Keurig B60 Special Edition Gourmet Single-Cup Home-Brewing System
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Keurig B60 Special Edition Gourmet Single-Cup Home-Brewing System
Customer Review: Now I wish I had the MINI brewer too!
Summary: 4 Stars
My wife bought me the Keurig Ultimate B60 Gourmet brewing system for early Christmas gift. I did not expect to get one as money is tight. But I am glad she got it for me as I've been a coffee/tea addict for many years. I've been spying these "Single Cup" systems for months because I am the type that usually can never finish more than 1 mug of joe at a time. I hate to waste and I also love to sample many different flavors. My wife has never been coffee drinker so a "Single Cup" setup is perfect for us. I looked at the Tassimo and some other systems but wasn't sure on any of them. Getting the Keurig was definitely a surprise and the last week that I've been using it, I've been enjoying almost every cup of the Sample pack that came with it.
It is a rather neat system. Every K-Cup has enough product for 1 cup. My main concern is One man's Cup is another Man's Shot Glass. When I would make coffee or tea I tend to make a larger portion. The Small Teacup setting on the Keurig is barely enough for more than a Taste. The other two settings produce a little more but not much. It's not easy to make more than the one of 3 sizes of brew from 1 K-cup. Primarily because each K-Cup is designed specifically for no more than 1 use. On that end I wish there were was a larger brew setting and some K-cups had more product.
I found out later that the next up larger end model has 4 brew settings, and does allow for larger portion of brew up to 12oz. And I also found out there are some K-Cups the "Extra Bold" apparently contain 30% more product than the standard K-Cups. So Its mostly a matter of buying the K-Cups that are the "extra" variety which contain 30% more product and can deliver more brew per session.
The model I have suites me fine though. It came with 3, 18packs. I thought it was a major plenty but to be honest I've been smapling a lot more than I normally would I guess ha ha ha. The Variety Pack has a good mix of Coffees and 3 different Teas and 1 hot cocoa.
On that Note, Hot Cocoa, in my opinion is Not meant for the Keurig. The Ghiradelli Hot Cocoa does not brew up very well and Did not taste all that great to me. Also the 3 or 4 different kinds of Hot Cocoa that Keurig offers is not varying enough for my tastes. The Keurig however Does an Excellent job with Coffee and Tea.
My bundle came with the "My K-Cup" Accessory. Its normally a $14 add on and let me tell you it is an Awesome Add on to use. Essentially it allows you to USE any Loose Ground Coffee or Tea that you have with your Keurig. Thats a Good Fact to know because when you start to add prices up the K-Cups can get to be expensive. 1 K-Cup is essentially 1 serving. Sometimes when you find a Flavor you love you want to be able to get more of it. Unless you Order them Online and pay obscene Shipping costs, you are not going to find all the K-Cup flavors that you like. Local Stores like Target, Macy's, Bed Bath & Beyond, Costco and even Best Buy sometimes only carry a few K-Cup boxes. So having the "My K-Cup" I can put some of my favorite ground coffee or loose tea and save some money when I can't stock up on K-cups.
Lastly, something most people might not realize, the better the water the better the brew. I've found using filtered water tastes the best. Straight Tap water sometimes makes some flavors a bit odd.
EDIT:
Since owning the B-60 for over a year I am very glad that Keurig has taken off. I now can buy K-Cups almost everywhere: Walmart, Meijer, Target, Now EVEN Sears. Which means I do not HAVE to buy a massive box of k-cups every few months.
I HAVE advise anyone who buys one to Make sure you use GOOD Quality Water... I filter my water ALL the time now. If you want Nasty Coffee then use regular Tap.
Customer Review: An awesome, polished machine
Summary: 5 Stars
I recently purchased a competing machine Bosch Tassimo and was very happy with it until... I discovered Keurig.
After purchasing Tassimo I felt in love with it and decided to buy 3 more machines for different office locations. At the same time I discovered Keurig and decided to try the Keurig Special Edition Brewing System before committing to buying more machines. After brief testing I found there are no substantial differences between the quality of coffee that both machines make. Yet, several important factors made me dump Tassimo and go exclusively with Keurig.
