i need a new coffee maker bad.

i used a cheapo one for years (braun) and was quite satified...until it gave up the ghost. the new one i bought was the same make and model, but not only did it break in a year, it also produced shitty coffee.

yes, i buy good beans ( http://www.gloriajeans.com/ ) and i grind them just before brewing.

so then i bought another brand of coffee maker (farberware), and it just makes shitty coffee. it is also really big and takes up a ton of counter space.

so, can anyone suggest a good coffe maker that

1) won't break w/in a year
2) is not so huige that i need to put an addition on my kitchen to use it?

this sounds like a case of "They don't make things like they used to"

I think every appliance-type thing I've bought in the past 5 years has broken within a year of purchase. Meanwhile I'm back to using my grandparents old coffee machine, vintage 1983.

Appliances really do suck nowadays. It's sad that I'm only 24, but I remember how much better and heavier they used to be. We've had the same iron for like 24 years, it's heavy and awesome. I went to my friends house and we needed to use her iron. Wow it was awful. Not heavy, not hot, and flimsy.

I've been using one of these for three years now, and I'm happy with it. It's a thermal carafe and has a programmable timer. Ain't too big either.

by the way, Mr. Coffee makes a good pot

I have a similar Black & Decker just without the thermal carafe. No complaints about it.

i've always wated a carafe style one...but it is out of stock on amazon.

maybe i ought to go simple again and go with plain old mr coffee? maybe a french press? damn, i don't want to get too fancy, but i GOTTA have a good cup of coffee.

Here's what looks to be the current version of the one I have.

the only thing that I found to make great coffee is a perculator. You have to put it on the stove to brew the coffee. It tastes so much better than the coffee that comes out of those coffee makers you have to plug in. That's what I would recommend. Farberware is the brand I have. I got mine at Fortunoff. It's only like $20, maybe a little less, and it can make up to 8 cups. Hope that helps.

hmm...sounds like an interesting option.

i think i just need to go shopping

ps welcome to the board!

You will love the coffee from the perculator. The only thing is you can't put it on a timer like the other ones. But if that's not an issue, the perculator is the way to go.

thanks for welcoming me to the board.

i don't need no stinkin timer!

but i am not sure if my local kitchen stores will ahve a percolator...maybe crate and barrell? sounds like the best way to spend too much money.

I've tried "real" coffee makers but it just doesn't taste anywhere near as good.

the trick to perfect coffee with this is:

1. finely ground beans
2. melitta coffee filters
3. rapidly boiling water
4. pour 3-4 times filling cone each time

every morning at my house it's a slice of heaven.

Do you have a macy's near you? I know they have them. You can also order it online at fortunoff.com. I've been to crate and barell, don't know if they have them. I love that place though. When you go in there you can spend way too much money though, lol.

A French Press is another good option. That's my favorite way to make coffee.

The other thing you might consider is that the beans you are buying are different. It is possible that the source has been changed and the beans are just not as good as they once were.

I just typed in google coffee percolator and a whole bunch came up.

i'm off to the mall. my favorite place

my plan is to check gloria jeans and see if htey changed their beans (if they did i will be quite annoyed) then i'll check out macys and see what they have...

but i have a coupon for another store...bleh. i jsut hate to spend another $60 and still have shitty coffee.

i feel like i am going on a quest.

i went with the percolator...

how fine should i grind my beans?

I would grind them to the same consistency that the store bought brands are. Let me know how you like the coffee.