Hope we didn’t make a mistake. Stone Source did not have any soaostone we liked. so we went with a honed black granite. I have seen somewhere that citrus might etch them which I was hoping to avoid with soapstone. They are honed on one side and leathered on the other. So, I might have to go with the leathered. I still chose Danby marble for my perimeter cabinets. I think I would like the honed granite better aesthetically to go with honed marble. Any thoughts while I have time?

I'm not an expert, but I did develop an unhealthy obsession with coffee a couple of years ago, when I started working from home and needed something to replace the coffee that I formerly drank at work and took for granted. I realized that I had to stop when I was spending more time thinking about my next cup of coffee than I was about work, and searching the internet looking for things like true mocha beans from Yemen, etc. What I learned from scouring all of the "coffee snob" sites, is that the things you need for a great cup of coffee are deceptively simple: 1.) beans that have been roasted within the last 3-7 days and are freshly-ground, 2.) beans ground to the right consistency for the extraction method used (using a burr grinder), 3.) water heated to the correct temperature (195-205 degrees), 4.) correct technique and 5.) right amount of contact time between the ground beans and hot water. As far as technique is concerned, the most important thing is to let the beans "bloom". This refers to the foam (from carbon dioxide that hasn't off-gassed yet) that comes out of freshly-roasted beans when hot water is poured on them. You need to pour a small amount of hot water over the beans, let the foam settle and then proceed with your chosen extraction method. Aside from this, the beans just need to spend the right of time in contact with the water depending on grind consistency. If you get these 5 things right, then you can make a great cup of coffee that will please any coffee snob using very simple equipment, like a French Press or a simple pour-over cone. There are a lot of good automatic machines as well, but the Technivorm seems to be the gold standard against which all other machines are measured. What the Technivorm supposedly does extremely well (I don't own one), is heat the water to the correct temperature, spray enough water in the correct pattern to let the beans bloom, and then shower all of the beans with water at a flow rate which results in an optimal extraction. The point I'm trying to get at, is that, if you're using a machine, you should match the machine used against the coffee beans that you're putting in. If you're simply dumping in some pre-ground Maxwell House from the grocery store, then a Mr. Coffee will likely work as well as a $300 Technivorm. I'm not trying to sound like a snob, but am simply noting that there are a lot more important things than the machine used (for the record, I've gone back to drinking instant coffee or stopping by Dunkin Donuts most days). I haven't researched built-ins that much, but I would have a hard time making the case for one myself. From what I've seen, you put in whole beans and (in most cases) water, and the machine grinds the beans and makes the coffee for you. Assuming the machine does these things as well as a separate grinder and high quality coffee machine would, then you might get a great cup of coffee, provided you put in high quality freshly-roasted beans and use them up quickly. But why would you spend north of $3K for a machine that takes up a lot of kitchen real-estate, when you could get an excellent quality brewer and grinder for about $500 (or $30 if you use a hand grinder and pour-over cone)? I won't speculate about motivation, but I suspect that most people who buy built-ins are doing it for reasons other than convenience or coffee quality.

My plumbed machine has been in use for about 3 months. I closely follow all the many maintenance and cleaning requirements. After about six weeks, though, the milk valve cleaning brush looked like this. Which I think is unacceptable. I called Miele support and of course they directed me to the Miele store where I could purchase another brush. Except the new brush sells for the outrageous price of $25.35. After complaining to support they ghosted me. A bit of internet searching finally got me to Kleenteeth.com and this: It's longer than the typical interdental brush, so works perfectly in cleaning the milk valve. So at about $2 per brush (which incudes the shipping) I'm way ahead of Miele's 'offer'.

1. Check Consumer Reports (https://www.consumerreports.org/join) for its review of two Blomberg washers. Neither washed well. 2. Per the drawing, you have plenty of horizontal space for the appliances. (Can you fit full-size appliances instead of compact?) Don't limit yourself to matching appliances from the same manufacturer. (FYI: I recently bought the GE GNW128SSMWW compact washer and LG DLEC888W compact dryer.) 3. Forget the countertop. The tops of the appliances are finished and you can put stuff on top of them. Without the countertop, you also won't have to worry about the positioning of the appliances or access to them for maintenance. 4. Check the installation instructions for clearance, electrical, and plumbing requirements on the manufacturer's website. If you plan to drain the washer into the sink, you need to allow space for the drain hose between the washer and sink, and make sure that the distance between the edge of the cabinet and the sink basin isn't too wide. 5. You can install the appliances yourself.