Melitta Optima Timer 100801 Filter Coffee Maker Review 2021

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Most people will be familiar with the principal of how coffee is made with a filter coffee maker.

Coffee goes into a paper filter and water is added so that it “filters” through the coffee and the liquid drips through into the pot below ready for a delicious fresh cup of coffee.

However, what you may not know is that Melitta invented the method of making coffee this way.

The company was founded by Melitta Bentz in the early 1900’s and her name lives on through the company to this day.

You would hope that the company that invented filter coffee would make a decent filter coffee machine.

Let’s find out

Overall Score 8.2/10

Design 9/10

This is an impressive looking machine. It has a quality look and feel about it.

It has a fully integrated feel about it in the same way that a fully integrated washing machine goes unnoticed in the kitchen.

The Melitta Optima Timer 100801 Filter Coffee Machine comes in a shiny piano black with a matt stainless steel type finish to the door where the filter sits.

The design is such that the water container, jug and coffee maker just meld together into a product which has clean lines and is very pleasing on the eye.

It has a good thick glass jug which is of a better quality than some of the lower priced filter coffee machines.

It measures at 19.5cm wide x 25.5cm deep x 33.5cm high. A little bulkier than some of the other machines but by no means big or unsightly

Functionality 8/10

The water container shows a maximum water level for 8-12 cups but whoever designed this filter coffee maker must have been using small cups.

You will probably get about 4 mugs of coffee out of it if it is filled to the near the maximum line but the best way to work it out for the cup/mug size that you use is to fill up the cup you use with water and add it to the container and you will soon see how many of your cups it will make.

The digital display is simple to operate and set to the current time. Just hold the buttons down to adjust the time.

The ON/OFF button does what it says on the tin…… Turn it on to start the water being filtered through to the glass jug.

CALC. What’s this? A great big button with CALC written on it. Not very helpful in our opinion. Apparently this stands for “decalcify” which is not really a helpful word.

This button is firstly used to set the water hardness according to where you live. 1 = soft water area and 4 = hard water area. It is set to 4 as a default but you just press it to change.

Secondly when you need to descale the button will light up and then you just need to press it to begin the descaling process. Just make sure you have a liquid descaler in the water container before you press it!

It will take a little time for the coffee to drip through to the glass jug so if you are in a rush in the morning you may wish to use the timer button to set the machine into action so the coffee is ready for you in the morning when you get into the kitchen.

Press and hold the timer button then use the buttons beneath the digital display to set the time you want it to come on. Pretty straightforward.

The hotplate is set by default to stay on for 30 minutes after brewing. This is the default setting as the coffee flavour will start to slowly deteriorate after this amount of time.

However, if you would like the hotplate to stay on for longer you can increase in 30 minutes intervals up to 2 hours by pressing and holding the on/off button and then the min button.

Ease of use 9/10

Simply fill the water container with the desired amount of water.

Open the door above where the jug sits to expose the filter. You will need to buy separate paper filters as this Melitta coffee maker is not supplied with any. These can be purchased from any supermarket.

Add the paper filter to the filter cone

Add around 6 grams of coffee for each cup required (around a heaped teaspoon)

Press the ON button to automatically start the brewing process. When the water runs out the machine will automatically stop and the hotplate will stay on to keep the coffee hot for 30 minutes.

Overall this is a very simple and straightforward coffee machine to use.

Quality of coffee 9/10

The quality of coffee that you get from this coffee maker will be directly linked to the quality of coffee that you buy. If you spend a little more than the cheap supermarket stuff then you will reap the rewards.

Take a look at our recommended coffee

For the very best coffee flavour fresh is best. Consider buying whole beans and grinding them just before adding them to this filter machine for brewing

You can go for a burr coffee grinder or the cheaper option of a blade coffee grinder.

Value For Money 6/10

This is a more expensive coffee machine than some of the other bestselling filter coffee makers on the market and it is difficult to know exactly if this will produce a better coffee than something less expensive.

It will produce a good quality coffee with minimum fuss and is a well built product with a good quality glass jug.

Here is a short video for the Melitta Optima Timer 100801 Filter Coffee Machine. It’s in German but it gives you a good look at the design and simplicity of operation.