Spec Me a Coffee Machine

AndyCr15

AndyCr15

AndyCr15

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Joined
28 Apr 2011
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Barnet, London
Hey all. at the moment I just drink instant for it's speed and ease during working from home, but I don't enjoy them, I think it's more habit. I do enjoy a nice coffee when I'm out cycling though and thought maybe I should get something proper at home.

I know nothing... so... I'm assuming I need bean to cup, other than price, what factors do I need to consider? I drink 3 or 4 coffees a morning but it's just me, so only one cup at a time and would prefer something low maintenance.

Thanks.
 
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Personally I have a Delonghi Rivella bean to cup machine. Can get a half decent coffee out of it and can be tuned to your taste. Only issue is, whenever I go out for a coffee, it doesn't feel special anymore. The next step up would be a barista machine like a Sage.
 
I guess one of the main questions would be what kind of coffee do you drink and would you want a milk frother?

Depending on the amount of hassle you want. You can also buy coffee ese pods which have ground coffee but then you just have a small tea bag style unit to throw away rather than having to clean up. I used to have one of these which i always found was great for a quick coffee using the pods.
Unsure how much cleaning the bean to cup machines use as i've gone for a different style now as the normal espresso style machines got a bit of a hassle when making for multiple people.

De'Longhi Dedica Style Coffee Machine, Silver

Buy De'Longhi Dedica Style Coffee Machine from our View All Coffee Machines range at John Lewis & Partners. Free Delivery on orders over £50.
www.johnlewis.com www.johnlewis.com

These were the pods (apologies for Amazon Spain!) which were probably the best i found.
 
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Martynt74 said:
I guess one of the main questions would be what kind of coffee do you drink and would you want a milk frother?

Depending on the amount of hassle you want. You can also buy coffee ese pods which have ground coffee but then you just have a small tea bag style unit to throw away rather than having to clean up. I used to have one of these which i always found was great for a quick coffee using the pods.
Unsure how much cleaning the bean to cup machines use as i've gone for a different style now as the normal espresso style machines got a bit of a hassle when making for multiple people.
Click to expand...
Exactly this, there are so many options out there. I managed with a Pod system for many years, which was a step up from instant.
Still have a Pod system at work.
 
More advice than you could absorb on this thread

Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread

As i ended up chatting to Justin about how to make coffee last night for a couple of hours i figured that i might just make a thread on how to pull a decent espresso. an Espresso can be the base of most coffee drinks, add water and get an americano or long black, add steamed milk for a latte...
forums.overclockers.co.uk forums.overclockers.co.uk

Also search the web for Coffee Kev some great side by side reviews and discount codes
 
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Yeah, i found something like the above and the ese pods as a step up from the Nespresso type things you get in hotel rooms though.
 
I have a Sage Coffee machine, a Barista Touch - really rate it - got it reconditioned in a sale.... highly recommend.

Stelly
 
Martynt74 said:
I guess one of the main questions would be what kind of coffee do you drink and would you want a milk frother?
Click to expand...
Good question. I generally just go Flat White tbh. Latte's might be a nice option to have.

The De'Longhi Dedica with coffee pods sounds like a good option to start. I can see the pods on Amazon UK too.
 
Dedica e685? does ground coffee too with conventional PF - there are multiple posts on it in espresso thread, and often in Amazon 'warehouse';
at half the price of a ebay indigo recon Barista express(still has 6month warranty I thought, so you'd discover if it had issues), I'd get dedica with a separate grinder -
BUT with both, I would have reservations on steam output; I use steam on my machine for making hot-chocolate and it needs steam volume&endurance.
 
AndyCr15 said:
Good question. I generally just go Flat White tbh. Latte's might be a nice option to have.

The De'Longhi Dedica with coffee pods sounds like a good option to start. I can see the pods on Amazon UK too.
Click to expand...

Sorry wasn't clear. I bought those through Amazon in the UK, it's just the link which was local.

I think for your needs that combo is great value without going down a rabbit hole of grind size/temperature. Plus it's mess free :D

Smeg also do a version which i'm sure is the same machine depending if you prefer the looks
www.smeg.com

Espresso coffee machine Black ECF01BLUS | Smegusa.com

Espresso coffee machine Black ECF01BLUS - Design, state-of-the-art technology and attention to details are what make SMEG unique. Our products are designed in Italy, in collaboration with world-renowned architects and designers
www.smeg.com www.smeg.com
 
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Have used my Dedica 685 for ages. I decided to see about upping its game a couple of years ago and bought a bottomless portafilter and a half decent grinder. Nothing close to some of the hardware in the espresso thread on here, but much like hifi it’s diminishing returns. It’s reliable and I can enjoy really decent beans and coffee without too much counter space and hassle. Grinding beans fresh makes a big difference and coffee keeps better as whole beans rather than ground. One day I’d like a proper espresso setup, but would need a much larger kitchen and much more money!

The coffee bags are ok, but I didn’t find them transformative. The bags aren’t bad value if bought in bulk and aren’t far off the price of buying whole beans (used Lavazza as the price comparison). I only really drink coffee at home on the weekends, so I don’t mind the process as much. Honestly, since nespresso pods came off patent, you can get some decent coffee in pods for not ridiculous prices. Super convenient too.

Edit - the steam wand isn’t bad on the dedica either. I don’t drink latte / cappuccino really, but the kids love it for hot chocolate and babyccino!

VRszbsq.jpg
 
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Another option if you think a machine might be overkill - use a pour over Hario V2 with filter papers. Quick and easy to clean up too.

You would need a separate milk frother/heater though.
 
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It came today. On offer on JL (£20 or so off) then my own discount brought it down to a good price. Although, we have a work offer starting on Friday, which has Delonghi listed as a company participating, so I'm praying this machine doesn't pop up at half price :cry:

I assume I can buy a manual grinder and grind my own beans down, pack them into the cup like I do these SES bags?
 
good stuff - looks smart;
I see there are quite a few timemore manual grinder deals on amazon UK, too <£100 - which often come up, but never researched the model range.
 
When I take the portafilter out, the basket keeps staying stuck in the machine. Am I doing something wrong? (When I say 'stuck', it usually falls out when I try and grab it)
 
Can be the orientation of the spring that holds the filter basket in the portafilter (so it grips at the angle you take it off)
.. didn't think dedica has a 3-way valve, to release pressure after a brew, so might have expected pf+filter ejected too easily.
 
There should be a spring 'wire' in the portafilter that grips the basket.

I've had my Dedica 885 for a while, it gets hammered 3-5 times a day for Americanos. Descaled many times (just yesterday too) and it's still going strong. It replaced the Tassimo after the second Tassimo started to fail (we have hard water). The 885 came with three baskets for the portafilter - a single, a double and a capsule.
I grind enough supermarket beans at the start of the week to cover the week and store them pressed down in an old resealable Illy tin. The unground beans I keep in a sealed container. I use a larger doserless, stepless, Macap M4 grinder which was originally bought for the Elektra Microcasa-a-leva.

VAaBEuZ.jpeg


Otherwise I have to wait 20 minutes for this to warm up, and it doesn't tolerate non-freshly roasted beans either:

M793Ac3.jpeg
 
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