Capresso 441.05 MT-500 Plus 10-cup Coffeemaker

Let''s get the price issue out of the way: in no way is this "worth" its price premium over other brands by virtue of its construction / materials. You are considering buying this for one reason only: coffee geek self-indulgence in search of the best possible home-brewed.

With that acknowledged, how does it do? Answer: pretty damn well, with a couple of asterisks.

(Note: our standard of comparison is a late, lamented Braun Flavor Select, which made excellent coffee for close to a decade. But the current Braun models lack a couple of features we liked on the previous one, which threw the choice of a replacement open to all comers. We eventually settled on the Capresso.)

First off, this is FAST. It seems like there''s barely enough time to put away the coffee bean jar and pull out a couple of mugs before it''s ready to drink, at a perfect temperature: just slightly too hot to take more than a sip for the first couple of minutes. You do have to guess when the dripping has finished, since the brewing light doesn''t go out for several minutes after.

The timed-brew feature, which is indispensible to us, sets up easily and works like a champ. We have well water but still use the water filter -buy an extra pack at the same time you buy the coffeemaker. And we prefer using the included gold filter to avoid possible contaminants that could leech from a paper filter.

With those perameters, the flavor is incredibly good, smoother and less acidic than the Braun it replaced, using the same beans in the same quantity, while maintaining a similar richness and depth. Warning: just as high-quality stereo speakers can reveal shortcomings in source material and associated electronics, so this coffeemaker immediately lets you know if your coffee isn''t up to the job. My wife''s comment after her first cup: we need to use better beans.

If your brewed coffee sits around for more than a few minutes, Capresso''s thermal carafe is a great improvement over Braun''s warming plate. I often wait an hour for a second mug, and by then "burnt" aromas and flavors invariably creep into coffee that''s been kept warm on a plate. Over that same time, the thermal carafe maintains a just-brewed flavor and seems to suffer only a minor temperature drop -perhaps a couple of degrees.

Cleanup is definitely a bit fussy -you remove the filter and filter holder for rinsing, and mop up the wet grounds that are invariably clinging to the bottom of the flip-up lid.

Now for those asterisks -all minor annoyances, to be sure:

*The carafe is shiny stainless, while the coffeemaker itself has a brushed finish. That doesn''t work well together -especially in a kitchen where other appliances are brushed stainless. And I expect the carafe to start to show scratches after it''s been around a bit longer.

*The carafe pours slowly with the "black dot" in position, and you need to almost completely invert it to get to the last couple of ounces.

*The water gauge has tiny, difficult-to-see numbers for my middle-aged eyes.

I haven''t tried to replicate the "counter flood" problem occasionally reported on this and the identical non-metallic model, but I can see several ways it could happen: a stuck valve in the thermal cafafe lid, using more coffee than recommended in the instructions, or an ultra-fine grind. In other words, this coffeemaker is not engineered to be idiot-proof. I''m learning to check the valve every time we rinse the pot.

That said, this is the best home coffemaker we''ve ever used, which is why it gets five stars. Whether the quality justifies the cost is a matter for individual decision.

The first thing you notice about this machine is that it''s probably the best looking drip coffee maker on the market. The aluminum body shines and the carafe has a very hefty look and feel to it, with the brushed stainless and black plastic. The machine is well made and thoughtfully laid out -no fancy dials, switches, or other gimmickry. It has an intuitive programmable display with a muted orange LED for time, green for program brew, and red for ON (brew now). Simple. The water reservoir is not removable, but the lid does open all the way up and stays up so you can easily fill it and the water filter is very easy to get at and change. The machine brews a whole pot in like 5-8 minutes -it''s fast and has drip stop for those in a hurry. So that''s all the good stuff.

The bad: you have to clean the lid of the carafe carefully, otherwise you risk having coffee flow over if the little ball in the lid gets stuck. Also, because the drip stop and carafe lid are designed in such a way, if you don''t correctly align the carafe with the drip-stop, you also risk getting coffee flowing all over the counter -major drag. And while the coffee filter holder itself comes out, it''s very hard to clean the surrounding frame that holds it.

And finally, there''s the price -MAJOR premium over other comparable brands and given the I''ve had with the carafe lid and the number of times I''ve had coffee spilling out all over the pot and countertop, I really question the price.

But if good looks and fast coffee are all that matter, this is a real contender. Otherwise, I would consider a less expensive machine.

