With the sun now rising well before 6 a.m. you would think that a shot of espresso wouldn’t be quite as necessary as it is on those dark winter mornings. Fact is, though, most of us simply love having a fragrant, warm cup of java – morning, noon or eve. Even better if you can make that latte at home and lie in for the 15 minutes you would have queued at Starbucks.
There are a number of coffee and espresso makers on the market to suite every type of caffeine imbiber. Here are just a few based on your ‘coffee profile.’
The ‘one cup and I’m out the door’ drinker. There are a number of coffee and espresso makers that offer a quick cup or two without a lot of effort or waste. Bialetti Mukka Express 2-cup Espresso Machine is a great choice at a reasonable price (under £50). It has a fun cow print on the exterior and brews the coffee and steams the milk at the same time. Eva Solo CafeSolo Coffee Maker also has a slick, space-saving design and only requires that you add the ground coffee beans to the glass flask and add boiling water. In under 4 minutes you have a perfect cup of coffee.
The ‘I’m a better barista than those at Costa’ maker. This type of coffee connoisseur is willing to go through great pains and take an extraordinary amount of time to make the perfect cup of coffee, espresso or cappuccino. For him or her there are a number of high-end devices on the market. At about £1,000 you do need to be committed to the experience, but the DeLonghi ESAM6600 Espresso Machine does everything you’ve dreamed about – grinds all types of beans, adjusts to different temperatures and water hardness. You can also choose from five strength settings – extra mild, mild, regular, strong and extra strong. Also tipping the scale at £1,000 is the Bosch Benvenuto (TKN68E75) Coffee Maker with all of the same features and a slick design.
The ‘form over function’ drinker. If you are someone who tends to crave something sleek and stylish assuming most machines are similar in function and delivery, there are a number on the market. Bodum SANTOS (1208-01) 6-Cup Coffee Maker looks like a sculpture with its hourglass design. Water heats in the lower jug and boils up through a funnel where it mixes with ground coffee. Adding a bit of colour can be fun too. FrancisFrancis! X6 Espresso Machine comes in bright red.
It’s important to understand what type of coffee drinker you are and how committed you are to the process of making coffee before you considering investing in a machine. Getting over excited about a high-end machine may turn out to be a poor investment if it ends up in the corner with dust. So make a list of the features that are important and then go get your machine!
