My coffeemaker was dying. The heating plate had blistered and peeled. It no longer made hot coffee, it made lukewarm coffee. It had to go.

I had my heart set on a Black and Decker Pot that was listed in Consumer Reports. But we had a problem.

Our kitchen is small and I keep our knives on a magnetic bar behind the coffeepot. When we opened the lid to fill the water reservoir it would bump the knives and knock them down. They were chipping the countertop. We needed a machine with a reservoir that opened to the side.

The only coffeemaker with that feature was a Mr. Coffee machine. I also liked the fact that you could purchase a thermal carafe to use with it. It would be handy at holiday dinners. We could brew the coffee and take the thermal carafe to the table.

We bought the coffeepot last month and I asked for the thermal carafe for my birthday. I used it for the first time yesterday. When you set it up, you have to push either the “Glass Carafe” button or the “Thermal Carafe” button. It brewed the coffee, beeped to let me know it was done and then…

IT SHUT OFF!!

The machine did not need to stay on because the coffee was kept hot in the thermal carafe. It will save electricity – and my countertop!

Coffeemaker with Thermal Carafe