The world of Coffee Machines can be one that even Professor Fresh Brew gets confused by sometimes. Each time a new machine is released it seems to have a new function or some scientific reasoning behind it that we haven’t heard of before. The truth of the matter in most of these cases is that the companies behind these machines are just making these terms up and trying to baffle us all with science, so ignore most of the jargon and follow our easy guide ‘coffee machines explained guide’ to buying the right coffee machine for you.

Espresso Machines

A basic espresso machine will do a lot more than just espresso, but it’s down to the user rather than the machine to do all the work. Firstly with these types of machines you need to purchase a separate grinder, (we recommend one with a least five settings.) These machine usually are only made to make one cup at a time although you may get a two nozzle dispenser with the machine, this doesn’t automatically make two cups it just passer double the amount of water through the system so you need to place twice as much ground coffee in to get two cups of full strength.

These machines are notoriously simple to use but are: noisy, slow and messy. Here in the LP office we conducted an experiment on how long it would lake to make six espressos, it was a shock when the results came back at 25min.

The basis of all coffees is espresso and to make an espresso into a cappuccino you need to have, 1/3 espresso - 1/3 warm milk - 1/3 froth, add chocolate sprinkles as desired. Espresso machines can also make tea just add tea leaves instead of ground coffee.

Bean To Cup Machines

These machines tend to be the most expensive on the market, simply because they have a built in grinder. ‘Bean to cup,’ means just that. You insert your fresh coffee beans and the machine will do everything for you, in most cases you can adjust the grinder. On these machines you can also use pre-ground coffee and switch between the two functions to your hearts content.

Please bear in mind that once a bag of coffee beans is opened they generally only stay fresh for seven days, the life of the beans can be extended by keeping them in the fridge or even the freezer but we recommend you follow manufacturers instructions.

Nespresso Pod Systems

This is possibly the simplest type of machine because every thing is done for you; you only need to purchase the pods. The pods are basically a capsule with the coffee inside. Once the capsule is inserted into the machine at the press of a button the coffee will start to flow. No mess and no hassle, great if you’re not a morning person and opening up the jar of instant can be too much to even consider a 7am.

Nespresso is the only decent pod system on the market and they manufacture machines for Jura, Gaggia and Magimix to name just a few, but here at LP we have heard that in the new year Gaggia are going to release a range of machines featuring there own pod system (this is sure to bring the price down.) As soon as we hear the low down on these you will be the first to know.

Bar Pressure

This is where people tend to get confused. Bar pressure has nothing to do with the amount of steam that a machine produces, it actually is a guide to how hard the water is pushed through the coffee. The more pressurised the greater amount of flavour extracted from the coffee. Anything above fifteen-bar pressure will be getting all the flavour out of the coffee. Again the higher the bar pressure the higher the price of the machine, you’re paying for efficiency.

Water Tank

The water tank is key to making a purchase, the questions you should ask yourself is how many cups would I want to make before having to refill the machine? Also not all machines have removable tanks making them more difficult to refill. A tank around the size of 2ltr will make approximately 12cups (depending on how much you use the frother.) Some of the top end machines also have built in water filters ensuring if you live in a hard water area you’re machine wont get blocked up.

Bear in mind that all coffee machines come with a small amount of water in them, this doesn’t mean they are second hand. The water has to be there to protect the element; also it shows that they have been safety tested.

Warm up Time

Most machines will take about 10-15min to heat up. Even if you leave them switched on some of the less expensive ones will stop keeping the water hot after an hour or so. We recommend that you switch the machines off at night / or with the top quality ones programme them to turn on 20min before you wake up in the morning.

Milk Frother

The milk frothers on the machines generally are all the same, but using them can be extremely difficult. The idea is to warm the milk not boil it. Place the milk in a stainless steel or aluminium container and angel it at a 40-degree slant; gently increase the steam pressure until the milk starts to froth, sounds simple but we would definitely recommend practice before your mates come round.

The only area where frothers differ is how many holes they have, 1 stage right through to 5 stage. During our trials we didn’t really notice any difference.

Cleaning & Up Keep

Machines at the top end of the market generally are self-cleaning, this means they pass steam through the pipes and system to remove and residue. We recommend this be done every few days. The more basic machines need to be cleaned every day, pay special attention to the water tanks (for build up of lime scale) and the milk frothers.

Warranty

Most machines come with at least 1-year manufacturers warranty. It is an industry fact that one in every 2500 machines will have a fault so if by chance you get one of these don’t worry you should have no problem getting a replacement.

With the more expensive machines £800 + as long as you register with the manufacture if you have problems they will send an engineer out to you the resolve the problem.

Check out our reviews of the latest machine and BUY ONLINE