Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Cuisinart CHW-12 Coffee Plus 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker with Hot Water System, Black/Stainless
Since we don't usually need a full pot of coffee except on weekends -- I typically just grab a Starbucks "Via" instant coffee on the way to work in the morning (a pretty remarkable innovation, by the way) -- I was attracted to the hot water dispenser on this coffee maker. I like it particularly because of its 58-ounce capacity -- meaning that you don't have to keep refilling it if you're just using it once each morning to fill a car mug. My wife prefers tea to coffee, and she loves being able to get a cup of really hot water whenever she likes. (We fill it with spring water, and the results are superb.) I haven't had any problem with the "add water" light, as another reviewer apparently did. I was concerned about squandering energy by keeping a reservoir of water constantly hot, but it doesn't. It keeps only about 13 ounces of water at serving temperature; the rest of the reservoir is unheated. It doesn't take all that much energy to keep 13 ounces of water hot. And if you know you won't be wanting hot water for a while, you can just turn it off with the on/off button. I had expected it to heat water instantly through some kind of coil system -- much like an under-sink unit does -- but not so. As a result, if the unit hasn't been on, there's about a 3-minute wait for the water to reach the right temperature. I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because I wish the hot water
dispenser were programmable in the way the coffee maker is, but it isn't. You have to start it manually. (No - you can't use an outlet timer because the unit has an electronic on/off switch.) I also wish the hot water dispenser had a temperature adjustment (the coffee maker does); the water it dispenses is so hot that I have to wait for several minutes before I can drink any beverage I make with it. Finally, some Cuisinart coffee makers have a strength adjustment but this doesn't. But these are minor quibbles; it's still a great appliance. The coffee maker itself works as well as an automatic drip coffee maker can -- always a function of trial-and-error at the beginning (what kind and how much coffee you use). It uses a cone filter (#4) -- which in my humble opinion always delivers better coffee than the flat filters used in so many other coffee makers -- including a lot of Cuisinart models -- and the water is sprayed onto the coffee by a showerhead array in the reservoir lid. (Tip for review "Me2": Pour water into the coffee maker by putting the lip of the carafe on the rear LEFT corner and pour it in that way. It's a lot easier and you won't spill any.)
Cuisinart CHW-12 Coffee Plus 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker with Hot Water System, Black/Stainless
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Since we don't usually need a full pot of coffee except on weekends -- I typically just grab a Starbucks "Via" instant coffee on the way to work in the morning (a pretty remarkable innovation, by the way) -- I was attracted to the hot water dispenser on this coffee maker. I like it particularly because of its 58-ounce capacity -- meaning that you don't have to keep refilling it if you're just using it once each morning to fill a car mug. My wife prefers tea to coffee, and she loves being able to get a cup of really hot water whenever she likes. (We fill it with spring water, and the results are superb.) I haven't had any problem with the "add water" light, as another reviewer apparently did. I was concerned about squandering energy by keeping a reservoir of water constantly hot, but it doesn't. It keeps only about 13 ounces of water at serving temperature; the rest of the reservoir is unheated. It doesn't take all that much energy to keep 13 ounces of water hot. And if you know you won't be wanting hot water for a while, you can just turn it off with the on/off button. I had expected it to heat water instantly through some kind of coil system -- much like an under-sink unit does -- but not so. As a result, if the unit hasn't been on, there's about a 3-minute wait for the water to reach the right temperature. I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because I wish the hot water
dispenser were programmable in the way the coffee maker is, but it isn't. You have to start it manually. (No - you can't use an outlet timer because the unit has an electronic on/off switch.) I also wish the hot water dispenser had a temperature adjustment (the coffee maker does); the water it dispenses is so hot that I have to wait for several minutes before I can drink any beverage I make with it. Finally, some Cuisinart coffee makers have a strength adjustment but this doesn't. But these are minor quibbles; it's still a great appliance. The coffee maker itself works as well as an automatic drip coffee maker can -- always a function of trial-and-error at the beginning (what kind and how much coffee you use). It uses a cone filter (#4) -- which in my humble opinion always delivers better coffee than the flat filters used in so many other coffee makers -- including a lot of Cuisinart models -- and the water is sprayed onto the coffee by a showerhead array in the reservoir lid. (Tip for review "Me2": Pour water into the coffee maker by putting the lip of the carafe on the rear LEFT corner and pour it in that way. It's a lot easier and you won't spill any.)
