BonaVita, Anyone?
No sense in dueling coffeemaker threads, so I'm posting here.
I've been researching automatic drip machines over the past few days, as the brew produced by my DCC-1100 hasn't been tasting right lately. It's not because I don't maintain the machine or use filtered water (double filtered, actually), and I've been brewing the same blend from the same roaster for three decades and grind my own beans each morning.
I've seen two Technivorm MoccaMasters in the same thrift store over the past few months, but after examining them, I decided they were too clunky and I didn't want to deal with their system. New ones cost about $300, but they are consistently top rated for their precise brewing process and the excellent cup of coffee they render.
Enter the BonaVita 1800, which appears poised to knock the TVMM out of the top spot, and sells for around half the price. The coffee snob sites give it high praise, and some are already recommending it over the TVMM. The newest BV model, the 1900, has a few improvements, but only a highly sophisticated palate can detect any difference in the brew, and I prefer a glass carafe and only the 1800 offers that option. In fact, you can use a Chemex carafe with a true "cone" filter instead if desired.
Yes, the BV is mass produced in China, as opposed to TVMM being hand made in the Netherlands, and the heating coil in the BV isn't copper, but the BV is German engineered to the same high brewing standards as the TVMM, and the copper is more about conductivity than taste.
Does anyone here own a BonaVita, and if so, could you provide your impressions? I'm seriously considering one, and believe it or not, the best price is on the Sears website.