EC155

I'm coming up (or just passed) about the three year mark using one of my EC155 machines (one is used much more than the other) and I can say that I've just about reached the end of the machine's lifetime. For the first two years of use, I pulled 18g shots two to three times a day and this past year has been an average of one pull a day in the morning (16g of coffee). If I compare the performance of the machine I use much more often and the machine that has about half a year's worth of use on it, I can definitely say that my three years of heavy use have just about knocked my EC155 out of its full capacity. The power of the pumps in the two machines have a night and day difference - I have to be very careful with how much coffee I load in the portafilter in the machine I use more to make sure it can still push out anything. As a side note, I can still achieve proper crema and pour lattes in both. Seeing as it's time to replace the dying EC155 I've reached a crossroads that speaks to the quality the EC155 provides at its price point. A lot of the "higher-end" (~$100-$500 range) espresso machines have issues that are apparent in the EC155 such as unstable temperature control and poor steam generation. For a sub-$100 machine, the EC155 does a great job as long as you know a few important tricks! Here are a few I've picked up through refining my coffee rituals: 1. Toss aside the pressurizer that comes with the portafilter (the small black circular object that screws into the plate and the black plate). This pressurizer works via a spring loaded system that attempts to introduce artificial pressure into the grounds so that the water coming through the portafiler needs to achieve a certain pressure before coming out. I've found that if you load enough grounds in and tamp properly it isn't necessary at all for achieving a crema. In the end you should just have three pieces: the outside of the portafilter, the gasket, and the metal holder 2. Either take off the bottom half of the portafilter handle or cut off the plastic underneath the portafilter to get yourself a sort of bottomless portafilter system. You'll be able to watch your shots come out of the machine and I've found that a lot of coffee liquid gets stuck in this piece without there being any big benefit. Also this frees up some much needed room for a taller cup. 3. Put a book or something under the machine to have more clearance for a frothing cup. 4. My routine for preparing a latte is to preheat the machine for anywhere between 30 minutes to hours (I used to have a outlet timer that would automatically turn my machine on in the morning). The top of the machine should be hot to the touch by the time you're ready to go for it. There will be a few cycles of heating in this time (i.e. green light on/off/on). I first weigh out my coffee (I grind mine fresh but I have used pre-ground before and there is a bit of a difference) and fill the portafilter and tamp it down (I usually use 18 grams in the larger portafilter). You lock the portafilter in as much as you can - it won't be completely straight but you should feel the gasket get tighter as you turn it. In accordance with espresso theory of not leaving a shot for more than a short time out, I heat/froth my milk first before actually pulling my shot. Frothing the milk to proper latte consistency to be able to pour art was probably the most difficult thing for me to achieve. Any machine has a little bit of water come out of the frother once you turn the knob so its best to have a cup to just purge out some excess water before you froth your milk. Since the EC155 has an auto-frother (i.e. has those holes in the top of the frother), you don't need to pull the milk and listen to the clicking noise as if you had a "legitimate" machine. Simply stretch the milk a bit (introduce air to create micro bubbles - should increase volume of milk) before finding a sweet spot where the milk is able to whirl around from the frother's airstream. This should incorporate those bubbles into your milk to get that silky consistency. I learned from SeattleCoffeeGear to leave the steamer valve on all the way and turn the knob to the coffee pull setting (all the way to the right) to purge out one shots' worth of coffee from the reservoir (until the green light turns off) just so that the machine is forced to heat a fresh amount of water to try to get that ideal temperature. 20-28 seconds of a pull and a bit of milk swirling and pouring later and you have a latte! 5. I descaled my machine a few times which helped the performance out a lot back in around year 2 but it looks like at this point the machine is going to have to be retired :/. The EC155 is really a great machine (especially for someone in college/grad school who needs to justify the price). Theres a lot of little tricks you can pick up that give the machine all the more character. I'm not sure if I'll stick to getting another EC155 next, but for anyone who's shell shocked by the prices forums and websites list for their machines, the EC155 is that affordable alternative. Like any culinary activity, if you focus on the ingredients (fresh roasted coffee) and prepare appropriately (burr grinder to achieve a consistent grind), you leave more leeway for the machine to work well. FYI I would rate myself as a budding coffee enthusiast, buying fresh roasted beans (light to medium roast) and I use a burr grinder.

