The more I read about these "better" coffee makers, the more I wonder how you're getting a good result with store-ground coffee. You're not supposed to be. Regarding carriers...I've only seen Laserjet here once or maybe twice. There was one rental-branded truck recently, but I believe the carrier-of-record was USPS.
Well, you know that taste is subjective. I like what I like and that's good enough for me. Honestly, the coffees from the Keurig are my favorites but I have to justify the purchase of that Bunn to myself, haha.
I'm still struggling to make a "not harsh" cup of coffee. I think the grind is too fine, but the adjustment on my $5 Goodwill grinder stopped working a long time ago. The grinder was new-in-box, but this is a common problem on the Black & Decker units. I'm glad I put that Cuisinart on order. Current ETA is Dec 9. As I usually do, I've been reading the Amazon Q&A, the Amazon Comments, and any other user comments on my Bonavita, just to pick up tips & tricks. People are saying that when they call Bonavita Customer Service to complain about the quality of the coffee it makes, they are always admonished to not use a fine grind...that coarse is required for these machines. Everything I've read about coffee in general supports that assertion. We shall see. If anybody starts a thread on "The Best Water," I'm gonna put it on my Ignore list. I really don't need this.
All the roasting, grinding, water chemistry, yadda-yadda doesn't mean a hill of (coffee) beans to me. I don't give a happy damn what the "experts" think; I'm not making coffee for them. Reminds me of the cooking forum I used to frequent. Good grief, hapless newbies could be stoned for mentioning cream of mushroom soup. Snobbery is such a waste of time and no one is going to make me feel "less than" for my coffee making methods. Have you tried making a pot of coffee in your new machine side-by-side with the old machine? Then taste-test. I had been drinking the Keurig coffee for so long that I didn't have a basis to compare the Bunn results... so it was more of a go/no-go with different brands of coffee. I suppose I'm just not that discerning.
The thing is, when I've boiled water in the kettle and poured it over the grounds to make coffee during power outages, I've gotten way better coffee than out of the Mr. Coffee or this Bonavita. The Bonavita water temp is where it needs to be. The only variable is the grind of the coffee. I agree, I'm not "worried" about the water chemistry...that's just my attraction to the deep end of the pool on everything I touch. Then I want to go swimming somewhere else. I'll always be that way. The coffee from the Mr. Coffee is consistently mediocre. The coffee from the Bonavita is consistently harsh. I'll reserve judgement until I get a proper grinder. edit to add: I will say than when I use the Mr. Coffee, I use 6-7 TB per 6 cup pot (that's 1/2 scoop per cup.) But it makes sense given the fine grind (more surface area) at the much lower temperature. I think I need to find the right volume of the right grind for the Bonavita.
I have some McCafe on my shopping list. I'm getting off the compound tomorrow to get a haircut and I'll pick it up then. But my good "power outage coffee" is the stuff I'm using now.
McDonald's coffee actually isn't terrible, for coffee to drink while driving. I prefer Dunkin' to McDonald's but I prefer McDonald's to anything I could get from Starbucks.
That's the key. There's always a learning curve with a new machine, and I think in short order we get used to the change and it tastes pretty good. I'm still not 100% good to go with the Bunn but I'll keep tweaking and try a few more coffees. I should stop drinking the Keurig coffee for a while because I definitely prefer it so the Bunn isn't "measuring up."