Technivorm Moccamaster vs Bonavita

The name of the Bonavita has been popping up with that of the Moccamaster more and more often throughout the past years. There’s nothing random about this—the two coffee brewer brands are more similar than two drops of water. Well, at least this is what it seems like. But is that really the case? Can the more affordable Bonavita really stand up to its title ‘the Technivorm killer’ once we review the two brewers in more depth?

Did you know?
The Technivorum Moccamaster KBT-741 and the Bonavita BV1900TS are both SCAA approved.

Summary

Our pick: Technivorm Moccamaster KBT-741

The Bonavita BV1900TS is a nice coffee brewer, but it should be furthermore improved to match the Moccamaster. The brewing technology, carafe technology, and the design of the Moccamaster are better thought out. This results in a great coffee flavor and satisfied customers.

About the Technivorm Moccamaster KBT-741

Simple machines that use great brewing technologies often tend to be successful on the market. This is exactly the case of the KBT-741 which brings joy to its consumers with only two control buttons and a great way to brew the coffee.

The Moccamaster has a button that turns the brewer on and off and a slider on its brew basket that controls the flow of the coffee. The flow control slider gives you a chance to do a couple of things. If you completely stop the flow, you can take a moment to have a cup of coffee even though the brewer hasn’t stopped brewing yet. Also, you can saturate the coffee and customize its flavor by completely or partially closing the brew basket.

In terms of its brewing technology, the Moccamaster brews the coffee step by step. First, portions of the water from the 40-ounce water reservoir go into the heater of the brewer and stay in there until they reach a temperature from 194F to 205F. Once it reaches this brewing temperature, the water goes up the glass tube of the water tank and into the outlet arm to finally start dripping through the arm’s showerhead.

The water wets the coffee that’s in the brew basket equally. The Moccamaster brews the coffee at a constant temperature for about 6 to 8 minutes. In the meanwhile, the coffee drains into a double-wall thermal carafe which keeps the coffee hot for a long time. The carafe has both a brew-thru lid and a travel lid for when you want to take your coffee somewhere with you.

The Moccamaster is easy to use and durable, but it is a bigger machine, so you should keep that in mind if you don’t have a lot of space on your kitchen counter.

About the Bonavita BV1900TS

Compact and easy-to-use, the Bonavita BV1900TS has gained the attention of many. This coffee brewer is very affordable, which is also why so many people decide to buy it. Furthermore, the BV1900TS also brews your coffee fairly quickly, which is something that comes in handy during those sleepy mornings.

The Bonavita BV1900TS will brew your coffee at a constant temperature from 195F to 200F. Keeping the brewing temperature constant is what distinguishes great coffee brewers from average ones. This is because coffee that is brewed at a constant and right temperature will have a better flavor than coffee that is not brewed at a constant temperature.

This coffee brewer also gives you the option to pre-infuse your coffee before the brewing starts. Pre-infusion is great because it improves the flavor of the coffee. While the coffee is roasted, gasses, among which carbon dioxide, form in the coffee beans. When carbon dioxide starts leaving the beans, it negatively impacts their flavor. Pre-infusion stimulates the degassing process and helps the carbon dioxide get out from the coffee. Therefore, with pre-infusion, your coffee will taste better.

To brew your coffee on the Bonavita BV1900TS, the water from the 40-ounce water reservoir has to enter the 1500-watts heating element. The water will then be heated to the right temperature, go up in the showerhead, and drip into the brew basket of the BV1900TS and brew the coffee. The coffee will then start flowing into the double-walled stainless steel thermal carafe and you’ll have your carafe full in no time.

The Bonavita BV1900TS has a large showerhead and a flat-bottomed filter basket that improve the extraction of the coffee by it being wet and brewed evenly. This speaks about the nice quality of the coffee maker. However, machines sometimes malfunction, and this brewer comes with a short two-year warranty, so bear that in mind if you want to buy the BV1900TS.

Similarities Between the Technivorm Moccamaster and the Bonavita

When it comes to the similarities of these two coffee makers, finding many of them isn’t hard. One great thing that the Moccamaster and the Bonavita have in common is that they’re both SCAA approved. The SCAA stands for ‘Specialty Coffee Association of America,’ which is a trade organization for the industry that has to do with coffee of the highest quality.

The two brewers are, furthermore, simple to use, you cannot program them, and they both have a shut-off feature. Furthermore, both of the brewers are made of metal, they are both very durable and have water tanks with a capacity of 40 ounces.

Both the Moccamaster and the Bonavita will brew your coffee at a constant and similar temperature. The temperature under which your coffee is brewed with these two brewers is approved by the SCAA as a temperature that makes for a better coffee taste. However, you cannot control the temperature on either one of these coffee brewers.

The brew baskets on the Moccamaster and the Bonavita accept #4 cone filters. Also, both of the coffee brewers come with a double-walled stainless steel thermal carafe which will keep your coffee hot at home or in your backpack while you’re traveling.

Differences Between the Technivorm Moccamaster and the Bonavita

Even though the Moccamaster and the Bonavita are very similar, there are many differences between these two coffee makers.

In terms of aesthetics, the Technivorum Moccamaster comes in multiple colors, which is not the case of the Bonavita.

When it comes to how compact the two brewers are, the Bonavita is a bit more compact than the Moccamaster because it’s smaller in size and weighs less. The difference in size and weight is small. However, if your coffee brewer needs to fit in a not that spacious kitchen counter, you might want to consider this difference.

Another advantage of the Bonavita is that it gives you the option to use pre-infusion to bloom your coffee and improve its flavor. Furthermore, the large shower head and the flat-bottomed filter of the Bonavita make for great coffee extraction.

This doesn’t mean that the Technivorum Moccamaster doesn’t extract the coffee well with the help of its constant brew temperature and outlet arm. The brewer also has a destratification tube that starts from the brew-thru carafe lid and goes all the way down to the bottom of the carafe. Since weaker coffee is the last to get through the brew basket, this tube makes sure that it mixes well with stronger coffee for a better flavor of the drink.

The Moccamaster, furthermore, has a slider that can completely or partially stop the flow of coffee into the carafe. This is great for when you want to have some coffee in the middle of the brewing session or leave your coffee inside the brew basket so that it can saturate. Also, the Moccamaster has an open design that lets you stir the coffee, while the brew basket on the Bonavita is pretty much closed.

You should also know that the Moccamaster comes with a five-year warranty which is longer than the two-year warranty of the Bonavita. In case you experience any problem with your coffee brewer, Moccamaster will have your back for longer.

Finally, the Technivorm is more expensive than the Bonavita. But how wouldn’t it be when it’s such a well-made brewer?

Which One Should You Go With?

The Technivorm Moccamaster KBT-741 is a more expensive, but a more well-rounded coffee brewer. We think that this brewer is better than the Bonavita BV1900TS. However, if you would like to save some money, the Bonavita is not a bad choice either.