Fun fact: Melitta Bentz invented the first coffee filter in 1908 - get this woman a statue! This opened a whole new way of preparing the black wake up juice. Today Melitta AromaFresh (now you know why they use that name) allows you to wake up to a cup of coffee made from freshly ground beans or pre-ground coffee; that’s always worth getting up for!
The Aromafresh comes with the Aromafresh Grind and Brew filter coffee maker (Black/Stainless steel), 5 1x4 filters, Borosilicate glass jug and cleaning brush. It’s a rather big boy at 650g and dimensions of 30.2(L) x 31.2(W) x 51.5 cm(H), so make sure you have the counterspace before investing! The transparent water tank claims to hold up to 10 cups at 150ml each, but with the average cup being 300ml we are realistically looking about 5-6 cups. The integrated grinder means you don’t have to lift a finger to prepare the coffee, however you can easily switch it off if you choose to put ground coffee directly into the filter. You have settings to choose between fine and coarse ground coffee, the brew’s strength (mild, medium or strong) can be programmed into the device, and it can keep your coffee warm for a selected amount of time: 20, 40 or 60 minutes, the AromaFresh will then automatically switch off at the end of the programme. You can prepare the machine to make your coffee at the right time, like first thing in the morning, for example, with the Timer Function. There is also an Anti-drip system, LCD screen with time display, water hardness adjustment, detachable filter holder, and a descaling indicator and program, it also has dishwasher safe detachments for easy cleaning.
On paper the AromaFresh looks great, however it won’t make the perfect coffee for everyone. Because there isn’t a sprinkler head the water hits the middle of the coffee only and it passes through at a fast speed, this can result in a weak tasting coffee, especially when making a full jug worth. People who are used to cafetière-style coffee will probably find it too weak. We experimented with using two filters which resulted in a stronger coffee. We also found the anti-drip system wasn’t very effective and the coffee would hit the heat plate when the jug was removed. The grinder occasionally produces a lower yield of beans, which will result in a jug of yellow water rather than a coffee - I could probably forgive the occasional miss-grind if only the coffee was stronger.
We appreciated the ease of use and sound build quality, plus with a few tweaks you can increase the strength, but should you have to compromise in the first place? We will leave that for you to decide... RRP £164.99
3 out of 5
Pros
Easy to use
Solid construction
Integrated grinder
Adjustable coffee strength
Dish washer proof
Transparent water
Timer feature including clock with LCD display
Programmable warm keeping time
Cons
Anti-drip feature needs improving
Grinder can be inconsistent
Large
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