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A really, really good coffee machine for home. Price: about $1k. You can spend more but the coffee doesn’t get better - you just get more automation.

spcebar 4y ago
Out of curiosity, what machine was it and what justifies the price tag?
- satvikpendem 4y ago
  Not the parent, but I bought a Gaggia Classic espresso machine as well as a great coffee grinder. The difference is night and day between grinding your own beans and making your own espresso (or even pour overs) to prepackaged stuff, not to mention cafes. I honestly haven't tasted a better espresso drink at cafes than at home, since they usually are working with multiple patrons and have to make the drink fast, and they often have burnt beans or burnt milk. I'm not sure if OP bought an all-in-one, but I wouldn't recommend those, they don't do any of their tasks particularly well, when you could spend the same amount and get much better coffee.
  - lostlogin 4y ago
    You sound like you’ve hit the sweet spot where you pass on coffee out as it better at home.
    - satvikpendem 4y ago
      Well, I do like the convenience of cafes so it's more that I'm now spending double the money, lol
  - jakeinspace 4y ago
    I’m looking to upgrade my espresso setup (basic delonghi dedica machine right now). My grinder is really inadequate for espresso grinds and so I mostly just buy small quantities of pre-ground lavazza qualita oro. I’m thinking that in this situation, I’d be better off investing in a good grinder first, and waiting to buy a nicer espresso machine until I feel I can justify a ~$1k outlay. Ideally I’d just splurge and buy both but I can’t quite stomach that.
    - satvikpendem 4y ago
      > I’d be better off investing in a good grinder first You'd be correct. Check out some recommendations on /r/coffee for a grinder, and also James Hoffman's on YouTube.
      - etrautmann 4y ago
        the Niche zero is a good place to start
- nickthegreek 4y ago
  In 2021, I went with the Breville Barista Touch. I paid the extra over the Express version for it to froth the milk without me having to do it. For me, the price tag was justified because my wife used to drink ALOT of starbucks. This thing has already paid for itself.
lostlogin 4y ago
> You can spend more but the coffee doesn’t get better - you just get more automation. Not always. I was going to restore a Faema E61 and discovered that the basic model is almost identical to the original. Parts are interchangeable. It’s manual, it’s beautiful and it’s expensive. https://www.faema.com/int-en/product/E61 https://www.faema.com/int-en/product/E61
regulation_d 4y ago
> You can spend more but the coffee doesn’t get better I went down the espresso rabbit hole during covid, as did a good buddy of mine. We both upgraded from setups in the ~$1k range and are experiencing much better results in the cup. Obviously you'll see diminishing returns at some price point, but most of my friends/family agree that a latte from my new setup is noticeably better than one from my old setup.
- etrautmann 4y ago
  can you elaborate on your current setup?
  - regulation_d 4y ago
    for sure! My grinder is a Weber EG-1. It has really large (80mm) flat burrs. Very forgiving; like I don't have to be dialed in perfectly for the espresso to be very good. It's essentially a cafe quality grinder, but optimized for a single-dose flow. My machine is an Olympia Cremina, which is a manual lever machine. I've modified it with a pressure profiler to control and track the pressure of the shot I'm pulling. All that manual control is really nice for the kind of coffees I like which are usually naturally-processed light roasts. However, manual levers are not for everyone and have a definite learning curve. If you're curious about either of those, James Hoffmann has good reviews of them both on YT. I really enjoy the nerdiness and tactile feedback of the manual lever, but if I didn't want go manual, I'd look at a Decent DE-1. If I had to shave a bit off that budget, I think I'd go with a Rancilio Silvia Pro X, which is half the cost.
    - etrautmann 4y ago
      Thank you! I appreciate your writeup, and that's an extremely sweet home setup.

spcebar 4y ago

Out of curiosity, what machine was it and what justifies the price tag?

satvikpendem 4y ago
Not the parent, but I bought a Gaggia Classic espresso machine as well as a great coffee grinder. The difference is night and day between grinding your own beans and making your own espresso (or even pour overs) to prepackaged stuff, not to mention cafes. I honestly haven't tasted a better espresso drink at cafes than at home, since they usually are working with multiple patrons and have to make the drink fast, and they often have burnt beans or burnt milk. I'm not sure if OP bought an all-in-one, but I wouldn't recommend those, they don't do any of their tasks particularly well, when you could spend the same amount and get much better coffee.
- lostlogin 4y ago
  You sound like you’ve hit the sweet spot where you pass on coffee out as it better at home.
  - satvikpendem 4y ago
    Well, I do like the convenience of cafes so it's more that I'm now spending double the money, lol
- jakeinspace 4y ago
  I’m looking to upgrade my espresso setup (basic delonghi dedica machine right now). My grinder is really inadequate for espresso grinds and so I mostly just buy small quantities of pre-ground lavazza qualita oro. I’m thinking that in this situation, I’d be better off investing in a good grinder first, and waiting to buy a nicer espresso machine until I feel I can justify a ~$1k outlay. Ideally I’d just splurge and buy both but I can’t quite stomach that.
  - satvikpendem 4y ago
    > I’d be better off investing in a good grinder first You'd be correct. Check out some recommendations on /r/coffee for a grinder, and also James Hoffman's on YouTube.
    - etrautmann 4y ago
      the Niche zero is a good place to start
nickthegreek 4y ago
In 2021, I went with the Breville Barista Touch. I paid the extra over the Express version for it to froth the milk without me having to do it. For me, the price tag was justified because my wife used to drink ALOT of starbucks. This thing has already paid for itself.

lostlogin 4y ago

> You can spend more but the coffee doesn’t get better - you just get more automation. Not always. I was going to restore a Faema E61 and discovered that the basic model is almost identical to the original. Parts are interchangeable. It’s manual, it’s beautiful and it’s expensive. https://www.faema.com/int-en/product/E61 https://www.faema.com/int-en/product/E61

regulation_d 4y ago

> You can spend more but the coffee doesn’t get better I went down the espresso rabbit hole during covid, as did a good buddy of mine. We both upgraded from setups in the ~$1k range and are experiencing much better results in the cup. Obviously you'll see diminishing returns at some price point, but most of my friends/family agree that a latte from my new setup is noticeably better than one from my old setup.

etrautmann 4y ago
can you elaborate on your current setup?
- regulation_d 4y ago
  for sure! My grinder is a Weber EG-1. It has really large (80mm) flat burrs. Very forgiving; like I don't have to be dialed in perfectly for the espresso to be very good. It's essentially a cafe quality grinder, but optimized for a single-dose flow. My machine is an Olympia Cremina, which is a manual lever machine. I've modified it with a pressure profiler to control and track the pressure of the shot I'm pulling. All that manual control is really nice for the kind of coffees I like which are usually naturally-processed light roasts. However, manual levers are not for everyone and have a definite learning curve. If you're curious about either of those, James Hoffmann has good reviews of them both on YT. I really enjoy the nerdiness and tactile feedback of the manual lever, but if I didn't want go manual, I'd look at a Decent DE-1. If I had to shave a bit off that budget, I think I'd go with a Rancilio Silvia Pro X, which is half the cost.
  - etrautmann 4y ago
    Thank you! I appreciate your writeup, and that's an extremely sweet home setup.