Espresso/cappucino/latte quality: 5 (in my layman's opinion) Looks: 3. Value for the money: 5. If you are considering this espresso machine, once you have it in your kitchen I suspect you will love it. The $1000 machines probably do something this one doesn't, but for $80 I'm perfectly happy not knowing what that is. This machine produces espresso and cappuccinos/lattes that to me taste great and look professional, i.e like espresso and cappuccinos/lattes I have at cafes and restaurants. The only thing I don't love about it is the look - the stainless steel and retro-style ones do look pretty sexy, and I tried one in Bed Bath and Beyond into which sliding the espresso handle felt like absolute butter. So for more money you probably get a more sensual and spiritual espresso-making experience, but my bet is that there is little difference in the resulting drink until you get really expensive, and honestly once you use this thing a couple times you won't care. Now that it's in my kitchen and I'm not focusing all my attention on espresso machine comparison, I like it and don't think about the sexy espresso machines that got away. And In two weeks I've already enjoyed enough cappuccinos from this little darling that it has paid for itself in terms of what those drinks would cost outside my kitchen. I've read that the taste has more to do with the beans and how and when the beans are ground - i.e. buying whole beans and an expensive grinder - than the espresso machine, which from what I can tell just pushes high-pressure steam through finely ground coffee into a cup. Which this machine does with aplumb. I find the height of the frothing wand and espresso spigots perfect. I froth directly into the cappuccino cup, not a frothing pitcher. Less to clean up, and it doesn't splash so the height of the cup is irrelevant. Some other points: - I've only owned it about 2 weeks, but so far so good. Running it without coffee in the filter once a week is probably a good idea to keep it clean. - Contrary to other reviews, I don't recommend a separate tamper. The tamper attached to the machine is perfect - you just press the espresso up against it a couple times. I also don't see how the choice of tamper produces any effect on the resulting espresso. How loosely/tightly you pack the espresso probably does. - I do recommend the Bodum double-walled espresso glasses that everyone here buys with this machine. They're nice to drink espresso out of and not hot to the touch while you drink, they're just wide enough to stir in sugar with a normal-sized spoon, one Bodum glass is wide enough to catch the espresso from both spigots, and the shape makes it easy to pour the espresso into your cappuccino cup without spilling. You can also alternatively drip into both glasses if you're making espresso for two. - It produces a nice disposable espresso puck if you wait a while to remove it after brewing, so the coffee can dry out a bit. Either way though, you have to bang the thing many times against the rim of a garbage can to remove it. This is probably true of any non-automated espresso machine, and is the one annoying part of the process. The handle has a plastic thing that holds the filter cup in place while you bang it against the garbage can - I think most of them do - but it would be perfect if it locked in place, rather than having to hold it in place with your finger while also banging the thing against a garbage can. Don't know if any of them have that feature. Some things I learned the hard way about using this machine: - Close the steam gasket. Make sure the steam gasket on top is all the way off before doing anything, or you will produce a stream of hot water out of the frothing wand while brewing the espresso, that produces a tremendous mess and panics your cat. - I let it warm up 5 to 10 minutes before using it - however long it takes to make my eggs and the green light to come on (I believe it comes on when the water inside has boiled). Making espresso once the machine is warmed up takes about thirty seconds, frothing the milk another thirty seconds. - If you switch right from espresso brewing to frothing, when you open the steam gasket it will just squirt hot water into your cappuccino cup until the water boils. So, when frothing milk, either do so before brewing the espresso, or first brew the espresso and then switch the front switch back to the warm up position until you hear the water boil inside (and the green light comes on) before switching it to the frothing position. Until I realized this I thought the machine was defective. But I hadn't let it boil the frothing water yet. - Have a damp paper towel on hand to a) immediately clean the milk off the outside and underside of the frothing wand so it doesn't turn to glue, b) put under the espresso spigots once you remove the espresso cup, because a few drops of espresso will drip from them for a couple minutes after brewing, and it's easier to throw out the paper towel you used to clean the frothing wand than it is to clean dried coffee from the drip tray underneath later. Enjoy!

