Can anyone point me in the direction of a small, powerful machine for espresso? Budget is flexible but I don't want to go mad.
How Automatic does it need to be?
A real automatic bean to cup is a Gaggia Titanium and they can be had for £400.
Nespresso machines from £180
I can vouch for the Gaggia Titanium *waves to BigJohn*, £329 buy now on ebay, third from the top of my list of things I need to own in the near future.
I'll grind my own so just auto from there onward maybe something like a Krups 2100 but better?
I think you'll find a Krups 2100 is a pod machine. If you have a grinder then a Gaggia Baby for £200 is a quality conventional machine at an entry level price.
Hi Dave, still using the Titanium I'm afraid, and now at 85kg (from 98-ish) and still reducing. I'm happy with that.
Some of the reviews for the Gaggia Titanium don't make encouraging reading (poor reliability etc.)
I got one of these for Xmas. Liking it a lot so far.
[url= http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/delonghi-ec330s-espresso-machine-stainless-steel-00939222-pdt.html?intcmpid=display~RR~Household%20Appliances~00939222 ]DeLonghi EC330s[/url]
£120 in Currys so pretty much "entry level" but it makes a lovely espresso or a good "sturdy" cappuccino.
I want something with enough pressure for a decent crema. Does yours do that OK?
I want something with enough pressure for a decent crema.
For a good crema you need to be looking at the quality (freshness) of your beans and what you use to grind them.
I can get a great crema using a Dualit burr grinder on the finest setting and Guatemalan elephant beans by mail order from Whittard's (always fresher than the ones in local Whittard's shops) on my Gaggia Classic (although it did take some experimenting with hopper size/grind quantity etc) to get it spot on.
I want something with enough pressure for a decent crema. Does yours do that OK?
Yup. But as M_F states it will depend on the quality of the coffee (I just use pre-ground espresso stuff like Illy). Also depends on how tightly tamped the grounds are in the filter - loose = free-flowing with little crema; tight = slow drip with rich crema.
15 bar pressure seems to be pretty standard.
Nespresso Essenza. £89 from John Lewis with £40 free capsules until Feb. Can't stop the kids from using it now!
[img] http://s7v1.scene7.com/is/image/JohnLewis/230898918?$product$ [/img]
Good enough for [url= http://swica.ca/m_13.asp ]Heston[/url] at The Fat Duck.
EDIT: it sits next to my Gaggia Classic and complements it.
I've got the Siemens TK69009 Surpresso S75 and I can highly recommend it.
Thanks for the suggestions but pod coffee is not for me. Will investigate the others, thanks again.
Have to buy elephant beans for the name alone.
I've got a Gaggia Brera and vey happy with it. Had two Krups bean to cup machines and both broke, avoid Krups!
[url= http://www.gaggia.co.uk/ ]http://www.gaggia.co.uk/[/url]
click above for a gaggia cubika for £89.00
and a MM Black Burr grinder for £75.00
then these[url= http://www.happydonkey.co.uk/sumatran-mocha-coffee-beans-100-arabica.html ]sumatran beans[/url] from happy donkey and you will not go far wrong.
the best upgrades after that is a good tamper and a [url= http://www.happydonkey.co.uk/gaggia-domestic-portafilter.html ]bottomless filter[/url]
enjoy
Another vote for a Titanium.
Reliable? So far mine has made 6817 coffees.