Breville Grind Control Coffee Maker, 60 ounces, Brushed Stainless Steel, BDC650BSS,Silver

Update again: April 2018
I’m thinking a big fat no on recommending this coffee maker. The maintenance is nuts. I’m cleaning the grinder and chute weekly now. I actually bought a dust buster and a giant box of q-tips just for the coffee maker maintenance. I know. Nuts. I descale regularly and try to keep everything running smoothly, including recalibrating often. It loses the calibration for no reason at all. And now the water float is busted and I have to either guess and wait for the beep when filling or replace the filter and use the indicator on the LED screen which doesn’t always work. I’m ready to go back to a simple burr grinder and a simple coffee maker that doesn’t require so much care. Sorry, Breville.

Main complaints? The beans have to pushed into the chute or it grinds away at air. The carafe leaves way too much coffee in the bottom and it has to be tipped on its head to get the coffee out when near the bottom and that means coffee goes everywhere, in the cup on the table. It’s a dumb carafe design. I cannot tell you how many times it fails to work if you don’t push the carafe directly into place correctly. 1mm off and the coffee pours all over the counter, into the drawers, and what a mess. The burr grinder only partially comes out so cleaning it is not exactly as thorough as the Breville burr grinder was so there’s always coffee ground goop stuck where you can’t clean and it matters. Coffee maker cannot go under a cupboard because you have to access the top to fill the hopper (small thing, but someone – not me- keeps shoving it back and it’s a pain to pull out once water is in there). I’m not naming it anything except PITA which is exactly as you can guess. I emailed Breville through their site to get some info on the dead float indicator and they have yet to respond. It hasn’t been long, but still. Not even a note to say they got the email. All I want is an easy to make decent pot of coffee in the morning. Something that tastes good and stays hot. Changing my rating to 3 stars cause expensive to buy this thing and give up on it before a year is up.

UPDATE:
It’s been a couple of months and we still highly recommend this coffee maker. By the next update, I am certain we will have a name for it because it requires a very close relationship. Go into this knowing it is high maintenance. You can’t just plug it in and go. But so far, it’s worth every minute of attention because it makes great coffee.

Pros:
-It does well with really dark oily beans, but you’ll have to clean out the chute more often.
-Once you’ve gone through the Breville processes a few times you won’t need to read the manual for specific directions for ordinary tasks
– It really keeps the coffee quiet hot and then very warm for a long time. I’ve gone to pour coffee from the carafe hours later for iced and find it’s too warm, still.
– Routine is your best friend when caring for this machine. If you are a routine person, this is gonna be easy for you.
– It makes a supremely hot cup of great coffee if all your settings are adjust to your liking
– The morning timer can be a great alarm clock if grinding beans wakes you up
– Coffee brews rather quickly

CONS
-Always always put a filter in place before closing the filter holder because if it brews with nothing there, hot water and half as*&ed coffee will flood everywhere
– Don’t try to descale by just running it through like an ordinary coffee pot. It has a programmed function for it (manual) and that’s the only way it knows it was descaled. I cleverly descaled a week before the machine gave me the descale message and I learned the stupid way that it is a “function” needing buttons pushed (manual!). I wasted some good descale stuff, but hey, smart machine, stupid owner.
– I learned, also the hard way, to clean the grinder by using the brush and a vacuum machine to suck up the stuff that goes flying. First time I did it without vacuum I was cleaning tiny grounds for days from everywhere in the kitchen. It’s a bit annoying when you remove the hopper that whole beans rest on the top and you have to take those off before proceeding to remove the burr. Plus get some good coffee brushes because the one that comes with it is inadequate (I had those already). I use canned air plus vacuum to clean out residue. Works great but it is a ballet. (see – high maintenance but worth it).
– Every time the machine gets unplugged it forgets your calibration for the grind (manual – learn that one if you hate wasting coffee beans).
– The hopper is way too small. I get that it’s that way to fit under most cupboards on countertop but you have to move it to load in beans anyway so why not have the hopper style that’s on the bean grinder which holds a lot of coffee beans? I fill ours every evening.
– You have to push the beans into the chute before loading in beans or it does that pretend “I need beans noise” and your coffee will suck. Push those beans down every time. Again, fix the hopper and chute, Breville.
– We use oxygen bleached filters cause our coffee is too fine for the gold filter. Don’t ever forget to place some filter in there before brewing or the coffee muck will go everywhere except in the carafe.
– Requires wiping down not only the inside top of the filter holder, but the stainless plate where the grounds come out and the little catcher at the bottom of the filter holder every time. See, high maintenance.
-Do not get me started on the carafe. It is the dumbest thing Breville ever designed. It keeps the coffee hot (yay) but getting the coffee out is part art, part, luck and you will always have a bit left in there that cannot be poured anywhere. It has to turn completely upside down to get the last cup out and even then it sprinkles coffee drops everywhere. It only works marginally well when the carafe is totally full. Plus the lid to the carafe never dries out. I rinse it and shake it to death, turn it all kinds of directions to dry and it never, never dries.

