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I’m admittedly a coffee snob when it comes to brewing from freshly ground beans; there’s just nothing to beat the aroma of grinding beans and the flavor of the coffee brewed immediately after grinding. The half-pound built-in bean hopper and automatic grinder are arguably my favorite features of the Breville BDC600XL coffee maker(while this review is for my BDC600XL YouBrew, the same would be correct for the Breville BDC550XL YouBrew).
I used to go to the trouble–because I believed the result worth the work–of separately measuring and grinding beans for every pot I was about to brew, so I love the fact that my Breville BDC600XL does that work for me. I get all the benefit of the freshly-ground blend, with none of the extra work–or the extra clean-up!
The YouBrew also features an integrated burr grinder that holds up to .5 lbs. of beans. It comes with a 12-cup thermal carafe, so your coffee stays at the perfect temperature for drinking after it’s brewed, and the brewing platform has a 7.5″ clearance — the right size for most of your travel mugs.
The sleek design features a large LCD display that’s intuitive and easy to read with both symbols and text, making it perfect for those early mornings before you get your glasses on. If you’re brewing up a full carafe but don’t want to wait for the full pot to brew, the YouBrew’s brew pause feature lets you snag a cup to drink while you wait for the rest of the pot to fill. And of course, you can program your YouBrew to fix your coffee automatically so you’ll have a single cup, a travel mug or a full carafe of perfectly brewed java ready to go when you are.
The YouBrew coffee brewer has an easy-open swing-out filter compartment and comes with a gold coffee filter, but is compatible with paper coffee filters if you prefer them. In addition, the spec sheets note that the YouBrew is made with BPA-free materials.
For the environmentally conscientious and health conscious members of my household, I can assure them that the Breville BDC600XL coffee maker is made entirely without BPA in its component materials, and the gold-tone reusable coffee filter eliminates the waste of paper filters. For myself, I’m pleased with the Breville BDC600XL coffee maker’s minimal messes and easy clean-up. The carafe and reusable filter are dishwasher safe, and when I’m brewing just for myself I can skip the carafe and brew directly into my favorite coffee cup on a morning when I’m staying home, or my travel mug when I’m heading to work.
The “BrewIQ” system of adjustable controls on the Breville BDC600XL coffee maker include seven different settings for strength (measurement of ground coffee used) as well as five settings for steeping time. I confess it took me a little time to get familiar with the control panel, especially given the sub-steps comprising each of those separate settings, but it’s truly not prohibitively complicated, even for a non-techie like me.
On the colder mornings when I’m using the Breville BDC600XL coffee maker, I prefer to pre-warm the carafe with hot water; I’ve found otherwise that the carafe dissipates the coffee’s heat rather too quickly.
I do have to note that the sheer size of the Breville BDC600XL coffee maker might present difficulties in a smaller kitchen, and given my own short stature, I keep a small stepstool handy to give me enough height to pour water into the top-filling reservoir. I’d go to more trouble than that, though, for the fresh-grind this machine offers every morning. I’m also happy to be able to brew one cup at a time, either when I’m the only one in the house, or on the mornings when our houseful has demolished the carafe-full and I just want an additional cup for myself.
The single-cup brewing takes longer than you might expect, but it’s not a longer wait than I’d expect if I were brewing a whole new pot, and I’m happy not to waste coffee grounds and energy in brewing more than I need. The Breville BDC600XL coffee maker has been keeping me happy, and I’m enjoying sampling the various whole bean blends it gives me the opportunity to try.
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Darka says
Hi. I actually really love this coffee maker and I am a coffee snob. There are a few things to keep in mind in choosing your brew strengths- you need to know your bean! The darker roasts are more oily and will not travel down the grinder as easily, the smaller beans like Ethiopian will grind very quickly down the chute. I learned this from my last coffee maker which was a Capresso Brew Station- not that disliked it, but, I wanted more variation on my brew options. The Breville maker actually makes much hotter coffee and the flavor is way more intense. Im very happy with this unit.
Jim says
My wife and I love the Youbrew. Our only complaint is that it uses lots of coffee beans, regardless of the strength setting.
