I got the Moccamaster Grand in today. Holy shit it's huge. My first impression: I was a little disappointed in the design. I thought it would be more sophisticated and I think the plastic plate on which the carafe sits while brewing is not secured well to the unit. However I can't argue with the results. 100% I can tell the difference vs. my old coffee maker and overall I'm happy with the purchase especially with the deal that was running on prime.

However, is there a smaller carafe that fits the Grand model? It's not the worst problem to have but I really feel silly brewing 1-4 cups of coffee in this huge carafe.

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the plastic plate on which the carafe sits while brewing is not secured well to the unit.

That is one of my quibbles with ours as well, but it does make it easier to clean.

A cautionary warning to you and others on this!

If the plate has come unseated and you are putting the brewer back on it, make sure and I mean DAMN sure that it is situated exactly as it is intended. In my one experience where the brewer was riding up a bit on the lip of that plate it somehow jacked up the drip/pot interface in such a way that the switch sensor on the bottom of pot recognized pot in place and allowed it to brew, but those few millimeters of extra gap at the top triggered the cutoff from the drip basket. Yep, 10 cups of coffee, grounds and shit all over the counter, floor, etc.

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Originally posted by Hildur:
100% I can tell the difference vs. my old coffee maker and overall I'm happy with the purchase especially with the deal that was running on prime.

That's what I wanna hear

I'm planning to get some sort of shelf onto which I can place my mug rather than use the carafe. Maybe just a short block of 4x4...

We use an Amazon smart plug to make it programmable. I only with it had a larger container but that made it too tall.

Okay, I had my first cuppa. Here are my initial impressions but I believe later impressions will be more telling and relevant.

1. First, I'm not a coffee connoisseur. I don't know an arabica from a robusta. I just know what I like and don't like.

2. I do not have a proper grinder yet; I had to make do with some device my wife uses for smoothies. It came with a nut blade grinder but the results were not good - I tried to do medium coarse grind as suggested but it was a mix of medium, fine and big chunks. But I did have the proper amount of beans as suggested by weight. Also, the corresponding amount of water (filtered from the fridge).

3. I had some old beans - it's been sitting around. Bag was folded sealed but was previously opened. So beans should not be considered fresh. However, they are, I believe, decent beans.

Tasting:
1. Not bad. Not great but not terrible. Flavorful and not weak. But not the $250 awesome I was expecting; not as good as local owner operated coffee shops. Or even some restaurants and diners. More flavorful than the Nespresso I think. But also a little more bitter. Didn't notice acidity so no comment there.

2. I think that's the only impression I have for now.

Build quality:
1. Seems well built but I would have preferred to be able to remove the water reservoir for cleaning like I can w/ the Nespresso. Also, there is an interlock requiring the carafe (but I think I can bypass it w/ some duct tape).

2. It recommends making at least 4 cups (16 oz) minimum at a time. That's a little more coffee than I usually need / want. Maybe I can do a 50:50 mix of leaded and unleaded beans?

3. It's reasonably quick. Not the 1 min to cup of the nespresso (but to be fair, it's a shot and not a full cup). But faster and easier than other drip alternatives and the french press.

So, initial impressions: overall not a clear winner for someone like me. But I haven't given it a fair shot. I'll try again with new beans once I get the grinder. I think that will prove more interesting. I'll do a blind taste with an Americano from the nespresso and a cuppa from the moccamaster.

That being said, this is still a good buy. Decent taste the will likely be better once I'm better equipped. And allows for the use of various beans. And will be cheaper per cup in the long run over the nespresso.

Thumbs up for now and hoping even better later.

My wife and I have used a Moccamaster for years, and I doubt we will ever use anything else at this point. Like you, I’m not a coffee connoisseur, but I know what I like.

I hope that you’ll notice a big difference after you try a decent grinder…I suspect that all of the different size grounds in yours didn’t produce the quality of coffee that the Moccamaster is capable of. That machine supposedly hits the proper water temp, and creates just the right amount of turbulence in the brew basket, to extract the coffee flavor.

And though I’m not an expert, I’m pretty sure that one of the selling points of some of these better grinders is the fact that they produce very uniform coffee ground size, maximizing the surface area for the water to work its magic.

Our old Breville grinder died about 6 months ago, and I invested in a Baratza Virtuoso+. My wife and I both think that our coffee is even better now. It may be a mental thing, but our taste buds really like it!

Enjoy your coffee, and keep us updated!

