Smaller Single Cup Coffee Makers – The Keurig Mini And The Cuisinart 1 Cup

Great for the office, college dorm, an RV or boat, the smaller sized single cup coffee makers fill a niche in more ways than one. Their small, compact size allows them to slip easily into a backpack or suitcase and they don’t require much room on the kitchen counter or a desk. They brew up a hot cup of coffee quickly and this certainly reduces the amount of stale coffee that is dumped down the drain.

When you get down to the bare essentials of coffee brewing, the smaller machine doesn’t have a lot of bells and whistles. It is basically a water reservoir and a brewing mechanism that turns out the coffee. Evaluate these two machines and you will see numerous similarities.

Special Features Of The Keurig Mini

• Brews coffee within 60 seconds of heating
• Brews an 8 ounce cup
• Has 8 ounce water reservoir
• Refill water for each cup
• Has Auto-Off feature
• Brews K-Cups of coffee, tea, or cocoa
• Available in 3 colors: red, white, black
• Has travel tote bag
• Price $79.95

Special Features Of The Cuisinart One Cup Coffee Maker

• Brews in less than 3 minutes
• Brews an 8 ounce cup of coffee
• Has 8 ounce water reservoir
• Refill water for each cup
• Uses standard 1 cup sized coffee pods
• Has illuminated power button
• Has Auto-Off  feature
• Available in black
• Price $29.70 to $43.89

So when you are trying to decide on a single cup brewer, evaluate how well each works. How good is the coffee that each one brews? After all, that’s why you are buying it.

The Keurig coffee makers, from the top of the line to the smallest machine, use the identical brewing mechanism. These coffee makers have all earned #1 ratings for their reliability and durability – and also for making a great cup of coffee. Says one user, who has the larger Keurig Special Edition for home use, “ The B30, Mini, is perfect for my desk. It’s attractive…makes coffee just as well as my full-sized machine. I plan to use it regularly…I think the design is nice and sleek overall.” Another user comments, “The coffee tastes just as good as with my larger K-Cup brewer, though, with the smaller water volume the darker roasts have more ‘punch’ –especially darker ones like the Coffee People’s Black Tiger and Caribou Coffee’s Mahogany. I’m sticking mostly with medium roasts like CP’s Donut Shop and Green Mountain’s Nantucket Blend with good results.”

A user of the Cuisinart 1 Cup says, “The coffee that comes out of this little maker is very weak. If you like the flavor of a strong cup of coffee, this isn’t the unit for you. What I do like about it is the small size. I bought it for my desk…it fits perfectly…easy to use. The instructions say not to use more than one pod at a time but I think I may have to. I’m a little disappointed.” That solution will depend upon the pod space in the machine – some will hold only one standard sized pod.

Evaluate the single cup coffee makers well so you are not disappointed with a bad cup of coffee or a sputtering brewer that won’t brew.

Keurig Mini B30

Keurig B30

Here’s a great single cup coffee maker that is perfect for many different lifestyles. The Keurig Mini B30 is small and compact, yet it brews up a hot cup of coffee in less than a minute. Well built and durable, the Mini lives up to the reputation of its larger cousins for reliability and consistently delivering a delicious cup of coffee to get you started in the morning.

The Mini is the newest in the Keurig line of single cup coffee makers and its smaller size is perfect for the corner of your desk at work, the shop, or the kitchen counter. It’s great for student life in the dorm and easily fits into a niche in an RV or on a boat. It’s ideal for someone on the go and comes with its own travel case that slips snugly into a suitcase or backpack.

The Mini is available in three colors: a snazzy red, black, and white and is economically priced at $79.95. It can be ordered on-line from Keurig , or www.greatcoffee.com. The coffee that is used in all of the Keurig single cup coffee makers is vacuum packed in a K-Cup. These small containers, similar to an individual coffee creamer, are sealed for freshness and contain an exact measure for one perfect cup. Just pop the K-Cup into the brewer, press a button, and in less than a minute, you have a great cup of coffee! The machine is ready to brew again and you can follow that first ‘wake-up call’ that popped your eyes open with a second – maybe more mellow cup.

