Cuisinart DCC-1100BK 12 Cup Programmable Coffeemaker

Is it the best drip coffee maker in this price range?

Rating:

By Tyler Rodgers

To be a quality drip coffee maker there really are only two things that the machine has to do well: heat up the water to the correct temperature and evenly spray the hot water over the grounds. Believe it or not most coffee machines don't do both of these tasks to the best of their ability and thus they don't produce good tasting coffee. The Cuisinart DCC-1100 is an exception to this which is why I think it's one of the best drip coffeemakers in this price range. If you read some online reviews you will see that many people agree with me.

My first point about the water temperature really is an important one because if you don't get the water up to around 200 degrees or slightly more then the coffee will taste weak and just won't be what you are looking for. If you have ever had a sour tasting cup, this is likely the reason why. I actually measured the Cuisinart DCC-1100BK as close to the source as I could (in the filter basket) and got just under 200 degrees. This is quite good and is a big reason why the coffee ends up tasting as good as it does.

My second point about the water being evenly dispersed over the grounds is almost as important. A lot of coffee machines will stream the water almost like a faucet which soaks the center of the grounds and barely touches the outer edges. This over brews some of the grounds and neglects large portions which results in bad tasting coffee. The shower head design on this Cuisinart does a pretty good job at evenly covering as many of the grounds as possible.

Overall the DCC-1100 is a great coffee maker if you are looking for a machine in this general price range. While it doesn't have all the features of the much more expensive coffeemakers, it also doesn't have the high price. Plus, it brews great tasting coffee which is the most important factor for me. I'd buy this model again if needed.

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