Espresso, an Italian-origin drink, is one of the most popular coffee-brewing beverages consumed in over 50 million cups daily around the world. Yet, not everyone is armed with sufficient knowledge about Espresso, how to make a perfect Espresso shot, and the different machines for making a shot.
Therefore, picking a topic with all detailed and elaborate articles is a great idea that will help you educate yourself about this drink, the types of machines suit your need to brew a rich and bold espresso shot in the end.
Espresso Overview
To help you digest all the espresso-related knowledge easily, we have already categorized the topics which will provide the big picture before going into more detail. In that section, we will familiarize you with the different terms of espresso, the general way to operate and maintain an espresso machine, and how it works.
What Is Espresso: A beverage is brewed by letting high pressure and temperature go through roasted coffee beans. As Espresso uses a similar ingredient to coffee, many people think these two drinks are one, and these terms are used interchangeably.
However, Espresso is stronger than coffee and usually serves as a shot. In addition, the difference in the caffeine level (63 mg vs 12 to 16 mg per ounce) and the brewing method will be discussed further. Furthermore, the history and characteristics, from color to taste of Espressos, are also included in this article.
Espresso Drinks: The new beverage is created with some fancy names when you add some ingredients into espressos, such as whipped cream, steamed milk, water, or just some sugar.
As a result, we will have a lot of Espresso drinks, and most of them will be on our list, from the most popular ones like latte and americano to the least well-known ones like a black tie.
How To Make Espresso: A thorough guide helps you pull a strong and bold shot of espresso at home without or with a fancy espresso machine. The guide will start from the first step, like choosing the ground coffee to modify for a better shot, the amount of ground coffee (7 grams per single shot) to the temperature of the water.
How An Espresso Machine Works: This will help you decide which machine is the most suitable for your needs among a heater exchanger, boiler, or thermoblock espresso machine, by explaining their inner workings in depth.
As opposed to a simple how-to, this article will require more time and effort from the reader to understand all the knowledge.
How To Use An Espresso Machine: Detailed instructions for making espresso with the machine are beginner-friendly. The thorough guideline on tamping, dosing, and syringing a shot. This article also goes through ways to steam milk and fix the most typical problems people have when trying to brew a shot.
How To Clean Espresso Machine: Cleaning is a must-have process to maintain the proper work of the machine. You will find out how to clean, descale, and backflush so that it lasts as long as possible. Each step will be described carefully with photos for illustration so you can follow it easily.
Buying Guide On Espresso Machines
We’ve produced lists of the best espresso machines on the market based on testing dozens of models. If you have any queries when buying a new Espresso machine, this section will resolve them.
Best Espresso Machine with Milk Frother: This is an excellent article for latte and cappuccino lovers. Depending on your needs, you can find the features that your espresso machine with a milk steamer must have. In the end, you can find our recommendations to help ease the headache when picking your machine.
Best Super-automatic Espresso Machine: These are excellent options if you want espresso but don’t want to deal with making it. This article compiles the most important criteria and choices for selecting a great super-automatic.
Best Espresso Machine for Beginners: If you have never owned an espresso machine before and plan to buy one, you should begin your search here. One of the most important criteria when choosing an espresso machine is bar pressure, and the ideal range is from 7 to 15 BARs.
Also, you can find an in-depth buying guide, broken down by kind, with which characteristics you should look for, and our favorite list.
Best Espresso Machine with Grinder: The grinder plays an important role in deciding whether your espresso shot can be strong and bold. If the coffee beans are ground too fine, your espresso will have an ashy and bitter taste. In contrast, when the ground coffee is a little coarse, you can taste the sourness and lack of sweetness.
Picking the right integrated grinder in the machine is crucial too. Here, we discuss the features that a top-quality grinder must have, and in the end, is our review of the most popular espresso machines with grinders available on the market.
