Bean to Cup Coffee Machines 2021

[Cadder]

Hi all,

Our 7 year old DeLonghi Caffè Corso is showing signs of giving up. It's always had a bit of a problem with where to put the grounds as some tends to miss the collection tub.

We're looking to move that machine on and get something else.

At the moment our possible purchase list includes:
1. Sage Barista Express - around £500
2. DeLonghi La Specialista - around £600
3. Melitta Caffeo TS - around £500

A) Has anyone here any experience with the above?

B) Any other bean to cup coffee machines to throw in the mix?

C) And finally - which bean to cup machine do you have and how do you rate it?

 

[Cadder]

Thanks both for your responses. I think we'd prefer to go new rather than refurb.

The Sage BE seems best value for money, even at inflated pandemic pricing.

@Junglist why would you go for dual boiler? Is it for the milk frothing or are there other benefits?

 

[Cadder]

So far I'm almost certain we're getting the Sage BE - thanks everyone for their comments.

It seems I have an additional pickle to solve:

I've got a hotel chocolat velvetiser

Tell me more. Is it worth it? I do enjoy a frothy coffee and the occasional mocha.

 

[Cadder]

They make great hot chocolate



But in all seriousness they do warm milk to that perfect drinking temp so it's easy to just drop a shot of coffee in there, or use a sachet or something.

Looks like we're getting a Sage BE and HC Velvetiser too! Time to move our DeLonghi unit on to a new home.

 

[Cadder]

Sage BE landing today. Bought on Amazon For £479. Was £599 with a £120 voucher. Pretty chuffed. Looking forward to setting it up and giving it a whirl.

@montymint I'm not allowed a velvetiser, even when they're on a deal for £65ish. Sad times.

 

[Cadder]

Had our first coffee from the Sage BE this morning and as expected - it wasn't great!

Fully aware we need to get the coarseness, grind amount and whatever else right first.

Looking for bits to complement the machine. Currently our shopping list consists of:
- Bottomless portafilter
- Knock Box
- Tamper Mat

Not sure whether to go all the way and get the scales too... Any recommendations?

 

[Cadder]

Bottomless portafilter has been spraying all over the place. Have tried a few things which has improved it slightly, but not completely. Each step below slightly improved things:

1. More pressure on tamping. I had originally thought it only required a very light tamp but now I see the region of 15kg/30lb force being required.
2. Finer bean grinding
3. Moved the ground coffee around within the filter, with a cocktail stick, prior to tamping

Before each of these steps it would shoot jets of coffee almost instantly, which isn't fun. It still shoots jets of coffee at random points and angles, but only a few seconds from the end.

My next step is to weight the ground coffee and see if different weights affect it. After that I would be looking into mods such as pressure reduction. I'm not really one to void warranties though so it will take me a few weeks of deliberating I'd imagine.

 

[Cadder]

Scales is a must, if you want consistency then you need to be accurate in the amount of coffee you are putting in.
Knock box is next on the list as handy.
Tamping mat you can do without, depending on the portafilter. I used to just tamp a double spout one on the counter resting on a towel.

Bottomless portafilter is useful to see your extraction, not a must but useful.

But a set of scales first and start weighing your amount of coffee you are putting in. If it's 14g one shot and 20g then next then there is just no way you can get the consistency that you need.

I really should have just taken this advice rather than going my own way. We're having another coffee with our late lunch, I'll try weighing the coffee then.

Got some Rave beans arriving soon, ordered yesterday morning so probably arriving tomorrow. Apparently it could be the beans I'm using that are adding to the issue. They're just Costco San Francisco Bay beans if I remember correctly.

 

[Cadder]

It's been 7 months now and I have learned so much in my time as a Sage BE owner

The accessories I use are:
- Scales
- Dosing cup
- Dosing funnel
- Distributor/Tamper (heavy little thing)
- Tamping Mat

The dosing cup and funnel are really useful, especially since I was flinging ground coffee everywhere before I bought them.

I'm knocking out some awesome espressos now that we've followed some Hoffman YT vids. Latte art is also coming on well, thanks to Hedrick.

Still using beans from Rave - loving the Indian Monsoon Malabar at the moment.

Edit: and now I feel silly because my thread title was about bean to cup coffee machines, not espresso machines.

 

[Cadder]

Would you mind sharing links to the accessory items you purchased?

I am very new to this and on the hunt for the right scales etc.

Absolutely. I love my setup but I know it's probably a bit different to the usual, so bear that in mind as you look at what I have bought so far

Dosing funnel:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B094JMZ1DH/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_i_KZVYVX7HSJ0P1KG77MAW?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

Dosing Cup:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09B72MQ6G/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_i_2YQCW9DT8BDDN5J1JQTR?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

Tamping Mat:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B097PW8BCJ/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_i_HAVXWZRY9GCTGBT7RB9P?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

Distributor/Tamper:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0896Q41R9/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_i_7195DVGVNAR7JY5V3Q0B?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

I also drew up a replacement steam lever to be machined for my Sage BE. I'm still waiting for it but in the meantime the Crema Coffee lever came back in stock:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08GDSKLPS/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_i_B8CQZBD3AA5D7MM7AYCX?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

I really like my setup. I wouldn't recommend my scales though, which is why they're not included in this post.

