line of coffee makers is to blame. Here are my complaints:
POOR COFFEE STRENGTH: The caliber of coffee this machine produces is completely unacceptable. I at first attempted to make a 6 cup pot of coffee. Following the directions to a "T," I used 1.5 scoops (a scoop comes with the machine) per cup. Result = brown water. Next, in order to hedge my bet, I filled the bean chamber completely to the MAX FILL line and added 10 cups of water. SAME RESULT! Sadly to say, the only way to rectify this problem is to make small amounts of coffee at a time using a significantly higher ratio of beans to water. This is both tedious and pricey.
POOR DESIGN: Like many other reviewers, I am aghast at this product's poor design. The door housing the grounds basket takes several attempts to close properly. It also seems very delicate and I worry that the spring-load type mechanism will give way at any moment. The carafe itself, while looking like a battle-worthy tank is really a diva! The top is very difficult to manipulate. It would be nearly impossible for seniors or individuals with poor fine motor skills to operate. Even when it is successfully "unlocked," it spills coffee on the counter or floor no matter how slowly it is poured. Third, unless you've read the direction manual from cover to cover, you may not realize that the handle of the grounds basket must be flipped to the front at all times to avoid a catastrophic mess!
IT BROKE MY HEART: Now what to do? The Cadillac of coffee makers turns out to be a finicky old Volkswagen. It's like finding out Santa Claus isn't real. We're back at square one as this lemon of a product will soon find itself back at the store.
Customer Review: Had to add my 2 cents
Summary: 2 Stars
Not only have I never written a review of a product before I wrote one about the Cuisinart Grind and Brew 7 months ago (see below), I now feel compelled to write an update after owning it for 8 months. It has now begun to leak from the bottom. What I find so distressing is that it could be the best machine out there with just a few improvements, but the flaws are so glaring that were it $30.00 I would not buy it again. My first review was fairly negative, however, I've had a while to use the machine. In all fairness, it makes a nice cup of coffee. However, I am having more and more trouble getting the coffee compartment to stay closed, it always leaks from the caraffe and now it is leaking from the bottom of the machine. I don't even think about using the grind feature anymore. You don't have to constantly clean a stand alone bean grinder. I'm not an engineer, but it seems to me that you could somehow separate the grinding compartment from the water compartment by just running the plastic up to the top of the machine or encasing the grind compartment so that the condensation didn't get to the grinder. Anyway, I honestly would think twice before purchasing this machine. My husband liked our old Mr. Coffee better for its consistency.
I have never felt the urge to write a review until now. There is nothing to add that other people have not said, however, this product has so disappointed me that I wanted to include another review to the list. This morning was my husband's birthday. The only thing he asked from me was, "Will you get me a cup of coffee?" Sure no problem, hah!! I had done the "clean every part thing" and proceeded with getting everything ready. I didn't overfill the water level and it overflowed, making a 20 minute clean up necessary. We've had grounds in the coffee for no reason. Normally I research before buying but didn't this time. I decided to take a look and my husband and I just started laughing. We thought there was something wrong with us that we couldn't get this thing to run properly. You shouldn't have to spend so much time on clean up. We joked that the good reviews had come from people who had made the coffee maker part of the family. "No, it's not too much trouble. I wonder what old Cuisie wants for Christmas?"
Customer Review: Love it - for a couple of years, now only 2 stars at best.
Summary: 2 Stars
I cannot believe that anyone would give this machine a less than awesome review. It makes a superior cup of coffee to say the least, and I am a bit of a coffee snob as well. My fiance is addicted to Dunkin Donuts coffee and he would never drink coffee at home until we bought this machine...now, he not only drinks coffee at home, but he also makes it himself because it's such a cinch to use. Yes, it is true that there are some parts to clean - you have to remove the filter and run it under water and I also clean out the grinder part every time, all in all though, it takes less than a minute to clean and is well worth the effort. In fact, I'm buying another one today as a gift!
Update 5/08 - we are still using the coffee maker and have encountered one problem that I believe other reviewers have complained about. The grinder basket gets stuck and you have to pull that out to be able to properly clean it. I emailed customer service and about a month (yes, a month!) later they emailed me back and asked for a serial number. In the meantime we had already figured out the best way to handle the problem. We put vaseline on it and it has been sliding in and out of its spot without problem for the past couple of months. I find that cleaning the grinding mechanism and drying it (very important) really keeps the machine running well.