Best Espresso Machines for Home: Not all Espresso machines can find a place in your home as sometimes, they belong to the cafeteria only due to their size, price, and features. For that reason, you can find out the distinguishing characteristics of a home espresso machine with the one you can find at the coffee shop and our list for your choices.
Best Automatic Espresso Machines: The automatic espresso machine will require you to exert a little effort to make a shot as you have to grind the beans and tamp the coffee into the portafilter. Put the portafilter in, and the machine will take care of the rest.
This article will go through what to look for when buying an automatic espresso machine and the feedback on the most popular ones.
Best Manual Espresso Machine: Where you can find information about the difference between two types of manual espresso machines: spring piston and direct level; besides, we also review some products with pros and cons, which you can assess and pick up the right one.
Best Semi-Automatic Espresso Machine: A favorite machine is usually picked by espresso lovers thanks to its utility and budget-friendly. This list will include semi-machines from different brands with various features which will meet your needs.
Best Espresso Machine For The Money
The most significant limitation on your espresso machine selection will likely be your budget. The good news is that you may get excellent choices at a wide range of prices. We’ve handpicked some of the products and categorized them into different price levels.
Under $1000: Great espresso makers, grinders, and fancy extras (automated milk frothing!) are on the table here. You may discover a product that will survive for decades among these recommendations.
Under $500: These machines come at a more reasonable price but still brew great espresso shots. Some brands that are famous in this mid-range are Delonghi and Breville. You might take time to familiarize yourself with this machine, but with the user-friendly interface, it won’t take too much time.
Best Budget Espresso Machine: A section would be suitable for starters or those who don’t want to spend a fortune on an espresso machine. Despite the reasonable price, these machines can brew some good espresso shots and might satisfy you if you are not too picky.
Outstanding Espresso Machines
After careful assessment, we also single out the superior espresso machines and sort them out by the brand.
Delonghi
An Italian brand that has been on the market for more than 120 years. The variety of models available from DeLonghi, from manual to fully automated, can satisfy mostly every customer on the market.
Best Delonghi Espresso Machine: Every type of espresso machine made by DeLonghi is discussed. The best ones will be on this list, from their cheapest semi-automatic to their most expensive super-automatic models.
DeLonghi La Specialista vs Breville Barista Express: Both espresso machines will be put to the test to figure out the winner. The Barista Express will be a smarter choice because of its better price, build, and grinder. In contrast, the La Specialista still has a leg up regarding froth milk thanks to the Panarello steam wand and dual-heating system.
Breville
This Australian company sells a variety of affordable, high-quality, and aesthetically pleasing espresso machines. Moreover, we like Breville’s excellent online customer care and the fact that they provide free delivery.
Best Breville Espresso Machine: A thorough examination of the product line of Breville to single out the most worth buying machines. Breville markets its semi-automatic appliances with several tiers based on quality and pricing.
Breville Barista Express Review: An affordable semi-automatic espresso machine that can pull a great shot with a sleek and nice appearance, thanks to the stainless steel cover. Furthermore, the integrated burr grinder is a big plus for this machine.
Jura
Automatic coffee makers from Jura never fail to impress. With Jura’s cutting-edge innovations, your shots may always seem fantastic. Besides, The integrated ceramic grinders are both excellent and very silent.
Best Jura Espresso Machine: Jura is well-known for its automatic machines with the most advanced coffee technology, which can brew a perfect shot. Therefore, their products do not come with an economical price, as do the ones in this list. Still, these machines will be worth every single penny you pay.
Jura E8 Review: A product is armed with many innovative features despite being in the middle of Jura’s pricing range. However, the price of the Jura E8 is equivalent to the premium machines of other brands.
Jura S8 Review: The S8 has a touchscreen, providing additional settings for creating individualized espresso beverages. For the espresso-loving home or workplace, this is a fantastic choice.
Jura E6 Vs E8: Both products’ characteristics will be put head to head for comparison. While E8 is well-known for its high-end technology, the E6 draws the attention of the newbie as it is easy to use.
