If you’ve looked around for more than five minutes at coffee makers online, there’s no doubt you’ve discovered that there are a lot of options out there. The sheer volume of pages written about these on the internet is enough to break down any under-caffeinated seeker.
We understand your pain, so we’ve developed this small guide to help you find the best coffee maker with grinder to fit your unique needs and circumstances.
Our top choices
| Best low-end | Best mid range | Best high-end | |
|---|---|---|---|
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| Product | Black & Decker CM5000B | Cuisinart DGB-700BC | KRUPS KM7005 |
| Our rating | [usr 3] | [usr 2] | [usr 4] |
| Our review | Read our full review | Read our full review | Read our full review |
| Black & Decker CM5000B | Cuisinart DGB-700BC | KRUPS KM7005 |
Why You Need a Grinder
I realize you’re searching for a coffee maker, but a grinder is actually the most important piece of equipment in the arsenal for someone who wants to have delicious coffee they actually enjoy drinking.
When they are ground, the beans lose their precious, flavorful oils to the process of evaporation. It doesn’t take one hour for a vibrant joe to become a dull one. The solution? A grinder. Even better: one that is built-in.
To keep things simple, some manufacturers build grinders into their devices. To keep you from having to add lots of steps to your routine, they make it so that the only change you have to make in your routine is buying whole beans, rather than pre-ground. Some of these machines even allow you to store your whole beans in a hopper above the grinder, meaning you can eliminate the step of adding beans to your machine for weeks at a time.
We’re major fans of convenience, but the greatest benefit is the flavor. You’ll be amazed at the life your beans have in them when you grind them up just minutes before the brewing begins. Once you taste the fresh, vivid flavors, you’ll never look back.
Black & Decker CM5000B 12-Cup Mill and Brew Coffeemaker Review
Everyone needs some caffeine in the morning; heavy machinery shouldn’t be operated without it. That’s why Black and Decker moved beyond the toolbox and built a large, programmable coffee maker for home use. From the engineers who make complex tasks simple comes the tool that will empower you to accomplish your greatest feat of the day: getting out of bed.
Design and Features
The most significant feature of the 12-Cup Mill and Brew is the built-in grinder. The significance of grinding your beans immediately before brewing is well understated. You will notice a dramatic difference in quality and flavor with this small adjustment in your brewing routine.
Unfortunately, this grinder is a blade style grinder, which does not produce uniform and consistent grounds. Burr grinders are ideal for creating consistent grounds. Either way, freshly ground always trumps pre-ground.
The programmable “Brew Strength” enables you to make some key adjustments in the brewing process, giving you wiggle room to brew the perfect cup according to your preferences. If your coffee comes out too weak or strong, you’re only a click away from finding balance.
It should go without saying: it also includes the ability to auto-brew so you don’t have to get out of bed to an empty carafe.
The Mill and Brew comes with a reusable, metal filter attached to the grinder. This environmentally healthy contraption reduces filter waste and promotes a full, balanced flavor.
The final thing that stands out is the “Sneak a Cup” feature. With this clever invention, you can momentarily pause the brewing to grab a quick cup of coffee before the rest of the brew finishes up.
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| Performance: 4/5 Ease of Use: 5/5 Cleaning: 2/5 Durability: 2/5 Overall: 3/5 |
Conclusion
The Black and Decker 12-Cup Mill and Brew is a solid brewer. The built-in grinder and programmable settings enable you to take more than one step forward into better and better results without having to adjust your morning routine much at all.
This is the brewer for you if you want to take control of your brewing in a new way, and are looking for an environmentally friendly option as far as filters go.
See latest prices at Amazon.com
Cuisinart DGB-700BC Grind-and-Brew 12-Cup Automatic Review
Cuisinart’s kitchen appliance kingdom began with their original food processor, but quickly moved to other fronts. The business entered into the coffee market in 1994 and quickly became a power player with compelling innovation and design. The Cuisinart DGB-700BC is a testament to Cuisinart’s incredible contribution to progress in this field.
Design and Features
The built-in burr coffee grinder is the key feature of the Cuisinart DGB-700BC. Having this piece of equipment included in the brewing device takes a step out of the process for you as the brewer, while increasing the overall quality of the final cup dramatically. Grinding whole beans just before brewing is the best way to preserve that fresh flavor and zing in your coffee beans.
Burr grinders are the standard for grinding. Grocery stores, cafes shops, and hardcore enthusiasts own a burr grinder. Rather than chopping up the beans randomly, such as with blade grinders, burr grinders funnel the beans through the burrs where they are ground to a relatively uniform and consistent size. This uniformity is important for brewing a balanced, flavorful cup of coffee.
This model, like many of its contemporaries, has the ability to choose the brew volume and strength, and can be set to begin the grind and brew process before you even get out of bed.
Lastly, Cuisinart was nice enough to include a carbon water filter in the water reservoir. Water with a high calcium concentration (hard water) causes wear over time and even disrupts the brewing process to produce an imbalanced final cup. Carbon filters are one of the inexpensive ways of preventing the damage to the machine and your coffee, and Cuisinart takes care of that for you in the DGB-700BC Grind-and-Brew.
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| Performance: 4/5 Ease of Use: 4/5 Cleaning: 3/5 Durability: 1/5 Overall: 2/5 |
Conclusion
The Cuisinart DGB-700BC brews an excellent cup of coffee. The built-in burr grinder is a powerful tool in anyones morning routine. Once you taste the balanced and full flavor of freshly ground coffee, you won’t go back. The user response to the Cuisinart DGB-700BC Grind-and-Brew have been very positive, with the exception of one major flaw, which was present a little too much noise for comfort.