There are over 200 different roasts and blends of coffee from top notch names like Caribou Coffee, Newman’s Own Organic, Emeril, Timothy’s, Tully’s and Green Mountain Roasters. Then there’s a variety of tea in K-Cups from Celestial Seasonings, Twinings, and Bigelow. If you’d like a cup of cocoa, you can get it in a K-Cup, too. Just choose from Bellaccino, Green Mountain, Gloria Jean, and others. One of the big favorites is Timothy’s creamy White Hot Chocolate. So don’t miss out on the Keurig Mini B30, the greatest little coffee maker!

The Ten Best Selling Single Cup Brewing Systems

In December 2008, Single Serve Coffee (singleservecoffee.com) released a list of the Ten Best Selling Single Serve Coffee Makers, which included three machines made by Keurig. The most popular brewers are:

1. Keurig B60, the “Special Edition”, was the top seller.
2. Keurig B40, the “Elite”, captured second place
3. Aeropress Single Serve Coffee Maker
4. Keurig B30 Mini introduced in 2008
5. Braun TA 1400 Tassimo
6. Hamilton Beach Brew Station
7. Keurig B70, the “Platinum”model
8. Braun TA 1400 Tassimo
9. Bosch Tassimo Suprema
10. Breville Gourmet K- Cup Brewer.

This is made by Keurig and is a high-end, single cup coffee brewer.

Single Serve Coffee listed the Braun TA 1400 Tassimo in 5th place as well as 8th place.  The Tassimo brewer was first made by Braun and there were some complaints about the machine. The new model, Tassimo 1400, is made by Bosch and it appears to be an improved, single cup brewing machine.

All of the Keurig brewing systems win consistently high reviews and rating for durability and reliability. They all use the same brewing mechanism so the tiny Mini B30 will produce as good a cup of coffee as the larger, Platinum B70 model.

Keurig also gets universally high marks for turning out delicious hot coffee, cup after cup. All of the Keurig brewing systems make coffee using a K-Cup. These patented little containers hold an exact measure of vacuum packed coffee from Keurig partners, all top notch coffee roasters, who are respected for having consistently good products. Users of the Keurig single serve machines can choose from over 200 different types of coffees, teas, and cocoa. There are flavored coffees from Emeril, Bellaccino, Gloria Jean, and others as well as Newman’s Own Organic coffee. Green Mountain Coffee, Timothy’s, Tullys, Caribou Coffee, The Coffee People, and Diedrich all package a variety of roasts in K-Cups. There are teas from Bigelow, Twining’s, and Celestial Seasonings,, as well as Timothy’s White Hot Chocolate and other cocoas.

The Tassimo markets itself as a hot beverage system and it can turn out everything from an espresso to a latte or cappuccino. There is less variety of coffee packaged in T-Discs, which the brewing machine uses. There have been complaints about the coffee’s quality and freshness. This may have improved recently with the appearance of Starbucks and Seattle’s Best in T-Discs.

The Keurig Mini B30 – Smaller is Better

Keurig B30 mini

The latest Single Cup Coffee Brewing System that Keurig has come out with is the answer for many coffee drinkers who want a fresh cup of coffee every time – not a cup that’s stale from an hour or two on the warming plate. No scorched, bitter tasting brew for you! This coffee drinker wants a compact, light weight brewer that can go to the office, fits easily into a suitcase for the frequent flyer, and can be counted on to make a delicious cup of coffee in a minute’s time. The new Keurig Mini Brewing System, the B30, is the answer.

Consistent Quality
Besides being a great traveler, the Mini B30 is ideal for home use. Because of its compact size, it takes up little space on the kitchen counter and, because of its durability, can easily withstand daily use. Consistently, reviews of different Single Cup Coffee Brewing Systems cite the reliability of the Keurig products which range from the Mini to large brewing systems capable of producing numerous cups daily.

Keurig is derived from a Dutch word for excellence and the machines themselves are well made, able to withstand years of use. The brewing system maintains high quality when producing coffee that is consistently good. Despite its small size, the Mini has earned good reviews over and over – equal to those of its much larger relatives.

