Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I have owned a couple of grind and brews in the past with mixed results. Our first was a Mr Coffee back in the 1990's. It made great coffee, but was messy, and broke frequently. We also had the first Jura Capresso model about 6 years ago. I liked it, but my wife felt that no matter what the settings were, the coffee was bitter. Recenly we had been using a Krups stand alone machine, that makes good coffee, and a stand alone Krups burr grinder. Since our Krups burr grinder was getting finicky, and the coffee post was getting old, we decided to give the DGB700 Grind and Brew a try. My initial take, is that it makes an excellent cup of coffee, better than my last Krups machine. I am still experimenting with the settings, but so far I am very pleased. You do need to follow the directions. The key points I have found, is to make sure that the basket parts are dry. This means a quick rinse and dry between pots if you are making more than one. I also have cleaned out the chute where the ground coffee goes into the basket. It's very easy, and although mine was not clogged after about 6 pots, I did see where the grounds were building up in there a bit. My stand alone burr grinder had the same issue, but the new Cuisinart pot is actually very easy to clean in this area. Just remove the bean hopper, open the chute, push the lever over, and push they grounds into the basket area. (put a filter in first). Actually now, I just clean the chute each time. It takes less than a minute, and I think that this is the one main issues that some people are having. Also, I have lined up the arrows on the top of the basket. Easy to do, and it avoids some of the negative comments on other reviews. Finally, if you use paper filters, make sure that the top of the plastic basket is going INSIDE the top of the filter. My wife likes her coffee mild and smooth, but flavorful. My settings to make 12 cups, are 6 Cups on the grind selector knob with Mild or MED on the brew strength selector. The brew has good smooth flavor, and is not bitter. I also drink a lot of iced coffee. I will simply up the strength when I make coffee for that. Again, so far, so good. I think that following the guide and keeping the machine clean and dry should produce good results. One last thought... other Grind and Brew brands (Jura Capresso) make a major point about NOT storing beans in the freezer. Actually, I have done this for years, but after doing a bit of Google research, I find that it's better to just keep the beans in an airtight container, and only open what you will use in a couple of weeks. We are doing that now. I do notice that this sees to make the beans less oily, so that may also be a key to why some people get clogs. I will post a follow-up after I have had the machine for a few months. OK.. update as of 3/12 the unit is still working well. I do clean the chute after most every pot, but this is easy, and only takes a minute. Again... I strongly suggest NOT storing your beans in the freezer. The research shows that freezing the beans can force oil to the surface of the bean, which can contribute to clogs. I will say that this pot makes excellent tasting coffee.