Need Espresso machine recommendations
 

Looking for an espresso machine, $300 budget. With that I can, I think, either buy a nice new one or an excellent used one but there must be pitfalls in buying used.

What do you look for in an espresso machine? New or used?

Jura ENA Micro 5 - about 5000 shots through mine, trouble free, low maintenance, fully automatic. 500 above your budget. Sometimes on sale at Costco for 700 or seen refurbed around 500-600.

G

I have a couple of Illy iperespresso machines. One at home, one at work.
Work nice, consistent shots. About a buck a pull and tied into their capsules - but no mess, no cleanup. I think both of mine are made by Francis Francis. If you like packing your own, not the way to go - but convenience is nice.

If you're ok with grinding etc in your price range, gaggia classic. Used Rancillio Sylvia for a hundred or so more. Used Breville BDB if you can tinker a bit, its a world class machine made of somewhat cheapish parts, all fixable.

But really, the problem is you need to budget the same amount for a grinder to get decent espresso.

Jura c60, going on 3 years with no issues and fabulous shots every morning.

(used machines probably on feebay)

I am on my second Delonghi Magnifica, beans to espresso machine. Grinds, brews, froths, serves.
Great machine! Had the first one 10 years.
You are going to need to up your budget.

Not sure the price and I won't check it as my wife bought as a Christmas present. I have a Profitec at home. It is pretty wonderful. I think it is well above your price point.

CL would appear to be my best bet. Found a few machines listed here for $300 to $500. All the ads read the same, "just don't use it anymore."

May save my pennies for a Jura.

French press every morning with freshly ground beans. Need something extra in the afternoon.

FYI, you will love it. Like legal crack.

Have you tried an aeropress? Not bad if you like the manual process (until you go fully automatic)

Fb marketplace was good for a while to find deals.

There's something about a great espresso with lemon peel that takes me back to 6 yo, Sunday night dinners at my great grandparent's house, everything was made from scratch that day or picked from the garden. Freshly made pasta, sausage, meatballs, salads, and then dessert with freshly made cannoli, coffee and espresso.

Working long hours these days, no better way to take a break in the afternoon and remember the best of times.

I haven't John. I'm probably going large or going home on this. Just have to decide on whether I get an espresso maker or new custom muffler and headers for the M491.

Love my Nespresso machine. Yeah, the pods aren't free, thats fo sho.

I got tired of grinding beans separately so I bought a Gaggia Brera. About $380 refurbished from Whole Latte Love.

https://www.wholelattelove.com/refurbished-gaggia-black-brera-espresso-machine

i have one you can have...just pay shipping. i no longer can consume the caffeine so it goes unused.. I really enjoyed it at one time... pm if interested

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1534215299.jpg

^ decent fully manual machine. Our Starbucks barista was exactly that with different labels. Lasted almost 2 decades and I never cleaned it. Search espresso on this forum. We recently bought a Breville with built in bean hopper and grinder. That is all separate from the brewing process. I have ZERO faith in the full automatic machines.

Best to get a manual machine and separate grinder.

More functions more to go wrong.

Mini Mazer is the best grinder bar none. I have my opinion as to who makes the best semi commercial espresso maker.

Mike, that's extremely kind of you, thank you, sending a PM now.

You won't get gud espresso out of a $300 machine. I think you're much better off with a digital kettle, a $300 grinder and the good old plastic melitta cone. You'll need a grinder anyway for espresso, eventually.

Grinder, new the new baratza sette 30 isn't horrible. Best is find a mazzer on Craigslist.

We had a Starbucks barrista machine years ago (same as that saeco). It quickly made a tasty small cup of coffee but it wasn't espresso.

I like my friend's Nespresso machine. No fuss and for just one or two a day, the cost and waste of the pods isn't a big deal.

I still have the twin head commercial espresso machine as a someday restoration project. But doubt I'll ever use it except for dinner parties.

Nespresso gets expensive fast. I used to have one. Hundreds of dollars on pods. When I stopped ordering I got a PERSONAL phone call from my crack dealer ... Mr., you haven't been ordering, are you okay, what can we do etc. I also don't like the waste. Out of my auto machine, all I get is grounds. No waste.

