Coffee machine

[lloydkayak]

Ok, so I have followed this thread closely... Very very informative.

I was just about sold on going the Nespresso route when I spotted a coffee machine at my local in Parys (The pickled pig - awesome pub with a nice shop selling coffee stuff attached)

 

Petra KM45

 

The owner is quite a coffee buff and reckons for the price (R2800) it works brilliantly. It works on either pads(he sells them in 200 pad bags working out like R1.50 a pad or something) and normal ground coffee. It has a very clever milk steaming system (you simply put a tube into your milk jug and it does the rest)

 

So it seems to be a decent automatic machine. Only thing I see is that is only generates 2bar of pressure. This is why I am posting.

Will the coffee be very substandard? I am only really after a coffee machine for the taste etc not really the whole process. thats why I was looking at nespresso but it works out very pricey in the long run.

 

Reviews I have found seem pretty positive.

 

So confused

[DR ◣◢]

That does look like a great machine. Would love to try a cup and see if its worth the money.

 

Road trip to Parys sounds good.

[HairyLegs]

This is the Bialetti I want…

 

 

Ahh, a mukka. Got one, but bought it in Italy for 35euro, and didn't pay the R1400 they want here in SA.

[HairyLegs]

Also brought one of these back from Italy - Really liked the design of the machine. Also a Bialetti

[walkerr]

Bizarrely, as I was catching up on this thread my g/f forwarded me an email on coffee stuff:

 

http://yuppiechefonlineptyltd.createsend1.com/t/ViewEmail/y/3A0780A3BB226F66/FF8874DB776FBADF9780B6D0B3F3FC10

 

Just passing on, don't shoot me if the prices/kit aren't the best

[CarbonKid]

I'm looking to buy a coffee making machine but don't know much about them.Could anyone please give me some advice on brands and what I should look out for in terms of their offering.

Ideally I want a "foamer" included and obviously one that can change the strength of the coffee.

My budget would be around R2500.

 

There is only one machine to buy and that is a Krups/Nespresso machine. Swiss Genius!! It is the best on the market. I also have a fancy Italian coffee machine worth 4 times the amount of the Nespresso, and doesnt even befin to compare, and its a schlep to!!!

[lloydkayak]

There is only one machine to buy and that is a Krups/Nespresso machine. Swiss Genius!! It is the best on the market. I also have a fancy Italian coffee machine worth 4 times the amount of the Nespresso, and doesnt even befin to compare, and its a schlep to!!!

 

Well thats just the thing... I dont want hassle, just great coffee which is why the Nespresso is still winning. But eish, 4 cups a day over 3 years is a *** load of money!

[GrumpyOldGuy]

There is only one machine to buy and that is a Krups/Nespresso machine. Swiss Genius!! It is the best on the market. I also have a fancy Italian coffee machine worth 4 times the amount of the Nespresso, and doesnt even befin to compare, and its a schlep to!!!

 

Yeah my reasoning as well, I dont need the drama of grinding beans and working out measurements, storing it in a special way, and then worrying about it going stale. I just want great coffee with no issues of storage and concerns of the beans or granules going stale.

With my Nespresso I just slap in a pod, warm the milk, push the button and its a perfect cup of coffee in 40 secs every time.

 

I guess there is a premium to be paid for the convenience of a pod, but for me I figure its worth it.

[V12man]

@grumpyoldguy - its a convienience vs taste issue - nespresso does not win any coffee competitions in the taste category (or in fact any category), and I guarantee the coffee in the pod is already stale when you buy it.

 

And yes - one of the 4 machines in my office is a nespresso machine - but it does not do great coffee - not even close.

 

Great espresso is in a different league to what 99.999% of SA coffee drinkers have tasted, and achieving it is neither easy nor cheap.

 

Buy a great grinder, and one of these machines (one of my dream toys) - http://www.keesvanderwesten.com/mirage-idrocompresso.html - then you will understand the economics of this minor obsession are not for the faint hearted - that said, I guarantee the coffee I make for my friends is better taste wise than any coffee shop in SA - on any of my 3 espresso machines (but not the 1 super auto) I own.

