Whats the best coffee machine setup for the occasional espresso drinker?
I also recommend you check out the AeroPress. It doesn’t make standard espresso, but it makes something that’s very like espresso, and quite a lot of people actually prefer Aeropress coffee to the traditional version. It’s also quite inexpensive – VERY inexpensive, compared with many fancy home coffee gadgets – and easy to use and clean. I wrote a review of the AeroPress a while ago. I receive no kickbacks if you buy one :-).
I own an aeropress, and I have to say that it’s great. I like it better than Starbucks, but not as much as the best local coffeeshops, but that’s a good compromise for a sub-$250 machine. It’s not very picky about the grind, so go with a $10 blade grinder. The impact on coffee quality is minimal IMHO, and the price and size difference of the grinder pretty much breaks even. If you’re convinced you can taste the difference or want to grind whole bags at a time (not recommended if you’re keeping coffee ground for more than one or two days), go for the burr grinder. For froth, I just use an Aerolatte (No, I didn’t choose that brand because I like the word “Aero”), which is a AA powered whisk frother. I know it’s not the same as getting it steam frothed, but it works well enough for most drinks and I like it better than most shops (some places have really velvety froth, but that’s probably more an issue of experience with a steam frother). Not really important, but a weird little paradox:
