Capresso EC100 Pump Espresso and Cappuccino Machine

I ordered the Capresso EC100 Pump Espresso and Cappuccino Machine because I'm tired of spending megabucks at the local coffee shops for espresso beverages. Also, I don't always want to leave the house to get one, especially for breakfast. And finally, by making espresso beverages at home I can control the ingredients and know exactly how many calories I am consuming.

This machine enables you to prepare espresso with a medium, strong, or very strong taste, using either ground coffee or pods. You can prepare either one or two espressos at a time. It also enables you to prepare cappuccinos (by frothing the milk) or lattes (by steaming it). Oddly, the recipes in the manual do not mention how to prepare a café mocha. My own method is to squirt some Hershey's sugar-free chocolate syrup into a latte, add two packets of artificial sweetener, and stir vigorously. The manual does include helpful tips on ingredients. For example, the lower fat milk is the more froth it will produce. I'm sure you'll think of your own favorite flavorings to add to beverages--cinnamon, brandy, whipped cream on top, or whatever.

I found the machine fairly easy to use, although it's a bit fiddly. You need to go through several steps just to pre-warm the components and the cups. And there's filling the water container, inserting the filter, steaming the milk, cleaning the machine after use . . . on the other hand, at the local coffee shop I just wait around while someone else does all this stuff.

This machine comes with a limited one-year warranty and an order form for parts when they need replacing, which parts are actually quite reasonably priced. Oh, and a separate copy of the manual entirely in French, should you need it.

So I had bought this machine going by a review by an unbiased espresso machine store, and they tested on a video. They sold all types of machines. So I gave this a try. After reading the reviews on amazon I was little hesitant.

When I tried the machine it worked wonderfully, and later some of the shots I pulled were weak... Similar to what others had mentioned as a con.

Unlike the latter I knew that it did well initially so the error must've fallen on myself, but how? I wondered. So I went online a did a bit of research and found the error lay on how I was grinding the beans. Online it said that certain machine work well with certain grinds. This particular one must be extremely finely ground, and a burr grinder would work more efficiently.

As for the complaints about the bitterness, you get a bit more bitter taste with grinding it finely, but honestly esperesso is not meant to be extremely bitter, that is the result of burnt grounds scorched under pressure, and that's the result of a poor machine.

Do the research there's plenty of information on the Internet and YouTube ... It is a great machine! Very easy to use at a great price.

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Great deep crema!

Super easy machine for making capuccino: I make the froth in a cup and then dispense the espresso directly into the same cup. This might be blasphemy, but at 5:30am, who cares.

Cleanup: 20 seconds: I wipe off the nozzle, tap out the hockey puck into the garbage, and rinse it.

Large clear water container, easy to see how much water is left.

Cleaning the machine: I ran diluted vinegar through once so far in 6 months. Working fine. I had to clean out the brew head once, which required a screwdriver and took a couple of minutes and a paper towel.

Note on espresso strength: With my unit, the coffee seemed like it was on the weak side at first, then after about a lb., seemed more like regular strength.

Other things to like about this machine:

A snap to clean up. If you've used other machines you know there are usually little sprays of coffee, coffee grounds, milk, froth, etc., and grind slop to clean up after.

Water container holds enough to make many cups in a row before refilling.

The foot print is much smaller than some other similar machines, so it fits into my counter corner easily.

The manual is very thorough. When I had to figure out how to clean out the brew head, the info was right there.

The price is nice! We inherited a Barista and later purchased a Cafe Roma which are also great, but I like this system for its ease of use, crema, and tidy footprint. Also thinking this would be a nice gift, as it'll turn out a nice cup right away. Had the unit 6 months so far, so hope it keeps up the good work.

Read Best Reviews of Capresso EC100 Pump Espresso and Cappuccino Machine Here

I love everything about the Capresso...except for the fact that it makes coffee, not espresso. This is the third espresso maker in this price range that I've owned, the previous two being a Starbucks Barista and a Gaggia, and while I like the design of the Capresso the most (1. Capresso, 2. Gaggia, 3. Barista), I like the coffee the least (1. Gaggia, 2. Barista, 3. Capresso). Which when you get down to the bottom line is kind of a dealbreaker.

The Capresso does produce a thick "crema" but the coffee is mellow rather than bold. I can turn on the machine, run through a few empty cups of water to heat it up, use my boldest roast, and the coffee that I pull will still be mellow and smooth. If you like mellow, smooth coffee this might be the machine for you. I like thick, bitter, ultra-strong espresso, and the Capresso will not produce it. Also it took a couple of weeks before the new machinery stopped making my coffee taste a little bit like rubber.

For all that, I was really sad to stop using the Capresso and return to my Starbucks Barista because the Capresso is so much easier to use! The water tank, in particular, is genius. It attaches to the back of the machine and is so much easier to detach and re-attach than the reservoirs I'm used to, which hide behind the portafilter and drip tray. It holds the perfect amount of water too, enough to last me a couple of days but not so much that I ever worry about the water stagnating.

The portafilter basket that holds the grounds is irritating to use. It's made of a lightweight metal that feels cheap. I always use the double espresso basket and the spoon that comes with the machine does not measure the right amount. I'd drop one spoonful into the basket, then scoop out more grounds and measure around 2/3 of a second spoonful in order to fill the double-espresso basket. This was irritating, time consuming, and often messy.

Other than that...the Capresso is easy to use, easy to clean. So easy to clean! That's my second favorite thing about it, after the water tank. I just wish it made espresso.

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I simply love it. I used it for 3 months (2 to 6 espressos a day everyday), and never had a problem with it whatsoever.

I only make espressos with it and never used the steam/foaming outlet (cannot comment on it).

I never decalcified it yet; cannot comment on that either.

PROS:

Heats quickly.

Does great espresso, with a lot of foam (love it).

Easy to clean and maintain.

CONS:

The water runs out too quickly to my taste. I guess the coffee could be tastier/more powerful if the water was running slowly (and even an adjustment of the grinding size didn't make it much better. I found my best grinding size, but the next finer one just clogs the machine which only gives one drip every 1/2 second).

A lot of foam my wife doesn't approve of that much foam on her espressos :-)

I would buy it again and advise friends to do so, since I'm really pleased and had a hard time figuring which espresso machine to buy in the US (the choice here is less than 1/10th of what we have in Europe).

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