Espresso consumption is an aesthetic experience, like tasting a vintage wine or admiring a painting. It is a search for beauty and goodness and improving the quality of our life. As it offers such subjectively ineffable ‘goodness’, devoid of defects, the only adequate reaction to it is astonishment — astonishment that can give birth to enthusiasm, and therefore intellectual and spiritual enrichment. (Source)
In my Amazon wish list, there have been three espresso machines that stare at me when it’s time to buy something that I marked as “not life crucial, but would be great to own”. This list consists of books, electronics, culinary tools and fun decorations that would look wonderful in my home but don’t make the list over other things like bills, food and travel. I tap into this list from time to time to remove things, add things and curate. For two years, there has been an espresso machine staring at me and I never had the nerve to bite the bullet. Elizabeth, who doesn’t mind the amenities of my cabin from years of travel and careful buying of useful trinkets has heard me talk about a home espresso machine since we became a couple one year ago. Appliances like espresso machines only act to feed this growing monster inside of me where I have to be the center of every party. Most of my purchases are around this notion that I’m the guy who runs the show. I host the party and it’s my kitchen people are standing in while sipping delicious drinks, tasting quality food and enjoying the latest music. My home is built for socializing and the espresso machine was something missing from this experience. I’ve wanted one since having my first cappuccino at 13. The barista who cares about coffee is something impressive. Now, the espresso machine joins a counter that is overflowing with coffee gear:
- Conical burr grinder from Bodum
- 6-cup Chemex (with paper filters)
- 13-cup Chemex
- 4-cup French Press
- 12-cup French Press
- Hario Ceramic Pour-Over (with filter)
- Coava Kone
- Hario V60 Kettle
- Japanese Siphon System (On Back-Order)
- A collection of special coffees all whole bean
With the espresso machine, I purchased a few accessories:
- Taylor Classic Cappuccino Frothing Dial Thermometer
- Rattleware 11-1/2-Inch Twist Bar Stirrer/Spoon
- RSVP Terry’s Tamper
- New 20 oz Espresso Coffee Milk Frothing Pitcher, Stainless Steel
- Bodum Pavina Double-Wall Thermo Glasses, Set of 2
Of course, the K-Cup argument doesn’t really matter anymore. When you move from simply grinding and brewing coffee at home with an $18 pour-over method to a full espresso machine, the argument that K-Cup flavor isn’t worth the ease of use is now completely moot. It takes 10 minutes for my machine to warm up each morning, another 5 minutes to make a latte and another 2 minutes to clean the machine once I’m done. That’s a lot of work and, every other day, I still prefer making coffee in my Chemex by the pot because it’s far easier and I absolutely love the taste of coffee. I can have 2-4 cups of it over the course of an hour and I drink my coffee black occasionally with one sugar cube because coffee flavor is fantastic! Espresso is maybe 2-3 ounces and, despite its potency and sexiness, the joy of coffee over the course of an hour is gone. Coffee via Chemex or French Press is still fun and exciting to me.
There are plenty of online documents that will teach you how to make espresso. In my research, I learned a few things. Let’s go to bullets to keep things short:
- Automatic Espresso machines are very expensive, can be very problematic and are zero fun to operate. Modern auto-espresso systems keep milk, beans and water all internal and even refrigerate your milk and auto grind the beans. The result is pretty cool but you’re going to pay over $1000 and there’s nothing fun about push button coffee. Also, the more features, the more likely you are to have failures. For great reliable auto-espresso makers, expect to pay over $2K.
- Don’t buy a steam-powered espresso machine. Steam only is cheaper but you won’t get great coffee
- Make sure the Espresso maker is “15 Bar”. It’s a nice way to make sure you’re getting something powerful enough for great coffee extraction
- Get a machine with a built in steam frother
- Double Action espresso machines aren’t a requirement but it’ll add time to your coffee making. I have to steam my milk and then make the espresso. Double action machines can steam and make espresso at the same time. You pay extra for this ($100-$300 more). It would be nice to steam while brewing but I got over it after a week.