 

I will rise to the taste challenge if anyone wants to try reasonable coffee and you are in the rosebank area, I have a small machiine at work, and you are welcome to join me (clearly I like making coffee) - send me a PM, I will make the coffee.

 

And just for the mandatory bike content - I keep a bike in my office too - same distance from my desk as the espresso machine (about 2 m)

[Guest Travis.]

I just ordered an AeroPress with Burr grinder combo from quaffee.co.za. I took some of their coffee beans as well. I'm super excited! I'm hoping it'll be everything the reviews say it to be.

[Eldron]

For those that want a cost effective and reliable unit... Makro are selling the basic Russel Hobbs espressor for R999 with free grinder.

 

It does 15 bar steam with a milk frother. All manual - gotta pop the grinds in yourself...

 

I've had one for 3 years and it hasn't skipped a beat. Must be on 10,000 cups by now ;-)

[lloydkayak]

For those that want a cost effective and reliable unit... Makro are selling the basic Russel Hobbs espressor for R999 with free grinder.

 

It does 15 bar steam with a milk frother. All manual - gotta pop the grinds in yourself...

 

I've had one for 3 years and it hasn't skipped a beat. Must be on 10,000 cups by now ;-)

 

Eldron,

How much of a mission is it to use te milk frother? Not worried about the espresso part. For a first foray into espresso etc, this seems like a nice CHEAP place to start hehe

[lloydkayak]

I see makro also has the Delonghi ESAM3500 for R5500

This is at least R1000 cheaper than through other retail.

 

Does anyone have experience with this machine? worth the bigger investment?

Seems like temperature of the milk froth is an issue

 

http://www.singleserveespresso.com/pictures/MagnificaESAM3500-thumb.jpg

[Eldron]

Eldron,

How much of a mission is it to use te milk frother? Not worried about the espresso part. For a first foray into espresso etc, this seems like a nice CHEAP place to start hehe

 

It is a wee bit of a mission - you need to pop some milk in a cup then spend minute or two steaming the milk up to a hot, frothy state. Probably only take 4 mins in total but first thing in the morning 4 mins is too long! I do it on "special occassions" and it makes an awesome capu. The machine does make a fair amount of crema with the 15 bar steam so you get a relatively creamy capu just by nuking some milk in a cup and espressing into that.

 

I bought the machine as a "tester" intending to upgrade later but am so happy with it that I have had in for 3 years now and brew hoighty toity coffee in it all the time without feeling like I'm doing an injustice to the expensive coffee.

 

I would recommend it unreservedly.

[lloydkayak]

It is a wee bit of a mission - you need to pop some milk in a cup then spend minute or two steaming the milk up to a hot, frothy state. Probably only take 4 mins in total but first thing in the morning 4 mins is too long! I do it on "special occassions" and it makes an awesome capu. The machine does make a fair amount of crema with the 15 bar steam so you get a relatively creamy capu just by nuking some milk in a cup and espressing into that.

 

I bought the machine as a "tester" intending to upgrade later but am so happy with it that I have had in for 3 years now and brew hoighty toity coffee in it all the time without feeling like I'm doing an injustice to the expensive coffee.

 

I would recommend it unreservedly.

 

It seems to be a good starting place. The reveiws and the automatic machines are very varied and it serious money to be dropping without being sure.

Thanks for the info

[V12man]

@Tevez - This will give you an idea - http://worldaeropresschampionship.wordpress.com/recipes/ please buy a decent grinder, not a krups or a bodum.

 

@Lloydkayak - that delonghi will be fine as super auto's go - its a reasonable machine for what it is (given my somewhat biased view) - My wife would shoot me if I took the super auto at home away - although she knows how to use the real machine that sits there, it's just too much of a hassle for her, and she prefers pressing buttons - the siemens we have at home has done nearly 1900 cups in the year and 4 months it has been there - the previous one did about 7000 cups before it broke. Lately she has been using the ground coffee options to brew rooibos tea in it from redespresso - which she likes, and I hate.

 

Compared to buying coffee from a coffeeshop - the super auto makes good economics at less than half the cost of a nespresso machine per cup.