Interested in a lever machine. Which would be good for a newbie to levers, but also a machine I wouldn't outgrow too soon? Would be nice to have one in my roasting room/ coffee bar when I get it done.

If you have room for a Strega, I've found it to be everything I've ever wanted. I switch between lots of different beans and roast levels all day long and it only takes a few seconds longer or shorter after flush to get different brew temps, like with any HX I guess. Punchy espresso's can be smoothed out with pressure profiling, SO's can be brought to life the same way. A 9 bar pre-infusion or anything less than that is possible and makes changes to the taste. All in all a very versatile machine. For me the limit of it's possibilities are not in sight yet.

My take-home from the latest buying advice threads is that there is no need to buy less than a Strega unless you need low cost, small size, portability, or simpler maintenance. They don't cost that much more than small home levers, and you won't outgrow it for a while.

I don't know about the Strega when a used Pavoni is like $400. It's not awesome but it's inexpensive and good enough.

There are bound to be lots of opinions on this. Unfortunately I can't speak from hands on experience, but I would lean towards a Bezzera Strega if it were my budget.
(If you have space you could also keep looking for a commercial spring lever on Craigslist. I saw a 3 group Rancilio class 6 spring lever go for $500 on craigslist a couple months ago in "working order".)

I have a La Pavoni Professional, and while it's a great machine I think that being a roaster you might be interested in various profiling and testing for your espresso that could be handled more simply with something like a Strega or other commercial-like spring group.

If you have space issues then you might want a smaller system like a Lusso perhaps?

damonbowe wrote:I don't know about the Strega when a used Pavoni is like $400. It's not awesome but it's inexpensive and good enough.

Having to constantly let it cool down enough just to refill it would be my first reason not to bother with a Pavoni in that setting.

No space issues here. It will be going in my roasting building. Thanks for the answers.

Another vote for the Strega. FWIW, I also have a La Pavoni Pro, while it's a good machine and I really like it for what it is, it pale's in comparison to the Strega in almost every way.

You'll likely not outgrow the Strega anytime soon, the La Pavoni, not so much.

The top of my list for home levers includes a Strega, Londinum, Bezzera B2006AL, Pavoni Pub, or a vintage conti/gaggia lever. Im still on the fence as to my desire to deal with a pump and HX, and I love the simplicity of dipper tube levers, since I can work on them as long as theres nothing horribly wrong. All but the Strega and Londinum are commercial levers, and Strega/Londinum are top end prosumer. In the home or as a roasting room roaster (Im assuming your use here will be high volume at times, but intermittent, being used for sampling coffees or at work coffee) any will have far more volume than you'd use regularly. Whatever you get, plumbing in is in your best interest, so make sure you get the proper version. Do you have to have a commercial listed machine since its in your place of business?


Since the Strega, its become sort of a club machine killer, which used to be the top end for the home without a massive commercial setup. In my current apartment, I would have to do some serious re-configuring to try and find a place for a Strega, but I would certainly try. In my current location though, a club type like my Lusso is the most practical solution, since it fits in the space I have and functions well. When I eventually upgrade, Ill have a truly great machine for a second location or semi-mobile rig.

TomC wrote:Having to constantly let it cool down enough just to refill it would be my first reason not to bother with a Pavoni in that setting.

Hmm, you are probably right. It's impossible to beat the price of the Strega new, too.