The first, key factor is that I drink mainly tea and hot chocolate (although my family and employees drink coffee) and I can quickly make tea or hot chocolate on the cheap by using Keurig only for providing hot water, while placing a tea bag or cocoa mix directly in a mug or cup. Even Keurig sells great and highly rated hot chocolate on its website in packets of loose powder that needs to be placed directly in a mug, not in the machine. I couldn't find such basic function in Tassimo as it requires to place a special service t-disc in the machine to obtain hot water. That's more trouble than its worth, plus the service t-disc doesn't allow to specify the amount of water, while Keurig has size-selection buttons. Of course I could buy a separate hot-water dispenser for getting just the hot water, but that's not the point - Keurig is simply a more universal machine that has two functions in one.
Second, also important, factor is the long-term cost and variety of coffee. They are somewhat related because you can buy couple varieties of Tassimo coffee t-discs that cost the same a Keurig k-cups, but most of Tassimo t-discs cost much more, while there are tons of coffee varieties available for Keurig at the same price level as the lowest priced ones. In fact, there are probably couple hundred low-priced varieties of coffee and tea for Keurig, while maybe only five for Tassimo, plus fifty or so high priced. And just trying different coffees and teas is a cool experience in itself and a great reason in itself to get a Keurig. You can buy a 100+ variety samplers on eBay and everyone is just amazed with all the coffees and wants to try each one.
Third, less important factor is the cup size selection available on Keurig. I found the Tassimo bar codes that automatically select the amount of water for each type of drink a nice gadget but not really necessary, while I prefer to have control over how much coffee or tea I make (which also relates to how strong it is).
Currently the only advantages of Tassimo that I see are:
- Tassimo is a 20% smaller machine while accommodating 20% more water in its tank, thus requiring less refills than Keurig. Although later I bought an optional larger water tank for Keurig.
- Cappuccino, latte and espresso t-discs are available for Tassimo, although they seem primitive and half-baked, as espresso is not a specific bean or roast level but a method of making coffee. A good espresso requires freshly ground coffee and high pressure water for emulsifying it. I don't see any of this in Tassimo, although it might be utilizing some limited approach for brewing espresso, while mainly just serving smaller cups of coffee. I can manually select a small cup size on the Keurig and have half-baked espresso as well.
(and an espresso is the base for other drinks, such as lattes, cappuccino, macchiato, mochas, and americanos)
So if you too are deciding between both machines, go with Keurig.
If you don't have any automated coffee machine, go with Keurig as well :-) It is an amazing discovery not only in terms of coffee making process but the variety of choices as well.
Customer Review: Best Machine for Coffee AND Tea Drinkers Alike
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a great machine for coffee drinkers. I'm sure by the time you read this review, you've already read countless other reviews telling you that, and are pretty much set on getting it as long as the price is right. However, what other reviews might not tell you, is that this is also a great machine for tea drinkers as well.
I'm the only coffee drinker in my household. For me, the single serve system makes great sense as it's usually overkill for me to brew a whole pot just for myself. The nice thing with the Keurig system though, is that there are a wide varieties of other k-cups available too. My girlfriend is a casual tea drinker (and by that I mean she enjoys a cup of tea...but is by no means a snob about it), and there are plenty of teas for her to choose from. And now that Winter has started to set in, hot chocolate is fast becoming a staple evening ritual over here. And in regards to hot chocolate, neither of us cared much for the hot chocolate k-cups that we've tried so far, but it's quite simple (and inexpensive) to use regular powder mix from the supermarket and just use the Keurig to provide us with instant hot water for it.
As far as the pros and cons of the machine go:
Pros:
- Wide variety of coffee to choose from
- Wide variety of tea to choose from
- Instant hot water for hot chocolate, cooking, soups, etc.
