Photos By Emily Williams Photography
When I shared my new Miele coffee machine on Instagram a few weeks back, I didn’t expect to get such an overwhelming response from you all – apparently there’s an equally as passionate crowd on Nutrition Happens about coffee as I am! I’m sharing all the reasons why I chose the Miele CM Countertop Coffee Machine and the common questions I get about it. This is in no way sponsored even though Miele, if you’re reading this – I’m a fan!
So first things first: what is so different about the Miele Countertop Coffee Machines?
I have to preface this by saying that items that are worth it you might not be worth it to someone else – always clarify your “why” first and prioritize your top values first! Miele is a well-respected high-end kitchen appliance brand so it caught my eye when I saw first a built-in version of the coffee machine on a condo listing last year. It looked so sleek in the photos I immediately looked into it! There were a few non-negotiable I was looking for in my coffee machine upgrade: definitely a semi-automatic espresso machine because I wanted to control as many factors as I can in my cup of coffee, in the easiest way possible – by pressing one button! And by “factors” I mean everything from the temperature, coffee grind, amount, drink, down to the beans – all automated so I can get a consistent cup of coffee every time. There are so many factors that affect the brew so this is an easy way to do that without learning how to manually pull a shot of espresso (which is what you see typically at a coffee shop).
I needed to be able to pick out the type of coffee beans I can use and also wanted a machine with a build-in grinder. Once you have a cup with freshly ground beans, you can’t go back! I’m a one-cup of coffee a day kinda of person and it brings me so much peace to have that one cup of coffee in the morning to look forward. So I wanted to make it the absolute best cup of coffee as possible, all in the comfort of my own kitchen. Before the Miele (and besides visiting my favorite coffee shops every morning) I was using a Nespresso Vertuo Next – which I liked for the pandemic year I had it but I truly missed choosing/ trying different type of coffee beans. I got over the pods pretty quickly but if you’re looking for a mid-price range automatic machines (this post and this post breaks down the automatic vs manual vs semi-automatic machines pretty well if you need a refresher!), the Nespresso could be for you! I know many people who love it but again and I liked it a lot too but I just couldn’t see myself using the pods forever so I sold it. This Miele CM machine is so easy to use and checks every aspect I wanted in a semi-automatic machine.
Things I Love about the Miele CM range:
- Versatility – Makes every drink you can think of – even though I prefer my cup just plain black, it does everything from espressos, americanos, macchiatos, lattes, cappuccinos to ristrettos- even hot milk / milk froth! You can also make two drinks at one time and there’s a “coffee pot” function for when you need coffee for larger crowds, which I love since we really do enjoy hosting at home. This provides an option for every guest that comes over for coffee. Plus, we always have top-notch espresso for espresso martinis!
- Functionality – it comes with a built-in grinder AND there’s a separate chute if you need to make another cup with coffee grounds you already have – which has been so nice! That means if you prefer fresh beans and someone else in your home prefers a specific type of ground coffee, you can make both in one morning. You can also customize the user profiles on the machine so that in one touch of a button, all of the parameters (coffee temperature, amount, type, coffee grind) are set under your name and everyone else you live with can each have their own separate coffee “profile” so there’s no confusion about what the machine is set to and everyone gets their perfect cup.
- Maintenance – there’s an auto-clean function, which helps keep the machine pristine (I would also recommend their descaling / degreasing tablets to maintain the machine as well – several parts of the machine are also dishwasher friendly. The machine will automatically tell you when it needs to be descaled/ degreased.
- Size – it’s less clunky as the other machines I looked at (I know people love their Jura Espresso Machines, but I wanted something smaller!) and the size is perfect in our current kitchen.
- Look/Aesthetics – the white looks super sleek in our kitchen! I also bought this Milk Glass attachment for lattes / cappuccinos.
A few cons:
While overall this machine has been a 10/10 for me, there are definitely a few things about it that I would change or adjust – no dealbreakers, but mostly me being Type A (ha!):
- Daily maintenance: while you don’t need to deep clean / degrease / descale the machine daily, it’s recommended that you empty out the coffee grinds and clean the bottom drip tray every single day since coffee can build up quickly over time. Also, the dispenser tends to splash coffee onto the back part of the machine even though you can adjust the height to the cup – not too big of a deal to me though since’s it’s pretty easy to wipe down overall, you just have to do it daily!
- Water reservoir amount: the water tank needs to be refilled pretty frequently! Which overall can be a good thing since this pretty much guarantees that you’re using fresh water for every cup.
- Longer wait on tech support: I had a few packaging issues when I first got it delivered and it took a few calls to get it resolved, so ultimately I liked that there’s a Miele Team in the Chicagoland area to take care of the machine if I ever needed anything else but the process took a bit longer than I liked.
- No “oily” coffee beans: this doesn’t really apply to me but Miele recommends not to use any thing that’s been roasted with sugar, etc – so any “flavored” coffee would be out, mostly because the oily residue can build up quickly in the machine over time to cause blockage. Just something to keep in mind if that’s you!
- Cost: it’s truly an investment at $2000 but if you’re a coffee fanatic, this pays for itself it no time – the cost per cup to me is well worth it and to have the perfect cup in the morning has been priceless!
Overall, I love this Miele countertop coffee machine and it looks great in our coffee corner – it does exactly what I need it to do and more. 10000% well worth it to me for the perfect cup of coffee in the morning! I’ve been doing this new thing where I invite friends over on a Sunday morning for a fresh cup. It’s been perfect for that! A few of my favorite coffee beans lately: anything from Dark Matter Coffee, Stumptown’s Holler Mountain, and Bridgeport Coffee’s Hard Scrabble.
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