Over the past few years I’ve gotten a small handheld blade grinder, an Aeropress, a French Press, and started roasting my own beans.
The problem is that while some changes stick (like the grinder and the bean roasting), some changes just take up space (I usually use my Mr. Coffee over the Aeropress or French Press).
With that in mind, I’m looking for an espresso maker that is low budget, since I may not use it that often; but is still nice enough that I’m not going to hate espresso making because the machine is bad (ie: low pressure, low heat, leaks, etc).
Most espresso makers I’ve seen are a few hundred to a thousand USD; but since I’m worried I may end up almost never using it (or just using it to froth hot chocolate), I’m looking for one that’s around 100 USD or less.
While I expect you all have loftier targets for your espresso machines than that, I am hopeful if you don’t have any specific recommendations you can tell me what signs to look for that an espresso machine is of decent quality.
EDIT:
As you may have gathered I’m hardly an expert on coffee matters, so I really appreciate your help.
It sounds like for the time being I should stick with the Aeropress I already have and maybe upgrade to a Mokapot (or even a medium range espresso maker) down the line if I really take to it.
For what it’s worth, I did watch the recommended James Hoffman video and was able to make a decent (to me) cappuccino using the Aeropress and French Press I already had on hand!
Thanks again for all your help!
Maybe a used flair classic, if you can live with manual lever brewing. I love mine, but you have to like making espresso and not just drinking it.
Edit: you’ll need a proper grinder no matter which machine you choose.
Not sure about $100. That’s a push.
I have a cheap (but not that cheap) Delonghi Dedica which is a bit plasticy in places, but makes pretty good coffee. We bought it because it’s narrow and fits on our limited kitchen top. It’s about £180 if you can go higher.
For me, it was a huge step up from a mocha pot. Despite trying all the tricks, for me a mocha pot always made bitter coffee.
Have you tried second hand?
As some have stated, I’d start with a mokapot and a better grinder. If you don’t want to spend hundreds on a good grinder, then kingrinders k6 manual grinder is amazing for about 120. Basically a over engineerinered peppermill.
Like others have said, your biggest problem right now is the grinder. A blade grinder makes boulders and dust. There is no way to get good even extraction from that. There are decent hand grinders from Timemore and Kingrinder starting at $50+ and decent electric grinders from Baratza and Fellow from around $150. These would cover all of the non-espresso grinding needs. Espresso grinding will cost you a little more.
As far as good budget espresso machines go, Lance Hedrick posted this as the new budget choice:
I mean think about what you need for an espresso machine. Precision machining, durable/expensive parts, a really strong boiler, it’s generally quite hard to get that under $100. I will say with a LOT of work you can get amazing results with something like a picopresso or nanopresso
