Moccamaster 101 - advice for newbie please

I’ve just taken the plunge and ordered the KBG Select (glass carafe… I know … but we nearly always drink the coffee within an hour and I really wanted the half pot brew adjustment option, and it is handy to see what’s left in the pot).

So… this being my first MM… what should I be particularly aware of on day one (in the next week or so I hope)?

[current coffee maker is (was actually, long story) a Kitchen Aid ‘ pour over’, generally use Dark roast coffee, have Breville burr grinder]

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Other than don’t leave the warmer on too long (I turn it off right away) so it doesn’t cook the coffee, I can’t think if anything’s

I love mine! Enjoy!

Can you go back and switch to the thermal caraffe? :slight_smile:

Otherwise I the only learning curve for me was making sure to use enough coffee- Oh yeah and the drip stop sucks (at least on the model I have- must be 8-10 years old now)

Use enough coffee took me a while

Thermal not available on this model.

I’ll park the glass / thermal debate lol , I did give summary of my view above.

Am I hearing that it needs a bit higher amount of coffee per ml of water? I’m ok with that, expect anyway to be fine tuning the grind and amount of coffee for each coffee blend. But good to know where to start.

I’m curious they’d have the hot plate set too hot, given the attention to detail otherwise.

You can buy thermal carafes in various sizes, some of them more attractive than Technivorm’s. Brew and transfer. Personally, I wouldn’t leave the carafe on the hot plate at all.

Otherwise, it’s pretty much intended to be push the button and wait a bit, no special directions needed.

-Al

I would recommend you make sure you run de-scaler thru it every 150-180 brews depending upon on your water.

I also recommend you tinker with grind size. I prefer a little coarser grind on my Moccamaster. I also like to keep the brew filter switch on shut for about 30 seconds once water hits the grinds for a little stronger cup but I don’t do that unless I have time to stand there and make sure I don’t forget. It’s a big mess if you forget and keep it closed.

Only thing I’d add is expect for your coffee likely be hotter than you are used to.

My 13 year old (daily use) Moccamaster started to leak recently. It doesn’t happen during brew. After I turn it off at some point, a bit of water comes out of the bottom. A small puddle maybe 8 inches by 1 inch is left on the counter. It looks like it’s coming from the back middle of the bottom of the machine. Anyone have this happen before? After 13 years I’m wondering if I should bother fixing it or just order a new one. It seems to work perfectly other than this one annoyance.

I’m assuming it’s one of the thermal carafe models? You can buy a replacement carafe.

-Al

It’s a glass carafe but that’s not where the leak is coming from. It’s from the bottom of the machine.

Sorry, I skimmed too quickly. Sounds like either a crack in the reservoir or (more likely) an issue with a gasket. As I recall, Technivorm has a repair service but it’s pricey. Might try opening it up, but hard to judge whether it’s likely to be an easy fix (I’ve never opened mine up).

-Al

I might try to open it this weekend and take a look. Worst case, I get a new one. This model owes me nothing. I paid $225 on December 3, 2007. It still works just fine, but I’m guessing the leak is going to get worse.

Your approach is the same I would follow. From googling, one fellow took his apart, couldn’t find the source of the leak, put it back together and the leak went away. He speculated that it was a leak around a gasket under a loose screw.

As you noted, it’s done well by you if it needs to be replaced.

-Al

I’ve had a MM of one kind or another for 15 years. Stuff that’s worked for me:

  • I use a Swiss-gold like filter, rather than paper. I swear, I taste the difference.
  • I use filtered water from my fridge, rather than tap. Again, I taste the difference.
  • I keep the lid off the grounds bin and stir them as the first few shots of water hit it, especially when only brewing enough for me
  • I usually brew a little more than I need, as there always seems to be a little sludge left, regardless of setting on my grinder
  • I clean the water reservoir once a month with hot water and a paper towel, then run hot water through a couple of times. Sounds like overkill until you see the brown water.

Sounds like a lot, but I love the thing.

This. It does help to keep the brew filter switch closed until the coffee starts to “bloom”. You will see almost start to rise into a mound. At that point, I don’t think it helps to keep it closed and if you forget you get a major mess. I have my Barazza Vario tuned so that I know that 20 seconds of grind is perfect for the pot. It takes a while.

Do you store beans in the Vario?

I store beans in an airtight coffee bean storage cylinder. Then measure by weight before dumping into the grinder. Do the same for water. I use the ratios Intelligentsia recommended years ago.

Full pot for me is 75 grams of beans and 1,200 grams of water.

My vario doses by weight and the beans (dark roast) are stored in the hopper. 66 grams for 1.2 liters of water, gold cup standard. We use La Colombe Corsica, what are you using?

We use locally roasted beans from local shops. I find their quality to be as good as any national roaster and it’s fresher and local. I love freshly roasted beans.

only thing id add is if you’re using paper filter, wet it before hand.
coarser than what you’d assume usually works best. i have the 1.5 L size and use around 100 grams.