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Boardwalk :: Forum List Espresso in General Entry level < 400 dollars!
breville 800 esxl
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 Re:50-150$ range small pump driven; what to consid - 2005/11/28 02:14 dave wrote:
Dreedraffs,

Bang-for-the-buck and tastewise!!, you are looking at a Gaggia machine (like the Espresso/Carezza/Evolution, or even the smaller Topazio). They are reasonably affordable and do a very good job.

Here's the other catch -- no espresso machine is complete without a grinder and fresh coffee. It is true that the pressurized, "crema disc" bearing machines can slow down the pour for even horribly uneven coffee grounds. However, this still results in horribly tasting coffee most of the time Trying to use a blade grinder or even a cheap burr grinder with any espresso machine will produce an uneven and potentially very bitter cup, since the coffee grounds are uneven and extract at different rates. The pressurized system ends up burning the coffee.

It -IS- possible to use preground coffee with a machine like a Gaggia; I'm proof of that. However, by 'preground' I mean locally roasted coffee ground today in the store, using a grinder with sufficient settings to select something adequate for the Gaggia. This may mean buying your coffee from a cafe, using their own espresso grinder, since the Bunn grinders common to most stores don't give you much of a choice in changing the grind. Imported coffee, including preground Illy, is simply not going to produce good espresso by the time it reaches you.


Fundamentally, good coffee is what tastes good to you. Milk drinks go a long way toward covering up less-than-stellar espresso, as well. Maybe you can talk to your gf's family about the grinder side of things?

Sadly, for the relatively small difference in price, a Delonghi, Hamilton beach, Krups, or Briel (to my knowledge) is going to be a waste of money. You'll spend nearly as much and the resulting drink isn't even close to what a proper machine like an inexpensive Gaggia can produce.

Good luck! I'm not trying to make you spend money; I'm trying to point out two things to help you make an informed choice:

i) you need well-ground fresh coffee to make good tasting espresso;
ii) the $50-100 you save on a mass-market machine comes with a hefty penalty in function.

Dave
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50-150$ range small pump driven; what to consider?
Dreedraffs 2005/11/22 15:33
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colin 2005/11/22 15:40
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Dreedraffs 2005/11/22 15:58
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Dreedraffs 2005/11/22 16:35
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dave 2005/11/22 17:33
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breville 800 esxl 2005/11/28 02:14
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Richard 2005/11/22 21:43
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Dreedraffs 2005/11/26 13:11
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dave 2005/11/27 00:36
Boardwalk :: Forum List Espresso in General Entry level < 400 dollars!

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