Cappucino Machine - where to buy

Want to buy a cappucino machine so I can make them at home. Any tips/advice?

We bought a fabulous Krupps Machine at Sogo three years ago. A bit more than cheerio paid for her/his. The Krupps is around $6,000.

Being Australian born Italian/Greek ethnicity, being able to enjoy a precise espresso pour is very important to me. From what I have read on www.coffeegeek.com , which I have been researching, as we also want to buy a proper espresso machine that will be built to last. It appears that only the "made in Italy" main staple brands with a E 61 group head are only worth long term consideration.


Pod machines are well known as being toys that perform very average crema pours.


Have a look at these world renound leading originator brands, La Pavoni, La Marzocco, La Vibiemme Domo Bar series, Elektra, Gaggia and thats about it.


We are about to order the La Vibiemme Domo Bar Super direct from Milan, from all the reviews I have read, its almost as good as a Marzocco at 1200US. The La Marzocco is 3 times as much. Build quality is via commercial grade internals, brass boiler and proper serviceable fittings.


The crema thats generated with one of these machines will be why you choose a proper Italian made espresso machine and the massive amount of steam produced, makes anything less, very frustrating to use.


At the end of the day, you get what you pay for, if you want a machine to last 10 - 20 years, buy the above, if you want less than 3 years and throw it away with average espresso performance by a cheapie thats under 5000HKD. I hear that the Sunbeam EM6910 from Australia performs extremely well for about 5000HK inc postage.


The sunbeam is about as cheap as I would consider.

If price is no object and you want the very best, get a La Marzocco.


Which ever espresso machine you go for, Sunbeams conical grinder is the performance bargain at $1200HKD probably around $1500 inc postage. You will need a grinder if you want to adjust your coffee pour styles. Thats what coffee enjoyment is all about, finding that balance and achieving the perfect espresso pour.


Something that pod machines are completly incapable of.


some websites for you to get an idea of what I mean:

http://espressoparts.com/product/VBMDOMO_BL_ELE

http://www.sunbeam.com.au/products/product_details.cfm?rec_id=660&sec_id=79&home_id=2

http://www.sunbeam.com.au/products/product_details.cfm?rec_id=587&sec_id=79

http://www.coffeegeek.com


La Marzocco is sold in Hong Kong by http://www.just-java.com/ they are also an excellent source of roasted coffee beans, all run by a British Coffee guru.


If you buy from an Australian supplier, the voltage will be eqv to Hong Kong and postage via air isnt that expensive.

Talking to a World Barrista championship winner and he told me if you couldn't afford the La Marzocco to go for the ECM Giotto which is around $2750Aus


I can't decide yet, still thinking about the Cimballi??? We have the automatic Krupps but I don't like it at all.


Then of course another important issue is the grinder - either mini mazzer flat burr $700Aus or mazzer kony conical burr $1500Aus

Didnt the Giotti get made to look a bit pricey when compared to the Sunbeam EM6900 which performed very compariably at 2 thirds cheaper price on performance only.. There is no doubt about the Giotti's construction durability, its built like the la vibiemme, la marzocco and the more expensive gaggia's. But after reading the Coffee geek review on the la Vibiemme Doma Bar super electronic, thats very close to La Marzocco performance, which is most coffee lovers bench mark espresso machine and 2200US cheaper. At 1200US its the best machine under 2000US from all reviews that I have read.


Paul Bassett the world champion barista of 2002 helped Sunbeam with the performance spec of their EM6900, Em6910 which is the latest incarnation, only pity is it was made in Mainland China and has had its share of reliabilty problems.


I forgot to mention Cimballi, they are excellent machines too. But I will go with the company that invented the E 61 group head, so La Vibiemme will get my hard earned dosh.. ha ha I am only allowed one luxury purchase a year, under the wifes instructions :)

It's a small world, Paul is a friend of my brothers and who gave us the advice - he also mentioned the Isomac

Thats really cool, Paul is Maltese if I am not mistaken. I watch his living coffee TV show, really excellent. im a bit of a fan, I must say.


You could buy coffee via his own brand too or from www.amanti.com.au which is one of the best coffee roasters in Australia. Cheaper to buy direct even including 2 day airfreight works out cheaper than buying in Hong Kong, I am a stickler for freshness and know what I am paying for will be what I get.

Golden Moka and Blue Mountain being my all time favourites for cappucino, double espresso blend for a morning shots. Totally awesome.

Means the time frame between the time that the bean was roasted and packed and the time its ground and then expressed through your coffee machines group head.


basically any freshly roasted coffee bean shouldnt be used if its older than 2 weeks.


Oxygen affects the chemical make up of the bean.

Yeah I know cityslicker, I corrected that silly typo, subconciously carried forward the previous posters spelling mistake.


Good to see that you on the J.O.B.

Good to hear, onemorething.

Generally within 4-7 days after roasting will give you that crema sweet spot.


Sounds like I am not alone with my passion for excellent coffee.


A good quality espresso machine, like the vibiemme domobar series will definately provide many years of faithful service, like anything, you have to pay a little more initially.


A good grinder is a key component to your espresso result, the Mazzer mini grinder is definatley highly regarded and well worth it.


What are you using to roast your beans with ? I would be most interested in doing the same, better to only roast a quantity of beans as needed, in my way of thinking much less waste, as you already know.

That la Pavoni which is a boiler style manual lever action espresso machine, like an Elektra. Very hit and miss espresso results depending on how quickly or slowly you can pull a shot.


Not my first choice, I'd say the owner purchased it because of how it looked more than its level of achievable performance. Hence, why he is probably trying to off load it. If he is willing to sell his Grinder seperately, atleast that is worth buying.


Never buy a coffee machine that focused more attention to the way it looks over its intended function...


Just to add further weight, that La Pavoni unit has a very tiny water storage tank housed in the centre of the boiler. From what I have read about it, it also takes ages to build up temperature when using the steam arm making it frustrating to use.


If not actually used, the la Pavoni is a good looking kitchen decor item, it sucks at making espresso...


Good quality espresso machines may seem expensive these days compared with the influx of cheap and cheerful alternative brands that make a whole stack of appliances without any specialisation. The cheap brands use tin thermo block boilers instead of the tried and tested brass or copper tanked European varieties. The quality of and guage of copper tubing inside the machines is very different, the grade of valves, the type of taps used, a whole list of different components that all add up to the end result. The choice is pay extra to obtain a product that will give you atleast 10 years trouble free use, and the opportunity to replace serviceable parts or buy a short term solution that will brew coffee and maybe last 3 years, then throw it away. Better to have 1 machine that lasts and performs accurately, in the end you will save money imho.

One more machine to add to the list... We bought a La Scala Butterfly back in NZ and bought it with us. It's the best one we've had and gets pretty good reviews on CoffeeGeek.