Sehr gute und günstige Espressomaschine. Leicht zu reinigen. Kafe schmeckt sehr gut. Ich bin sehr mir Qualität und Geschmack der Kafe zufrieden.

Actualización: super confiable, solo hago espresso, siempre sale bueno. Lo único que realmente "no le gusta" es que se te olvide ponerle agua (obviamente), luego cuesta trabajo para que vuelva a funcionar: hay que limpiar con vinagre diluido. Solo nos tardamos en encontrar tazas chaparritas pero anchas que quepan para hacer espresso lungo con dos cargas. Reseña original: Después que la vieja cafetera Krups empezó a sacar agua por todas partes, ya era hora de cambiar; busqué una cafetera para espresso lo más sencillo posible, ésta hace espresso o espresso doble con las dos canastillas incluidas, y saca vapor para capuccino, punto. Como ventaja adicional, ocupa poco espacio. Cuando llegó no quería funcionar, dos sugerencias que lo resolvieron: 1. Verificar que el tanque de agua saque burbujas de aire al sentarlo; lo verifiqué varias veces la primera vez. 2. Sacar vapor con la perilla superior, aunque no vayas a hacer un capuccino. Después de esto, no ha vuelto a dar lata, usandolo 2 a 4 veces diario. La primera vez también tardó un poco en calentarse, después de pasar dos tanques completos de agua como se recomienda, se calienta mucho más rápido; un poco de paciencia puede hacer mucha diferencia.

I bought this machine here four years ago Boxing Week. I have used it twice every day, and overtime when I have a dinner party. It takes me three minutes to generate a large latte every morning. I have no complaints about this machine. It’s dependable and easy to operate. The frother works well, although I prefer to use a separate frothing device, as I don’t like the kind of over-watery cappuccino foam that you get from forcing steam through milk. I clean the machine every three or four months, using CLR, followed by the tablets you can purchase on Amazon – it’s easy and works well, if you rinse out the machine thoroughly after running the cleaners through it. It's just a matter of running 5 or 6 cups of fresh water through it. If you want excellent coffee, purchase good coffee beans and a good grinder that can grind the beans to fine powder. Super-freshly-ground coffee will give you excellent results. Don’t blame the machine for lousy coffee if you insist on grinding a supply of coffee days in advance of using it, or prefer to use bargain basement beans. I'm impressed to see that this machine is still under a hundred dollars in this Christmas bargain time. This is the first espresso machine I’ve owned, and it has paid for itself in full. After four years I’m curious about what a more sophisticated machine might be like. In other words, I’ve had such a good experience with this machine that I can ook forward to what’s next.

Es fácil de usar, la compré para hacerme café americano más concentrado y cremoso, queda súper rico, solo agrego la mitad de agua caliente. El espacio donde se coloca la taza es muy pequeño, así que necesitas tener taza para espresso o una jarrita. Es una cafetera pequeña y práctica, la recomiendo mucho :)

This is my first espresso machine. Before this I was using a stove-top espresso maker, which surprisingly was less labour intensive than the machine. Despite this, the machine works very well and I use it at least once a day. Depending on the quality of beans, it produces very good espresso. Notes on use: - Do not over-tamper or the pressure build-up when you release the handle the expansion with be violent (also, always release/twist handle slowly no matter what to release air pressure slowly) - for best results, make sure you allow the machine to heat up before use. Running hot water through a few times does not do the trick (according to my standards). I let it heat up for at least 10-15 min before use, unless you're not picky and don't care about decent crema and taste. - for quick and dirty americanos, use a wide-n-low mug and let it run water through spent grounds. you could just add boiled water separately, but this will destroy the crema layer. Buyer beware: - the drip on the handle is very low (<3") so make sure you have cups that will accommodate this limitation - built in tamper is useLESS. get a normal metal one. - milk frother is not as useful as hand-held. I do still use it to heat the milk, but I froth using my hand-held. Limitation of built-in is time and quality of froth.