Aldi is rarely the first company to sell a new product, but it certainly knows how to spot a trend when it sees one. The grocer has rolled out its own imitations of Instant Pots, Keurigs, and YETIs, just to name a few, and while the Aldi imitation isn’t always as peerless as the original, it’s usually good enough when you take into account the lower price tag.
Enter the cold brew coffee trend. Aldi has ventured into the cold brew lineup with at least two different options: the Ambiano Cold Brew Coffee System, which we last saw for about $9.99, and this more expensive, electronic model.
What We Know:
The Ambiano Cold Brew Coffee Maker (product code 11548) is an ALDI Find (Special Buy), which means it’s only in stores for a short time. It retails for $39.99. While that’s a lot more than a non-electric cold brew system, like the Ambiano Cold Brew Coffee System, it’s a lot less than other electronic cold brew systems we’ve seen online.
As far as we can tell, 2019 was the debut year for this Ambiano cold brew machine, as we can’t recall or find any previous examples.
The coffee maker includes:
- A 24-ounce BPA-free serving pitcher
- A removable filter basket
- A stainless steel base
- An LED display
- A locking lid
According to Aldi, the coffee maker has four brew strengths. It claims to be able to brew in 10 minutes, and it can be used to brew cold brew, regular iced coffee, iced lattes, and iced macchiatos. It has variable timer settings depending on how long you want or need to brew your coffee.
What We Don’t Know:
Because the coffee maker is, at the time of this post, a debut item, there’s a lot we don’t know. We don’t yet know who the manufacturer is, and we don’t know how this product performs with regard to the various coffees it can make. Finally, we don’t know how it does over the long term.
Have any experience with the Ambiano Cold Brew Coffee Maker? Feel free to share your experience in the comments.
Works much better if you cut and install (one use) paper coffee filter on top of coffee grounds.
Works great, didn’t use a paper filter and it help 12 tablespoons of grounds just fine. Granted it looks like it won’t be able to hold that much, rest assured it does. I found the 20 min session to be just fine.
What does the setting C H:LL do?
It works ok but if anybody figures out the correct water to coffee grinds ratio I’d love to know. According to the book you are supposed to do 12 tablespoons for 24 oz. of water but the filter only holds about 7 tablespoons. Could it be a misprint and it’s supposed to be teaspoons? Also box says it has a maximum 35oz but the pitcher has 2 cup, 3 cup, 5 cup, and Max measurements. 5 cups is 40 oz. Somebody has their measurements completely off.
I really love the ambiano cold brew coffee machine! Instead of taking 24 hours, you really can have a great cup of cold brew in 10 minutes. The first time I used it I filled the basket with coffee grounds (about 12 TB) and filled the water to the max line (about 6 cups). I brewed it for 20 minutes and it made pretty strong coffee. I drink a lot of caffeine and was still very impressed. I had another cup of the same pot but diluted it with some water. I think if you only brew for ten minutes you would have a good cup of coffee. I am currently making a full pot of concentrate (40 minute brew) and will drink it in a 2:1 ratio of water to coffee. Its smooth on its own and tastes great when you add cream and other things to it. The machine works by using a sprayer in the middle of the pot which sucks up the water and pushes into the coffee grounds basket, which then fills and drips back into the pot, over and over. Its also pretty quiet, about the same amount of noise as a traditional coffee maker. The pitcher is easy to use, everything is easy to use and easy to clean. I am very happy with my purchase. When I purchased it it was $40. I would suggest this to anyone who enjoys coffee.
Great review thank you for the info. I am going to try it.
I used the coffee maker per the instructions, and I cannot figure out how to get it to work properly. I have tried to figure out how to keep the liquid from emptying out through the valve and out the bottom of the base of the machine. If someone can explain what I’m doing wrong I would appreciate it very much.
Happened to me too the first time. I had overloaded the filter and ground were stuck in the valve. Now I fill the basket about 3/4 full and haven’t had a problem since. I love this machine
I used the coffee maker per the instructions, and I cannot figure out how to get it to work properly. I have tried to figure out how to keep the liquid from emptying out through the valve and out the bottom of the base of the machine. If someone can explain what I’m doing wrong I would appreciate it very much.