This Grind Control is pretty awesome. It makes a good cuppa, nice and hot and that’s all I want in the early morning. I learned a few things that made the process easier because all those buttons and menus make the coffee maker a little bit annoying. First, find the instruction manual online and read it a few times – only because Breville is detailed and if you own any Breville appliances you know they mean exactly what they specify. Like A before B or C never happens. Here’s an example. The grind chute is behind the basket. To clean it (which you should do a lot if you use dark oily beans) you unlock the bean hopper and the automagically stainless plate opening moves to the chute so you can access it to clean. Remember A before B? Yeah. That. I almost returned the machine because I couldn’t get that stainless plate to move to open the chute. Then I reread the instructions for the 80 gazillionth time and et voila! There it was. Hopper first, open basket second. Then you hear a whirring noise and the plate moves and there’s the chute. I’d been opening the basket thing, then removing the hopper and nothing. So read the instructions and don’t feel bad about reading them several times. Honest. It isn’t your reading skills. It’s Breville’s quirky way of doing things.

Many folks (in the reviews) felt bad about the strength of the coffee and how much it chewed up a pound of beans in short order. It does. But it doesn’t have to be that chewy. Try the calibration function (again, instruction book). We ended up using far less beans to get to our best cup of coffee which is pretty strong. Calibration is your cost cutting friend. Beans are spendy. Also, pay attention to the instruction manual about Breville’s coffee cup size – it’s small. Not at all what we drink. But use their size as your measure for everything.

If you’ve owned the Breville bean grinder this hopper will make you slightly sad. It says it holds a half-pound of coffee but not ours. It holds about a third pound and I fill it every other day which still bothers me because the other grinder held about a whole pound. Also, use something to gently send the beans toward the burr when filling it (not when it’s in operation) because sometimes it will grind air if the beans aren’t moving. Smooth the beans gently with a little pressure and that should do it. Over fill and the top won’t set on there properly. The grind setting from coarse to fine is up there, too. Use the setting they recommend. For regular 8 cups plus pots of coffee we use a coarser grind (calibrated) and that seems to work. A finer grind will be a perfect storm for overflowing the basket if you are making a large pot.

The timer is great. I can set the thing before bed and it wakes us up in the morning which is preferable to an alarm because the smell of grinding coffee is pretty nice.

The thermal carafe is keeping the coffee very hot for a long time. We made coffee, forgot we made it, went out and came back two hours later and the coffee was quite warm. Not hot, but a good warm. The only downside to the carafe is the way it pours. Others have mentioned it in the reviews and they are spot on. It dribbles out, even when full. The spout is on the rim but there is no indent on the pot rim to account for the pour so it really has to be tipped to get it to give you some coffee. And when the pot is low, well, it’s like the little teapot rhyme. Just tip it over and pour it out. It seems counterintuitive and almost silly (not to mention slightly dangerous if you are pouring it over a light colored carpet) but I have to tip it almost fully upside down to get the last cup out of it. Dripped out of it, actually. Breville can redesign that carafe any time.

Last, no matter what they say about when to clean the chute, the burr and all the places where stuff collects, do it more often. I do it a couple times a week. Takes a minute or two and keeps the grinder from getting gummy from the oily beans. The basket not only should be rinsed each time you empty it but wipe down the inside top where the grinds drop in and you’ll come away with plenty of coffee gunk. We also ditched the gold filter and use oxygen bleached paper filters to catch the bitter oils and residue.