- Very aesthetically pleasing. Easily the best looking small appliance in our kitchen
- Pretty good sized water reservoir. It's not as large as the B70s, but it's still not that bad.
- Extremely simple to use. The hardest parts for us are still deciding which variety K-cup to try next and restraining ourselves from drinking more coffee or tea than is good for us.
- Availability of k-cups not only online, but at retail stores as well. At first I was afraid that I would be limited to buying all my k-cups from Amazon. And while I do love Amazon and their prices are pretty much always the best, sometimes when you need a quick fix, you really don't want to wait for shipping (even if you're a Prime member). So far, I've found good stockpiles and good varieties at Kohl, Wegman's Supermarkets, and Bed, Bath,& Beyond. Not only is this convenient, but it sometimes leads to that impulse buy that you can immediately reap the benefits from (as soon as you get home). So far one of my favorite varieties was an impulse buy that I just happened to come across while grocery shopping.
Cons
- The "Travel mug-size" isn't exactly enough for our travel mugs. This is one benefit that the B70 model has over this model by having the "Extra-large travel mug-size" as well. While it's true that the coffee may be "watered-down" a bit and not as strong if using the larger brew size option, frankly, if I'm on the go and won't be able to immediately make another cup, I'd rather have weaker coffee than less coffee.
- It does make a bit of noise in between brews. It's not a problem for us, but it might be if there's a light sleeper in the house, and they happen to be sleeping in relatively close proximity to the kitchen.
Overall, we couldn't be happier. Our B60 is used multiple times, all throughout the day and was definitely worth every penny to us. And remember, not all coffee is created equal. I'm still going through the variety packs to settle on which I like best, and there are some that I really did not care for (I won't name which ones because we all have our own tastes). If you don't like the first k-cup you try, chances are it's not because of the machine. You just need to try a different one. With the variety available, I do believe there really is something for everyone with the Keurig system.
Customer Review: FAB
Summary: 5 Stars
Okay. So I'm a coffee snob. I drink a lot of coffee and I usually pay for it at a nice shop that grinds their own beans. I've worked in food service my whole life and I have had many a cup of coffee. My biggest gripe about home brewers is that the flavor isn't there at all and it is just so unsatisfying that it is difficult to justify making it part of my daily routine as opposed to stopping at the coffee shop in the morning and also picking up a bagel.
What is the allure?? Well I have honestly only heard great things about the Keurig and they say out of every ten positive experiences that only one person will actually rave about it. I've heard at least 4 people rave about their keurig so I think I can safely say that is similar to hearing it from about 40 people.
Anyway, I really would like to shave about 15 minutes from my day (time going to a coffee shop), and still get a really darn good cup of coffee. Not to mention that I can't always drive past my favorite place (I am on the road a lot for work) and sometimes have to settle for a weak comparison. Not to mention the cost! About $1.70 for the better shop and about $1.50 at a C-store... about $1.10 if I remember to bring a refillable mug (which I never remember).
Okay so back to the coffee maker. What I love... I have tried Donut Shop brand coffee and have fallen in love at first cup. I don't know if it is the coffee or the Keurig but I have never had anything this good home brewed. EVER. I also love that I don't have to have paranoid thoughts in the back of my mind about the coffee I'm not drinking burning away while setting on the warmer. I always have a fresh cup brewed for me and if I want another it takes minimal time to have another one quickly. I don't have to worry about washing a decanter either. Many complain about the cost of the K-cups. My take on it is that it is much cheaper than getting a cup from the shop AND I can have good coffee at home which is actually worth more to me than the actual cost. So yes it is less expensive in the long run but despite that, I would still buy this brewer even if it cost me as much as coffee at a shop because I love coffee so much and it is a very important part of my personality, day, lifestyle.
What I don't like... Honestly I am not sure I should even bring it up because I'm essentially being a hypocrite. The idea of throwing away the little K-cup after every use is sort of sad. It seems very wasteful. Also, someone mentioned if it is actually healthy to send boiling water into a little plastic cup (a very good question). This really can't be any worse than the amount of trash I was creating previously with my cup of coffee every morning and my napkins, bagel paper and all the
other things from my previous life as a coffee shop dweller. You can however purchase the "my K-cup" to put in your own coffee grounds (reusable cup and grounds make for great garden compost).
