KitchenAid KCM0801OB 8-Cup Coffee Maker – Onyx Black

Pros: Makes excellent tasting coffee. From 2-8 cups. Approved by the Specialty Coffee Association of America. Good looking.Cons: Maximum 8 cups. Works slightly differently than other drip coffee makers. Slightly slower than other coffee makers. Construction is shoddy. Letters wear off buttons, elements on carafe handle detach, coating on heating element peels, water reservoir leaks.NOTE: Please read updates at end of review. 16 month review has caused the loss of a star.Kitchen Aid has made an electric coffee maker to just make excellent coffee. This device is not really about convenience, or speed, or value. It’s all about a good cup of coffee. In order to accomplish this, it goes about the process differently than other electric drip coffee makers.It’s a little unfair of me to say convenience is not part of the equation here. After all, if you just want to make a really good cup of coffee, a Chemex or a Melitta pot, a tea kettle, a burr coffee grinder, and a paper filter is really all one needs. This electric coffee maker has been designed to emulate the steps of a manual pour over process which includes heating the water to a specific temperature, and a gradual wetting of the coffee grounds to allow the flavors to “bloom.” This coffee maker automates most of the steps involved and the end result is worth it.Unlike most other coffee makers, this one requires a bit more pre-meditation. You tell this one about the type of coffee you are going to use, and you tell it how many cups you are going to brew, before you turn it on. It asks whether the coffee you are using is light, medium, or dark roast? Once you set the type of roast, the coffee maker automatically controls the temperature of the water that is best suited for it. This is precise coffee making.The specialty Coffee Association of America considers the best coffee is made with the pour over method using unbleached paper filters. The coffee should be medium roasted beans ground immediately before using. The grind should be even and consistent and slightly finer than medium grind. The ratio of water to coffee should be approximately 10 ounces of water to 17 grams of coffee per two 5 ounce cups.If you think Keurig makes decent coffee, or you buy your coffee pre-ground in a can and keep it around for months, or if you like mild, light roasts or Sanka, this is not a coffee maker for you.Here are some things you may want to know:1) The coffee maker is very nice looking in a retro-modern way. It looks very nice next to my trusty Kitchen Aid burr coffee grinder. The “Contour Silver” is a non-flashy, medium metallic grey.2) It takes #4 paper filters. Melitta filters need to be folded back slightly lengthwise to fit perfectly into the filter basket. I don’t know why this is so. It’s not a big deal, just odd. It comes with a few bleached white filters to get you going. Buy the unbleached, natural brown kind and then fold them a bit to fit.3) A Melitta gold mesh filter will not fit into the filter basket of this coffee maker. I own one but don’t use it because I prefer coffee made with paper filters…did I mention I prefer the unbleached ones?4) The filter basket has a “clip” that secures the paper filter and prevents it from accidentally folding over the grounds when the water is pouring. This is a nice feature, but it does extend into the grinds and complicates the cleaning out of the filter at the end of the process because the wet grounds cling to it. The clip also has a raised gage that indicates the level of coffee to be used per cup. This is almost impossible to read when trying to fill the filter and it is much easier just to use the supplied scoop. The filter basket has a handle which makes it easier to remove the basket after brewing.5) Programming the LED display is very easy. The display is very bright and easy to read without a magnifier. You first set the time, then the type of roast of the coffee, then the number of cups you are going to make. These settings stay until changed. Changing the number of cups is a simple matter of hitting a + or – button.6) There are indicators on the LED display when the water is heating, when the grounds are being “showered” and when the grounds are seeping. The indicators cycle back and forth until the process is finished. An “Enjoy” light comes on and you hear three beeps. I find that the coffee is still dripping when the beeps are beeping and I have to wait a few more seconds for the dripping to stop. You can remove the carafe during the seeping process without hot coffee dripping on to the hot plate. You might want to try the coffee, but don’t as the coffee is best when it is allowed to brew completely.7) The ON/OFF switch is the “Brew” button. When you want to start or stop you press the “Brew” button. The coffee maker shuts itself off automatically one hour after it finishes brewing your coffee so pressing “Brew” a second time is not really necessary. Coffee is best made in small batches and consumed within 30 minutes of being brewed. It should not stay on a hot plate for a long period of time. There is a hot plate and it does keep the coffee warm, but only for that hour. I find the coffee is plenty warm, and I use milk.8) As with many other coffee makers, a cup is defined as 5 oz. of water. Kitchen Aid supplies an 8 gram coffee scoop and recommends using one scoop per 5 oz. cup of water. I had been using a 10 gram scoop with my old Braun coffee maker, so Kitchen Aid recommends using slightly less coffee per cup.9) Kitchen Aid recommends using just slightly finer than medium grind for your beans. If you want a really good cup of coffee, you should be grinding your beans right before you brew. Pre-ground coffee goes stale quickly. I set my old Kitchenaid coffee grinder to #5.My new DeLonghi to #8.10) You can pour as much as eight cups of water into the reservoir, however the coffee maker will only make the number of cups you have set on the display. I’ve set the coffee maker to make five cups and it produces precisely five cups. It can be programmed to make as little as two and as many as eight cups at a time.11) The opening to the water reservoir is horizontal and somewhat narrow and is covered by a sliding door. This is a tall coffee maker, I have to slide it towards me in order to clear the overhang from a kitchen cabinet. This is not a big deal. I’ve had to do it with every coffee maker I’ve ever owned. Pouring water into the reservoir is not difficult.12) The carafe is glass with a plastic lid that can snap on and off. The carafe holds up to eight cups. The carafe pours easily and does not drip. If it does drip, make sure the lid is snapped on correctly.13) I have not noticed that this coffee maker takes an unusually long time to complete its brewing cycle. It takes under five minutes to brew five cups. 8 cups takes longer, maybe 8 minutes. Considering this is a slow pour over process, this is entirely to be expected and not objectionable.14) This coffee maker heats all the water you need at one time, rather than heating the water as it pours. This takes longer to do. The more cups you are brewing, the more water needs to be heated. It takes longer to brew eight cups than it does five.15) There is an option to “Delay Start” the brewing process. I’ve never used it and probably never will.I’m giving this coffee maker 4 Stars. I’ve only been using it for a week. Let’s hope it keeps to its high standard over the years to come. If it does, it will get the 5th star.NOTE 10/14/2016:There is some trouble in Paradise.The fit and finish of the carafe and the coffee basket is a bit shoddy.-The chrome finished detail of the carafe handle keeps threatening to come lose and rattles a bit.-The long plastic clip that holds the paper filter secure in the basket has disappeared. probably detaching itself while upended discarding used grounds and filter into the trash.Of more concern, the setting for number of cups to be brewed is not infallible, although this is a selling point of this coffee maker. Although set to produce five cups of coffee, sometimes pouring say, six cups of water into the machine produces the requested five, and sometimes it just forgets the setting and produces six too weak cups of brewed coffee. This inconsistency is irritating and has been resolved by unplugging the coffee maker and then “rebooting” the settings or just being careful to only pour the exact amount of water that is necessary into the reservoir.Despite the fact I have only been using filtered water to make coffee, the machine had to be descaled with vinegar in September, three months after first use. This is not really a big deal, just thought I should mention it.NOTE: 10/17/2017:The water reservoir leaks all over my kitchen counter! If I pour 6 cups of water into the reservoir, at least 1/2 cup will slowly ooze out of the machine on to my kitchen counter.Also, despite being extremely careful, the letters printed on the control buttons have worn off.I have been dealing with the missing letters, but kitchen counter flooding is a definite no-no.I called Kitchen Aid and despite the fact that the machine is 4 months out of warranty, they have offered to send me a new machine. It is going to take 5-7 days to receive. I will then return my leaking machine to them in the same box.I took two stars off the 4 star rating, but added back a star because Kitchen Aid stands behind its products.Let’s see if the new machine has been improved over my earlier model.

