One of the perks of having Krista work at Starbucks is a partner discount day, where she can purchase items with a killer discount.  Since our current coffee maker was having issues with allowing the water through the brewing cycle (it would drip out after the brew cycle was supposed to be finished), and because it was also brewing a harsh bitter flavor (after trying multiple brands and strengths), we decided to take advantage of the discount.

We purchased a Saeco Venus 8 Cup Coffeemaker.  It’s the same size as our old coffee maker, at 8 cups, so it’s great for small gatherings.  Considering our house is a size where a small gathering is all that’s possible, this is good.  It asks you to run it through a cycle to remove any dust and packing particles and then, once it’s cooled off, you’re ready to brew.

Krista likes the stainless steel.  I’m not one for aesthetics, but it does match our knife set (you can see it on the extreme left of the photo).  However, it doesn’t match our toaster.  Toaster update time?

The first positive we experienced was the taste!  The first brew it made was excellent.  No harsh residue or “burned” flavor remained.  That was one reason we wanted to try a new brewing machine, our old one would give coffee a burned bitter aftertaste that would not go away, even after de-scaling!  Normally after 1-2 cups, I would get a slight discomfort from the taste, but not after this first brew.

The second is the sealing factor of the lid and the carafe.  Both the lid where the grounds and water reservoir are stored along with the seal on the carafe lid are more than adequate.  There are appropriate vents to allow steam to disperse, so don’t store this close to the bottom of your cabinet.

The only dislike we have is the water level indicator.  It’s on the inside of the water reservoir, on the tube.  Because of the lighting in our kitchen, we need to use a flashlight to measure out the water.  If Saeco had put the water level indicator on the outside of the casing, it would have been given a 10/10.  However I only give this coffee maker an 9 because of this weird design flaw.  A small pet peeve is that none of the parts are dishwasher friendly, but that’s only minor.

All in all, we’re quite happy with our discounted purchase!  Let the good times roll!