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Tasting:
1. Not bad. Not great but not terrible. Flavorful and not weak. But not the $250 awesome I was expecting; not as good as local owner operated coffee shops. Or even some restaurants and diners. More flavorful than the Nespresso I think. But also a little more bitter. Didn't notice acidity so no comment there.

Take a do over, and do it head to head with your old way. Use the same grinder, same beans, and have your SO bring you two mystery cups of coffee. That's how Dad and I did it when I first bought his Moccamaster.

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2. It recommends making at least 4 cups (16 oz) minimum at a time. That's a little more coffee than I usually need / want. Maybe I can do a 50:50 mix of leaded and unleaded beans?

I do the 50:50 regular coffee to decaf beans on cooler weekend mornings in Texas' "winter" when I want to sip coffee longer.

A normal weekend, it's 2 scoops of regular beans into grinder and 16 oz of water into Moccamaster.

On a "winter" weekends, it's 2 scoops of regular beans and 2 scoops of decaf beans into the grinder and 32 oz of water into the Moccamaster. It's much harder to find reasonably priced good tasting whole bean decaf than it is to find good tasting whole bean regular coffee.

Mine arrived today, will break it in tomorrow morning.

Medium coarse for the grind huh?

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Originally posted by tatortodd:

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Tasting:
1. Not bad. Not great but not terrible. Flavorful and not weak. But not the $250 awesome I was expecting; not as good as local owner operated coffee shops. Or even some restaurants and diners. More flavorful than the Nespresso I think. But also a little more bitter. Didn't notice acidity so no comment there.

Take a do over, and do it head to head with your old way. Use the same grinder, same beans, and have your SO bring you two mystery cups of coffee. That's how Dad and I did it when I first bought his Moccamaster.

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2. It recommends making at least 4 cups (16 oz) minimum at a time. That's a little more coffee than I usually need / want. Maybe I can do a 50:50 mix of leaded and unleaded beans?

I do the 50:50 regular coffee to decaf beans on cooler weekend mornings in Texas' "winter" when I want to sip coffee longer.

A normal weekend, it's 2 scoops of regular beans into grinder and 16 oz of water into Moccamaster.

On a "winter" weekends, it's 2 scoops of regular beans and 2 scoops of decaf beans into the grinder and 32 oz of water into the Moccamaster. It's much harder to find reasonably priced good tasting whole bean decaf than it is to find good tasting whole bean regular coffee.

Copan Coffee Roasters in Tomball does an excellent decaf bean. Best I’ve tasted!

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Originally posted by 911Boss:
Mine arrived today, will break it in tomorrow morning.

Medium coarse for the grind huh?

I have a Barratza Virtuosa dialed in at "17" - you may play with the grind +/- a notch.
Too fine and you may blind the filter - quite the mess

I've been seriously considering getting a Moccamaster for a few years. I don't drink alot of coffee. Usually two cups in the morning, but it has to be good coffee.

Even though a Technivorm would be much more convenient, it's hard to justify the cost when the $30-40 French Press we've been using for 25 years makes coffee just as good, if not better, than any coffee maker.

The last couple years I've been using an Aeropress. About $30 from Amazon, less hassle than the French Press, and it makes coffee every bit as good. One cup at a time. From the time the water boils to drinking the coffee is less than a minute.

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Originally posted by Ironbutt:

The last couple years I've been using an Aeropress. About $30 from Amazon, less hassle than the French Press, and it makes coffee every bit as good. One cup at a time. From the time the water boils to drinking the coffee is less than a minute.

I have an Aeropress that I use when we go camping. It's a great device.

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2. I do not have a proper grinder yet; I had to make do with some device my wife uses for smoothies. It came with a nut blade grinder but the results were not good - I tried to do medium coarse grind as suggested but it was a mix of medium, fine and big chunks. But I did have the proper amount of beans as suggested by weight. Also, the corresponding amount of water (filtered from the fridge).

3. I had some old beans - it's been sitting around. Bag was folded sealed but was previously opened. So beans should not be considered fresh. However, they are, I believe, decent beans.

Pretty sure that's why it didn't taste good, old beans, improperly ground, get a grinder for coffee and you don't have to buy an expensive one, and if you don't want to spring for one yet, then have it ground for you at the store. Yes it's not the "approved wait until you brew" ground process but it's going to be better than improperly grinding the beans.

Yup, acknowledged.

I have a "cheap" $50 burr grinder coming (not really cheap in my mind absolutely but is relative to the $250 models).

I have Big Island kona beans on hand. Waiting for the grinder for test round two. Nespresso americano vs moccamaster. Yes, two different beans but it's the flavor test comparison that's relevant for me. But absolute taste will also be assessed.