Alex cerino says
Sent first one back as it would just not work. Not sure if I will keep this one. Setting it at night(not Program) is different in the morning. hard to adjust .
adam says
Figured it out
adam says
I could really use some help. I have a youbrew and I have a problem. Mine will not register above 9 cups of water on the level meter. I have the strength set at medium not intense. I cannot brew more than 9 cups. This is my 4th machine in 2 weeks. Has anyone else experienced this problem? Am I doing something wrong? I am completely perplexed as to how 4 machines could have the same problem. Any feedback would be appreciated. Thank you.
Natalie says
I’m not sure what everyone is complaining about – maybe you need better beans or something. The YouBrew is an excellent brewer with top notch features and design. Honestly, I feel like you’re all doing something wrong.
clarence says
I personally believe that all of you who are complaining need to sit down and read the directions. They are there for a reason. I have had no issues with the breville. Again to all of you read the direction. If you are illiterate, please get someone to read them to you.
GJR says
Well, just wanted to report some bad/good news on the YouBrew. I returned my first unit to WS due to water leaking from the bottom of the machine. Decided to give it another try, and the second unit has been much better in every way- I don’t know if there was an issue with the first one or if I was doing something wrong as far as the controls are concerned, but I’m getting very strong and robust coffee from this machine. I have noticed that the single cup option does not brew quite as hot as the carafe mode, but still hot enough. Overall, glad I stuck with it and hoping it’ll hold up!
Bob Probert says
Save your money. A couple issues with this machine. One is the grind issue, I don’t believe the machines disperse enough grinds and the grinds are not fine enough for a drip to extract flavor. Two, the water does not get hot enough to fully extract the flavor of the grinds (familiar problem with these type of brewers) and therefore weak coffee is the result. I noticed if the water that was put in the machine was room temp. I got a better cup of coffee (although still sub par, where if I poured in cold water I got extremely weak coffee. This machine may be adequate for those who cannot tell the difference b/w a good and bad cup of coffee, but buyer beware does not live up to the billing. I really wanted to like this product, but its just not good. Take the extra effort and buy a good grinder and chemex or hario v60 pour over.
Mike says
@Dan The Technivorm is nice so far, my wife and I are extremely pleased, though I must disclose to everyone the first one I got from WS had the on/off switch go bad on day two, second one is good so far. It’s a lot to spend but in my mind worth it for something that I use every day. Grabbed the Bodum Bistro Burr Grinder from Amazon to go with it. We’re getting what we believe is excellent coffee out of the Technivorm using 5 tablespoons for 10 cups on #4 Melitta brown cone filters. I had to experiment quite a bit with this as the included scoop is far more than a tablespoon and also 10 cups on the Technivorm’s water tank is equal to more like 8 cups on the previous brewer that I had so initially I was brewing some serious mud. I’m no expert on coffee but here’s what’s working for me, I put whole bean Tim Horton’s in the Bistro grinder for approx 17 seconds and that gives me between five and six tablespoons of freshly ground. Out of that I spoon out 5 measured tablespoons into the #4 Melitta, doesn’t have to be exactly level ones but close, then I fill the Technivorm’s water tank to 10, and in a couple of minutes I’m getting IMHO very good coffee. We have the one with the hotplate, coffee stays scalding hot which I love. Good luck to you whatever you choose.
GJR says
That being said, I will experiment with it some more and report back. I just don’t want to believe that “the culmination of over 5 years of research into coffee and coffee lovers,” as it says on Breville’s website, would amount to such a subpar result.
GJR says
Drove 35 minutes each way in a rainstorm to buy one last night and couldn’t believe how disappointed I was this morning to set it on the strongest settings, only to result in a horribly weak cup of coffee. Tried brewing with my own grinds, which are more appropriate for a drip machine, only to be disappointed again. Major letdown, unfortunately. Really wanted to like this machine too, even at a price near $300. I’ve heard it said that Breville is the “Apple” of small appliances. Well, they have the image and the marketing, but maybe they forgot that to be like Apple, you actually have to have a great product as well.