Customer Reviews

Back to Basics CM300BR Cocoa-Latte Chrome 32-Ounce Hot-Drink Maker

5 star:		(191)
4 star:		(79)
3 star:		(29)
2 star:		(21)
1 star:		(32)

 

 

My sister has a habit of buying me kitchen gadgets as gifts that when I first open them I'm skeptical, but after using it for a while I'm a fan. It was that way with the "Back to Basics CM300BR Cocoa-Latte Hot Drink Maker." When I saw it I said to myself, "How often am I going to make hot chocolate that I needed a dedicated device?" After all, you put milk in a saucepan, add some ingredients, heat it up and you're done. Oh, but I didn't realize what lay in store for me.

First, as a hot chocolate maker, it's a real joy. Add the milk and the ingredients--either a mix or whatever recipe you like--and turn it on. Now walk away. That's it. For the next few minutes, the machine will get to work mixing the ingredients thoroughly and bringing it up to the perfect temperature--not too hot, but tepid. In this case it's about 180 degrees. When it hits that mark, the machine stops automatically.

That's key because when you make hot chocolate on the stovetop, you have to keep an eagle-eye on the milk. If you turn your back for a moment, you have the dreaded boil over and a big mess to clean up. But with the Cocoa Maker--to steal an informercial slogan--you just set it and forget it. When it's done heating the cocoa, you place your mug under the spigot, press the dispense button and let it fill your mug. The button spins the mixer blade but leaves the heating element off and froths up the cocoa for you.

Of course, it doesn't just make cocoa. Now, I'm not sure about the latte bit--I think I'd still prefer a cappuccino machine for that--but it makes great hot spiced cider, mulled wine, or other hot drinks. You can also heat up chicken or beef broth. When you're making risotto you need to keep a pot of hot stock nearby to incorporate into the rice. Keep the cocoa maker full of broth and keep turning it on every few minutes and you can dispense hot broth right into your saute pan or a ladle.

The mixing vessel detaches from the base for clean up, just remember to close the spigot before you start pouring in ingredients the next time you use it. I can't tell you how many times I've ended up with puddles of milk coming out the front of the machine.

[...]especially if you're not hot cocoa fans like us, but if you are or if you can imagine using it for other uses as well, I recommend it.

I love a hot chocolate at the end of a cold day, but usually it is chore to make and when using instant mixes, it didn't always come out quite right. But this little wonder fixes all of that.

You can use water or milk, add additional flavors (a touch of vanilla is my favorite) and let it mix and heat it for you. Now some have said this device was not hot enougth, but my tongue would disagree with that. I love the fact it will froth it up for you as you dispense it (a little extra sugar will make extra froth). Cleaning is no problem, as long as you clean it as you use it. Yes, if you wait till tomorow to clean it, you will need to scrub a little, but if you do it when you are done, no problem. Just run soapy water thru it and wipe away any choclate reisdue.

I have yet to try out other drinks with it, I don't like coffee and will wait for summer to try out the teas, but I expect it will be just as good.

I can't believe all the bad reviews. I love this cocoa maker, and so have my friends that use it. We take it camping and make cocoa for the kids. The kids love to watch it swirl/warm up and to be able to dispense their own drinks. I don't think it is hard to clean at all. Same concept as an electric blender. I fill it up with warm soapy water, wash it, then I open the dispenser and run the hot water out of it to keep it clean. Just wipe the base off. The only reason I don't give it a 5 is because of the frothy mechnism. It doesn't work as well as I anticipated, but it serves it purpose well enough.