The valve stuck open on ours too. I emptied the coffee into cups and blow through it back wards. I then pushed on the spring a couple times till it re-seated and all was good.
Thanks for this tip! Now mine is working again.
I fill the basket within a half inch of its top. I also have started to put just water in and run it for a few minutes to clean it out between times I make coffee.
I just bought for $14.99. Filled basket to max with grinds and same with water. Max line. Brewed 30min. Added ice and coffee creamer. Pretty good. Might do concentrate then add water after to stretch the grinds.
So far so good
A metric cup is a slightly different size than an imperial. Robably enough to male the 5 ouncr difference.
I simply fill the basket to within a half inch of the top.
Agree with the other reviews here. First time I tried it out of the box, I didn’t use nearly enough coffee and the results were pretty weak, even at 40 minutes brew time. Second time I did the full measure (12 Tbsp coffee and water to the max line) and 20 minute brew – much better result, though I’ll probably use the longer brew times generally.
My only complaint/question (and I’m about to write their customer service regarding it) is that there is always some leakage into the base, just the two ports that the pitcher “plugs into” for the pump and all. I don’t think it’ll hurt anything since those seem to be rubber sealed, but it’s a little concerning.
I have used and loved my cold brew maker for the last 6 months. Now it refuses to work. No lights come on anymore. I think some coffee may have leaked into the 2 holes where carafe sits. I let it dry out for a week, but no luck. I miss my pot. Aldis here no longer has any.
First time we tried it we followed the instructions and used 24 oz of water and 60g of coffee and it worked great. The second time it didn’t make cold brew at all. All we got was almost clear brown water? The only thing we can find in the user manual is “lift out the drain valve to drain out the coffee/water from the pump and pipes” and “the drain valve must be reconnected after cleaning.” There are no instructions in the user manual as to where the drain valve actually is. Anyone else have this problem?
As for draining and cleaning, there is a silicone dual plug on the bottom that you pull out and let the pump drain. The gently flush the pump with a slow stream of water from the faucet. 2 oz. of finely ground coffee and the max amt. of water will yield 4 cups of concentrated coffee in 40 minutes. Don’t forget to put a paper coffee filter on top of grounds, it spreads the water so it doesn’t drill holes through the grounds.
We’ve drained (via pulling out the plug) and flushed the machine, as well as ran cleaning cycles. I think our machine was just a dud.
My machine is officially broken. It worked once. I reached out to Aldi who said they’d be happy to replace it or give me a refund.
just got one for $4.99!!! Yes, they were marked down from $39.99 to $13.99 but it rang up at $4.99!
Wow!
I bought this coffee maker on clearrnce. The box was UNDAMAGED but when I opened it, power supply cable was torn and I can’t get it to work.
Just return it to Aldi and get a refund or another unit. They’re really cool about returns.
The power cord looks like it can be any micro USB cord (like an Android phone charger).
I live mine, what does the LED screen mean when it says CH:LL
I’ve got the same error message today & so no brewing. Nothing in the manual about that either. Bummed.
I can’t get mine to brew. When I set timer to 20 min and press start then the time just blinks
I bought it about a week ago. Recently purchased a dark roast/chicory blend. Filled water to max line, and used a little over a 1/2 cup of coffee. Brewed for 40 minutes, and I store it in a jug in the fridge. Excellent, strong, smooth coffee. I had been using a non-electric one that would have to sit all night. I think this makes as good a cup of coffee at a fraction of the time. I definitely recommend it.
Got one and tried it once so far. Love it!!! It was half off. Wish I got the 4.99 deal above tho!
Ok, so I bought one last week. I am struggling to find a good cold brew coffee blend. I have made mocha and pumpkin and neither have been very good. I can’t drink hot coffee anymore as it upsets my stomach. It has been a real challenge. Any tips or recommendations as I am ready to give up.
Nikki, I thought I read somewhere that using flavored coffee was not a good idea for cold brew. I’ve used a dark roast, just regular drip grind, and set the machine for 10 min. I thought it turned out pretty good. Still fine tuning!
Does anyone know anything about CH:LL mode on this unit? I pressed and held the time button and this mode comes up but no way to get it out of mode without unplugging the machine.
Unplugging didn’t help me. When I plug it back in, same error.
