Francis Francis for illy X7.1 iperEspresso Machine

Francis Francis brings primo espresso to my kitchen, "a first" !

Easy, simple machine to use. Beautiful Espresso in less than 60 seconds, perfect at 5AM

Update:

Challenges with machine making horrific noises during pump cycle yielded call to Illy customer support, front

Line customer support person was very helpful taking my information ,then after being passed to the Francis Francis tech support person my Illy experience slowly went downhill, repeat attempts for customer support merely made the experience worse, ie your made to clearly understand the customer is the problem and your wasting Illys time.

Net/net the Francis Francis machine is being sent back to Illy, in summary if a company won't stand behind "both" their expensive coffee and espresso machines l'd prefer to enjoy a french press and locally roasted coffee.

Next machine choice will be a Rancillio Silvia and the Rocky grinder, check out the Coffee Geek site for numerous positive reviews.

I love coffee, especially a good expresso or double shot latte. This machine is simple and easy to use. Over three decades I have nursed several different brand machines through the ordeal of giving birth to an expresso shot. This machine minimizes the variables and consistently produces a quality shot of expresso. Preheat until the light goes on, pop in an ipser cartridge, push a button, and voila, The illy coffee is wonderful. I like the dark roast. This machine offers a simple foolproof fast way to a good cup. Don't forget to warm your ceramic drinking cup before pulling the shot. This machine is "stylish" and has a small footprint. It will not hog your counter space.

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If I draw a longer espresso shot, water leaks into the shot and dilutes and cools it. The water container is a pain to remove, really, could't come up with a better engineering solution? Currently it's stuck on beeping and the red triangle of death is flashing and the solution offered in the manual does not resuscitate it.

Otherwise, it's an OK machine :)

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Nespresso C90 Essenza Manual Espresso and Coffeemaker, Slate

I loved my Slate Essenza C90 manual machine for the 1st month. It was so easy and the espresso was delicious. Then one morning as I pulled my espresso, water started leaking out all over! The whole bottom tray completely filled with water and a lot overflowed. It had some kind of stoppage that forced the water to leak out.

It was literally on the 31st day of ownership b/c I checked my receipt and almost returned it to amazon. But the book it came with said to call Nespresso, that they would pick them machine up and even give a loaner until they could replace it with a new one, so I called them instead. The customer service rep told me they would email me a shipping label, so I could send it back and that they would send a new machine within 2 3 days. No pickup like the book said, but ok fine. Then they never send the shipping label. So I had to call back a couple days later. Now they finally send it.

So I send back the machine and two WEEKS later I finally get my machine but it is an ugly weird green color and REFURBISHED. It definitely does not work as well as the machine I bought did for the first 30 days the water drips out strangely and it is kind of leaky. I know it is refurbished because it said so right on the label but even if it didn't it just is obviously not a new machine in appearance and function.

Needless to say I am very unhappy with this experience. "Nespresso Lifestyle" my foot.

Not only that, but the customer service rep told me to send back the nice book my machine originally came with. The refurbished machine did not come with a book. All it came with was a paper pamphlet for the C100 not even the same model. So now I'm out that too.

UPDATE 4/27/09: I'm happy to report that I got a telephone call from a Nespresso Customer Service rep on Sat. 4/18. She said it was just a courtesy call and asked how I liked the machine so I told her the story as described above. She said that I should have gotten a new machine and that she would look into it. Sure enough, by Fri. 4/24 a brand new machinein the right slate color, with a new book and even new pods had arrived on my doorstep! I enjoyed coffee from it all weekend. They also let me keep the refurbished machine until the new one arrived this time, so I did not have to go without coffee. I sent it back in the mail today.

So, I'm a lot happier now with customer service, and would move it up to 3 stars. I will update this review again after 30 days hopefully the new machine will still be working!

Update 7/18/09: Well it is a few months later and I continue to be very pleased with my Nespresso machine. It is still working great and I absolutely love it. Just made my third coffee order, and worked out the cost. On average I am spending about $17 a month to drink my espresso every morning. That is about $50 less per month than the $2.25 I was previously spending at the coffee shop every day! It is also so easy to order them online, and they arrive within a few days. Overall, I am very happy with this purchase.

I experienced the perfect espresso produced by these machines because they were in every hotel room I inhabited in Europe. It was so easy and delicious, I ordered one the day after I arrived back in the states. I chose this machine rather than the C100 because I wanted control over how much espresso was pulled. This was a good choice, but you might want to purchase a couple of cups that will give you a good idea of just how many ounces you have while you are making it.

The machine heats up quickly, in under a minute. The first time you use it, make sure you fully charge the water pump which is super easy (instructions for this are with the manual).

