Cookworks Signature Aluminium > Reviews (2)

I am a tea drinker at heart, but do enjoy a nice cup of fresh coffee every now and again, so I was a bit upset when my old coffee maker died on me a couple of months ago. Fortunately lady luck was smiling on me and two weeks ago I won a Cookworks SignatureFilter Coffee Maker. Hooray!!

When my prize wad delivered to my home, I was full of anticipation and eager to experience my first cup of fresh coffee. So I unwrapped it, admired its slim, stylish appearance and got down to business. Mmmm! Hitch. It wasn't the same as my last coffee maker. Inside there is a solid plastic filter, not a net one as I am used to. Ok - maybe I had better read the instructions.

The black plastic internal 'dome' is referred to, in the instructions as the "Permanent Filter", fine I thought, but does that mean I needed to use filter papers, or not? Well, I know I may be a bit dim, but I hadn't seen a coffee maker like this before - the permanent filter in my last machine was net, I had assumed they all were. I studied the instructions carefully, but was not enlightened. Frustrated, I waited for my partner to come home - surely he would know? Or maybe not! We both reasoned that a machine with a 'permanent filter' should not require a paper filter - but the solid black plastic one provided did not seem suitable for coffee making.

Perplexed, still eager for my first coffee and filter paperless, I decided to try it without - mistake! As I had suspected the ground coffee clogged the drip mechanism and the waster was in danger of overflowing, I had to get a skewer and stir the coffee to help it get through into the jug. Oh why didn't I wait and buy paper filters - I knew I should have. I had a horrible mess to clean up and cold, cloudy coffee. At least it still works fine - shows it is a bit tough.

Well, I have now bought paper coffee filters, which is a bit of a pain, but has the benefit of being easy to dispose of in my compost bin. Luckily, the coffee maker is, otherwise, simple to operate - there is one switch, which turns it ON and OFF, even I can't get that wrong.

On the positive side, I would say that this is a stylish, simple machine, which works well for smaller kitchens with limited storage. It has a 12 cup capacity, which isn't bad for its size and it is quite fast.

However, it is not always easy to tell how much water you have put in (especially if your eyesight is less than perfect) and a little water always escapes from the 'permanent filter' into the main reservoir. This is a bit of a problem as it drips from the front sometimes and you have to tip the whole machine to get rid of it. Personally, I don't think the resulting coffee is hot enough and you can't leave a full jug on the machine for very long before it is warm, rather than hot.

Overall, I think this is a reasonable coffee maker for people who are interested in style and simplicity. Plus at around £25, it looks more expensive than it is. I would only recommend it with this proviso.