Doesn’t need to be too fancy; I’m not even bothered if it’s not Italian. Just needs to deliver two decent espressos once a day.

What should I get, coffee nerds?

Edit: Mrs Knob says she wants a frother that doesn’t seize up after four minutes.

Gaggia Classic. End of thread.

And decent grinder.

Edit: Mrs Knob says she wants a frother that doesn’t seize up after four minutes.

That’s not a sentence I thought I’d hear today.

Having said that, if I was replacing the Classic I would be tempted by a lever machine (e.g la pavoni) but that is more money and likely more faff.

Whatever you do get, make sure you give it a regular back flush and descale. Also if there is a problem the Classics are very simple to home service with parts easy to buy.

Mrs Knob says she wants a frother that doesn’t seize up after four minutes

You shouldn’t need to froth for four minutes, maybe your technique is lacking 🙂

rancilio silvia, with a good grinder. It’s worth investing more in the grinder then the machine as that makes the biggest difference to getting decent shots. Frother on the v4/v4 is very good and easy to use, but it is only a single boiler systems so you do have the lag between frothing milk and getting it own to shot temperature. Fothers only seize if you don’t clean them after each use, remember to blow steam though them and wipe down.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00IHZBFWC?psc=1

I’m not a coffee nerd at all, I strongly suspect that for most people it’s an excuse to buy shiny things. I just got a Moka pot cheap, simple and makes good coffee, I’ve no idea about frothing milk as I like it with no cow juice.

Plus 1 for the Gaggia Classic but if you want reliable frothing (oo err missus) then swap the steam wand for a Rancilo Silva wand (available from ebay)

My setup is as follows

Melitta size 2 paper filter
Lavazza ground coffee

I then do a drip filter straight into the cup. I use an old plastic filter from one of those 10 packs things.

Works a treat and you get a super smooth cup of filter coffee 🙂

I’m not a coffee nerd at all, I strongly suspect that for most people it’s an excuse to buy shiny things. I just got a Moka pot cheap, simple and makes good coffee, I’ve no idea about frothing milk as I like it with no cow juice.

Doesn’t make espresso so no good for the OP.

+1 for the Gagging classic

“Works a treat and you get a super smooth cup of filter coffee”

which isnt espresso…..

I’ve got a classic with the rancilio wand upgrade and a mokka pot, and as good as a proper espresso is, the forward planning aspect of having to turn it on about half an hour before you actually want to drink so that all of the components are nice and warm is usually at odds with the way I plan my hot drinks through the day. The mokka pot produces strong, tasty real coffee that is ‘almost’ an espresso for a fraction of the faff, so is utilised far more. To the point that I am considering flogging the Gaggia, although it does look nice in the kitchen…

YMMV.

My Dualit Espressivo has been good, worth a look I would say…..

+1 for the Moka

Why overcomplicate things?

My gaggia classic was never reliable and I eventually binned it. Replaced by a Jura bean to cup machine. For frothing, I use an aerolatte jug and whisk – 2:40 in the microwave, a quick whizz and serve.

The Jura does froth milk, but I prefer the dry foam from the aerolatte on my macchiatio.

I used a Mokka pot for much of the time the Gaggia wasn’t working. The coffee was no worse. The Jura is better than both.

“+1 for the Moka

Why overcomplicate things?”

because regardless of the bean i find moka pots create a sharp bitter cup of bleugh. – reminds me of american filter coffee more than anything , it certainly doesn’t have anything on a proper espresso other than a similar colour.

You binned a classic? That’s a bit sad. They’re so simple and user repairable, not like modern plastic stuff. Would have sold for something too, even not working

Delonghi Magnifica bean-to-cup. We’ve had ours for a few years and it gets very heavy use (my wife is even more of a coffee addict than I am) and it’s been great.

My Classic doesn’t get turned off unless I’m away for a few days or more.
Ticking over it doesn’t use enough electric to warrant worrying about!
Hitting the “Steam” switch at startup makes a huge difference to how fast its ready though from cold – less time than a stove top.

aeropress… simple, cheap, and done right delivers fantastic coffee. need to experiment to get the right strength, and it may not be as espresso as you want it, but it’s not far short.

stove top after that, mocha express. any size you want. I have a 6 and a 9 cupper.

frother- 100ml of milk in microwave for 1 minute, then a aerolatte mini whisk thing does the job at our house and my office.

a coffee from either brew with that milk on top and it’s stopped me from doing 6 quid a day in Nero’s.

