Which coffee machine?

[Butcher]

What's the difference between the DeLonghi and Gaggia?

I have used both - I replaced my delonghi with the gaggia quite recently.

They both make a reasonable cup of coffee, however the gaggia is a better machine.

Build quality, the gaggia wins hands down. It's a chunky mostly metal affair, probably twice the weight of the delonghi; the delonghi is somewhat plasticy. The portafilter for the gaggia is a big chunky brass affair, rather than the delonghi's plastic with steel insert. This means it holds heat a lot better so tends to give a more consistent cup of coffee.

The gaggia has a much better water flow too - you get a more even delivery of water and it has a pressure relief valve so when you stop the pump it de-pressurises the portafilter. This means the coffee stops immediately. With the delonghi the coffee continues to dribble out after the pump is shut off making judging a cup full to be a bit guesswork.

I also found that the way the filter basket is designed with rubber seals in the delonghi wasn't great - the seals had started to perish on mine after about 18 months of use. The gaggia has no rubber seals there so it's not an issue.

I mainly drink espresso so I don't have much comment on the steam wands - I've not even used the gaggia one yet. The delonghi one frothed milk up competently enough though.

Also the actual reason I replaced the delonghi is the boiler thermostat had gone a bit wonky - instead of holding the water at the correct brewing temperature, it would heat it up to boiling point, regardless of having steam or coffee selected. This meant I was ending up with burnt coffee more often than not.

So it was good while it lasted, but 18 months of more or less daily use killed it. Not great for something that cost over £100.

[Butcher]

I've had an Icona for a year now.....it certainly makes very nice coffee although I am a little bit concerned at it's build quality....mine is getting a little rattly already.

Don't know if it's the same pump as the EC330 but I recall mine being quite noisy (more so than the gaggia). It's just the way they are I think.



As for where to get beans, I mainly use www.hasbean.co.uk - great selection and quick delivery. Roasted to order too.

[neonplanet40]

What about the De'Longhi Magnifica ESAM4200? Can be had for about £240?

http://www.tesco.com/direct/delonghi...+Home_206-7035

[neonplanet40]

Ok just ordered De'Longhi Magnifica ESAM4200 from Amazon warehouse for £195. Was an impulse as seemed a good deal. Was I right or should I cancel? lol

Mark

[Butcher]

We have those at work, they seem to do the job, not broken yet and they get a bit of a thrashing.

[Fjo]

The reviews look good too, i doubt you'll be unhappy. It hits all the marks for pump, pressure and the burr grinder integration's nice. Now it's down to trying all the beans you can, your coffee quest begins now

[neonplanet40]

I have no idea what coffee to get. Any idea on where on-line possibly I could get a pack of sample beans so I can narrow down what I like? I really do not like bitter coffee but like a rich and smooth taste if that even makes sense? lol

[Fjo]

The beans you'll get will typically be either Arabica or Robusta, with varying blends and country sources depending on seller or stock. In case you're not sure, there are blends that may favour different styles of coffee but it really comes down to personal taste and how fine the grind is (hence the burr grinder). Espresso, for example, will use a much finer grind than say, drip or cafetiere. Certain brands known for beans used in espresso in cafes worldwide are Lavazza and Segafredo, they're pretty safe choices. Though if you google "coffee bean samples", or "coffee beans 200g", you may find something you fancy. I did just now, and these look pretty good (i'll admit i've not looked for samples or taster packs before though - as far as i can personally say, you're going to have to just give something a go):
http://www.discountcoffee.co/coffee-...ingle-bags-b50
http://www.ocado.com/webshop/getSear...y=coffee+beans
http://www.ludlowfoodcentre.co.uk/Co...Beans%20Online

Ocado in particular seem to have a pretty good range of small bags, especially compared to other supermarket delivery services.
Usually, beans will come in larger bags (1kg or so, plus), so if you find a taster you like, not only look to see if they've got a larger pack available but if you can, take a note of the blend/beans used in that pack if they've been good enough to state it/them, then you could also look for similar blends from other stockists.