I went to the Nespresso club online and ordered the welcome kit which offers 200 capsules at a fair price and includes a free wooden box. It was worth it...and they include the 3 brand new lines of espresso they have developed recently.

I strongly recommend this product to anyone who is disappointed at the occasional lack of quality in espresso products they receive outside the home, the tedious ritual of making espresso from coffee grounds, or people like me who are disappointed in the quality of my brewed coffee at home in the morning.

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Milano 10 Cup Espresso Coffeemaker in Satin

I spent more on this moka pot than intended because my previous cheap made in China one had the handle break off after a year. I decided to look for a metal handled moka pot even though the handle would get hot because I assumed metal handles would be less likely to break off.

Annoyingly enough, the manual says not to tighten or loosen by putting force on the handle. What?? So I'm a little annoyed at that. However, the beauty of this pot is that you don't have to apply significant force to tighten for it to get a proper seal, unlike the previous 10-cub Chinese moka pot.

I waited about 6 months of several uses per week before making this review and no problems. Even multiple accidental over-burnings hasn't damaged it. The seal seams to be of a type that might last forever, unlike most moka pots that need it replaced after a year or so. I'm still counting off one star for the price along with the warning about excessive force on the handle, but it has been reliable and makes good coffee.

Heat stained after the base after a few uses, but other than that, works wonderfully and looks good. I really like the strong coffee it produces (we don't use espresso grade, and use it to just make strong coffee).

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Nespresso CitiZ C110 Espresso Maker

I wanted to purchase this machine a while ago, but couldn't find coffee capsules that I liked. That's changed.

I took a second look at Nespresso when the Pixie came out, but after using the Pixie in the store on multiple occasions, I wouldn't purchase it. (Please see my Pixie review). I instead purchased the Citiz.

It's a great machine, producing consistent quality coffee from cup to cup with a lovely crema at the top. When you test the coffees, read the descriptions, and look for the intensity numbers (which can be found in the descriptions and on the sleeve which contains the capsules). If you can get the brochure with a wheel on the back page, it gives you acidity and bitterness ratings for each blend. I found that I do not like the "citrus" and "flowery" blends, but prefer the more intense blends which are still not bitter.

A couple of tips:

if you want more of an Americano, brew as directed for the different varieties, then eject the capsule and do another shot of just water. If you attempt to put too much water through the capsules, you will increase bitterness of the coffee.

don't forget to preheat your cups.... run a shot of just hot water through the machine and use it to warm your cup. Doing this will also prime the pump of the machine which will give you a hotter first cup of coffee.

In case you are curious: my favorite blends: Roma, Arpeggio, Fortissimo Longo, Vivalto Longo, Capriccio (lighter for a change, and this was OK with a little more water).

*** Update 12/21/11 ***

The limited edition flavors for this season are: Vanilla Blossom, Dark Chocolate, and Cherry. To my surprise, I liked the Vanilla the best (and I thought it would be the Dark Chocolate). I purchased both the Cherry and Vanilla. They are all worth trying. They are produced in small quantities, so when they are gone, I don't believe they will be available any longer.

Also, if you haven't seen the videos which Nespresso has put on line to advertise the special flavors of the season, they are fabulous!

Enjoy!

The CitiZ Nespresso machine is a beautiful, simple, small, and well designed espresso maker.

This machine does exactly one thing, and does it extremely well; it makes the best darn espresso. There are two buttons one for espresso the other for lungo. Essentially they are two different timers; lungo runs the pump for a longer time. These buttons are easily programmed to longer or shorter delivery times.

In use, there is nothing easier. Lift the black handle on the top of the machine. Drop a Nespresso capsule into the slot. Close the lever down. Press the button for the size of drink. When finished, lift the lever and the used capsule drops in a clear plastic reservoir (seen just behind the cup of espresso in the product picture).

From cold machine to a cup of espresso is roughly 1.5 minutes. Warm up time is around a minute, and brew time for the cup is about 30 seconds. Couldn't be faster, couldn't be easier.

On to the quality. You will never ever drink a better cup of espresso at Starbucks or Caribou, you can't. They make those drinks in paper cups and by definition the espresso can't be as good. There is nothing like drinking from a ceramic cup, it enhances the flavor more than you can imagine. You cannot mess up making the espresso. The capsule is hermetically sealed in aluminum; there is absolutely no air exchange, unlike plastic or paper containers. There is no need to refrigerate or freeze these capsules they do not deteriorate due to air exchange. Nespresso has solved some of the most critical variables in making espresso, fineness of coffee grind, roast time and temperature, preventing air from interacting with the coffee, pressure and temperature of the water, and brew residence time. Each cup tastes exactly the same one after the other.

