Happypete -

I've been down your thought trail. From falling in love with a superauto in an airline club in Aukland to the present, I've now ended up with the Elektra A-3 and an enormous grinder and can't tell you how happy I am that I did. My husband is NOT an espresso geek. His drink of choice is now the Americano (very watered-down espresso). But after the A-3 came to live with us and after only one day of using it, he couldn't believe how easy it was for him to make his own drinks and how much better they were than anything he'd had. The A-3 is incredibly easy to use - even by non-espresso folks - and produces consistently excellent product. And it's only one of many just-as-fine machines out there (maybe the prettiest?) But only with a quality grinder, fresh coffee and about a week's practice. From time to switching on the kitchen light in the morning (the machine comes on a couple of hours earlier to warm up) to first cappuccino is about 2 minutes, including getting the milk out of the refrigerator.

The downside of a "real" espresso set-up (besides the space it uses)? The mess. Coffee grinds will migrate over the counter and the spent coffee pucks tend to be out in the open for all to see. It takes diligent brushing of the surroundings to make a neatnik happy. That's not me, by the way. I'll gladly put up with stray grinds in return for what comes from my machine.

Good luck on your journey. Don't be led astray by folks on these forums who wallow in the minutiae of pursuing the ultimate espresso. It's not hard. But it's MUCH easier and more consistent with top of the line equipment.

Sue

zin1953 wrote:the same time you can walk up to the machine and say, "Tea. Earl Grey. Hot."

Does take a little bit of the challenge out of being a barista, though.

Well, Andy . . . you can't have everything! ;^)

Hi Happypete, I own a Miele Dealership and will be the first to tell you that these machines are great for a "hot coffee like beverage" but they produce nothing that can compares with a good grinder a La pavoni piston machine and a bit of practice. Out of the models you were talking about I can honestly say that the Miele is by far the best. The quality control on there products is by far the best I have ever seen... I can't speak highly enough about the customer service and build quality (they even make there own circuit boards and screws!) With all of that being said I am very honest with customers that ask me about the units. They are as bullet proof as it gets for an in-home super automatic, but if you truly enjoy excellent coffee you won't be happy with it. If you do decide to go this route I would not go with the pod machine. The whole bean machine (miele 4075) doesn't have any problems as long as you keep it clean. It even has a separate tray to put preground flavored coffee into so you won't taste hazelnut for the next 10 years if someone in the house drinks the stuff. This unit can also be plumbed or has a water reservoir that can be filled.

Ken Fox wrote:One thing I have noticed as long as I have participated in online forums; forum participants are always eager to spend someone else's money . . .

LOL, So true! I will admit it, I love spending other peoples money! I think it all boils down to the fact I dont have enough of it myself to spend. I am always willing to help my sister spend her money, even down to driving her to the store to get it. Ultimately though, she has always been happy with my suggestions.

That being said, thanks to your own post, Ken, I have taken the Compak K10 WBC off of my wish list and replaced it with the Versalab M3. I might also consider the Cimbali Max Hybrid...just not decided yet. Of course that is somewhere in the future of my dreams...

All of that aside, I dont think it too unreasonable to suggest a grinder of this quality to someone who was considering a $4000 purchase for a product that would result in a lesser quality output. Additionally, all the middle aged men in pyjamas here and on CG are always recommending that the grinder has probably got the most impact in the resulting product. Why recommend a lower quality grinder to someone who can obviously afford to go with the best? As for the espresso machine, I suggested the one I was going to buy for myself, if I had bought it brand new! Additionally, these two machines paired together would look awesome!

Cheers,
Byron

cannonfodder wrote:An entry level machine and grinder need constant tweaks and adjustments to reproduce the same shot two times. Simply reading a thread on the Silvia temperature surfing voodoo is enough to frighten even me.

I said just this the other week. Really, how much do you value your time to go through such pain!

I don't mind people trying to help ME spend my money. Thanks for all the considerations. I am still listening and am trying to find "my place" in the espresso world. Thank you so very much for the dialogue. It is appreciated! I am feeling I will get this figured out. I will not drink a Starbucks EVER. I cannot tolerate the taste, and I cannot remember the last time I had a great, quick espresso on the run, therefore, my SA machine has given me something I can drink, just not hot enough. I know my home SA can be better and do adore a great cup......so, that leads me to find my resolution. I just don't know which way I will go....but, I will get there with so much great information! Thanks a bunch!

Happy

zin1953 wrote:Yeah, I don't disagree. But I'm thinking it won't be 2010 -- too soon. I'm thinking it will around the same time you can walk up to the machine and say, "Tea. Earl Grey. Hot."

Sorry for waking that monster of a thread two years down the road, but we are now in 2010... Has anything changed in the the Supper Automatic world? Are they finally coming closer to traditional systems in their capacity of producing good espresso?

To me, things seem to be trending towards more control and less automation, like the Mypressi Twist and the Slayer machine, though many more consumer machines are coming out with PIDs already included.

That said, I haven't been monitoring the super-auto category, so this is from someone who uses a lever machine with blinders on in that direction, like a horse and buggy going down the road in Pennsylvania Dutch country ignoring the Priuses flying by me.

Let's see . . . "Tea. Earl Grey. Hot."

Nope. On both counts.