Size? Giant. It’s like adding a refrigerator to your counter top and it needs breathing room for vents so it can’t get squished in a corner under the cupboard. You can’t get to the hopper easily if it’s under the cupboard. My solution was to let it sit on the countertop edge next to the real refrigerator so it has plenty of space to vent in the back. I’d say it takes up the same real estate as did the other grinder, water heater pot and french press so there really was no space saving in buying a single machine (for us). Though it is huge and makes my giant stand mixer look like a little sibling, I don’t mind giving it half the kitchen counter space. It’s worth it. The only improvement would be to make the feet be little wheels that lock in place so you can move it to fill up the hopper and water. (I can hear Breville laughing at me from here).

I’m glad I waited to buy this model. It’s a keeper. Even without wheels. But, please fix that carafe design. It’s embarrassing.

UPDATE: JULY 20, 2020

Ok, so I got through most of the fiddly parts with my Breville Grind & Brew. It makes GREAT coffee. It requires regular maintenance. If you DON’T clean it/maintain it properly you will NOT get great coffee & you may not get any coffee at all!! I’m now very proficient at maintaining this machine. Of course, sometimes I push the envelope. Like, when I KNOW I should clean out the chute where grounds can solidify & stop pushing the coffee into the basket assembly. The next pot of coffee is usually just yellow liquid – no coffee.

Here are important points about maintenance. I use a vacuum cleaner clean out the burr grinder & even the chute. Old coffee grounds will solidify over time & harden. I use a toothpick to loosen everything & then get it out with the vacuum. It’s very effective. I never ever put parts in the dishwasher. I’ve made the mistake a couple of times of putting the carafe in the dishwasher. Water gets into the thermal carafe & doesn’t come out. The other parts to this machine, while removeable, have rubber or metal blades on them. Over time, I believe, the dishwasher will weaken the rubber and corrode the metal. It’s very easy to use a good bottle brush & detergent to clean everything. DO NOT reassemble the machine with wet parts. The inner burr grinder will compact grounds over time and that’s enough of a problem. If you attach it damp or wet, the clumping will occur more frequently. Having had this machine for 5 years, & using it daily (sometimes twice per day), the burr grinder & chute must be disassembled and cleaned each time a FULL bean hopper is emptied from use. It just will make your life easier & coffee experience better. FOLLOW DESCALING procedure. When the machine tells you to descale with 8 cups of water & 4 cups of white vinegar, just do it. Once that’s done, run 12 cups of clean water through the machine once or twice.

Ok, so as an “update”, I’ll add that my Breville, though not fully broken was becoming more and more temperamental. So, I just replaced it through Amazon. Even with hand washing everything, the rubber parts to this machine were starting to fail. It was becoming more difficult to release the hopper. The rubber on the basket assembly wasn’t that great and wasn’t perfectly aligning with the chute opening. There’s a rubber in the chute opening too. I noticed grounds sticking & hardening there more frequently.

My decision to replace this Breville was easy. I truly love the coffee it makes. I figured I got 4.5 years out of my original machine & figuring how much coffee I make, it was worth the cost. The original machine likely would have performed for another year or so. I just noticed the rubber parts giving out & figured it was time. I’ll hold on to my original machine for a little while – just in case the new one is a total lemon.

Review remains at 3 stars. You have to really really want a great cup of coffee every day to be willing to deal with the maintenance. I’m willing to do it but it’s not for everybody.

UPDATE: DECEMBER 30 2019

So, I figured out how to get that shiney metal disc to open. You have to have ALL the pieces in place (the plastic little grinds catcher & the basket assembly) with the door closed BEFORE taking apart the hopper. When you loosen the grinder assembly in the hopper, the silver disc will move to an open position. THEN you can get in there and clean the chute.

And it really needs to be cleaned!!!! Maybe it’s because my machine is approaching 4 years old that it’s become more finicky. Lately, it seems, every other pot is just hot water because the chute is clogged. I’ve gotten into the habit of using a toothpick in the chute to loosen the packed grinds & then taking the hose of my vacuum to it. That gets everything out but it’s a pain in the ass to have to do every other day.

