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Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Sun Jan 11, 2009 8:46 pm
by easylife
Hi

I'm looking for a new filter coffee machine. I know about the technivorms, but does anyone have any experience/opinions on the Melitta "steel therm" machine ?

Aroma Excellent Steel Therm M 518

http://www.melitta.de/detail_d5_en%2C18275%2C17660.html

It certainly sounds OK from the published spec (elsewhere on the "shop" site, claims to brew at 96C), and even with the low GBP :cry: is still quite a bit less than the Technivorm equivalent. I guess it may not be built to quite the same standard though.

I'm not sure all the details on this page are 100% correct either.

Looks quite nice too in a retro sort of way.

Would appreciate any views/user experience.

RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 12:34 am
by lukas
I don't know nothing about them, but it looks nice :) You might also want to have a look at the Krups T8, which isn't manufactured anymore (correct me if I'm wrong) but brews a nice cup of coffee.

Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 8:22 am
by easylife
Hello, Lukas

Yes the T8 is still manufactured, but is not, as far as I can find, available in the UK. It doesn't appear on the UK Krups website, and the Krups.de online shop will not ship outside Germany

I looked for one of these some time ago with the same result. If anyone knows a supplier to the UK I would be very interested.

Oddly, you can still get the filter papers in the UK, so I guess it must have marketed here sometime in the past.

RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 10:39 am
by bruceb
Hello e.l. If you are interested in having a T8 sent on to you please PM me. I have used one of these for many years and am convinced it is one of the very best filter machines available.

RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 9:06 pm
by Bombcup
Easylife, do you really want a machine to pour water over a filter cone for you? What labour does this actually save given that you need to pour water into the reservoir. Why not just do a normal pourover into a carafe, or better still into a cup and drink it right away?

Edit: Duplicated sentence removed. Grammatical error.

Re: RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 9:17 pm
by easylife
Bombcup wrote:Easylife, do you really want a machine to pour water over a filter cone for you?


yes, but thank you for the question.

RE: Re: RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 9:23 pm
by Bombcup
Lazy bastard.

RE: Re: RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 9:51 pm
by easylife
Bombcup wrote:Lazy bastard.


I was hoping for some positive input on here, rather than criticism of my personal traits which have to be completely unknown to you.

RE: Re: RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Mon Jan 12, 2009 10:34 pm
by easylife
thanks, BruceB
I'm going to be in Koeln in a couple of weeks, so if I've got enough time I may drop into Kaufhof and see if they stock it. If not, may well get back to you about it though, so thank you for the offer of help.

RE: Re: RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Tue Jan 13, 2009 1:04 am
by lukas
Easylife, take it easy (no pun intended) as I'm sure Bomby meant no offence :)

RE: Re: RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Tue Jan 13, 2009 6:56 pm
by Bombcup
I meant the level of offence I felt when the opinion he explicitly asked for was met with witless sarcasm.

RE: Re: RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Tue Jan 13, 2009 7:35 pm
by Gouezeri
Steering the topic gently elsewhere :wink:
Bruce & Jim (as I'm sure you'll have played with one or similar), to what extent are these machines actually temperature stable, as surely that would be the key feature? If the device can reliably brew at a set temperature without any kind of dead band, then it may have some appreciable qualities.

Still not sure I'd want to use a 10 cup filter though, especially given our recent discussions of FP brewing techniques. Which I suppose begs the question as to whether anyone prefers brewing with a filter? If so, what and why? I am truly curious, not trying to be facetious (for once :wink:)

RE: Re: RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Tue Jan 13, 2009 11:02 pm
by easylife
It'll be a cold day in Hell before I ask any questions on here again :(

Thanks though to those who tried to be helpful.

RE: Re: RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Tue Jan 13, 2009 11:50 pm
by Gouezeri
I'm sorry to hear that EL.

Maybe you would be prepared to humour, even enlighten me as to why you want to buy such a machine? This is not meant as a criticism at all, I'm truly interested to know what you think it offers. I can understand wanting to brew a number of cups at the same time, however, given the choice I'd rather do this in a FP, even if I'm not a fan of the sludge, I just find it easier than trying to overload my aeropress (which would be my preferred technique for a longer cup)

RE: Re: RE: Melitta filter machine

PostPosted: Wed Jan 14, 2009 12:32 am
by easylife
It offers my Mom - who's in her 80's, partially sighted and with onset parkinson's disease - a replacement for the Braun aromaster (? I think) she inherited from me several years ago and which has given up the ghost (handle has come off the jug, and the plastic Braun then used is cracking up.)
She doesn't drink instant coffee, has gone off tea for some weird reason to do with medication, and in any case, isn't safe using boiling kettles as her hands aren't steady enough, although she would disagree with me on that point.
For people who are less than 100% able, a filter machine is a very good choice, and I wanted to get her a good one of its type, rather than posh looking junk.

She only uses pre-ground coffee, but you might as well try to get the best out of it, even if her coffee and water quantities might be a bit inconsistent :roll:

A filter is much easier to keep clean than a cafetiere, and does not involve pouring very hot water. She has a bodum cafetiere on the kitchen shelf which I do not think has been used this century.

A thermal jug will also keep it drinkable for some little time.

IF I were to get a Krups T8, however, that would be for me, and simply a new toy. I spend my money on whatever I like, but I like to buy good quality within a product category.

It was, however, specifically the Melitta machine about which I asked.