Brazen Coffee Brewing System

[OldSaw]

Anyone have one of these yet?
<a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otWCirV2yeg" target="_blank">

I think I'm going to order one, since my Capresso crapped out and none of the Technivorms that I have seen (or similar competitive devices) have a programmable timer.

 

[mattdenicola]

I'm hoping for one for Christmas - the controllable temp and the manual release for FP mad pour over features makes this perfect for me.

 

[OldSaw]

I'm hoping for one for Christmas - the controllable temp and the manual release for FP mad pour over features makes this perfect for me.

I'm not a coffee geek, so I don't know all that it is capable of, but I like having the option to use it as a daily drip machine that is ready to drink when I roll out of bed in the morning and be able to experiment with all the other options.

 

[OldSaw]

I'm hoping for one for Christmas - the controllable temp and the manual release for FP mad pour over features makes this perfect for me.

Mine shipped today. I'll let you know how it works when I get a chance to play with it.

 

[StillShaving]

Looks to have a lot of potential. It would be fun experimenting with different brewing temps, pre-infusion times, coffee grind sizes, etc. to determine their impact on taste. My main concern for the non-coffee geek is whether that LCD panel will provide an easy enough user interface or not. It almost looks like one of those 5+1+1 day programmable thermostats, but I don't want to prejudge, as hopefully the Brazen requires a lot fewer button presses.

 

[OldSaw]

The Brazen just made a brief stop in Chicago and should be here tomorrow.

 

[OldSaw]

Mrs. OldSaw says the package was delivered. I'll update when I get a chance to play with it.

 

[rajagra]

Looks pretty good, but I had to laugh at the four years' research and development comment in the video.

 

[mattdenicola]

Mrs. OldSaw says the package was delivered. I'll update when I get a chance to play with it.

Please do! I'm very interested in hearing how it performs.

 

[OldSaw]

Please do! I'm very interested in hearing how it performs.

OK. I just finished my first cup (black) and my second cup with half & half. I set the pre-soak for 30 seconds, the brew temp to 205 degrees and used a paper filter instead of the gold (wanted to compare to the old unit). The result:

WOW!
Keep in mind, this is coming from a non-coffee geek and I have never tasted coffee from a Technivorm (as far as I know), however it is easily better than the coffee we got from the Capresso MT 600 and magnitudes better than the POC Rival temporary replacement. It is very similar to the coffee that I make in my vacuum pot and this is a drip machine with a programmable timer! I'm not sure how to describe the flavor profile, I'm not even sure what kind of coffee my wife has in the Cuisinart burr grinder, but it was the same exact batch and same exact grind as what we used in the Capresso. The flavor is very full bodied with no bitterness or unpleasant after taste.

My wife worked for a brief period as a barista a couple of years ago at a local coffee house (not Starbucks) and this first batch from the Brazen was easily as good (and probably better) as anything that they could muster.

I'm going to run one more test batch, using the gold filter, tonight, to make sure I have the grind set right so it doesn't overflow the basket in the morning.

 

[OldSaw]

Second pot with the gold filter was with the same settings. The taste was a little on the bitter side. My wife and I both felt that the paper filter yielded a better flavor. I so wanted the gold filter to be better, but the unbleached Melita paper filters that Roastmaster's included with the Brazen makes a tastier cup for my palate.

 

[StillShaving]

Good to hear. After you have put it through its paces, I would be interested in what you think of the different controls. Whether it added to your enjoyment or not. Whether this is something that you as a coffee geek enjoyed versus your wife who is only interested in pushing a button and getting coffee....obviously I am over generalizing, as your wife may be the bigger coffee geek in your family.

 

[mattdenicola]

Second pot with the gold filter was with the same settings. The taste was a little on the bitter side. My wife and I both felt that the paper filter yielded a better flavor. I so wanted the gold filter to be better, but the unbleached Melita paper filters that Roastmaster's included with the Brazen makes a tastier cup for my palate.

Awesome! Thanks for the update. I really like the Behmor people, and while they may not make the most Apple-esque user interfaces, their products just plain work. I must share a portion of DNA with Joe, because his products seem directed specifically at me.

With this particular machine, I am definitely anticipating being able to use more precise temperature control for the water in my FP and pour-over brews. I believe I read that the manual water release is actually timed (something like 15 seconds?), rather than full manual (as in, you can hold the button and water comes out continuously until you release). This could still definitely work, but I think having full manual would be nice.

