Technivorm Details Page

Okay … you don’t need an expensive electric appliance to brew great drip coffee. Manual pour-over drip brewing with Chemex or a filter cone work well, as does a French Press for a fuller-bodied cup. But most people in our fair land brew their coffee in electric coffee makers, and ironically, most of them can barely brew a decent cup! (I am talking about the machines, not the people using them.) Cheap drip brewers invariably fail to brew coffee at the correct temperature; most home electric drip brewers reach only 185 degrees. When coffee is brewed at a low temperature the result is a dulling of the higher, more vivid cup tones, and incomplete extraction of the coffee flavors overall.

The Technivorm brewers all make the same cup of coffee. The differences are primarily in size (8 cup vs. 10 cup) and style. The Technivorms brewers use a cone-shaped filter which improves the extraction of coffee flavors from the grounds. (A flat-bottom filter is fine if you have a sprinkler-type brew head, but home machines rarely do). Our tests result in more intense brewed coffee than comparable home machines when using the exact same amount of ground coffee in each.


The filter cone holder is unlike other coffeemakers allowing for manually holding back the hot water – this has advantages (see below). Also note that the Moccamaster CD is of a different design …(also see below!)

The finish in the machines is good, and if you have any doubts of their wallop, check out the diameter of the power cord. One weak point in the manufacture is the thin feel of some plastic lid parts, above. They are quality ABS material, they could just have a little more heft to them.

A note on the KBTS Thermal Carafe model:

My favorite
Technivorm feature
is so simple …
This is an image of the sensor on the base of the KBTS model (with the thermal carafe). It stops the brewing if the pot is removed (or won’t let you start the brewing if the pot is not there). By the way, you also need to close the filterholder’s drip-stop switch (next image) to remove the pot and pour coffee before the brewing is complete. However, this is something you should really not do … you are changing the overall flavor of the whole brew batch if you, for example, stop brewing to pour the first 12 ounces from the carafe. This is the simple feature on most models* of the Technivorm that I really appreciate. It’s the filterholder’s drip stop switch. It is supposed to be set to “Full Drip” when you brew a full pot, “Slow Drip” (half open) for brewing less than a full pot, and No Drip (closed) to pull out the pot when coffee is still brewing. However, it has a fantastic alternative function; I set it to No Drip for the first 1-2 minutes of the brew cycle to allow for the hot water and grinds to fully infuse, then I switch it to Slow Drip for the remainder of the brew cycle (I see no need to use Full Drip at all). The intensity of the coffee is excellent using this technique, and no longer is the timing of the water passing through the coffee dependent on the grind; too coarse and the brew tastes week and under-infused, too fine and it is bitter and has sediment). This improves the performance of Swiss Gold filters in the Technivorm too. I also stir my grinds in the filterholder after 2 minutes, but this is purely optional. The danger of my technique: if you forget to switch the brewer to Slow Drip after a minute or two, it is going to overflow – though there is a new mechanism so it does not create a huge mess – you might just get some grounds in the pot. Our tip sheet outlines this process, and it comes with the Technivorm

** Some folks have said that they have trouble with their filter basket on the Technivorm – trouble with the mechanism – so I have a photo of the bottom of the basket here. The most common problem is that the rubber stopper is out of place – so a tug on the tail of the stopper gets it seated correctly. You can also buy replacement filter baskets from Boyd’s Coffee. – Maria

You also might appreciate the attitude expressed in Technivorm’s “company profile” statement, as I did:
Technivorm-Moccamaster has for many years specialized in the manufacture of coffee makers. These coffee makers are all handmade, which means that they are manufactured and assembled by hand and individually tested in a live situation. It is the personal touch that makes our products unique.
The brewing quality of our coffee makers is beyond dispute and guaranty a first class beverage due to the fact that brewing temperature and water/coffee contact time as well as holding temperature are in accordance with the critical requirements of the Norwegian Coffee Brewing Centre and the Specialty Coffee Association of America and Europe. Needless to say that we are proud to carry their seal of approval for all our coffee makers.
The Technivorm-Moccamaster factory is centrally located in the heart of the Netherlands and serves customers all over the world. Every single product meets the electricity requirements of the country they are destined for and are produced under the ISO 9002 regulations.
Our environment is well recognized in both production and product against the following design and marketing philosophy:
1. To produce totally reliable equipment simple to operate providing the maximum satisfaction to its users through being completely dependable.
2. To contribute towards the resolution of the world’s pollution and waste problems by the manufacture of high quality and energy efficient “long life” products.
3. To use only recyclable or fully degradable materials in the manufacture of our quality products.

My final thoughts on the Technivorm: We have been using the same KBTS in the warehouse for years and we have been brewing fantastic coffee. As someone who cups coffee daily, it is nice to drink coffee from the Technivorm. There is no other home electric drip brewer I would even consider using.

The difference is the truly hot brew temperature, and my preferred method (to set the filterholder to No Drip initially and then to Slow Drip after about a minute). I lift the top and stir the grounds at the same time, but this is just my own quirk as the standard brewhead on the Technivorms does a fine job saturating all the grinds. For such a simple machine, it makes a huge difference in the cup quality of the coffee. Use 5 level scoops with the 1 liter model and 5-6 with the 1.25 liter models.

We have had some feedback from folks who find the coffee brewed not hot enough in the Technivorms. There is a steep drop off once the water hits the grounds and then drops to the pot – that is to be expected. Testing the machines at our warehouse in Oakland (elev. 8 feet) – I get the following temperatures: 195 to 205 degrees F at the brewhead; in the grounds, 160 degrees F; and 156 degrees F in the pot. I find 156 degrees too hot to actually taste anything – so I let it cool a bit. Some folks find this too cool – they are used to the coffee being heated on a hot plate above brewing temperature but I can’t taste anything in a liquid that hot – so reheating the coffee does not make much sense for me. I know that some folks are used to coffee that hot though – that is what they are accustomed to. And if you are adding cream or sugar to the cup – that will drop the temperature that much more. –Tom

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