We were intrigued and apprehensive when first testing the Cuisinart Grind & Brew. We applaud Cuisinart for having the courage to combine a grinding mechanism with a coffee brewer to simplify the recommended practice of grinding fresh coffee beans just before brewing. We were concerned though, about the troublesome nature of all burr style grinders and their tendency to jam for various reasons. A jammed coffee grinder is okay if the grinder can be easily disassembled to clear the problem bean or foreign object or at the very least turned upside down and ‘burped’ to knock out the offending item. To fix a built in grinder can be next to impossible but Cuisinart has an ingenious built in grinding mechanism that with the twist of a knob can be opened and easily tended too.

The bean hopper holds exactly one bag of cultured coffee beans (8oz) and has a fantastic air tight lid that not only protects the beans from moisture but prevents any coffee bean particles from polluting your kitchen counter. Most coffee grinders can leave quite the mess after each grind!

The Cuisinart Grind & Brew machine offers three brew strength settings: mild, medium and strong. Altering the brew strength setting only changes the amount of coffee ground, not the fineness of the grind. In our opinion, the factory set grind setting is a ‘coarse setting’. Despite the coarseness, we found the strength of the coffee flavour descent on the ‘Strong’ brew setting. Those who like very strong coffee may want to stay clear of this machine and continue grinding their beans in a separate grinder where the grind setting can be adjusted to their liking. Of course, one can by pass grinding beans and use previously ground coffee of any sort in the Cuisinart Grind & Brew by simply clicking the ‘Grind Off’ button before brewing.

The Cuisinart Grind & Brew comes with all the latest bells and whistles including a metal thermal carafe with brew through lid, 2 to 12 cup brew batch settings, pause and pour feature, gold metal brew basket, carbon filter cartridge to eliminate chlorine taste and is programmable so one can wake up to the aroma of a freshly ground and brewed pot of coffee!

As much as we like metal thermal carafes we must warn our readers that the first pot of the day may not be the warmest. Cold metal can pull down the temperature of coffee. A tip to get around this is to set the machine to brew a small pot of water only first thing in the morning and then your first pot of coffee will be very hot! The Cuisinart Grind & Brew has a non-detachable water tank meaning one must place this machine near a sink with a water hose or be prepared to fill the machine with water from a pitcher. Finally, adding a grinder to the top of a thermal coffee brewer makes the Cuisinart Grind & Brew a fairly tall machine requiring 16 ½ inches of height clearance.

Overall, we are very pleased with Cuisinarts improved Grind & Brew 12 cup thermal coffee maker and highly recommend this machine for those coffee connoisseurs looking for a little convenience when grinding and brewing their favourite pot of joe!

LA PAVONI

$59 at culturedcoffeebean.com

The smallest grinder tested and very good looking. However, it’s a bit noisy and there’s a lot of static. The ground coffee container is too large and coffee spills everywhere when you pour it out. It grinds by the cup, so you can keep the hopper filled and grind as many cups as you like—very convenient, except a “cup” is 4 ounces, the instruction book tells us. With 19 settings you have to experiment to find the right setting for your prep method. And don’t follow the tips in the instruction, they’re wrong. But it does grind very evenly. Highlights: 19 grind settings >> Large bean hopper and ground coffee container >> Automatic portion timer >> Flat-plate burr >> Easy to clean and maintain >> One yearlimited warranty. Overall: While the La Pavoni gets top marks on some websites, I found it too fiddly, too loud and awkward. But if that doesn’t bother you, it’s a deal.