In the past, I could go through 2 full bean hoppers before cleaning the machine. Now, it’s much more frequent.

When I clean the chute, I also use a flashlight to inspect the inside to make sure none of the rubber is damaged. It’s not but I guess it’s a little older & worn now so the grounds jam within the machine more readily. Timed obsolescence??

I’m contemplating replacing this machine with a new one just because it’s now temperamental.

When it works, it makes great coffee though. Oh, bear in mind that if you’re making a full pot (12 cups) DON’T fill the machine beyond the first “beep” sound. The carafe will spill over. This is a flaw, I think, since the carafe should stop brewing at the correct amount of water. The coffee maker should not just empty its contents if you set the machine for 12 cups.

I haven’t found a machine that makes a better cup of coffee. The comparable Cuisinart also has issues and complaints. It’s a little cheaper than Breville. For now, I’ll stick with what I know. Maybe I’ll just replace it with another since getting it fixed with all new interior parts may cost almost as much as the current price.

Happy Coffee in 2020!!

UPDATE: NOVEMBER 29, 2018

Ok, it’s been just under 3 years that I’ve had this Breville. I really really liked it. I had no issue cleaning it. I liked the way it told me when to descale it – and I did that as soon as I got the “DESCALE” notice on the machine.

Up until a few days ago, it would have gotten a stellar review. But now, for the first time, the disc that covers the grinding chute suddenly stopped functioning. For the past 3 days, I’ve only gotten a pot of hot water in the morning instead of my needed cup of coffee.

I cleaned the entire machine. I emptied the hopper, pulled everything out, vacuumed it out completely. I pulled out the burr grinder & cleaned it with a toothpick (not that it was all that dirty.) I made sure that the lower grinder turned easily.

I ran another pot and again, hot water. Then I noticed that when I unlocked the burr grinder, the mirrored disc doesn’t turn.

I’m tempted to take out the screws holding the plastic cover that attaches the mirrored disc, but I’m a little afraid to do that. It seems to me that there must be some kind of jam at the lower part of the chute that I can’t reach without taking apart the entire housing.

What a drag.

So, the question is: Do I call Breville? Do I replace this machine with another one? Do I get the new Cuisinart or Capresso?

I can’t seem to get any coffee maker to last more than 3 years. I so loved waking up to a hot freshly ground cup of coffee!!

My machine had light daily use – about 2 full mugs of coffee per day (6 cups). It has been cleaned every day & descaled per instructions. I don’t know why this happened but I’m disappointed.

Lowering my rating to 2 stars for 3 good years anyway.

I intend to update this review as I continue with this Breville. Having owned TWO Cuisinart Grind & Brew machines, I know that time will tell whether this machine will hold up.

I note the following:

Hopper is significantly smaller than on the Cuisinart & holds fewer beans. That’s probably a good thing as it’s my policy to clean the grinder when the hopper is empty. With fewer beans, I’m brushing it out every few days as opposed to once per week or so with the Cuisinart.

It uses A LOT of beans at one time. My only comparison here is by considering the amount of ground beans in the filter after making a pot. A 6 or 8-cup pot on the Breville at 3 strength used significantly more beans than my Cuisinart at Medium strength. I switched to 3-strength since level 4 almost filled the filter & was actually stronger than I’m used to.

I’m very fastidious with my coffee machines & clean up after I have my first morning cup. I can see that over time the chute disc at the back of the machine may get funky if it’s not regularly wiped down. I also worry about that mechanism getting jammed or stuck over time. There’s no way to remove it to see if there’s any clog where the ground beans come out.

The coffee basket has a hinged top. It seems a little flimsy to me and may give way over time. Also, the rubber opening to the basket may wear down over time – as it did on my Cuisinart. At the end of the life of the Cuisinart, I began to regularly apply a little vegetable oil to the rubbery parts so that they wouldn’t stick. I fear that that process may be needed on the soft rubbery parts of the Breville as well.

The coffee pot keeps the coffee hot – for hours. Now, I don’t know if it reaches that optimum level that coffee affecionados desire, but it works for me. I was drinking Christmas brunch coffee at 9pm & didn’t have to heat up my cup in the microwave. That’s OK with me!