Have had my MoccaMaster for many years, will only replace it with another should it ever die.
I am also full into coffee by roasting my own beans. My observations are: A good coffee maker is just part of the puzzle. Also needed is fresh, good quality beans, good grinder and the right ratio of water to coffee grounds.
As hard as I tried to prove them wrong; the coffee snobs are right. (I may be a snob now as I only bring my coffee when on vacation ) It takes everything working together to make a good cup of coffee.
The Aeorpress also makes a good cup of coffee and is what I use on vacation.
Give the MoccaMaster some time, experiment and see what works best for you.
The website “Coffee Bean Corral” has a good resource, ‘Coffee Library’ at the bottom of their webpage to do some reading up on coffee.

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Originally posted by caribouhunter:
The website “Coffee Bean Corral” has a good resource, ‘Coffee Library’ at the bottom of their webpage to do some reading up on coffee.

Thanks!

There's a coffee shop in Salem, NH called "Coffee Coffee." The owner knows everything there is to know about coffee. If there's any coffee worth buying, he stocks it. Jamaican Blue Mountain, Kona, Columbian, Costa Rican, Puerto Rican, he's got it. He went directly to the plantations and gets raw beans sent to him. He made a custom slow roaster that roasts the beans at a lower temp but for 4-5 times the duration most coffee beans are roasted by a commercial operation. I could go on but I think you get the point.


I'm a big fan of his Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee. At $50/lb it's the most expensive offering he has. I used to buy it by the cup at his shop and I can't think of a better cup of coffee I've ever had in my life. When I bought it by the pound and brewed it with my old coffeemaker, it was good but there was hint of bitterness. Now that I use the Moccamaster I don't have any more bitterness and it tastes as good as the freshly brewed cups I used to buy at his shop. That alone makes it worth it for me that I can essentially brew the best cup of coffee I've ever had at home.

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originally posted by konata88:
2. I do not have a proper grinder yet; I had to make do with some device my wife uses for smoothies. It came with a nut blade grinder but the results were not good - I tried to do medium coarse grind as suggested but it was a mix of medium, fine and big chunks. But I did have the proper amount of beans as suggested by weight. Also, the corresponding amount of water (filtered from the fridge).

3. I had some old beans - it's been sitting around. Bag was folded sealed but was previously opened. So beans should not be considered fresh. However, they are, I believe, decent beans.

Tasting:
1. Not bad. Not great but not terrible. Flavorful and not weak. But not the $250 awesome I was expecting; not as good as local owner operated coffee shops. Or even some restaurants and diners. More flavorful than the Nespresso I think. But also a little more bitter. Didn't notice acidity so no comment there.

My wife and I have had a Moccamaster for a year now, and we’re both very happy with the coffee it makes. I will say that I agree with those complaining about the construction quality of the machine itself; it could be much better for the price they charge and that is especially true of the “plastic plate on which the carafe sits.”

In response to konata. You do not have a proper grinder, and the coffee beans were “sitting around” and not fresh. The coffee you brewed was not “$250 awesome.” The machine is important, it’s certainly true that a quality machine makes quality coffee, but…read your own description of what you put into the coffee maker. The Moccamaster is a great machine, but it’s not Jeezus Chrise! I don’t like every coffee we’ve brewed in the machine. IMO, the coffee itself is more important than the coffee maker.

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Originally posted by sgalczyn:

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Originally posted by 911Boss:
Mine arrived today, will break it in tomorrow morning.

Medium coarse for the grind huh?

I have a Barratza Virtuosa dialed in at "17" - you may play with the grind +/- a notch.
Too fine and you may blind the filter - quite the mess

My Baratza Virtuoso is 11 years old, and doesn't have anything digital on it like the Virtuoso+. I use a setting of 14.

I pulled up the pdf of my Virtuoso and compared it to a modern Virtuoso+ manual. Sure enough, the older ones like mine say 13 or 14, and the modern ones say 18. Must have made some changes in the grinding when going from the Virtuoso to the Virtuoso+.

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Originally posted by konata88:
I have Big Island kona beans on hand. Waiting for the grinder for test round two. Nespresso americano vs moccamaster. Yes, two different beans but it's the flavor test comparison that's relevant for me. But absolute taste will also be assessed.

I can think of 2 better tests:
1. Do you have the aftermarket brewpod for your Nespresso where you could put your own ground beans in? If so, grind up enough for both in your new burr grinder.
2. Pick a coffee that comes in both a Nespresso pod and whole bean.

Both of those would be minimal variable tests for showing you whether your Moccamaster purchase was worth it.