I'm hoping for one for Christmas, as I said, but would also be happy to wait for version 2.

Best of luck with your new Brazen!!

 

[OldSaw]

Awesome! Thanks for the update. I really like the Behmor people, and while they may not make the most Apple-esque user interfaces, their products just plain work. I must share a portion of DNA with Joe, because his products seem directed specifically at me.

With this particular machine, I am definitely anticipating being able to use more precise temperature control for the water in my FP and pour-over brews. I believe I read that the manual water release is actually timed (something like 15 seconds?), rather than full manual (as in, you can hold the button and water comes out continuously until you release). This could still definitely work, but I think having full manual would be nice.

I'm hoping for one for Christmas, as I said, but would also be happy to wait for version 2.

Best of luck with your new Brazen!!

I haven't tried the manual release yet.

I drank waaay too much last night and was a wreck today.

The timer worked as expected and was easy to set. It was nice to have hot coffee ready to go when my alarm sounded this morning. The beeper is pretty quiet and I could not hear it in my room right next to the kitchen, although it's not really necessary. The coffee was not quite as good this morning as last night, but it is just the difference between fresh grinds and those that sat all night. This is where I can see how the adjust-ability might help. It could take a while to dial in though, as I can't get immediate feedback with letting it sit over night. I think I'll try a longer pre-soak and higher brew temp for tomorrow.

After work I made just half a pot with a 90 second pre-soak and 207 degree brew temp. I didn't notice a whole lot of difference between this one and yesterday's first pot, perhaps slightly weaker, but I didn't measure the grounds, just changed the grind time on the grinder.

The lid on the carafe has a thumb release for pouring, which I like a lot. I haven't had a chance to see how long it keeps it warm yet.

I wish I had a coffee geek friend to help me dial this thing in.

There are some things that I did not consider when making the decision to buy this machine and could see them as potential weaknesses. While programability was important to me, I can see where this could be a point of failure down the road (just like the Capresso) as opposed to a simple ON/OFF switch. While heating the entire amount of water in the reservoir is a big advantage, it incorporates a solenoid (as far as I can tell) to release the water which could be another potential failure item.

I like all the bells and whistles and potential for adjustability, but I also admire the simplicity of the Technivorm and the Bonavita. I'll try to talk my wife into getting a Bonavita for the cottage as I don't want anything complicated up there.

 

[OldSaw]

I made a pot earlier with a brew temp of 204 degrees and it was much better than a 209 degree batch. My wife and I both liked the flavor better and thought it was less bitter. I think I'll leave it alone for a few pots and see how it goes.

 

[mattdenicola]

I made a pot earlier with a brew temp of 204 degrees and it was much better than a 209 degree batch. My wife and I both liked the flavor better and thought it was less bitter. I think I'll leave it alone for a few pots and see how it goes.

loving the updates

 

[OldSaw]

loving the updates

Glad to see it.

I think I'm just going to leave it where I have it for a while (30 second pre-soak and 204 F brew). It seems to work out pretty well for the daily drip brew. I can play around with the settings on weekends.

Another consideration to think about is the carafe. If you're the type of person who likes to keep a pot of coffee warm for hours then this one isn't for you. Since it is rather small (8 cups) it doesn't last very long in my house, but the few times that I let it sit with half a pot I didn't think it stayed warm for very long, certainly not 3-4 hours like the Capresso.

 

[mattdenicola]

In all reality I probably won't use the traditional drip all that often - probably less than using the manual release for FP and pour over. When I do make coffee it's always "to order" so I never leave anything for later.

 

[OldSaw]

In all reality I probably won't use the traditional drip all that often - probably less than using the manual release for FP and pour over. When I do make coffee it's always "to order" so I never leave anything for later.

In that case, you might be better served by the $150 Bonavita. Of course it won't have the adjust-ability. I needed something with a timer and even kicked around the idea of getting an outlet timer to plug something like a Bonavita into.

 

[mattdenicola]

In that case, you might be better served by the $150 Bonavita. Of course it won't have the adjust-ability. I needed something with a timer and even kicked around the idea of getting an outlet timer to plug something like a Bonavita into.

Well it's the temperature adjustability I'm after. Right now I just take the water temp in my Hario kettle with an IR thermometer and go from there. I feel it will be easier to just learn the falloff from the Brazen setting and the actual output temp and go from there. My biggest issues are whether the dispersion pattern is suitable to Kone and Chemex brewing and whether there is a serious temp stability issue with the whole 15 second release feature. We shall see.