- Get a machine with a cup warmer. Brewing espresso into cold cups degrades the taste and quality of the espresso. If you don’t have a cup warmer, just pour some water in your cup and use the frother to steam that water up. The result is the cup gets too hot to hold VERY fast. That’s what I do now because my cup warmer sucks. It takes 10 minutes to heat up the espresso machine but another 2 hours to heat up the cups.
- Don’t buy an espresso machine if you don’t grind your own beans. Pre-ground beans (even espresso grinds) are a bad idea. You’re shooting yourself in the foot before even firing up the machine.
There were two espresso machines that I wanted. These ended up being too expensive for me to bite the bullet and commit to buying one of them.
The Rancilio was on my dream list for sure. I never bought it and regret it but maybe when I’m a homeowner. Not now. Life is too volatile for an espresso machine that costs so much. I ended up buying this machine. It’s the DeLonghi EC702. The reviews aren’t perfect and a lot of people claim it’s not a reliable machine. The money I saved may come back to bite me in the long run. However, it’s a purchase that costs less than a month of gas, an iPod nano and other things so I don’t feel completely destroyed by it. Plus, when you add up accessories and coffee, it’s already quite a bit of money before the espresso machine. The reviews scared me but this is the #1 pump espresso machine on Amazon with hundreds of reviews. I’m sure the price helps but if this was truly a failure of a product, I’m guessing the product would no longer be offered for sale.
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Let’s talk economics. This no longer applies to me because the nearest Starbucks is 1.5 hours away but, back in the day, I used to put $150 onto a Starbucks Gold Card every month. That would get me my daily or twice a day coffee for the month. Before leaving San Francisco, $1800 a year was my coffee spend. I didn’t make coffee at home, my apartment was too small for a coffee maker. Now, in the space reserved for a microwave in my old apartment, I keep an espresso machine, beans and a few alternative brewing methods. It’s a different setup now but, post-Starbucks, my annual coffee spend (assuming I were to buy a $200 espresso machine every year because this was is “guaranteed to break” according to Amazon reviews), is about $600. That seems like a lot of money but it’s a third of my old price and I have a full lineup of teas, espresso drinks and coffees. Also, my home drinks are fresher than at Starbucks without a line to wait in. I buy Starbucks Reserve coffees as well as independent third-wave roasted beans from small shops. I grind my coffee and brew it at the same time, I control how strong my latte is and yes, I have syrups for White Chocolate Mochas and Peppermint Mocha that I bought from Starbucks. I can make Starbucks drinks at home without a line. You pay $10 for syrup and $20 for beans up front but you can make dozens of cups easily.
The economics of home coffee is no comparison to the price you’d pay at a Starbucks. $4.50 for a latte is what I pay at Starbucks. At home, I use their reserve beans and soy milk and it costs me about 20 cents (not including the price of the espresso machine). I would have to kill myself with caffeine to spend at home what I would at Starbucks. There’s just no comparison.
Are you a fan of Chai Tea Lattes? $3.99 gets you the Chai Tea concentrate which is good for 8 drinks and half a gallon of Soy is under $4. So, for $8, you can make 8 Venti Chai Tea Latte beverages at home. That’s a dollar each compared to $4 each at a store. It’s an amazing savings.
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There’s also something profoundly great about waking up to the sound of frothing milk and the humming espresso drip into a few shot glasses. I’ll add a tablespoon of vanilla syrup and attempt to draw a flower in the cream in my 16 ounce mug. It’s fun and fulfilling to have your own home espresso. There’s a sexiness to it and, for a few short minutes, my house smells like a coffee shop and that’s a great thing. Gone are the days of walking/driving to a Starbucks and spending $8 for a coffee and sandwich and waiting in line for 20 minutes for the privilege. I am the master of my coffee domain and it was made possible for $200 and a bag of beans.
Espresso machines aren’t for everyone. However, they’re fun and help you save money. Your carbon footprint will lighten a bit and guests love lattes in the morning. Trust me on that one.