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Espresso Coffee Makers
For coffee aficionados, an espresso machine
represents the height of brewing.
Espresso
coffee machines work the same
way as ordinary
drip coffee makers, but they
use pressure
instead of gravity to force water
through
the coffee grounds and produce
a highly concentrated
cup of coffee. Besides the obvious
features
like brewing capacity, what should
you look
for? Check for:
- A manual model where you add grounds and
water versus a fully automatic one that will
grind, tamp, brew, and eject the spent grounds
all by itself.
- A quick heating boiler to generate the hot
water and steam. Heating times
range from
ten seconds on the quickest
home models to
ten minutes for models that
rival commercial
products in capacity. Check
for any time
delays between brewing and
frothing, and
the cycle time between cups.
- A built-in water filter ensures that none
of the taste of chlorine or other distracting
flavors from the water make it into the coffee.
- A warmer to preheat your cup before filling
with coffee.
- The cleaning requirements to keep your machine
in top shape. Most require partial disassembly,
but some have an integrated back flush system.
You may also want to consider extras like
a hot water dispenser, connection to a water
supply, multi-holed steam wand for frothing,
automatic on and off timers, and digital
controls. |
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