Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread

Had a spare hour at work for a bit of retail therapy, coupled with the need to replace my workplace aging Delonghi bean to cup machine, and bought this as John Lewis had it in stock..

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I think I've amassed pretty much every accessory needed (mostly from Ali-X for peanuts) but haven't decided on what machine to get, as the Barista Express will be going to my workplace.

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My thoughts are either the Bambino + or Gaggia classic evo, which are a little more than I'd prefer to spend, but if needs must, then so be it.
Are there any other options?
 
JonRGV250 said:
Had a spare hour at work for a bit of retail therapy, coupled with the need to replace my workplace aging Delonghi bean to cup machine, and bought this as John Lewis had it in stock..

fJeOfQZ.jpg


I think I've amassed pretty much every accessory needed (mostly from Ali-X for peanuts) but haven't decided on what machine to get, as the Barista Express will be going to my workplace.

00JFbtx.jpg


My thoughts are either the Bambino + or Gaggia classic evo, which are a little more than I'd prefer to spend, but if needs must, then so be it.
Are there any other options?
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Depends what you want to spend. I'm very happy with my Duo Temp. Bought it as it's a bit more manual than the Bambino and there's less to go wrong, but probably fewer quality of life improvements as well so you can take your choice!

The Coffee Blog guy reckons that the Gaggia Espresso Style is the best machine under £300. I passed on it though as I think it looks a bit cheap, tbh.
 
manic111 said:
Depends what you want to spend. I'm very happy with my Duo Temp. Bought it as it's a bit more manual than the Bambino and there's less to go wrong, but probably fewer quality of life improvements as well so you can take your choice!

The Coffee Blog guy reckons that the Gaggia Espresso Style is the best machine under £300. I passed on it though as I think it looks a bit cheap, tbh.
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It's a shame it looks so cheap. Why don't they house it in stainless steel :confused:
 
manic111 said:
Depends what you want to spend. I'm very happy with my Duo Temp. Bought it as it's a bit more manual than the Bambino and there's less to go wrong, but probably fewer quality of life improvements as well so you can take your choice!

The Coffee Blog guy reckons that the Gaggia Espresso Style is the best machine under £300. I passed on it though as I think it looks a bit cheap, tbh.
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Thanks, I'll look into those :)
 
The Gaggia Espresso range is interesting as it has a PID, not usually found in lower end machines (or the Classic), but it is fairly simple besides that and comes with I think a 15 bar OPV which you should probably immediately change to 9 bar. Apparently easy as it's the same spring mod as the Classic. It also has a decent portafilter and steam wand which is nice.

It's on sale for £179 right now, which based on prices of everything else, seems like a great deal to me. With the Classic being £400+ nowadays it's a great entrypoint and is better in some regards.

Should definitely see other recommendations though, but I've been very happy with the Gaggia Classic for a long time (13+ years same machine).

At this level don't be surprised spending more on a grinder than a machine as well. It's actually worth it as with a cheap grinder you won't ever get the best from the beans or espresso machine.
 
I’ve ordered the Gaggia expresso deluxe and am waiting on Shades of coffee to come back to me ref the 9 bar spring mod.
Then hopefully having a separate grinder & machine will yield better results than the barista express.
Guess I’ll find out soon.
 
Some spitballing

I was pretty much decided on the Bambino (not plus) & separate grinder, but from reading reviews/comparisons, and watching a bunch of Coffee Kev's videos, I'm not sure it's going to be suitable. I tend to favour lighter roasts* and it looks like the Bambino just doesn't get hot enough/have the temperature control needed, so potentially I need something with an adjustable PID?

The Gaggia Classic which I was also considering doesn't have a PID (unless modded), so some fiddling required re. temperature surfing

So that's got me considering:

Sage Barista Express (although grinder may need upgrading in the not too distant future)
Sage Barista Pro - generally better than the express, maybe won't need upgrading quite so soon? almost £200 more (£638 vs £463)
Sage Dual Boiler + Smart Grinder Pro - Better machine, grinder isn't amazing, more than 2x the price of the express (£1050 vs £463)
Lelit Anna - seems well reviewed, has all the features I "need", but unusual 57mm group means less availability of accessories. Similar price to express (£459), but need a grinder as well
Lelit Anita - same machine as above, with integrated "Fred" grinder. Mixed reviews of the grinder. £80 more than the Anna (£540), maybe worth spending a little extra for a better separate grinder instead?