In my house there are about 5-10 shots going thorugh a day. Even if it is only 2 shots a day, that's a buck a day with Nespresso. 350 bucks a year ...

G

Exactly. I think some careful shopping for a broken Jura may be the best / cheapest bet into real espresso. Parts are available and there is online "support" via youtube etc.

Or just bite the bullet and buy a new machine. 700 bucks is a lot of coin but man, the joy I get out of a good cup of latte in the morning or an espresso after dinner ... all without cooking up a storm every time I feel like it.

G

I use a Nespresso machine at home now for convenience. Pods are about 75 cents each. Beans from the local roaster are $11 for a 12 oz. bag. Would it be that much cheaper pulling real shots than using the Nespresso?

Also Nespresso user her, but only on the weekends so that keeps the pod $$ down (and I only caffeinate in the mornings) drip coffee at work.

After reading the last semi annual espresso thread (that pairs nicely with the semi annual Bourbon and cigar threads) I have decided when the Nespresso dies (no signs of that happening :() I'm going to drop $1000 on a full auto machine.

Also when the Nespresso dies wife wants one of those other pod machines but she likes "coffee drinks" :rolleyes:

Edit to add, you don't have to buy Nespresso pods, there are knock off pods for sale on Amazon.

Anyone want to admit to owning a high dollar (~$2,000) full auto machine and want to let us know how they like it?

I've thought about it since the wife and I spend an inordinate amount of time making coffee with a french press and grinding beans for each batch, but the cost is pretty crazy.

This is the $1K model I have earmarked for when I have $1K to drop on a machine. ;)
Has great reviews:

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B016RYODRS/?coliid=I1UARAYAI3DG5G&colid=2B5WGODP3ULW3&psc=0&r ef_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Per wikipedia each capsule contains 5–7 grams of ground coffee. So, 12 oz. = 340 g = 68 pods = $50. Yes, even with a fudge factor, it is over $50 a pound to use pods.

I buy 2.2 lbs (1kg) bags of Lavazza beans at <30. Even if you argue the nespresso is more "efficient" and equal to 10 g / shot of beans, 1 kg nespresso = $100 vs. 1kg quality beans < $30.

Even at mild usage, you will pay for a nice $1k machine in a couple years by weaning yourself off nespresso.

Note that the automatics require cleaning agents and filters at about $50-100 a year. Just mentioning for "fairness".

G

My only beef with my Jura is the $20 water filters from Europe. But I don't have to descale the machine either.

I'll second the Lavazza is the bomb. On subscription from amazon in 2.2 bags.

I've toyed with finding a second machine to take to the office if I could get a smokin deal, but then my habit would skyrocket. I was 2-4 cups a day while working from home, don't need to start that again. :)

I am not affiliated with this company but have been buying from them for about 15 years, and they are excellent. They will walk you through any service necessary, etc and sell only high quality machines. May be beyond your price range, but I would at least start with them and see what they can do for you.

https://www.chriscoffee.com

My machine is my baby, but was around 2k not including a grinder. Use it every day and could not be happier. They also have open box, etc at this place.

Best of luck

We put in a built-in Miele machine about 6 years ago during our kitchen remodel. Plumbed in a water supply, dedicated 110VAC circuit. It's really nice. No clue how many cups of coffee we've brewed, so I can't say what the amortized cost is per cup of coffee. It's been trouble free, no issues. My wife takes care of the periodic cleaning, descaling, etc. She loves it, and she's worth it, so everyone's happy! ;)

What he said...

I think this thread some folks really aren't familiar with what good espresso actually tastes like. That nespresso pod stuff... guys... that isn't espresso either. Sure its a tasty convenient coffee beverage... The starbucks barista machine... pressurized portafilter, you have no control of brew pressure until you try a real espresso grind and find out the machine can't even reach 9 bar.

I would really steer clear of ANY auto machines. First because "full auto" is not to the point of replacing a barista, there's too much variation in beans and grind. And second because all that mechanical automation will not be serviceable by mortals.

I have friends with full auto machines and none make anything I'd call espresso. Yes it makes a small coffee with the push of a button but I'd take simple melitta cone over it any day.