[Butcher]

I have no idea what coffee to get. Any idea on where on-line possibly I could get a pack of sample beans so I can narrow down what I like? I really do not like bitter coffee but like a rich and smooth taste if that even makes sense? lol

I posted my favoured supplied above - www.hasbean.co.uk huge range of coffees there, I'm sure you can find something nice. They're all arabica beans, roasted to order and mostly single origin stuff. I'd suggest trying the south american stuff for a smooth coffee. Personally I find the Bolivian beans to be amazing, a really rich almost chocolatey sort of flavour.

I'm not a fan of supermarket beans as you have no idea how long they've been sat in a warehouse for before you get them.

[Fjo]

Butcher makes a sound point, though at least beans in a proper, sealed pack take longer to go stale than pre-ground coffee. That Hasbean site does have a good value starter selection for £20 too.

[Spud1]

I've come to this a bit late - but I notice you went straight down the "real" machine route, and am curious why

I nearly made the same move 12 months ago, again between the gaggia + delonghi..but ended up going with a coffee pod machine.

why? The machine itself was less the half the price on special @£40, and I realised that I am a lazy bugger who really can't be bothered with the effort of making a good espresso every morning, then cleaning the machine, as well as all the hours learning how to make a really good espresso.

It's a lot of effort and when spending that sort of money you really have to keep using it, and I knew I wouldn't.

I have a 15 bar nescafe Krups machine at the moment - I like their coffee, its quick, convenient, cheap and next to no maintenance. I will be upgrading to a nespresso machine next year probably, who's coffee is even nicer but sadly more expensive.

This works out as about 15p a cup for espresso, or 40p a cup for the milk based drinks (Latte etc), so not even that much more expensive than a "real" machine..just doesn't require any skill to use It is less environmentally friendly though due to the plastic pods - but as an added bonus you can make your own refills if you get the right kind of machine (nespresso is easiest to do this with) which lets you use any coffee..but then if doing that you are back to lots of effort again which defeats the point.

Coffee aficionados will no doubt be aghast but it's personal preference at the end of the day. Mine gets me to work each day

[peterb]

I have been looking at coffee machines as my Tassimo (great coffee, and quick) is getting a little expensive to run.

However I was looking at something like this:


http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bialetti-Ele...4681316&sr=1-1

(needs to be SS as I will be using it on an induction hob)

Did read that Currys are selling off Gaggia classics for £130, think thats in store only though. I use a Gaggia coffee deluxe, picked it up on ebay for £50, replaced a gasket and has been working fine for a couple of years. I do have my own grinder, and buy roasted beans from an importer thats based in a local town.

Which grinder do you use? Again just browsing, but came across these...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Krups-Expert...4880885&sr=1-6

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dualit-75015...4880885&sr=1-7

Neonplanet - congratulations on your new flat!

[neonplanet40]

Thanks perterb - first day in school = brain melter! Although coffee machine has arrived! Just don't know if I have time to use it tonight. Might have to wait till tomorrow lol. Need to figure out how to make cappuccino.

[Butcher]

This works out as about 15p a cup for espresso, or 40p a cup for the milk based drinks (Latte etc), so not even that much more expensive than a "real" machine..just doesn't require any skill to use It is less environmentally friendly though due to the plastic pods - but as an added bonus you can make your own refills if you get the right kind of machine (nespresso is easiest to do this with) which lets you use any coffee..but then if doing that you are back to lots of effort again which defeats the point.

It actually costs me about 20p per shot of espresso, so you're doing better there. However that's with expensive single origin beans, if I went for cheaper beans (supermarket or the like) it would be half that. I don't have milky coffee, but enough milk to make a latte is probably about 20p. So overall not that expensive really.

I wouldn't go for a pod machine for myself though as I'm used to making espresso and I like being able to easily sample different coffees.

[Spud1]

If I had the time/inclination (and up front cash) I would ago for a real machine every time..you can't beat the quality if you make it right. I can make espresso, but I can't make a good one

[peterb]

Thanks perterb - first day in school = brain melter! Although coffee machine has arrived! Just don't know if I have time to use it tonight. Might have to wait till tomorrow lol. Need to figure out how to make cappuccino.

Hope you have had a chance to try it out and are luxuriating in fresh coffee goodness to help chill the brain (or maybe fire it up!)