*although that may be just that I prefer lighter roasts in my particular machine and in a "proper" machine I'd prefer medium/darker, but that's probably a rabbit hole even Alice couldn't escape!
 
JonRGV250 said:
I’ve ordered the Gaggia expresso deluxe and am waiting on Shades of coffee to come back to me ref the 9 bar spring mod.
Then hopefully having a separate grinder & machine will yield better results than the barista express.
Guess I’ll find out soon.
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I'll be interested in how it is! Let me know!

I tried my first espresso using a puck shield this morning, and I think it made a difference - felt like the drink had more body, presumably as it extracted a bit more evenly.
 
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It arrives today, but will wait until the 9 bar spring and unpressurised bottomless portafilter arrives before playing with it.
I hope my puck prep is up to scratch or things will get (literally) messy.
Puck screens are (imo) great, and made a difference for me.
 
Note to self, don't use fresh ground coffee with a pressurised basket, ever.
However, it's a funky looking little thing, and I'm looking forward to getting the bits I've ordered to try it properly..

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Yep the pressurised basket should be swapped out right away as it’s not needed. Also without a 3-way solenoid there may be some residual pressure when removing the portafilter which can make mess even with a regular basket.

It’s quite small irl, looks nice. Noticed the water fills from the side which should make topping up easier if you have it under kitchen cabinets. Smart machine.
 
Seeing as it seems the one to go for, I've bought the Fuego Kitchen Coffee Scale. Should hopefully help me dial in a bit better but being doing ok without a scale so far in fairness. With my bean to cup only having 8 grind settings, it seems quite forgiven to the average home coffee drinker.
 
Bits fitted, and with minimal dialling in I've managed to not spray coffee all over myself and the rest of the kitchen..

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I'm now happy to take my Sage Barista to work and use the Gaggia Expresso Deluxe for home duties.
Here endeth my journey down the coffee rabbit hole.

Maybe
 
maj said:
Seeing as it seems the one to go for, I've bought the Fuego Kitchen Coffee Scale. Should hopefully help me dial in a bit better but being doing ok without a scale so far in fairness. With my bean to cup only having 8 grind settings, it seems quite forgiven to the average home coffee drinker.
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Welcome to the funny side…

Dave85 said:
Managed to grab a Eureka Mignon specialita for £195 basically brand new so looking forward to replacing the built in sage grinder.
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Love mine, I’d advise looking at getting a dial with a scale as it’s probably the only weakness of the machine as you can’t move between grind settings easily. I have the ARO Espresso one as the Eureka replacement dials just aren’t precise enough for a machine with stepless adjustment. Then when you occasionally want a different grind it’s difficult to dial back into espresso without wasting coffee, so arguably worth investing in early if you change brew methods.

It can also be improved with a single dose hopper but I’m pretty happy with the standard one personally.
 
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alex24 said:
Yep the pressurised basket should be swapped out right away as it’s not needed. Also without a 3-way solenoid there may be some residual pressure when removing the portafilter which can make mess even with a regular basket.

It’s quite small irl, looks nice. Noticed the water fills from the side which should make topping up easier if you have it under kitchen cabinets. Smart machine.
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Hmm pressured basket?

The Electra has no basket pressure, merely the puck resistance to the spring loaded water. The little Delia has a small hole on the basket but I still go for the puck pressure resistance, force of habit.
 
Gaggia machines come with what they call a pressurised basket which apparently helps make crema/foam with pre-ground coffee by pushing everything through a small hole on the bottom. Basically it gets in the way of making decent fresh ground coffee and most should replace it I believe.

I use a bottomless portafilter and I think a VST 20g double basket, which works super.
 
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I can speak from experience that pressurised baskets are absolutely not for use with fresh ground/roasted coffee, at all.
Ever.
They seem to do an “ok” job with preground, but that’s it.
 
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