Bean to coffee coffee makers? Coffee pod machines?

[Ham]

I use an aeropress in the caravan, IME it's makes as good/better tasting coffee than a Nespresso, even though it isn't strictly an espresso. A small Nespresso might actually be easier and less faffage, though.

[Nick H.]

My Nespresso is a Sage....quite big. But it's so quick and easy. 3 seconds warm-up.

[T42]

Nespresso can be OK if you stop the pour at 10cc or less.  Chum always fills the cup and produces liquid coal.

My B2C is OK if I stop the pour at around 5 grammes in the cup. Not much but it then dumps in the other 15cc it has in its cheek pouches.  I reckon that if I stop the pour at 0.5g the results should be great.

[davelodwig]

Anyone got a lower end price (<£400) bean to cup machine they might wish to provide feedback on?

I'm no longer enjoying my venerable moka stove top coffee.

Or are coffee pod machines at all worth considering?

Requirements are ~2 cups of strong espresso coffee per day, one at least being larger than single shot cup (~150ml) with ~equal quantity of added hot milk, don't mind heating milk separately.

I found myself asking the same question during the first lockdown, and mostly all I found was coffee porn requiring vast sums of cash or ages spent dialing machines in to give a reasonable cup of coffee.

I bought a refurbished delongi machine for about 160 quid, beans from a local roaster and dialled it up so the 2 shot button makes an americano.

I put a cup under it, stab a button hot coffee comes out I drink it... repeat.

Unless of course what you want is to be a coffee nerd, I just wanted something to help with the conversion of caffeine into profit for my corporate overlords and the cafeteria wasn't cutting it.

[T42]

I bought a refurbished delongi machine for about 160 quid, beans from a local roaster and dialled it up so the 2 shot button makes an americano.

Ditto, except that they must have dropped it in the packing dept. because they sent me a brand new one instead.  220€ it cost. The only embuggerance is that if the power goes out it loses its settings.

[markcjagar]

This thread (and a few of the videos linked herein) has convinced me to stick with my Aeropress and continue to purchase my espresso based drinks on the go.

So, thanks 

[Nick H.]

I was just about to sell you my Gaggia and grinder....

[Nick H.]

I've just discovered how to get the taste I've been looking for all these years. I bought an Illy Iperespresso Y3.3 capsule machine. It uses Illy's own patented design of capsules, which Illy describes as 'two stage'. 19 bar pressure. With an Illy red capsule the taste is just right - good enough to drink it black. I did a side by side test with a Nespresso-compatible Illy red capsule in my Sage Creatista machine - it was piss by comparison. Only drinkable when the taste is smothered by milk. The Iperespresso is also in a different league from moka pots and my Gaggia Classic. It's fantastic that I can now enjoy black coffee at home, as I'm on a keto diet for health reasons, and it's difficult to stick to if I drink lots of carbs in oat milk.

The Y3.3 is on special offer on the Illy site - £79. https://www.illy.com/en-gb/shop/espresso-machines/iperespresso-capsule-coffee-machines/  Free delivery. Comes with 14 capsules, which would cost £5.33 if bought separately. Capsules are 38p each, the same price as Illy nespresso ones.

If you buy Iperespresso capsules in bags of 100, they cost MORE. 41p each. This is just one of the many moronic features of the Illy site.