Unfortunately, due to the incredible volume of complaints about the heating element catching fire, the DGB-700BC falls short of any serious recommendation, despite the three year warranty. Whether you’re an enthusiast or just a caffeine addict, you probably don’t want to invest in a products that may cause you or your home harm.
See latest prices at Amazon.com
KRUPS KM7005 Grind and Brew Coffee Maker Review
Robert Krups launched his kitchen appliance company in 1846 from Germany. Their initial products were precision scales and balances, which propelled them financially to develop many other types of kitchen products. Their first machines hit the market in 1956 and in the 1980’s the business produced their first steam-powered espresso machines. The Krups KM7005 is one of the most popular models in the entire Krups series.
Design and Features
The feature that should draw you in is the built-in burr grinder. Unlike blade grinders, burr grinders produce uniform and consistent grounds, promoting a balanced, a full-flavor brew. If you’ve always bought pre-ground coffee, you will be amazed at the enhanced flavors that come from grinding the whole coffee beans just moments before brewing. You will never want to buy pre-ground again.
The best part is, you don’t even have to worry about adding an extra step to your routine. The Krups KM7005 can be programmed to start automatically at whatever time of day you need your caffeine fix. This means you can get better results at no sacrifice to convenience. Options for grind size are also programmable, giving you some flexibility as to the strength of your coffee.
This model can brew up to 10 cups at a time. This is slightly lower than the industry standard (12 cups) for larger home machines, but the difference is only about 8-10 ounces total, or a single mug worth of coffee.
Water quality is often overlooked a significant factor to great results, so Krups has installed a carbon water filter, so you don’t have to worry about it. This filter catches much of the calcium in the water, which is responsible for damage to your equipment and irregularities in the flavor of your final cup.
Some users reported grounds spilling over the counter while grinding. According to the manual, this happens when the chute from the grinder to the brewing chamber is not cleaned. As long as you wipe that chute after grinding, you should be good to go!
The responses to the Krups KM7005 Grind and Brew have been very positive.
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| Performance: 4/5 Ease of Use: 4/5 Cleaning: 3/5 Durability: 3/5 Overall: 4/5 |
Conclusions
The See latest prices at Amazon.com is a solid brewer, but most users find that it does not last longer than a year or two. Krups does a decent job with replacements, but that’s always a bit of a hastle.
Considering the price, this model is not for everyone. It’ll brew some excellent coffee with little effort, but most people may want to look elsewhere.
Types of Grinders
There are two main types of grinders out there: burr and blade. One of these kinds is not all that great at accomplishing the goal of grinding: produce uniform grounds out of whole bean for maximum freshness and balance when brewing. One of these you want to avoid.
Blade – Blade grinders are common and can usually be found for less than $15. In this model, a blade with two ends pointed upward spin in a circle at a high pace, chopping up the beans in the same chamber. The process is inconsistent, and the resulting grounds are rarely anywhere close in size or shape.
Burr – Cheaply made burr grinders can found for as low as $40, while commercial models can run upwards of $3,000. This grinder style funnels the beans between two burrs designed to grind the beans into a selected size and shape, determined by how far apart you set the burrs. This process is far more reliable than that of the blade grinder, and you can count on it giving you a balanced brew time and time again.
What makes a good option?
Now that you understand the significance and convenience of a machine with a built in grinder, the number of remaining variables to consider is fairly low.
Brewing Parameters – A model that gives you options for brew strength or grind size is one that empowers the user. With the ability to make minor adjustments by the push of a button, you have more control of your coffee and can make it the way you enjoy it.
Programmable – If you cannot set the time you want the coffee to brew without you even having to touch it in the morning, it probably not is the machine for you. While there’s a large community that loves full manual brewing, if you’re buying an automatic drip version, it really needs to be programmable.
Cleaning – All the major parts should be accessible for cleaning. It’s impossible to tell if this is the case by pictures alone, so check out the user reviews.
Price – It should go without saying, but the price should play an important part in your decision making process. For a good model with an excellent grinder built in, you’re probably looking at spending around $100 – $300.
What to Avoid
Most models are going to have a downside or two. Here are some of those downsides you will definitely want to avoid.
Danger – There are some well known machines out there that randomly catch fire during the brewing process. Seriously, don’t buy these. Take the word of those who have gone before you.
Narrow Parameters – If the device doesn’t empower you to make some decisions, it’s not doing you any favors. Being able to change your grind size, even if just barely, is a tool that can take your coffee to the next level.
Flimsy Parts – Some models receive poor reviews because they break very easily. They may brew a decent mug of coffee, but if they break in the process, they probably don’t deserve your hard earned money.
The Advantages of the Maker / Grinder Combo
The most significant advantage of the built-in grinder is increased quality with increased convenience. It’s a win-win. You store whole beans in the hopper and let the machine take the appropriate amount, and the result is more vibrant and flavorful than ever.
The Disadvantages
The only disadvantage of the built-in grinder is the lack of flexibility for future investments. Let’s face it: once you taste the riches of freshly ground coffee, you won’t be able to help yourself from exploring further options for even more delicious coffee.
One of these options is to invest in a higher end grinder that is not built in. The burr grinders that come in combo units are dependable, but they are not upgradable. If one of these were to break or you fell in love with another model, you would be out of luck.
Buying separate units may be the direction you want to go if you can see yourself falling down the rabbit hole of tryiong to get better and better results.
So How Do I Choose?
Are you simply in need of a coffee maker to provide you with caffeine that tastes good? Go for a combo and don’t worry about too many bells or whistles.
Are you excited about buying whole beans and exploring the flavors of freshly ground coffee? Look at the combo models that give you some flexibility with grind size and brew strength.
If you’re looking to discover the hidden realms of coffee brewing and flavor, it’s time to look into some manual brewing devices, such as the french press.
The best coffee machine with grinder for your particular needs and circumstances is out there, and you’re one large step closer to finding it.