Great Variety Of Coffee Choices
The Mini brews coffee quickly using the K-Cups, which are serving sized portions of coffee that have been vacuum packed to maintain freshness. There is a wide variety of coffee available from top notch roasters like Green Mountain, Timothy’s, Caribou Coffee, and even Newman’s Own Fair Trade Organic blends. Now you can get K-Cups with green tea, black tea and herbal teas from Bigelow, Twinings, Celestial Seasonings and other respected brand names. The Mini can make hot cocoa using K-Cups from Ghiardelli, Bellacino, and Timothy’s.

Economy Of The Keurig B30 Mini
Compare the cost of brewing a pot of 6 or 8 cups of coffee, then throwing out the last few cups that are bitter and taste scorched. A one cup machine will be more economical as you drink the cups that you brew. Each cup is hot and tastes good – so you drink it all. No waste of your coffee money. Plus, you have your choice of over 200 varieties of coffee and tea in K-cups. If you had to buy a pound of beans from different coffee roasters to try some new blends or flavors, the cost could be prohibitive. Not with K-Cups; for pennies, you can try Emeril’s French Quarter Roast or Green Mountain’s Hazelnut, or Tully’s French Roast.

The Keurig b30 Mini is available in department and specialty stores and can also be ordered online. As an introductory offer, you can get it from great coffee.com for $79.95 with free shipping and an introductory package of K-Cups. So when you compare quality and convenience with cost, the Keurig Mini 30 will come out on top. Smaller IS better!

The Keurig Mini B30 Personal One Cup Coffee Brewer

I love my Keurig B70 but thought I might share a little about the Keurig Mini B30 for people who are looking for a more economical machine.

Keurig B30 mini

The new Keurig Mini Personal One Cup Coffee Brewer is great for coffee drinkers on the go. This compact little machine, new in 2008, is lightweight, sleek, and comes with its own travel bag. Well built and durable, it’s a great traveling companion on trips, to a vacation home, a boat, in an RV or camper. Like its larger cousins, it can produce a single cup of coffee in seconds, and is at home in a college dorm or on your desk at the office. With its smaller footprint, it takes up less space on your kitchen counter but turns out a delicious cup to get you started in the morning

The Mini comes in bright red, quite snazzy, as well as black and white. It operates very quietly and uses K-Cups, the containers of vacuum packed coffees, designed for the Keurig machine. You never have to worry about freshness as the K-Cups are sealed tightly. You can select coffee from a variety of top notch roasters like Timothy’s, Green Mountain Coffee, Newman’s Own Organic Coffee, Emeril’s, Caribou Coffee, and the list goes on. Green Teas, Black Teas, Herbal Teas are also packaged in K-Cups, with such well known names as Bigelow, Celestial Seasonings, and Twinings. You will be surprised at the varieties of coffee and tea that are available for use in your Mini machine. Another plus, it can be used to make hot cocoa! Once used, the K-Cups are thrown away and you have no grounds or filters to mess with.

Using The Single Cup Mini System

• Select a K-Cup of your favorite coffee.
• Push the button on the top of the Mini and pop in the K-Cup.
• Fill the water reservoir with 8 ounces of water.
• Shut the water reservoir lid.
• Place your cup or mug on the small tray at the base of the brewer.
• The cup sensors detect that your mug is in place.
• Press the brew button.
• The water heats quickly.
• The K-Cup is pierced inside the machine.
• Streams of hot water, under pressure, pass through the coffee to produce your brew.
• A filter inside the K-Cup filters the coffee, which appears in your cup in less than a minute.
• No mess – just remove the used K-Cup and toss it into the trash.
• Your Mini Brewer is immediately ready to deliver another steaming cup of coffee.

Economically priced at $79.95, the Keurig Mini Personal Brewer, the B30, is available in a variety of department and specialty stores. From the convenience of home, you can order it online from greatcoffee.com. With an order, there’s a free introductory package of K-Cups and no charge for shipping. Don’t miss out on this great offer or the chance to enjoy the ease and convenience of a one cup brewer.

Do you own a Keurig B30? Would love to hear your comments on this model.