Quote:
Originally Posted by JavaBrewer
So I did some online research of the Breville that you linked earlier and couldn't find anything but positive reviews and comments. I saw that BedBathBeyond sells those things and we have a load of coupons... So we head over to their local store and in the same mall is a high end kitchen shop (Sur La Table) that I know sells espresso machines. Sure enough they have a table lined with Jira automatics (wow $5600 for the top model) and free coffee samples. At the other side of the table are the semi-automatics and the single serve (Nespresso) options. We leave convinced that Breville is a decent product and $415 later walk out of BBB with our https://www.wholelattelove.com/breville-bes870xl-barista-express.
I like that it comes with it's own burr grinder but is not dependent on it for ultimately making an espresso. Getting the right grind is critical and changes from bean to bean. We get it home, unpacked, cleaned, and prepped. It took me 3-4 tries to get the grind and volume settings correct but now pulls a double shot of Pete's espresso like a champ. Sure it's messy (coffee grounds) compared to the Jura and single serve machines but it fits my needs, has a quality appearance, and is simple to operate.
To appease the karma gods my wife did buy a copper whisk and a new lid handle for our Le Creuset dutch oven from the fancy place.  I'm still going to get a new portafilter for the old machine we have and give that to our daughter for her college apartment. |
Congrats. Slippery slope.
Doesn't make much sense to me to integrate a crappy grinder - i'm now on my 4th grinder and finally happy. Is really amazing how much difference the grinder makes. See if you can demo one at home.
I demoed the new brevilles. With high end grinders I had trouble pulling good shots with the 870, but the 920 was cake to use. I was just pulling shots, no steaming, I suspect the 870 isn't so temp stable or the unit I demoed wasn't working well.
Biggest problem is how they drive you to buy expensive beans.