"A caravel (Portuguese: caravela, IPA: [kɐɾɐˈvɛlɐ]) is a small, highly maneuverable sailing ship developed in the 15th century by the Portuguese to explore along the West African coast and into the Atlantic Ocean. The lateen sails gave her speed and the capacity for sailing to windward (beating). Caravels were used by the Portuguese for the oceanic exploration voyages during the 15th and 16th centuries in the Age of Discovery". - wikipedia

Today I took the rare chance to board my VAM Caravel sailing for ports unknown. I seldom get the chance to set sail these days, preferring the convenient spring-lever Lusso for the busy workday schedules. In all there were fives ports of call on the journey, starting with a pair of cappuccinos in the morning, followed by three straight espressos. We explored the subtle flavors of Musetti blue, my favorite Italian espresso blend. These were 18-19 g in and 25g out ristrettos, ground on the hausgrind and packed into the straight-walled PV double basket. The Caravel brought new shades of roast coffee to the cappas and hints of chewiness to the straight shots. She lived up to her maneuverable reputation, sailing effortlessly through double or triple Fellini pre-infusions, gently pressure-profiled to perfection, before launching for the final pull. As always, temperature was spot-on with the open boiler. Never a hint of bitterness.

One can read a lot about the latest and greatest in the ever-expanding fleet of espresso machines, but I sometimes wonder if we we didn't lose the golden age when the last Caravel rolled off the line.

Land ho!

I have to wonder what Emidio Salati would think if he could witness the renaissance and cult status his beloved little machine has attained. The man was a genius. I can't remember the last time I pulled a sink shot on the Caravel. You just can't miss with it. It really can make something remarkable out of something that might be average if pulled on another machine. I rank the Caravel at the very top of all the vintage home levers I have owned and used, which include the following (in random order)


Arrarex Caravel
Faema Faemina
Faema Baby
La Pavoni Europiccola
La Cimbali Microcimbali
La Peppina
Zaconni Riviera
Sama Export
Olympia Cremina
Bruni Brunella

i am going to buy first lever machine. (only for espresso, no milks) here are the options i can choose:
caravel, gaggia factory, la pavoni professional, zero watt. all used machines and maintained well, good condition, similar pricing.
all look great, i really can't make decision. since i am a beginner, caravel seems like a good option for the beginning?

I think pretty much everyone would say go for the Caravel if you can find a good one. I can echo everyone else's statements that it's quite difficult to pull a bad shot on one. I've pulled when the water wasn't quite hot enough - still turned out well. Too hot - same thing. Ground too fine and get a loooooong slow drip shot, still amazing.

The favorite part of my week is pulling shots on this machine on the weekend. Unfortunately it takes too long for my morning routine, so I use the BDB for convenience. If I brought the Caravel to work, I would probably never get any work done because I would be too busy making coffee

yes Caravel and be sure it has a basket as these are hard to find!

or if you prefer a spring lever buy a peppina.

both make great shots.

I love the Caravel so much that I had to get a second one for my desk at work. It's the most forgiving of all the levers - it can do wonders with just about any bean - and beyond the wonderful espresso it makes, I think it is one of the coolest looking machines out there.

As far as baskets, I think Thijs (of Brooks Espresso Machines in the Netherlands) was working on getting those into production, but not sure. I know that the bottomless PFs for the Caravel, coming out of Germany, can accept the 45mm baskets for the PV or Peppina. The PV baskets are readily available.

I actually prefer the Ponte Vecchio or Sama for ease of use and forgiveness. I find the Caravel slightly more difficult to get dialed in - yesterday's five shots were all less-than-perfect in terms of being dialed in. I kept tightening the grind and upping the dose. All the shots tasted good, but I know they can be even better. The Ponte Vecchio seems to accept a broader range of grind.

One aspect may be the PV straight-walled basket. This is different than the past machine I had with the tapered basket. Perhaps those are easier to dial in with the Caravel.

Also, one must be in the zen patience mood with any manual lever. The practice of actually being the pressure is much different that with the spring lever. I think I tend to be lazy and don't always want to devote the patience required to focus on the actual pull.

All that said, a used Caravel in good working condition is still the deal of the century at the current market prices. I can't imagine a more versatile espresso-only machine for less than twice the price as what Caravels currently cost.

Quite enjoyable posting, Jack!

Thanks Robert. Precious little time for writing on HB these days but it was a day worth remembering. I've never used a Cremina or Londoninim and I suppose I'd probably feel the same about those. But there is something about the Caravel that beckons prose. Anyway, the mouthfeel of those shots wasn't just my imagination.

PC

Does the PV/SAMA double straight wall basket fit the stock Caravel portafilter, or just the bottomless? I asked Francesco about the mythical triple for the Caravel and he has not heard of one.

I've been having fun messing about with my v2/1 hybrid Caravel and enjoying the results. Very different from the Faemina. My approach to all this is rather relaxed and not looking for anything in particular, other than good tasting coffee.