[Closed] Recommend me a decent (cheap) coffee maker

An Aeropress and a grinder?

[url] http://www.aerobie.com/Products/aeropress.htm [/url]

Haven't used my Dolce Gusto in months, just too much faff and most of the drinks consist of using 2 different pods with varying amounts of water through each so unless you use the cups it comes with then there's a bit of guess work involved in how much you fill the mug for each pod. I'm no coffee expert (I get my fix from instant while in the office) but the stuff it produced tasted OK to me (although it's certainly different tasting to the stuff at coffee places).

I have a Gaggia Classic which I love, cost £150 off E:bay and I think they are around £250 or more new.
Makes great coffee.

Had coffee from a Dolce Gusta and it also tastes suprisingly good (expresso) however the purists will be along in a minute to tell you it tastes awful.

yup, pods taste awful, burr grinder and a gaggia classic is what you need

e[b]X[/b]presso

:shakes head:

Cafetiere and a kettle.

Buy your own blend of coffee to tast from your local Italian/French/Whatever deli/coffee shop.

I had a pod one for Christmas a couple of years back. Coffee is okay. Just a faff buying the pods and making coffee one cup at a time. I normally drink 1 750ml Cafetiere in the morning and another around lunch time and during the afternoon.

That is 5 mugs of coffee or about 10 pods. 10 pods fills the waste bin in my home office and I spend more time faffing with coffee than working.

If anyone is interested it is in the attic in excellent condition. Make me an offer:

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I'd recommend Nespresso as a system - they're really nice coffees.

Dualit grinder + stovetop pot + bag of beans from local deli/coffee shop

arguably better coffee and cheaper in the long run because you're not tied to a specific make of coffee-pod, and you have a whole world of coffee beans to choose from

Second vote for Nespresso... I think my machine is a Krups.

get a bur grinder, as the bladed ones burn the coffee. We got the magimix expresso maker £149 at John Lewis, and the coffee is great! It has a britta filter in it too which is a bonus in the hard water area I live in!

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And a Gaggia or stove top.

Personally I CBA with grinding my own - my palate aint that refined.

For minimum faff, great coffee and great aroma, you need

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Coffee doesn't get much better

Not feeling the love for the "pod kind" on here then ??

Not feeling the love for the "pod kind" on here then ??

I use a french press. It's easy to use and the coffee tastes better.
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If its got to be a cheap pod machine, Senseo machines are about £28 in Argos. One problem, using two pods in the mug pod holder seems to prduce a weaker brew, I think the two pods don't seal as well so water forces its way past them. My solution, use the single pod holder and just run it twice.

Pod wise they are very common in France, and seeing as we're normally across there once or twice a year we always stock up on some big, 30 pod, bags of pods. Oh, and they're much cheaper too, what you pay for 12 or 16 pods over here, you pay the same in euro for 30 pods. The makes are all french brands but the same brands also sell ground coffee etc, so quality isn't too bad. Darker roasts give a better brew as well IMHO.

Pods restrict your choice of coffee to whatever is sold in the pods. Which means it restricts you to buying from the larger brands who are on the pod scheme. Which is bad.

My local Italian deli does much nicer coffee, beans or ground, and blended to my taste.

+1 for lavazza and the stove top.

3 parts of a cup of milk in the microwav, add coffee and a couple of sugars. Mmmmmm

andyfla - Member
yup, pods taste awful, burr grinder and a gaggia classic is what you need

I use a Gaggia capsule machine, great for me as I drink very little coffee at home, maybe 3 or 4 a week as I need a strong tea first thing in the morning 😉

Most people for whom I make coffee for all say it tastes great, normally adding its better than the local shop bought offerings. The thing with capsules is that they really are fresh each time you use them, bar grinding your own each time you make a coffee (not batch grinding) you can't get fresher, it just down to finding a coffee you like in capsule form, thats the downside, not much choice 🙁

Don't do it. Get a stovetop pot, or a bodum, or an aeropress, or a chemex. And get a nice grinder. With pods you're paying a stack for stale coffee and loads of waste for landfill.

Bialetti and some lovely arabica fresh from my local coffee bean shop. (There's a few here in Fremantle!).

Got a Gaggia Classic back home which was bought direct from them in the UK. Reconditioned and guaranteed I think it was about 150 quids.

I bought the missus a senseo a while ago. cost £20. total bargain, and it makes nice coffee.
You can buy a separate filter if you want to use your own variety of coffee, but the whole point is it is quick, and grinding beans etc makes it take longer.
If you want a nice quick pod machine, then the senseo ticks the boxes

I use a fench press. No faff and lovely coffee. Wilkinsons do them for ten pounds, although I have an eight cup ( samish size as wilkos) boudi?? one.Amazon and Robert Dylas do them too.

If you get a stovetop be sure to thoroughly dry between uses 🙁

They do fur up... Just use kettle descaler if you forget to dry it.