Breville BTM800XL One-Touch Tea Maker

This is the One You Have Been Waiting For
I have had 2 other machines. The Zarfina and the TriniTea, neither was truly impressive. This machine blew my socks off.

First - the construction. Stainless steel, glass, black rubber, and plexiglass for the kettle handle.

Second - totally customizable brew temperature (160 degrees - 212 degrees, 5 degree increments), customizable brew time (1:00 to 10:00 in 0:30 increments).

Third - amazing magnetically suspended tea basket moves in and out of the tea during brewing.

Fourth - keep warm feature, timed start feature, it also keeps track of the time since you brewed the tea so you can track its freshness.

Fifth - can operate as an electric kettle, and just heat water if you leave out the basket.

One thing to consider is that the kettle cannot be placed in the dishwasher. To clean you boil water or vinegar for 3:00.

The one thing I feel is that I have gotten every bit of my money's worth from this item. Nothing...
Best Cup of Tea You'll Ever Make
After hearing about this tea maker during a recent visit to a tea shop, I logged in to Amazon to read the reviews, and scoured the web for videos of this tea maker in action. The reviews are correct - this is an incredible appliance.

PROS:
- effortless to make perfect tea
- tea comes out exactly right
- tea prepared at the proper temperature
- water temperature is held while tea is steeped
- can be set to brew tea at a programmed time
- can also function to just make hot water
- keeps tea hot for 1 hour after brewing
- includes a tea scoop

CONS:
- pricy, but worth the money
- carafe cannot be washed under running water
- electric cord is a little shorter than I would like (would've preferred 4-6 inches longer)

After unpacking the tea maker, all that's needed is a quick rinse of the basket, and running the tea maker on the hot water cycle with a full pitcher of water, and then you're good to...
Not Made in Germany, But Still Pretty Awesome
It's easy to mistake this brewer as fine German engineering, but it's "designed in Australia" and "manufactured in China"--frankly, I have no idea where Germany comes into play or why it's written in the logo on the carafe.

With that said, I've waited a couple of months to write my review because I wanted the "ooh, shiny!" effect to wear off; that way there would be more objectivity based on experience and the gremlins hiding in the gears could be flushed out.

When I first opened the package the instruction manual intimidated me because it was the size of a small novel, but after a few minutes it became clear that operation would be much simpler than I anticipated (and it was), and I marveled at the brewer's sleek brushed metal style (it's one kitchen appliance that can be displayed on the counter without embarrassment).

While setting it up I took note of the carafe's weight--it's on the hefty side. Since I generally only make 2-4 cups at a time, it's...
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