The Thermal Carafe Coffee Pot Has Come A Long Way Since Its Inception Decades Ago! Coffee is one of the mainstay beverages of people across the globe. We coffee drinkers can be a pretty finicky bunch, always looking for another variety to try. The search for the perfect coffee pot is an ongoing occupation of many and manufacturers are quick to oblige, coming up with ever more and new features. The latest trend in the upscale coffee pot offerings are the thermal carafe coffee pots. Manufacturers leave no stone – or expense – unturned in their quest to produce the final word on the thermal carafe coffee pot, exquisite in appearance and which delivers a cup of Joe at a precisely perfect temperature. More than this, these pricey coffee makers multi-task, grinding the coffee, filtering your water for purity's sake through gold mesh filter baskets and, of course, providing programming features and a clock. The newest models also provide special hot plates for use under the thermal carafe coffee pot to keep the coffee at a perfect serving temperature for up to four hours. When you consider all of these features, you'll doubtless want to consider price, along with features you need and those you can do without. If you've got your heart set on a thermal carafe coffee pot, you'll find that prices amongst models with just the features you need can vary from about $75 all the way up to $250! Yikes! While you might assume that the highest priced unit is bound to be the best, this is not necessarily true. This can make for a lot of confusion and hesitation on your part. There are several avenues for you to explore in order to make your decision to part with your money and get that perfect unit. First, go take a look at what Consumer Reports has to say on the subject. They review dozens of coffeemakers, with a plentiful supply of reviews on the various thermal carafe coffee pots. The caveat? These reports are based on more of a single-time examination, rather than long term use. Sometimes, little foibles are overlooked, because they don't surface except over time. Your next stop should be user reviews – written by people who own and use the machine every day. Check out owner comments on Amazon and Cooking.com. While keeping in mind that these are comments from individuals with their own set of quirks and foibles, you will be able to see a consensus of opinions. If every other owner complains that the thermal carafe coffee pot you're considering is a monster to clean, you may want to move on to another possibility. On the other hand, if people comment that, while perfect in every other respect, the coffee pot only keeps the coffee properly hot for three hours, you might conclude these coffee fans are a bit more persnickety than you. Perhaps a carafe of coffee only lasts you two hours before it's gone! One thing is for sure. You'll hear every possible drawback of any given thermal carafe coffee pot. It doesn't pour neatly. A taste of plastic is detected. You have to battle with the lid of the carafe. True perfection requires you rinse the carafe with hot water before brewing. The water level indicator isn't easy enough to read. So, selecting the perfect thermal carafe coffee pot is not a cake walk. However, when you've done your homework, you'll end up with your perfect cup of Joe and that's something to cheer! Summary Today's thermal carafe coffee pot offers much better choice and performance than pots of yesterday. These high tech pots can offer built in grinders, water purification, programming features, and the perfect serving temperature. Take a look at what modern thermal carafe coffee pots can do. Related Articles Expresso Machine Italian Expresso Machines Small Kitchen Appliances Kitchen Gadgets Related Sites