My typical morning routine is:
- switch machine on and give it half an hour
- pre-heat espresso cup and machine with an empty shot through the portafilter.
- weigh beans in dosing cup
- pour beans into empty hopper and grind all back into the same dosing cup.
- weigh ground coffee to check for any loss in grinder
- fit dosing funnel to portafilter
- sit portafilter with funnel over the cup (portafilter upside down) and then flip all to get grounds in portafilter
- tap sides of portafilter to even out and settle the coffee
- distribute and tamp
- fit portafilter to machine and pour a shot of espresso

It all runs nicely now. Without the two dosing accessories I'd be flinging coffee everywhere.

 

[Cadder]

I have a Sage Barista Express and am getting a bit bored with its inconsistency and how long everything takes.

How are you making your coffee? Do you weigh it in and out before tamping? Have you set the two buttons to suitable ratios of water to the coffee you use?

I've had a Sage BE for 7 or more months now and it's fantastic. I make two espressos every morning and most days another two cappuccinos or lattes. A dual boiler could be quicker but I am massively impressed by this machine. I've also found consistency to be a 'me' thing. If I change something, the coffee changes. If I keep it the same, coffee stays the same.

 

[Cadder]

I have read that when the grinder is warmed up by the heat within the machine, it needs to be adjusted a little bit as it moves slightly. I haven't found that to be the case with my machine though. I weigh the beans in and check their weight once ground, then pull a shot of espresso. I've made 4 coffees on the bounce for us and friends and they all turned out excellent.

 

[Cadder]

I have had all types of beans going through. Monsoon Malabar are fun, I have to stir the beans with a slightly wet spoon handle before grinding. The weirdest were a range from a local roasters and the beans were tiny. They went through the grinder like gravel. The rest of the bag was poured into my "spare beans" jar. Didn't fancy doing that again.

 

[Cadder]

There are certainly machines out there for everyone. If you're not weighing your coffee and water then a bean to cup like the DeLonghi Magnifica will probably be good for you since it is programmed to take care of that aspect.

I'm about to stick my BE on to warm up for our morning espressos.

 

[Cadder]

If you get a moment (can be arsed) could you video a pour? Mine splutters a lot and would like to compare.

Also, when pulling a shot now the pressure gauge doesn't move until 5 or more seconds into a shot. I'm sure it used to hit the correct pressure area before anything came out.

I'll try and get you a video of a shot but it doesn't sound like anything is particularly wrong with yours. The BE pre-infuses at a lower pressure, as @Snookums mentioned.
How high does the pressure gauge go? When I was reading up on it, I came to the conclusion that the pressure gauge isn't much more than a novelty on the BE. It's an OK indicator that a shot is pouring well, but there can be so many other factors impacting shot quality. My shots always fire the pressure gauge needle to max. They do get a bit splashy but I could fix that by sitting the espresso cup on something to get it closer to the portafilter.

 

[Cadder]

Wife has given me the go ahead for a Sage Barista express.

However, I have a 25% code for sage direct meaning I can pick up the barista pro for £547.

That's a bargain! Is that an exclusive code you have? Oh man I'd be tempted to upgrade for that.

 

[Cadder]

nah it's for the London coffee show - LCF25

It should have died 3 days ago but is still live.

I'm torn about pulling the trigger - it's the most I've spent on a single kitchen appliance!

Are you a patient person? Do you really like good coffee?

How will you feel when the £547 machine goes back to £730? My reasoning would be that I could sell it on if I don't get on with it and likely make no/little loss. Of course only you will know what is best for yourself financially and coffee-y.

What's your current setup?

 

[Cadder]

Current setup is embarrassingly a nespresso machine, due to my old house having a 2.5m2 kitchen.

Now I have a much bigger kitchen I actually have the countertop space for a more dedicated setup, which attracted me to the BE - even though the grinder isn't the best - it seemed a good "all in one package" to get going with.

The grinder hasn't been an issue for me, stepping up from a 7 year old DeLonghi Caffè Corso bean 2 cup.

I'm really enjoying the BE. I am incredibly tempted by that 25% off though!

 

[Cadder]

Couldn't resist it.

Which now leads to a new question,

what cups do people use?

Haha congrats!
Our favourites are the Loveramics Egg range - we have these for americanos or less milky cappuccinos - https://www.loveramics.co.uk/collec...glaze-potters-cappuccino-cup-butter-cup-200ml
I'd have bought different sizes and colours if not for their constant stock issues.

Also have these, decent size for a well balanced cappuccino - https://coffeecups.co.uk/products/genware-cappuccino-cups-9oz
We have these too but wouldn't go bigger - https://coffeecups.co.uk/products/bevande-intorno-cappuccino-cups-10oz

 

[Cadder]

They look great, are they dishwasher safe do you know?

They've all been put through the dishwasher a few times and seem to be holding up. I should probably have checked that before buying rather than assume