Jura E8 Vs S8: These two popular models may seem identical at first glance, but there are really significant variances between them. Despite having a leg up in terms of interface, other features of E8 might shift your decision.
Jura has long been my go-to brand, so I have tested and compared many models, such as: jura s8 vs ena 8, jura z8 vs e8, jura we8 vs e8, jura s8 vs miele cm6350.
Gaggia
With nearly 50 years on the market, Gaggia has manufactured various products; automatic and manual machines are their two main product lines.
Gaggia Classic Pro: A semi-automatic machine can make a strong espresso shot thanks to the large portafilter. It’s also easy to use and definitely worth your money.
Best Gaggia Espresso Machine: The products on the line up of Gaggia are really wide and can satisfy various requirements of customers. The milk frothing system is the feature that makes Gaggia’s products stand out in the market.
Gaggia is also a principal player in the coffee machine industry. Let’s see how Gaggia sets itself apart from others through my comparisions: gaggia classic vs delonghi dedica, gaggia brera vs delonghi magnifica xs, delonghi dedica vs gaggia classic, gaggia anima prestige vs philips 3200.
Philips
Philips’s range of highly automated machines is reasonably priced and packed with cutting-edge extras. The highlight of Philips is LatteGo, a system that automatically adjusts the milk’s smoothness and can be cleaned in seconds.
Philips 3200 LatteGo Review: The 3200 is categorized in the mid-range price of Phillips, which requires a little effort to maintain and can brew fantastic cappuccinos thanks to Aqua Clean and LatteGo features, respectively.
Philips 2200 Vs 3200: With the more reasonable price, the Phillips 2200 is an optimal choice for anyone with a tight budget who still wants great espresso beverages. Meanwhile, with LatteGo, 3200 is on the wishlist of many cappuccino lovers.
Nespresso
Nespresso is a term that is used to describe the coffee machine which uses capsules to make coffee instead of grinding coffee. These coffee machines can make different types of coffee, including espresso, depending on the coffee pod you pick.
Best Nespresso Espresso Machine: Although the Nespresso machines use capsules instead of ground coffee to make espresso, the taste of the shot it brews is still good. Many people might buy it as an alternative to the expensive espresso machine.
We have listed various products from different brands for your choice.
Nespresso Vertuo Plus Review: With the removable water container and the lid, which can be closed and opened automatically, Nespresso Vertuo Plus can bring convenience to the owners. Besides, the espresso brewed by this machine has high quality and great smoothness.
Facts About Espresso
All useful and helpful information about espresso that can blow your mind can be found here.
How Much Caffeine In A Shot of Espresso: Caffeine is usually a concern that stops people from trying espresso. This section can resolve this question and tell you about the safe dosage of caffeine in daily intake.
Is Espresso Bad For You?: Espresso has many stunning benefits for the health of frequent drinkers, but if you abuse it in the long run, let’s say drink dozens of cups of coffee, you might suffer from many medical conditions, which you can find out more about in this article.
How To Make Espresso With A French Press: French Press is no stranger to coffee lovers as it can make a great cup of coffee in the nick of time. However, many people are still perplexed about whether this device can brew a shot of espresso. The answer to this query can be found here, and the way to do it.
Best Coffee Books: Reading books is, hands down, a crucial way to improve your knowledge regardless of working fields. Therefore, we have singled out the best books for any barista who want to get a big leap in their career path.
We believe that with all the well-arranged topics and articles mentioned above, you can find some insights about espresso. That’s not all. You can always turn to my website if you have any concerns related to coffee makers. Check them out here.
If you have any further questions relating to espresso, please feel free to contact us and reach out to me and our team as we welcome any comments or suggestions from our visitors and encourage you to get in touch. With many years of experience in this field, we can fulfill any queries that you have.
Thank you for your reading, and enjoy your espresso!