If you really think you want to dip your toes in espresso you should first find a good coffee shop and see if its something you'll pay for. Honestly compare the great shots they pull with the nasty drizzle you get from a jura. Or look at pictures on the interwebs of what good shots look like. Good crema...

There are big parts of the country/world where the knowledge just isn't there, you're SOL to even taste the good stuff. Second, the beans for great espresso are expensive. Probably the best beans cost me $0.50/shot and we probably spend $400/year just on beans. If I lived without access to great beans I'd probably not even use the espresso machine because it makes bad beans taste even worse. Sometimes wife comes home with crap from grocery store and I just go without coffee until I can get more good beans.

I have owned an expobar brewtus 2 for about 15 years now, was $1400 new and I've probably spent $500 on parts during that time, new brew pump, new heating elements, two control boards, some pressure stats, brew screens, etc. This same machine is sold as "Rocket" brand from seattle coffee gear, and might be rebranded elsewhere. Its been "reliable" and easily fixed at home. Its literally just plumbing.

We use it daily. Was a huge life improvement for me - there seems to be something in good espresso that picks me up in a way that drip doesn't - it isn't caffine but some other something. Shrug. I have friends with more expensive machines (GS3) but they don't make better espresso. The grinder is seriously important. With the brewtus we've had a starbucks barista grinder, a Nuovo simonelli grinta, a mazzer super jolly and for past 4 years a mazzer robur. The mazzers were both purchased used and seem to have appreciated in value - they never wear out and are easy to resell. Probably the robur is the best purchase I made since we got the brewtus, very stable, grind very rarely needs adjustment and its quiet and super fast. If you have space and money I highly recommend it.

The espresso is really convenient, I have machine on timer so its ready to go in the morning, steamed milk takes about 2 minutes, shots are about 45 seconds apart, then 5 minutes to clean up. Every weekend I give machine and grinder a more thorough cleaning, takes 45 minutes or so. Otherwise the tar will really load up. Melitta I need to wait for water to reach temp, then brewing takes time and attention.

Honestly for me a great cup of single cone melitta (drip/pourover) is a close second to espresso. I'm not a fan of French press because of the fines in the cup - it tastes great if I drink the coffee right away or filter it after brewing but that is too much trouble. I don't like the taste the fines impart to the cup over time.

I think best approach is to buck up and buy a reasoable grinder (The sette 30 above is reasonable cheap grinder) and get a kettle with digital temp control. Then play around with good beans and temperature and see what that does for your life.

Excellent post. I had a nespresso at work and it was drinkable but never sweet. A good stable machine, either w61 or pid, is the bomb. One with pf mass like a gaggia will do in a pinch. Superautos cant adjust grind sufficiently for climate changes.


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Slightly off topic, I consume 2-3 shots daily. I have bought good, bad, and ugly (not intentionally) beans. I have been sticking with Costco San Francisco French Roast beans for a while. Why? They don't suck but also they are super consistent. I find if I buy a pound of beans it takes me forever to get the grind correct. Meaning - most of the coffee is wasted in sub-par shots.

I am all ears about a good bean. We have some great roasters in Portland: Stumptown, Coava, and Heart come to mind but there are many more. Advice?

Thanks! Larry

Maybe you shouldn’t change a thing if you’re happy...

Im sure there are some amazing beans in Portland...

We use vicace dolce here in seattle, very consistent, sweet n chocolate n cream is pornography. Victrola here sometimes makes really good beans, but not consistent, 1 week in 5, too expensive to play those odds. Fly too close to the sun.

There’s a roaster in Santa Cruz, friends bring me beans from there, always fantastic... verve? So good. Find something you like, know the roaster?

IMHO that french roast from Costco is burnt. Too dark. Try something medium. Try Lavazza Espresso Gran Crema (Amazon).

I am well traveled including France and Italy and don't taste a noticeable difference between my auto espresso and something they make in the birth place of the drink. But I can't say I have had them back to back either.

G

Funny. I have tried the Lavazza. Not my cup of espresso! I think it has robusto beans mixed in. Can't recall. I was all excited and then the product didn't deliver. Of course, my skills are far better that was early on in my barista career!

Keep me coming.

You guys need a good local roaster. the beans are best used between four and ten days after having been roasted.