Cuisinart DGB-550BKP1 Automatic Coffeemaker Grind & Brew, 12-Cup Glass, Black

I love this coffee maker! It delivers freshly ground coffee, perfectly brewed, exactly when you want it. It is simple to operate but you will have to use it a few times before you get it. It's not intuitive but neither is a food processor the first time you use it. You will need to read the instructions and carefully follow the steps to set up the clock (remember to set AM or PM) and the timer.Using it is easy: pour water, install a disposable unbleached paper water filter in brew basket, measure coffee, and push SET. Nothing to adjust. Start with filtered or bottled water. My experience: I fill the water reservoir level to 10 cups and add 6 TBS coffee beans to the grinder basket. This makes 4 large mugs of robust-but-not-spoon-dissolving coffee.Beans: I use dark roast like Peet’s Major Dickason's or Starbucks Cafe Verona or medium roast Lavazza Espresso. They all make a robust cup that stands up to warm milk or froth. Let experience will be your guide.Care: I put the removable parts in the dishwasher every day. This may be counter to the manufacturer's instructions, but it's what I do. I'm not telling you to try this at home... but, after 18 months, it's fine. Once a month, I clean the coffee maker, per the manufacturer's instructions, and replace the little water filter in the reservoir. That's it.One quick caveat: the grinder is loud. You will think Krakatoa is erupting the first time you hear it, but you get used to it because the coffee is so good. I don't hear it go off any more; I awaken to the aroma of the freshly ground brewed coffee, not the noise.There are other fancier, more complicated auto grind coffee makers, but for a delicious, reliable, simple to use and clean coffee maker, at a reasonable price, the Cuisinart 12-cup Grind & Brew is the best!

I decided that using a Keurig coffee maker on a daily basis was a waste of money and decided to return to using a coffee maker. I have a Technivorm Mochamaster, but I dislike performing a separate process to grind the beans and the lack of an automatic start feature. Waking up to a freshly brewed pot of coffee instead of stumbling around to make it is the best.In the past, I had a couple of Toshiba My Cafe Mill & Drip Coffee Makers that made excellent coffee. When the last one was worn out, I could not replace it due to the Toshiba sanctions imposed in 1990, so I switched to the first generation of the Cuisinart Grind and Brew coffee makers which were good enough.Recently, I tried three highly-rated and much more expensive grind and brew coffeemakers that failed to meet my expectations. All produced a weak brew, regardless of increasing the coffee-to-water ratio or changing the brew and grind settings.So this coffee maker is the is the winner!I used the formula for water to coffee recommended by Mochamaster (based on the SCAA Golden Ratio –– 1000 ml water to 55 g coffee). I ignored the stepladder measure inside the coffee maker water tank and used a 1-liter measuring pitcher for this and a food scale to measure 55 grams of coffee beans. This filled the grinder container to the maximum capacity, so making a larger brew is not possible (unless you prefer your coffee weaker and choose to add more than 1000 ml to the tank).One of the reviews that I saw online recommended engaging the 1-4 cup button for a stronger brew. I did this for the first batch yesterday, and it was intense, really too strong -- and I like a bold cup. This morning, I used the same water-to-coffee ratio but did not engage the 1-4 cup button. I am happy to report that this produced a great cup of coffee.Now, here's a word about cleaning the parts. What's all the fuss? It's not such a big deal and takes just a few minutes. As soon as the coffee stops brewing, I remove the grinder and cover, the filter basket and cover, and the filter; rinse them off, submerge them in sudsy water in the sink, pour my first cup of coffee while they soak, enjoy a few sips while they briefly soak, rinse them off and put them on the dish rack to air dry. I replace them in the machine later when they are dry. Easy and fast.

Important! If you have cholesterol issues & take meds DO NOT USE A PERMANENT FILTER. YOU REALLY SHOULD USE PAPER FILTERS. While you’re at it, look for or order here on Amazon, the brown filters which are not processed using bleach. Seriously do you want bleach processed, white filters leaching DAILY into your coffee? Buy unbleached brown filters. Permanent filters don't effectively remove the cholesterol-raising oils that are natural in coffee beans. Raising your LDL is a real possibility so if you want to use the permanent filter then for your own good health, you sure as heck better be washing it in hot soapy water every single day because an invisible oily residue is building up in it. Next, wash all the components DAILY no matter what filter you use because they hold onto the same oil residue if you don’t. What is so hard people? Hot water thru the spray hose is a bonus aid. If you forget to wash them and you wanna make coffee it’s just too darn easy to dry the parts with a paper towel. The complaints here are nonsensical. Buy paper filters so if you forget to wash the permanent filter that you prefer, you have paper, and vice versa when you run out of paper, you have the permanent one that you’re using only occasionally. This is the 3rd one of these (the 550) we have. No other makes coffee as good tasting.