Bonus feature: I didn't know about it or expect it, but you can program the brewer to have a cup of coffee brewed the next day at a specific time. Great for someone with a routine but not so great if you might happen to forget to put a cup under the machine.
I'm completely satisfied with this product. It is very simple to use. There is little cleanup involved. 4 minutes is about how long it takes for the water to warm up and that is only for the first cup you have when you turn on the brewer. The K-cups make for a fresh cup every time and make it super easy to trade flavors with others and try new types without having to buy a whole lot. It also has some cute mood lighting that shines through the water pitcher on the side when it is on.
Customer Review: Great Coffee Maker! Keurig Website Needs Improvement.....
Summary: 4 Stars
I decided to try the Keurig B-60 even though I had had a less than favorable experience with a "pod" type machine a while back. I tried the Melitta One:One machine in summer of 2004 and used it for about 6 months and it made ok coffee; the dark roast was actually pretty good but the lack of variety just bored me to death and the fact that the pods available in my local store didn't have freshness dates on them and over a 6 month period all seemed to have the same batch number. Then my store stopped carrying the pods altogether and I shelved the pod machine and wrote it off as a passing "fad". Recently I found some literature from a party I attended in 2003 where they had a commercial Keurig machine and remembered how good and easy to make the Keurign K-cups were and decided to research on the web. All the reviews seemed to be favorable and I was quite impressed with the variety of coffees available and also the fact the you can use the My-K_cup filter to use your own coffee. I ordered the unit from Amazon and am I glad I did! First of all I received a $25.00 discount and Amazon shipped via priority mail and the unit arrived in less than 2-days. It was easy to set up and I was brewing coffee within minutes. The coffee is delicious! Out of the 18 cup variety pack, I found only one brand that I didn't care for but that is just personal taste. The coffee is so much better than the Melitta pod unit. If you have tried other pod units and decided to give up on the idea as I had, I suggest you try the Keurig. I am sure you won't be disappointed. A couple of points however. The B-60 costs twice as much as the B-40 and I wonder if the blue backlighting and the ability to brew at different temperature ranges are truly worth the extra expense. It can be adjusted between 192 Degrees (the factory default setting) and 187 degrees in one degree increments. I personally probably will just leave it at the factory setting so didn't need that feature. The B-60 also gives you a third cup size and that is the travel mug size. Again, if you like your coffee weaker (more water) or if you routinely use a travel mug this might be worth it for you but from what I've read most people agree with me that it makes the best coffee at the medium cup setting, especially if you add milk or cream to your coffee. I'd give the B-60 5 stars but give it 4 stars because of Keurig's website itself. I ordered four- 25 count boxes of assorted K-cups from Keurig on the same day I ordered my B-60 from Amazon so that I would be sure to have a ready supply. The order totalled nearly $60.00 and Keurig promptly lost my order. Even though they don't warn you on the website as you are completing your order that if you want to ship to a P.O. box you will lose the ability to track your order and it will take 14 business days to arrive, that is exactly what will happen. It is now over 2 weeks and still no coffee. I had to go to a local department store that carries Keurig and pay full retail "gouge" prices for a supply of K-cups to get me by. Come on Keurig, spend the extra buck or two to ship large orders of K-cups via priority mail like amazon does. My brewer shipped to my P.O. box no problem. If you ship to a street address it is supposed to come UPS so you probably won't have the problem I did but since I did have the hassle I give it a 4 star rating.
****Update**** My coffee arrived this afternoon from Keurig and all I can say is that you simply have to try the Timothy's Mocha Java K-cups. Outstanding! In my opinion it was worth waiting for and has completely redeemed Keurig for their P.O. Box shipping policy. They offered me 2 free 5-packs of K-cups too. I would change my rating to a 5 star if I could!