True coffee lovers - have you made the switch from traditional pump espresso machine to a bean to cup??

[Ethelfleda]

My current coffee set up consists of a nespresso for every day ‘don’t have the time’ coffee and a Krupps burr coffee bean grinder with a delonghi dedica espresso machine for when I have the time to extract a decent espresso.
Espresso machine now bust (wouldn’t recommend)
Now I am torn between:

1. Straight swap for a better espresso machine - carry on having mind blowing coffee when I can be arsed and mediocre when I can’t
2. Swap for a more sophisticated barista machine that makes espresso a little easier - so that maybe I could have mind blowing coffee every day and get rid of the nespresso save it for emergencies
3. Get one of these bean to cup machines that give you no control over grind size and /or tamp pressure etc but would hopefully be better than a nespresso?

To add - my drink of choice is americano but with one part water to one part coffee (double shot espresso) I like it like oil.
I wouldn’t use a steam nozzle too much but may dabble if I’m feeling fruity.

What are your recommendations?

We have gone through so many coffee machines over the years. We now have the Sage Barista Express and we both agree it's the best purchase we've ever made. Do it!

I love that two people voted me as being unreasonable

Yes we have. We recently bought Miele CM5500 and it's fab. We were dubious at first of the bean to cup but I can honestly say the quality of the drinks is fantastic. You can alter the water temperature, set different coffee strengths for different people and it has a milk nozzle too for making a milkier style of coffee. What we really like is that it tells you when to clean each bit and the whole brew unit comes out and can be washed too...it grosses me out with some of the machines that can't be cleaned inside properly. It even counts down how many more,drinks you can make until the brew unit needs cleaning and it won't let you make more until you do it. It does this based on the hardness of your water. Would highly recommend.

We've had a La Pavoni machine for over 20 years. Makes really very good coffee, once you've found the right bean and grind.

It also looks great - (and has appeared in both James Bond movies and AbFab. ).

If you want to make pots of coffee, then the Russell Hobbs bean to cup machine is only about £60 and makes enough jet fuel to get you through a work from home day. I like it because you can program it to keep your coffee nice and hot. It doesn't make posh coffees but if you get the right beans its like an americano from a decent coffee shop.

I’ve got the Sage Oracle Touch. It’s brilliant. I love it so much I actually want to be buried with it ( when I’m dead obviously)

Another vote for a Moka pot. Inexpensive, and doesn't take long. Might go and make a cup of coffee right now.

@NoIDontWatchLoveIsland we got it at 50 percent discount at the London Coffee Festival a couple of years ago. They were doing that discount on nearly all Safe machines, we couldn’t quite believe it!
We are definitely not minted, just two coffee enthusiasts who have now saved a fortune as we no longer buy take away coffee or go to Costa etc. as the coffee we get at home is so much nicer. It’s basically our hobby

I have a Gaggia classic and have really nice ground coffee delivered every week. It probably couldn't be easier and the coffee is amazing. I do take good care of the machine, descale and clean it every month, which keeps the coffee tasting good.

What coffee does everyone buy?

@Ethelfleda, I'm not a coffee drinker, but DH is (I got him an Aeropress for Christmas).

I can really recommend this company's coffee. I bought from them as they're relatively local to me and apparently the coffee is lovely.

We obviously buy ground, but you can buy the beans for home-grinding too.

Reading what you've said, I actually think the ritual is probably a really important part of making your coffee for you - which is fine! I strongly suspect that if the bean to cup gave you exactly the same cup of coffee as the coffee that you'd ground and made in the espresso machine it still wouldn't actually be quite as good to you because you did it with the press of a button. If so, I just think you'll find a bean to cup somehow unsatisfying (and I say this as someone who loves mine!) and you should stick with your espresso machine.

We have a Delonghi bean to cup (with a milk island because it’s so much easier when you do want a latte or similar). We are on our second machine after our last one died after years of heavy use. Makes wonderful coffee and you can very the strength and length and programme it so then just touch one button and coffee is done.

Hardbackwriter you’re absolutely right

The Sage machines, especially the Barista Express, although described as 'bean to cup' are not 'coffee at the press of a button'. There is loads of ritual involved...it is like being a barista essentially...but it gets really good results - better than coffee shops - and you can control the variables at all the stages. Main disadvantage is if you are making for lots of people, it takes too long.
The Barista Touch is faster because it can froth the milk while you grind the beans and it has buttons you can pre-set to remember your favourite settings. It's still pretty much a manual process though like being a barista. You don't just press a button and get a coffee out as with a true 'bean to cup' machine.

dotoall yes - that’s what sold it to me really. I like the ritual and won’t be making too many cups at once. We will also hang on to our nespresso machine, just in case

I’m saving for a Miele bean to cup.

It’s £1100 so I’ll be saving a long bloody time but I do love coffee. I have a moka at the moment.

@Fluffycloudland77

I’m saving for a Miele bean to cup.

It’s £1100 so I’ll be saving a long bloody time but I do love coffee. I have a moka at the moment.

I love ours! It's well worth it in my opinion!

Update:
My sage barista express arrived today. I think I am in love.
30 minutes from opening the box to sitting with a mind blowing coffee.
And for those of you as in to it as I am, here is a little picture for you

That’s an americano by the way - with a bloody lovely layer of crema

We need more threads about coffee. Glad you like it.

Glad you like it...judging from reviews people post, many people struggle with getting the settings right at first. Ours gets used 4 times a day (2 adults) and we enjoy coffee out less and less, as it is so often over-extracted and bitter.
Enjoy!

judging from reviews people post, many people struggle with getting the settings right at first

Luckily that wasn’t the case for me - got a perfect espresso on the second attempt!
But then I’m used to making coffee this way on my old machine so wonder if that made a difference?

OK we have just bought Sage machine
Coffee recommendations gratefully received
Ours allows us to tamp - any tips?
Any tips with milk frothing?

@Beemail1

OK we have just bought Sage machine Coffee recommendations gratefully received Ours allows us to tamp - any tips? Any tips with milk frothing?

There are some good You Tube videos you can watch: You need fresh beans (mail order works) not ones from the supermarket such as Taylors, as the shelf-life is too long for it to taste fresh. I use www.macbeans.com. The milk frother is good on the Barista Express but there is a technique to get the microfoam (watch appropriate video).