As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The De'Longhi Dedica's selling point fits in one number: about 15 cm, six inches wide. It slides into the gap between a kettle and a toaster in a galley kitchen where nothing else fits. That's why it's one of the best-selling espresso machines anywhere. There are several Dedicas now, and the names get confusing. … [Read more...] about De’Longhi Dedica Lineup: Six Inches Wide, 51mm Baskets and a Steam Wand That Changes by Model
Buying Guide
Espresso Beans for Milk Drinks: Why Italian Blends With Robusta Taste Better in a Cortado
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Not every good coffee makes a good cortado. A bright, fruity light roast that tastes wonderful as a straight shot can disappear in milk, or turn sour. Milk fat and sugar mute acidity and fruit. What comes through is chocolate, caramel, nuts and body. That's why Italian bars have used the same kind of blend for decades, … [Read more...] about Espresso Beans for Milk Drinks: Why Italian Blends With Robusta Taste Better in a Cortado
Espresso Scales: Why a Drip-Tray-Sized Scale With Auto-Start Beats a Kitchen Scale
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. If you only buy one accessory after the grinder, make it a scale. Espresso recipes are written in grams. A typical double is 18 g of ground coffee in and about 36 g of liquid out, a 1:2 ratio, in roughly 25 to 30 seconds. Without a scale you're guessing at two of those three numbers. Why not just watch the volume in the … [Read more...] about Espresso Scales: Why a Drip-Tray-Sized Scale With Auto-Start Beats a Kitchen Scale
Bialetti Moka Express: The 1933 Stovetop Pot Brews at About 1.5 Bar, Not Espresso’s 9
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Alfonso Bialetti designed the Moka Express in 1933, an octagonal aluminium pot. The little moustached man on the side came later, in the 1950s. The pot has been on Italian stoves ever since. Ask an Italian how they make coffee at home and the answer, more often than not, is the moka. It's also the most misnamed coffee … [Read more...] about Bialetti Moka Express: The 1933 Stovetop Pot Brews at About 1.5 Bar, Not Espresso’s 9
Milk Frothers Without a Steam Wand: Which Ones Make Microfoam Good Enough for a Cortado
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. A lot of good espresso gets made without a steam wand. Lever presses, moka pots, capsule machines and some compact machines have none. So the milk has to come from somewhere else. The good news for cortado drinkers: you need very little milk, and very little foam. That's the easiest job any frother can be given. The bad … [Read more...] about Milk Frothers Without a Steam Wand: Which Ones Make Microfoam Good Enough for a Cortado
Manual Espresso Makers: Flair, Cafelat Robot and Picopresso Pull Real Espresso Without a Pump
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. An espresso machine is mostly a pump and a heater. Take both away, supply the pressure with your arm and the heat with a kettle, and you have a manual espresso maker. They're cheaper than machines of the same shot quality, almost silent, and they fit in a drawer. The trade is a bit more work per cup. Unlike a moka pot, … [Read more...] about Manual Espresso Makers: Flair, Cafelat Robot and Picopresso Pull Real Espresso Without a Pump
Precision Espresso Baskets: IMS, VST and Pullman Fix Uneven Holes, Not Bad Grinders
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The basket is the cheapest part of an espresso machine and one of the most overlooked. It's a steel cup with holes in the bottom. On a lot of stock baskets those holes vary in size and spacing, and water takes the easiest exit. You can do everything right at the grinder and the tamp and still get uneven extraction … [Read more...] about Precision Espresso Baskets: IMS, VST and Pullman Fix Uneven Holes, Not Bad Grinders
Espresso Machine Cleaning Kit: Backflushing Only Works on Machines With a Three-Way Valve
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Two things make an espresso machine taste worse over time. Coffee oil builds up in the group head and goes rancid. Limescale builds up inside, where you can't see it, and blocks valves and heating elements. They need different cleaners, and mixing them up is how people break machines. First, Check for a Three-Way … [Read more...] about Espresso Machine Cleaning Kit: Backflushing Only Works on Machines With a Three-Way Valve
Espresso Tamper Sizes: Why a 58.35mm Tamper Beats a 58mm One in a Standard Basket
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. A tamper looks like the simplest tool on the counter. It's a weight with a flat bottom. Buy the wrong size, though, and every shot pays for it. A gap between the tamper and the basket wall leaves a ring of loose coffee, and water under pressure takes the easy way through it. The shot runs fast and tastes thin and sour, … [Read more...] about Espresso Tamper Sizes: Why a 58.35mm Tamper Beats a 58mm One in a Standard Basket
WDT Tools, Puck Screens and Distributors: Which Espresso Puck Prep Tools Actually Help
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Between the grinder and the group head there's a small industry of tools. Needles, screens, spinners, funnels. Some fix a real problem. Some fix how the coffee looks in a photo. Here's how to tell them apart. The problem they're all aimed at is channelling. Ground coffee comes out of most grinders in clumps, and it … [Read more...] about WDT Tools, Puck Screens and Distributors: Which Espresso Puck Prep Tools Actually Help