Ok so I read a lot of reviews before purchasing almost 16 months ago. In my house that is like 2 years for most. I work nights and partner works days. This runs a minimum 2 times per day.I like good (ok maybe great) coffee but I am not a coffee snob. I read some complaints about the buttons (letters did wear off in about 3 months) but that’s why I kept the instructions -it has pics so you know what buttons to use in clean mode, etc. we only brew dark roast coffee so I could care less about brew strength setting- it says on dark. We grind our own and agree on the plain paper filter. The tab for ‘how much coffee in the basket or holds the filter in got tossed right away-again I’m not counting beans in search of the perfect cup. Used it twice and removed it-ok this much in the grinder gets the strength I want.We both generally make 6 cups of coffee so day to day is no big deal. Wife is challenged with electronics but figured out timer. Does take awhile to brew but if you in a hurry fill the tank with hot water. Speeds the process quite a bit. No leaks or other issues. When family or friends come over it’s always “WOW this IS good coffee”.So summary:Simulates pour over method. Yes it does taste better when the temp is perfect and you use this method-not a drip machine.Aesthetically pleasing.Very durable-we had gone through a coffee maker ever year for 10 years. This has lasted 16-17 months and is still going strong.Have I mentioned it makes great coffee?Keep directions-button labels fade fast.Oh yeah- it makes GREAT coffee. Price wise and value (if /when it dies) i will buy again.

When this machine makes a good cup of coffee it makes a really good cup of coffee. It loses one star because it makes about a cup more coffee than you ask for – most of the time and you have adjust the coffee you use and guess how much water it will add (it’a not consistent). It loses the second star because at 10 months it started to leak water internally – not something you want from an electrical appliance. Although it was probably still covered by warranty, I bought another one (paying more for the second one the I had for the first) because I didn’t want to wait the time it would take to deal with the warranty repair/replacement -I need my coffee now, and it does make good coffee.

Have been using this for several months – works great and seems to be consistent. The water level marker can be difficult to see initially but after you start using it, there is enough condensation on the plastic window to see the water line readily. The timer function is handy but I often don’t use it. I have put both paper and a reusable basket in it, and never had an issue – both fit nicely without any need for adjustments. Of note, the heat turns off after 30min of brewing by default.

La cafetera y el sistema son excelentes. Hacen un cafe muy distinto al de una cafetera normal y su funcionamiento es muy agradable. Lo único malo es la falta de filtro permanente que hace complicado su uso cotidiano y por el precio no sería mucho pedir.

Buen producto, cumple con lo requerido. La calidad de los materiales es buena. Trae 4 filtros de papel que sirven al momento de recibirla si no fuiste a comprar filtros al supermercado.

Very nice. A designer small appliance that produces high quality coffee, easy to use. Took one star away because i wish the carafe was bigger and it is a slow brew but those things are minor. A slow brew probably makes the coffee better anyways.

Maravillosa, pero lo único que no me gustó es que termina de hacer el café y se apaga. Sería bueno que se quedara prendida por un tiempo para mantener el café caliente determinado tiempo