The espresso itself. Oh my goodness, I have spent a lot of time in Italy drinking espresso at corner cafes. Nespresso is as good as, if not better than, anything I ever had in Italy. It is the rare US or Canadian restaurant that can brew a better espresso. Nespresso has become the gold standard by which I judge espresso when I travel. The crema on these drinks is amazing thick, rich, and perfect.

This machine is a replacement for a six year old Nespresso model D290. This lovely machine made maybe 15,000 espressos, it was incredibly reliable, up until a few weeks ago, it started to act strange not wanting to heat when first turned on. The only maintenance was descaling the machine every 6 months. I expect the CitiZ to last just as long.

Admittedly I am addicted to this machine, the espresso. Two to three espressos per day is my standard, and my wife usually has one or two lungos per day. Hopefully you can understand that I love this machine, and I love this espresso. This is far superior to any other "on demand" coffee makers, this machine makes real espresso.

Noise yes this machine makes noise. The CitiZ is slightly quieter than the older models, but it still makes noise. ALL mechanical espresso machines make noise; there is no way around that problem (you have to pump the water to reach the 90 some odd PSI to make real espresso). To me, this machine makes the most beautiful noise ever. It's a solid heavy pump sound, not some wimpy whiny noise. It's also so beautiful because my mind knows what is coming next, a great cup of espresso.

The real competitor to this machine, the Illy line, and $1000 true ground espresso machines. Here's the huge downside to those machines the Illy machines are well over $750, and the cartridges are paper wrapped (so once you open the can, you need to use all those cartridges quickly air is ground coffee's worst enemy). The ground coffee versions, you have a long warm up time to build heat and pressure in the vessel, you have to grind your own coffee, there's a huge variable introduced in grind size and coffee packing, and you have messy coffee grounds to clean up.

When you compare this machine to the alternatives for real espresso, this is a cheap machine. Add the convenience, and this is a no brainer choice to me. The one downside to this machine and all the Nespresso machines, you have to buy your coffee from Nestle directly over the internet or phone. Nobody else makes these capsules. Myself, I simply buy 500 at a time and watch my supply. From ordering to delivery is usually 3 days.

One of my biggest concerns in buying this was the longevity of Nestle producing these capsules. I think they will produce these for a long time in the future. The machine dates back to 1986. It is very popular in Europe. The capsule they use is a commodity aluminum capsule that is used by a number of other industries in other words, Nestle buys these formed aluminum capsules, fills them, and seals them. There is no proprietary container, unlike the other two popular beverages on demand machines. Nestlé's investment in capsule manufacture and distribution (all 100% internet or phone based with no marketing in the US) is really small for a great return to them.

Visiting Italians have told me this is the best espresso they have ever had in the US. And my wife, who rarely ever drank brewed coffee, looks forward to her lungo every morning.

If you are looking for that special $100 arena, and only want an on-demand beverage maker, this is by far the best machine you can buy:

Bosch TAS4511UC Tassimo Single-Serve Coffee Brewer, Silk Silver just remember, it makes great coffee, cappuccino, hot chocolate, tea but it does not make espresso (no matter what anyone says or claims, it is incapable of doing that). They have fixed the awful sound of the original machine by working with Bosch.

The other alternative for just coffee making (no cappuccino or hot chocolate) Keurig B60 Special Edition Gourmet Single-Cup Home-Brewing System.

The perfect accessory for the CitiZ is the Aeroccino. This is well worth the approximately $100 investment, it makes perfect foamed milk with no skills required. (Nespresso Aeroccino Plus)

I chose the CitiZ without the foamer included in the kit because I like the tiny footprint of this machine. The additional space for the foamer on the base takes up a lot of counter space. I really like the simplicity of this model.

The Pixie is a newer model from Nespresso. I'm not as impressed with that machine. In real life, it doesn't look as cool as this machine. June 2012 Update: I've actually used a Pixie, there is a big difference in machines. The Pixie makes a lot more noise, and maybe not a good different noise. The CitiZ is much quieter.

The other option is the Essenza, pretty much the same internal parts as the CitiZ; it is just squat and doesn't come in fun colors. Adjusting the cup height is a little more complicated with the Essenza. These machines have gotten less and less expensive over the years. My C290 list price was $600 almost 7 years ago. These new machines in the $200 price range are an outstanding value.

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COFFEE. It's fine. My standard is Peets -a much darker roast than Starbucks. Nespresso is not quite as strong, but ristretto shots of their darkest blend come close to the Italian, not French, flavor I like. On a good day, I could do better grinding beans with a $300 Italian grinder and pulling shots through a $700 Italian espresso machine, but the average was no better.