Chll mode is for adding ice cubes into the filter tray and ice brewing the previous cold brewed concentrate. Works amazing. My favorite feature.
My time just keeps blinking. It doesn’t brew.
Same as mine I think that is why they are on sale smh
OK i have no idea what i’m doing wrong, but i tried this twice – using the full amount of water and 60 g of coarse grounds (freshly ground). it tasted like the water you use to clean the coffee pot- weak, watery, yuck. No idea what i’m doing wrong 🙁
Got it for $14 about 2 months ago – loved it. It was like a new dimension in coffee.
Unfortunately, it does not work anymore. One of the 2 valves on the bottom of the canister got clogged. I took it out, cleaned it, and put it back in. It does not stay. It either pops back out or leaks when I take the canister off the base.
I think it’s a brick. I kinda liked it.
Why won’t it start ? I just opened mine.
I have brought the machine 1 week ago. I never opened it at all. Today I decided to give it a try. I did everything the instructions asked me to do. When I turned the machine on the led display came on, I pressed 10 min and start. The machine never started it just keeps blinking. When I pressed it and held it it canceled the brew time. I did everything all over again and still the same results it just shows the led display but does not actually start. I actually just want my money back because I never even used it and as soon as I open it it does not work really. I don’t feel like dealing with the warranty sending it back already when I just opened it I should not have to deal with that. I would not recommend this at all because of this. I understand others worked for them but I never even got to experience the machine at all.
I used mine once. Put about 2 cups of water and like 8 tbsp of coarse coffee, worked great in just 30 min. Flush the machine with clean water for about 1 min or less. Second time of use idid the exact same quantities, and clear coffee brews. Opened to check the filter and the coffee mostly dry under the top layer. Put a bit more water and nothing. Valves and pump are clear, top of sprayer nozzle just barely pours water not a spray( is clear too and screwed on tight). I wet the ground manually, and the ground basket overflows with water after like 15 seconds. Like a clogged filter but COARSE grounds,why? After Abit longer it start foaming on top of sprayer. Any thoughts?
I bought mine on 9/28/19 for $19.99 — you people who paid less, I’m envious. But I guess it saved me a few weeks’ work of Stok. Now I’m getting the CH:LL error and maybe it’s dead?
Does the black piece around the top of the pitcher come off to clean and dry properly? Could not get mine off and washed as is, but now there is water trapped in it.
i would like to know Holly’s question too.
i know this is dumb on my part but i can’t figure out what to screw the sprayer into.?? The bottom of the pitcher? I was in a big hurry so maybe i’m missing something. thanks
Can’t get it work- just clear light brown water. Tried it several times with the same result. It’s a dud
same. my coffee grounds aren’t even wet.
I bought one and it did not come with instructions how do I figure out how to use it?
Don’t buy this if you are not prepared to disassemble the base occasionally (6 screws then 4 holding the pump screen) to clean out the two screens that control the water entering and exiting the pump. Any grounds will block these very small holes ( .020″ dia) A Qtip can be used to clean the screen from the top and also used to clean the valves in the carafe, unscrew the sprayer and back wash under the faucet then screw pack into the caraf, make sure that the pump is pumping strong through all 8 holes, when assembling the top filter make sure the rubber star like gasquet is not blocking the holes. I know all this can be a real pain but it is worth it, one last thing, only use bottled H2o for the best Cold Brew
I’ve been using my machine for almost two years with no issues. I love it and if they ever come back around, I’m going to grab another one just to have on hand! While there is a max fill line it’s important to only use 24oz of water at a time. I also use a scale to measure my coffee to ensure I don’t clog it up. For cleaning, I run cold fresh water through after I’m finished and have also done the qtip trick mentioned above. Love this workhorse!
This is NOT a cold brew coffee maker. Cold brew is when the grounds sit in cold water for 6,8 hrs or so. The beans aren’t exposed to heat. That’s what makes the taste so good. There’s much less acid in it, which is also easier on our stomachs. That’s how the last cold brew coffeemaker Aldi had worked. This one puts hot coffee over ice.
Your reply ended up on the wrong thread – the new announcement is NOT about cold brew maker, but a clone of the recent Mr Coffee iced maker – so good point, but wrong place somehow.
It’s in the right place. This product isn’t a cold brew coffee maker. It just makes iced coffee.