Breville Juice Fountain Cold Electric Juicer Review

We purchased the Breville Juice Fountain Cold Electric Juicer so our reviewer could put it to the test in her kitchen. Keep reading for our full product review.

Whether you’re thinking about jumping in on the celery juice trend or just prefer your fruits and veggies in beverage form, juicers are a go-to gadget for making fresh juice fast. Juicing purists tend to opt for a masticating juicer, or slow juicer, which features an auger that crushes fruits and vegetables before separating the juice from the pulp, creating a large, high-quality yield that lasts for days.

Centrifugal juicers, on the other hand, operate with metal cutting blades and at much higher speeds, making them faster, but also more likely to generate heat. The higher the speed, the more bubbling and froth that’s produced in your juice as well. The end result is pulpier, slightly bitter, and doesn't last as long.

Breville claims its centrifugal Juice Fountain features patented Cold Spin Technology that generates less than 2 degrees Fahrenheit of heat to extracted juices. It also comes with high-capacity juice and pulp containers, so you can make large batches that last up to three days in the refrigerator. So how does it perform in an everyday kitchen? I used it for several weeks to find out.

Performance: Juice for a crowd in record time

Even as a first-time juicer, I found the Breville Juice Fountain Cold easy to set up and operate. I used it to juice citrus fruits, berries, apples, tomatoes, celery, carrots, bell peppers, cucumbers, spinach, and cauliflower florets. It’s so powerful that I could even feed it pineapple spears—the skin still on—with no problem.

There’s a slight learning curve to figuring out when to use a low speed (6,500 RPM) or high speed (13,000 RPM), but as a general rule, the firmer the produce, the higher the speed.

The extra-wide feed chute made quick work of everything I put in it. There wasn’t much I had to precut, with the exception of peeling oranges and halving or quartering large apples, tomatoes, and peppers. I loved how fast it could process whole cucumbers, celery stalks, and carrots without much prep work on my part. The only thing to be aware of is smaller pieces—like berries—have a tendency to bounce off the blade and come back up the feed chute. Once I got the hang of working quickly with the food pusher, it wasn’t much of a problem, though.

The micromesh filter did an excellent job of separating juice from pulp, seeds, skin, and stems. The resulting pulp was still a little wet and mostly shredded, with the exception of a few larger pieces of apple skin, tomato skin, and partially intact spinach leaves. I knew some waste was inevitable given how fast centrifugal juicers process produce, but it’s no big deal if you plan to use the pulp in other recipes, such as soups or baked goods.

Design: Upscale, but large

With a silver finish and high-quality clear plastic parts, the Juice Fountain, like most of Breville’s appliances, is well-designed and appears higher end. The only thing I didn’t like about its appearance is the dark plastic pulp container. It’s large and takes away from the overall aesthetic of the juicer. You could store it out of sight, but then the juicer just looks, well, weird. That’s because the juicer cover protrudes on one side to serve as a tight-fitting lid over the pulp container. 

Since this was my first time using a centrifugal juicer, I was a little worried I'd have flying pulp or juice splatters all over my kitchen. Thankfully, that juicer lid fits like a glove over the pulp container and keeps the process mostly mess-free. One thing I noticed was that pulp tended to collect more in the lid than the container. 

I liked the silicone nozzle for juicing straight into the jug or an individual glass. It flips up when not in use to prevent juice drips on the counter. The 70-ounce juice jug fit easily in my refrigerator, both on the door and shelves. The lid to the juice jug is very tight to open and close, but it’s designed to help prolong the shelf life of your juice by protecting it from air exposure. It also features a built-in froth separating lid, which worked quite well.

The large juice jug capacity means you can prepare bigger batches of juice ahead of time for parties or to last your household for two to three days. I have to admit, I don’t think the large capacity is necessary for small or single-person households unless you regularly consume a lot of juice. There are other juicers that perform just as well while taking up less counter space. It all comes down to the volume of juice you’d like to make.

Safety features include a vertical locking arm over the unit that will prevent operation unless it’s engaged. There’s also an LED light located under the power switch that will light up to alert you if the motor is being overloaded. I didn’t see it turn on in my testing, but it’s a nice feature to help you pace juicer operation and protect the motor from overuse.

Cleaning: Not too bad

All parts except the pulp container are top-rack dishwasher safe. Not a big deal, since we found the pulp container pretty easy to clean up. If you save your pulp for other cooking uses, be prepared to reach into the deep container or use a spoon or spatula to get all the pulp out from the bottom. The pulp container cleanup can be made even easier if you invest in compostable and biodegradable pulp container bags. 

A cleaning brush is included and I found it necessary to get the job done. The juicer bowl, cover, and containers washed easily with warm, soapy water and a soft sponge. I used the brush to scrub the micromesh filter blade, which took a bit longer than the other pieces to really get clean. 

I still prefer hand washing whenever possible to avoid the wear-and-tear scratches that sometimes occur when dishwashing plastic components. It’s worth noting that unless you run the dishwasher right after placing the juicer parts in it, the food residue may dry out and be harder to remove, especially from the micromesh filter. The manufacturer warns microscopic food residue can clog the filter and impact the performance of the juicer, so I took care to wash everything right after use.

Price: Lots of value

Priced around $180, the Breville Juice Fountain Cold is something of an investment piece. It’s more expensive than most centrifugal-style juicers, but it’s still one of the more affordable juicer options from the Breville line. If you drink a lot of juice or plan to serve juice at gatherings, you really can’t beat the capacity of this model for the price. And remember, pre-made fresh juices can be pricey, often $8 to $10, for a single serving. You’ll more than breakeven in just a few weeks if you’ve got a juice-a-day habit.

Breville Juice Fountain vs. Breville Compact Juice Fountain

Breville has no shortage of options when it comes to high-end juicers. I also tested its Compact model to see how it stacked up. Priced at $100, the Compact performed just as well as the Cold. In fact, I preferred it (and not just because of the price). 

I found the Compact more aesthetically pleasing on my countertop; its pulp collector is built into the main bowl, which means there’s no unsightly external plastic pulp container to set up or store and it’s easier to clean. I also found it easier to use with only one speed vs. the two-speed function of the Cold model. For first-time juicers, it’s much easier to turn the unit on and off instead of alternating speeds depending on which fruits and vegetables you’re juicing. And honestly, I didn’t notice much difference in the performance or juice output of a one-speed vs. two-speed system. They created similar pulps and equally enjoyable juices. You can’t go wrong with either model. The Juice Fountain Cold Electric Juicer is excellent for large batch juicing and the Compact offers plenty of power in a much smaller size.