So, I would still highly recommend this product, if you are willing to put in the time to properly clean it after each use (which takes less than a minute with some hot water and a paper towel). Although clearly customer service isn't all that great, so be prepared to address any problems on your own or with the store you purchased it from.
UPDATE 12/09. Ah, my bad. Now I agree with many of the other reviewers, this thing is not built to last. Eventually the grinder basket won't come out at all and you just end up with crusted coffee grounds all over. Everyone I know who bought this machine (sorry for the bad recommendation friends and family!) has experienced frustration after a couple of years. And customer service - doesn't exist. It's gone. Never again.
If you are looking for a recommendation for a grind and brew, my sister has the Capresso machine and is a big fan.
Customer Review: Great Coffeemaker...but only if you're IQ is > 100
Summary: 5 Stars
Beware: Although this coffeemaker is capable of making great coffee consistently, the user must possess some intelligence beyond a moron. Buy this coffeemaker if you like to bring good coffee with you to work in the morning, but you don't have time to grind beans and wait for the coffeemaker to brew. Everyone acknowledges that grinding whole beans is a key step to making great coffee. However, if you grind it the night before when setting up the coffeemaker on a timer, you're giving up the benefit of fresh-ground beans, which will oxidize much faster than whole beans while sitting in the coffemaker overnight.
For morons who couldn't get this coffeemaker to work right, here's some advice from somebody who has been using it successfully for 1.5 years now:
1. Don't over-fill the grinder. (The directions clearly state this.) This is why you're getting half-ground beans into your filter basket.
2. Install the filter basket properly (i.e. with the lift-handle away from the grinder) (Again, directions state this.) If you're using paper like me, make sure the paper is not folded over. This is why you're getting coffee spillage out of the machine.
3. Yes, this machine is more dificult to clean than other machines. That's because other machines don't include a grinder. But a standalone grinder would require cleaning too. And if you clean-up immediately after use (i.e. don't wait days to clean), it only takes 3 minutes to rinse the components and clean the machine with a paper towel. Trust me--I've timed it.
4. Yes, the stainless steel carafe does pour differently than other carafes. That's because it's an airtight carafe that has a "flapper" valve mechanism inside the carafe lid that keeps outside air from spoiling the coffee. The flapper valve works by gravity: When you tilt the carafe, the valve swings open allowing the coffee to pour. It's not hard to "master" the art of pouring. It requires a little bit of hand-eye coordination, and I've never spilled a drop after the first few tries.
5. I've never had a problem with coffee that was too cold. Maybe I have a sensitive mouth or something, or maybe I got a good unit.
Customer Review: Great Tasting and Great Smelling Coffee for a Great Price!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is an extremely easy piece of equipment to prepare and use. It cleans up in minutes, and requires no unusual amount of maintenance. Disassembly and reassembly also take minutes. A 2lb bag of beans made by Starbucks for Costco is about ten bucks, and will fill your kitchen (or bedroom) with that wonderful coffee house aroma for many weeks.
Speaking of Costco, they currently have Amazon beat on price. Still, I am very happy with all of the purchases that I have recently made through Amazon.com. The thermal carafe keeps your coffee warm for many hours, and the special lid on it keeps the coffee fresh. A special valve on the basket allows you to pull the carafe out before the brewing is complete if you want to have a cup of coffee right away.
Unlike most drip coffee makers, this unit takes a while to brew the coffee. It draws small amounts of water at a time out of the reservoir in order to extract the maximum flavor out of the grounds. The grinding mechanism has a specially shaped cover and specially shaped blades, along with a grating that ensures that all beans will be forced into the cutting blades, and that all grounds will be whisked by the air flow of the blades into the basket.
All of the plastic parts remind me of "slippery engineering plastic", a special kind of food-grade plastic that is heat resistant and also resists organic material from sticking to it. This is what makes clean-up such a breeze.
If you love coffee, and you don't want to have to buy those coffee "pucks" for some of those so-called gourmet machines, and you don't want to spend $900 or so on one of those Saeco machines (I owned one, and it was complicated, and it died a horrible death) you've got to get the Cuisinart Grind and Brew. If you're looking to save a few bucks more off of Amazon's already great price, keep your eyes open for Amazon coupon codes (google search), which often give discounts on housewares (I got $25.00 off this and off my Roomba) and often give free shipping on various items. Enter each coupon code at checkout, and Amazon will show you how much is being deducted from your total.
I am very happy with this item, and extremely happy with my experiences with Amazon.com.