KitchenAid Siphon Review

The KitchenAid Siphon is the most aesthetically charismatic of the coffee makers we tested, but its difficult to clean design can be a bit of a drag in the long run.

Performance Comparison

The KitchenAid Siphon's overall score was below average in our testing, mostly because of its difficult to clean design and average tasting brew. Below we discuss the Siphon's performance, pros, and cons in each of our individual testing metrics.

Taste

The Siphon earned a fairly mediocre 5 out of 10 in our taste testing. This was right in the middle of a metric where scores ranged from 2 to 9. The coffee it produced was wonderfully smooth and almost completely devoid of bitterness, but it also missed out on a lot of the taste and flavor that other machines produced. If you're a big fan of mellow, softer brews than you will likely love the coffee that comes out of this machine. If you're looking for the bolder flavors of a dark roast, however, you'll be disappointed by the Siphon's offering.

User Friendliness

The Siphon again had the worst score of 4 out of 10 in our user friendliness testing. This was far off the top score of 9. Since the coffee brewing method isn't exactly common, you'll probably have to read the manual before brewing. That is a minor sacrifice to make for the spectacle of watching the Siphon brew, so we didn't dock it too many points for that. The Siphon did lose a lot of points because it had our testers' least favorite carafe. The lip around the opening is quite awkward, requiring you to tip the carafe almost upside down to get the coffee out, and even then it's a somewhat slow pour. This lip is clearly there to accommodate the eccentric brewing process, but after the awe of watching a few coffee volcanoes wore off were left wishing the carafe was easier to pour.

The Siphon's unique brewing style and filter make for very smooth, not bitter coffee, but it also doesn't have too much flavor.

Convenience

The Siphon again earned the worst score in this metric, notching a 3 out of 10 in our convenience tests, which saw scores as high as 9. Due to extra required prep and cleaning time it took us 14 minutes to makes 6 cups of coffee with the Siphon. This was the slowest time in all of our testing. The Siphon is also not programmable, so none of the prep time can be completed the night before. Overall we wouldn't consider this a good machine for making coffee quickly in the morning before work.

That glass orb is quite a pain to clean.

Ease of Cleaning

The Siphon got low marks in our cleaning tests. It earned the worst score of 4 out of 10, well behind the top score of 9. The reusable mesh filter saves waste but does require a bit more cleaning than paper filters. However, this is a fairly minor annoyance. The Siphon mostly lost points because both the glass orb and the long, narrow siphon that protrudes from it must be hand washed. Due to the odd shape this washing felt difficult and, because you have to be super careful not to knock the glass orb into the sink, rather precarious.

Value

At a list price of $250 the KitchenAid Siphon is the most expensive coffee maker we tested. If you like mellow tasting coffee and don't mind paying for the Siphon's enjoyable spectacle, this is a decent value. However, machines like the OXO Barista Brain make much better coffee and cost less. Most of our testers even preferred the coffee made in the BLACK+DECKER machine we tested, which costs 1/10 what the Siphon costs.

Conclusion