Being one of those people who don't understand the popularity of coffee (how can anything that smells that good, taste that bad?), I'm a regular cocoa drinker. I was enthused about this product, since I like to make my own flavor blends, and the microwave just doesn't do a very good job.
While this machine does a good job of heating and mixing, it's design flaws are numerous. Some of them are small, but they all add up.
- The pitcher part has the mixing and heating base built into it, so it cannot be dishwashered, or even immersed for proper washing. For something that regularly has hot milk in it, this is a big sanitary issue. I end up just filling mine with bleach-water when I'm not using it.
- After two months of use, the teflon at the bottom of the pitcher is flaking off.
- Also, after two months of use, the On button is becoming flaky, and has to be pushed in and to the left to get it to engage. Sometimes it doesn't work at all.
- The pour spout for the pitcher is directly over the dispenser nozzle, instead of to the side. The dispenser is in the way when trying to pour cups.
- And, here's one that just amazes me: The lid has two long tabs that run down the inside of the pitcher to keep it in place. When the mixer is running, the liquid level rises because of the whirlpool effect. If the liquid touches these tabs, it will wick up and out of the pitcher, and all over the counter!
- Also, the cord is only just over two feet long, so you'd better have an outlet right where you want to use it.
Any one of these would have been annoying but forgivable, but they add up to a very poorly designed appliance that I cannot recommend.

I love this product! I have had mine for almost a year and use it everyday. I also bought one for my mother and one for my sister. They love them.

I have taken mine apart on occasion for cleaning but if you run hot soapy water through it after each use, it does not have to be taken apart. None of the three machines I bought have had leaking problems. For the price you can't find a better machine.

This product is AWESOME! I love hot cocoa but hate heating the milk over the stove and standing there stirring it. This machine does it all. Just put in the milk and cocoa mix and press the on button. It mixes it together for you and heats it to the perfect temp. I got this as an xmas gift from my husband. The next day we had family up and they were playing out in the cold. This machine made it very quick and easy to make hot cocoa for everyone. I bought this for a friend for xmas and she is enjoying it too.

I received this machine unexpectedly for Christmas and have enjoyed it IMMENSELY ever since! It is so easy to use (my 7 year old daughter can even use it) and clean up is a breeze. And portable - after bringing it to work one day I have probably made a few more sales for the company. Needless to say it was a HIT! If you enjoy lattes or great hot chocolate this is the machine for you.

As the other reviews testify, the Cocoa Latte does indeed do what it is sold to do, and it does it very well. And an added bonus is the included recipes for novel and very tasty non-cocoa drinks. However, for those of us who have long been used to putting appliance parts into the dishwasher for easy, sanitary, and thorough cleaning, the hand process of cleaning this device is off-putting. Since the electrical heating unit and container are one inseparable unit, the container is not dishwasher safe, nor can it be immersed for hand washing. And it needs to be cleaned very soon after use to keep cocoa and milk or other products from hardening and really being difficult to clean. Secondly, while the spigot does not always need to be disassembled for cleaning, it should be taken apart periodically as just rinsing soapy and then clear water through it does not do as thorough a job; you notice why when you ultimately do take it apart. As to leaks, so far I've experienced none.

Overall, this is a handy appliance that does what it says it does, but I find I use it less than I'd like because I know I'm going to have to carefully clean it. Obviously from the other reviews, this is a bigger issue for me than most.

For the price of this item compared to similar ones, this product ROCKS! I got it today and have already made Vanilla Steamed Milk(frothy like a Latte) and Hot cocoa. It comes with an instruction manual and 35 recipes. I have used two of the recipes, but have substitued a sweetner instead of sugar and I have used Powdered Milk instead of regular milk. It has turned out amazing and TASTY! 2 thumbs up!

My husband and I bought one of these for both of his sisters' families for Christmas. I was jealous; budget constraints kept me from buying one for our home. Surprise! My brother and his wife got one for us.

Sure, you can nuke your hot cocoa mix with milk or water but it's just not the same thing, I promise! I'm a coffee freak and have used the machine to make pseudo-cafe mochas using milk, hot cocoa mix with the mini-marshmallows (fear not, they melt and get frothy during the process) and freshly-brewed coffee. Caffeine heaven!

Much easier to clean than I originally thought-the top portion easily unplugs from the base. I have yet to take apart the spout, thus far the hot-water-till-clear-and-then-some method has sufficed. It is a little easier than the Mr. Coffee Cocomotion in this department-I donated that machine to my just-starting-out daughter.

Only four stars...the machine is rather noisy and can actually scare you from the other room when it begins to reheat/restir your drinks. Also, uhm, if you fill it to the top fill line with liquid THEN add an extraordinary amount of cocoa, the machine can and will overflow on the very person who said "instructions, insmucktions."