However, I find that cleaning the pot is bothersome. I have small hands. Yet, my hand can’t reach into the pot to clean it it. I have to purchase one of those spongy dish cleaning things on a stick to get in there. That’s slightly annoying.

Making a single cup is totally cool – except you have to go through the process of cleaning everything up again.

Taking everything apart and brushing out that burr grinder regularly is essential!! I can see how bean residue will get clogged in there. So, you DO have to remove the hopper, release the upper burr grinder thingy & really brush everything out. It’s a little cumbersome to do & frankly, you don’t know if you’re getting everything out. You can’t remove the lower burr grinder. (The upper burr grinder is a round disc that screws into place directly above the lower grinder. The lower grinder sits in a well area & is not moveable.) So I don’t know whether you can ever tell if there’s a clog below the lower grinder. Time will tell whether such a build up (if any) poses a problem.

Filling the tank is easy enough. However, I found it’s easiest to use a measuring cup with a pour spout to prevent drips outside the machine.

Ultimately – and so far – I truly like this machine. I DO believe it requires regular maintenance for optimum results. Frankly, any machine with a burr grinder in it requires maintenance. It seems like it takes a few more steps to maintain as opposed to the Cuisinart Grind & Brew. But those extra steps really don’t take any more time.

And, if I can have a great cup of coffee everyday without a machine leaking water all over my counter after 2 years of use, I’ll be happy. (That was my SECOND Cuisinart Grind & Brew. My first Cuisinart took nearly 3 years to break down. That’s why that machine is selling so cheaply now.)

If the Breville holds up longer, I’ll be a happy coffee drinker. So far, So good.

I was on the fence about purchasing this coffee maker based on the reviews and price. I had excellent luck with my previous coffee maker (Cuisinart) but was looking for something with a built-in grinder that also offered single-serving options. I read countless reviews on Amazon, the Breville website, and many others. I also have an espresso machine (just happens to be a Breville as well), along with a Keurig single-serve (that barely gets used since my purchase of the Breville Grind Control). Here is my honest opinion…

The good – It makes an excellent cup of coffee. I really look forward to getting up in the morning and having freshly ground beans without having to take the time to grind them myself. You can skip the grinding and use a pre-ground if you don’t have whole beans on hand (a nice option as backup, or if you don’t want to wake anyone else in your house up with the grinder in the morning). This coffee maker also gives you the option of making several different sizes of single-serving coffee (eg: regular mug to travel size). Being able to pre-load the bean hopper and water tank allows the unit to be self-sufficient for several uses before a reload (water, as the beans tend to last a while). The coffee maker gives you plenty of options with respect to strength etc, you can really hone the cup of coffee to your desired taste. I have yet to explore the calibration feature for different types of whole beans.

Cleaning – clean-up is less than a minute. You simply need to empty and rinse the gold filter basket, along with the carriage the basket sits in. The outlet of the bean hopper needs a quick wipe. Not sure why so many people complain about the “excessive clean up” etc, its pretty damn simple. The coffee maker does not leak or make a mess everywhere, as some reviews stated. For best results yes you do need to let the filter basket and carriage dry prior to its next use. Yes a soak and light scrub of the carriage is required every so often.

The so-so – many reviews have had an issue with the carafe design (pouring the coffee). This is completely justified. Yes it is somewhat annoying that you can never get the last few drops of coffee out of the carafe (~10mL), but overall that’s not a dealbreaker for me. In the future maybe Breville will re-think the carafe to allow for easier pouring.

Warmth – many reviews complain about the warmth of the coffee. A freshly made cup is plenty hot enough. After leaving the carafe sitting for ~30 minutes the temperature does cool down, but at the most your second cup of coffee needs a 15 second zap in the microwave. Again, not a deal breaker for me. People complaining about the temperature not being hot enough must enjoy regularly burning their tongues on extremely hot coffee.

Grinder noise – yes the grinder is somewhat loud, but I have yet to come across a quiet coffee grinder.

Overall – it is worth spending the money on. I really enjoy coffee, and part of what gets me out of bed in the morning is knowing this coffee maker is going to deliver a great cup of java. For me the quality of the coffee outweighs the small inconveniences of carafe design and temperature maintenance.

Hope this helps other coffee lovers out there make an informed decision on purchasing the Grind Control.