Update: Nearly 7 years later and I''m still using this machine -it''s great! The only maintenance it requires is a good cleaning with one of those descaling agents about once a year to remove the normal build-up of crud in the water reservoir (and I do use the charcoal filter as well). The lid to the carafe also needs a good cleaning now and then; as coffee residue builds up, it''s easy for the pour spout to get ''touchy'' and cause it to spill unless you have it set dead-straight. I use a carafe cleaner to clean out the stainless pot about once a quarter and it also cleans all the gunk out of the lid which makes it less prone to spilling/dribbling when pouring. The only thing that no longer works is that little red ball that shows the water level -but you can easily read the markings because it''s external, so you don''t need the red ball to see where the water is. I keep thinking it should be time to get a new coffeemaker, but this one continues to brew a great pot of coffee!

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IT''S NOW MAY 2011...... UPDATE

We''ve used this coffee maker for quite a while now. I wished I had purchased the Technivorm. Why? Making small batches of coffee, the temperature of the carafe coffee is never hot enough. We''ve used room temp water, pre-rinsed the thermal carafe with hot water, and even brewed larger volumes, which Capresso recommends for highest temperature performance. But in the final analysis, this machine just doesn''t live up to the claims of brewing near 200 degrees F. And frankly, I can''t stand the engineering on the "screw tight and screw open carafe lid." It''s just not user friendly, in my opinion. We''re giving the machine to our youngest daughter and her husband. We''re buying a Zojirushi at Bed Bath and Beyond for about $72 after their 20% discount and another $5 promo. BTW, in the mornings we usually brew our Brasilian coffee "Tropeiro Style", which is similar to Turkish coffee preparation. The final product is just below boiling, and stays very hot in the thermos/carafe for hours. This is very common in Brasil, and it works! No fancy machines. The coffee maker for us is usful when we''re serving coffee for more than four people.

-------------------------------------ORIGINAL REVIEW -----------------------------------------------------

I''m a member of SCAA, (Specialty Coffee Assoc. of Amer.), and know that properly brewed coffee requires "hot water." In fact, brew temp''s need to be around 200 degrees F. This machine, and the Technivorm unit from Boyd Coffee are the only two consumer machines I''m aware of that do.

My ONLY ISSUE with Capresso is the insulated thermos/carafe. It has the most unfriendly screw on cap. And outside of a small raised dot, which is black and matches the rest of the cap....thus making it near invisible, you''ll play heck having anyone other than you figure out how to pour the hot coffee first time out!

I can say that it is a quality brewing device, does everything I expected, and meets my critical brewing demands.

Was it worth paying $200 for this brewer when I could have purchased a "look-a-like" for under $100? For me, yes. Both we and our friends agree that the final product is very good, and the carafe holds the coffee for our required "one hour" of usability, while maintaining a reasonably high temperature. I guess the moral remains; "You get what you pay for."

I did speak to both Capresso customer service and to Boyd Coffee Co. at the recent International Coffee Convention in Long Beach, CA. I asked both about brewing "under 3 cups" per cycle. (We are Brasilian and drink traditional fine ground coffee from Brazil, and in small demitasse cups....3 US cups is enough for 2-3 people) Both they and Technivorm prefer that their clients brew no less than 3 cups at a time, and preferably 5 or more cups. However, if you must brew smaller quantities, the Capresso does have a "3 cup cycle", which slows the water delivery and extends the steeping of the grounds. Again, it''s all about having 200 deg. F water flowing over and steeping the grounds. Most cheaper machines will never get their percolated water to that temperature point, which is required to emulsify and pass the essential flavor oils into your cup. If you''re concerned with buying the best machine for home coffee.......than you have two great choices; the Capresso for its ability to meet brewing standards "and also" blend into your designer kitchen, or the very competent Technivorm, sold by Boyd Coffee Co., which is certified by the SCAA, but honestly isn''t a beauty to look at........ I opted to get a good brewer "and" satisfy my wife''s design concerns.

Read Best Reviews of Capresso 441.05 MT-500 Plus 10-cup Coffeemaker Here

We have had this Capresso coffeemaker for over a year, and have found it to be flawless. We have had none of the small problems shared by other reviewers. We did, however, put a small dab of white paint on the top''s black dot to make it easier to see and position which might help others who are having a problem with that issue. Not only has the machine held up to rigorous use, it continues to deliver fine coffee for us and we are admittedly coffee snobs! We recommend this Capresso coffeemaker highly.

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To address some of the reviewers who said it''s a great coffee maker "but is it really worth the extra price over similar coffee makers"... I say a resounding YES, if like me, you don''t wish to have aluminum leaked every day into your coffee, which by the way is a strong suspect in Alzheimer''s disease. I for one hope to enjoy my coffee well into my elder years (still knowing what it is!) and will gladly pay a higher price for mine and my families health. So the stainless boiler alone is worth the extra $$ over cheaper (inferior) models. Remember the old saying "an educated consumer is the best consumer"? If you understand "why" something costs a little more, you may realize it''s actually a very good deal in the long run.