One of these two things is true: Your home espresso machine cost a small fortune, or your home espresso sucks. (Or, just maybe, you hacked a Rancilio Silvia.) That’s because home espresso machines can’t maintain consistant temperature and pressure.
If you want good espresso, you need very consistant and precise control over both temperature and pressure. To get that, you typically have to shell out a grand or more for a home machine. This Kickstarter project from ZPM Espresso aims to lower the bar (zing!) and bring commercial-quality espresso to your kitchen counter for $US300. Project backers get to buy the machines in advance for $US200.
The new home machine will offer a PID-controlled customisable temperature and pressure, pre-infusion, and shot-time settings. But the magic — if there really is magic — will take place in a custom designed and built thermoblock that ZPM is promising will beat any on the market today. Most of the parts will be off the shelf, and the ones that won’t ZPM is milling itself — it says the Kickstarter funds will go to setting up “a shop with a foundry to cast the thermoblock and grouphead, and a Tormach CNC mill to machine them.”
I’m intrigued, but sceptical. I’ve basically given up on home espresso because I’m not shelling out the money that I’d need to pull a high quality shot in my kitchen. But this project’s already fully funded (and then some!) so there’s no real penalty for holding off. If the machines work as promised, I’ll gladly pay the $US300. In the meantime, I’ll let others take the risk and get that $US100 discount for doing so. [ZPM Espresso]
Jackson Bison
Wednesday, December 14, 2011 at 8:03 AMA few years ago, I refurbished a bottom of the line Breville that a friend ‘salvaged’ from work, and it makes 5x better coffee than machines 10x its price. Honestly, it blows me away how good a coffee it makes.
So in short, I trust that they can make an excellent machine for the price, but it doesn’t mean they will…
Mmmmm
Wednesday, December 14, 2011 at 9:22 PMHave to agree I have had two Breville el-cheapo machines and they have been great. The first cost me $20 from cash converters and went for years with out missing a beat. I found the trick to the machine was to blow the steam tube out after each use and every eight weeks or so, flush it with a 50/50 vinegar and water mix to descale it.
TSH
Wednesday, December 14, 2011 at 10:53 AMI suspect that you actually know *how* to make a good coffee! Of course the machine will make a difference, but like many things someone who knows what they’re doing can do great things with simple tools.
alex effing
Wednesday, December 14, 2011 at 11:52 AM^ Agree totally with the above. I have a sub $150 sunbeam espresso machine, and have had it for about 8 years, It makes awesome coffee to this day. The only thing you need to take account of is the pressure of the unit. The more parts it has the more likely one of those parts will break.
MD
Thursday, December 15, 2011 at 5:51 PMSorry coffee snobs.
BUT coffee appreciation is a bit like wine appreciation,
If the Guru of Coffee says it is good, then it must be, otherwise it has to be rubbish..
For me, if it tastes good, I will drink it.
Good to see that there MAY be good coffee machines out there for less than an average mortgage.
Usually the Coffee I have at hand is better than the one 2 km walk down the road.
(Then, the exercise wouldn’t do most desk ridden Cafe aficionado’s any harm)