Stainless steel bialetti moka.

I didn’t expect it to make nicer tasting coffee than the usual Aliuminium one, but it does, so I am happy.

And I gave an Aeropress too. No, doesn’t do espresso, but very nice coffee it does make when only a kettle is to hand (that’ll be at work…)

I have an aeropress, a handspresso, a bialletti stove top pot, a cafetiere, and a Silvia.

The Silvia gets the most use.

As others have said the grinder is very important. I wish I had gone for a stepless grinder rather than a Rocky.

I’ve got a classic with the rancilio wand upgrade and a mokka pot, and as good as a proper espresso is, the forward planning aspect of having to turn it on about half an hour before you actually want to drink so that all of the components are nice and warm is usually at odds with the way I plan my hot drinks through the day. The mokka pot produces strong, tasty real coffee that is ‘almost’ an espresso for a fraction of the faff, so is utilised far more. To the point that I am considering flogging the Gaggia, although it does look nice in the kitchen…

Eh? You really need to gently heat the mokka pot to get half decent coffee from it, and by that time your classic would probably be hot enough.

I don’t get the faff thing either, takes a couple of minutes to grind some beans and pull an espresso. Where’s the faff?

tasty real coffee that is ‘almost’ an espresso

It’s not, it’s nothing like an espresso.

Eh? You really need to gently heat the mokka pot to get half decent coffee from it, and by that time your classic would probably be hot enough.

Yeah, mokka pot coffee takes about 5 mins, from cold pot and bean to steaming mug, on a low heat. Good coffee from the classic is more like 20 mins, there’s just more metal that needs to get warm. I’ve found it makes crap coffee if all the components are not up to temp, so it can’t be rushed. as for mokka pot coffee being ‘nothing like espresso’ I’m sure you’re right. But it’s still lovely coffee that’s nothing like instant, and I don’t drink it as espresso, I use it to make up a nice mug of coffee. This probably makes me a heathen, sorry…

Don’t get me wrong, I like my classic, but if I’m honest, half of the enjoyment is from the ‘process’.

My gaggia classic was never reliable and I eventually binned it

Ours is 10 years old and never given a problem, prob on for 4 hours per day.
Regular cleaning essential, but I guesss that is true for any system.

If it broke I would buy another in a shot (+1 for the wand upgrade though)

“Works a treat and you get a super smooth cup of filter coffee”

which isnt espresso…..

I know. It’s a revelation. Don’t knock it till you have tried it

Another vote for a moka pot here. Makes really nice coffee, dead simple to clean.

“I know. It’s a revelation. Don’t knock it till you have tried it”

last time i heard that in a coffee context they were talking about nestle azera……

having tried it id rather drink used engine oil.

Moka pot is winning I think. coffeesnobtrackworld; you’ve changed…

I got a delonghi esam bean to cup for about 220 and what a joy it’s been. A coffee takes 2 mins and a daily tip out grinds and water, wash the wee bit inside every month and top up water and that’s it. Amazing coffee, beans from Rave Coffee. Mmmmmm, it’s my purchase of the millenium!

Are pod machines just fancy Moka pots, squeezing coffee through pressurised water?

Or even the other way around? 😉

Another Delonghi Perfecta owner here, ESAM 5600. Been faultless for 3 years, fill water tank & pit beans in, press button and out comes lovely coffee.
Milk jug for frothy stuff, can tweak strength etc easily too.
It tells you if it wants de scaling, and when it wants emptying.
Well worth the cost and now available for a fair bit less an it cost when I got mine.

I sold my gaggia Classic. I enjoyed the process, but **** me it needed a lot of regular tweaking to keep it working.

As above, delonghi perfecta esam 5500 here. Absolutely brilliant,

OK, just to round this off, I bought an Aeropress to see me through while I decided which machine to buy.

I’m now an Aeropress convert, and can’t see the point in spending all that money on a machine. I’m happy with my plastic plunger.

Cheers all.

Bialetti mokka pot and Gaggia classic here. Really don’t get on with the pot; no matter how low a heat I have it on, it’s always bitter and nasty – maybe it’s the grind? I use the same pre-ground coffee in my Gaggia and it’s lovely.