CONVENIENCE. Nespresso wins running away. That's because this is not the greenest purchase you will ever make. The capsules are hard to recycle unless your rinse them, which defeats the major benefit, which is convenient quality coffee.

COST. It's a rip off. Nespresso is building and aggressively defending a razors and razor-blade franchise (or a printer and cartridge franchise). As the Times quoted a marketing executive at goo.gl/nHesc "The idea was to keep it to the level of people who have a doorman.". See goo.gl/rhors for an explanation of the Nespresso marketing model. Nespresso has sold 30 billion capsules and grew the business grew 66% last year. They are militant against people who try to sell coffee capsules and this machine will not work with counterfeit capsules that do work in other Nespresso units. Add http :// with no space to the URLs to make them work -Amazon strips them out otherwise.

MAINTENANCE. Same as any machine -you need to descale it every 2-3 months depending on your water. I use a commercial descaler because the Nespresso ones are very expensive. I know, you are shocked. Don't use vinegar unless you want to taste it in your coffee for awhile.

RELIABILITY. Mine broke after two years. Started leaking, reduced the pressure, so the coffee got weak. Eventually the machine did not pierce the front of the capsule and only spewed water.

SERVICE. You cannot service the unit -they shut it with tiny Tork screws. Nespresso has a 24/7 phone line with helpful staff. Their web site is funky -it breaks a lot. Fixing the leaky machine costs $125 (they ship you a loaner in the meantime). It's half the price of a new machine, with half a warranty.

BOTTOM LINE: Would I buy one again? Yeah. And probably will. But that doesn't make me happy about it. If only I could complain to my doorman.

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Wow! Lived in Europe for many years and enjoyed the coffee everyday. Since returning, it's been difficult to find the right machine, coffee, grind, etc., with a busy life. After an extended stay in Switzerland several years ago and running into this machine at many friend's homes and in the cities, it seemed like a great way to enjoy really good espresso at home.

This coffee machine meets all expectations for taste, convenience, design, cost, and even sustainability, if you believe the literature. It's also a very aesthetic experience. After buying the machine locally, we ordered pods through the Nespresso Club. They came beautifully packaged with a nice storage box. The colors of the pods are quite lovely, the included book was fascinating with appealing illustrations, and it is very sweetly translated. The machine works like a dream, and the coffee tastes great. Not to mention the tiny footprint of the coffee maker on the countertop. Very enthusiastic about this coffee maker. Forget Starbucks with it's syrups and sugar that covers up the taste of inferior coffee. Just go Nespresso for wonderful fresh, high-quality coffee at home that's certainly much cheaper in the long run!

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Here's my theory: Nespresso is the Apple of the coffee world. Their products look great, and they work seamlessly pretty much every time. But, as with Apple products, Nespresso gets those consistent results by limiting the user inputs and not allowing you to fiddle with things too much. (And as with Apple products, you pay more for the experience!)

So if you're a coffee purist or a die-hard-PC-type personality, you might not be happy with a Nespresso machine. But I can't resist such a perfect marriage of form and function, and I love that I can push one button and get a great shot of espresso.

And yes, it is REAL espresso--water is forced through the coffee grounds at the proper temperature and pressure to create a rich, thick crema and a shot with low acidity and no bitterness. So back off, coffee snobs.

I looked at the Pixie, too, but it seemed more plastic-y and flimsy. The footprint of the CitiZ was nearly as small (width is similar to the Pixie, perhaps even a bit narrower, but it's a little deeper and definitely taller), but it seemed sturdier and had more metal parts. The Pixie felt like it would lift up if I tried to operate the capsule lever with one hand, and I didn't like the fact that part of the face of the machine moved forward when you put the pod in--I was afraid that the moving parts, which were all made of plastic, wouldn't last long. The lever of the CitiZ, like the rest of the machine, just felt sturdier in operation.

The titanium looks great on my counter without being too slick and shiny. I also liked that it was tall enough to brew the espresso shots straight into my mug while the milk heats up; the Essenza only brews into a shot-size glass, and the flip-up shelf on the Pixie seemed flimsy and wasn't designed to stay flipped up on its own.

Like all Nespresso machines, the CitiZ makes a nice shot of espresso with just the push of a button, and the crema is lovely. I prefer the stronger blends for cappuccino, and a milder blend lungo for a macchiato. No bitterness, no grounds in my glass, and very low acidity. Temperature is good and hot, too; the rep at Bloomingdales, where I tried these out, said that if the shots start to seem cooler than before you should descale the machine.

Not much to say about the operation--it's really a one-touch deal. Emptying the pod container can be a bit messy because there's water below it, but I think I'm getting the hang of it now. Haven't had to descale yet, but it seems to be similarly straightforward.

The capsules start at 57 cents on the Nespresso site, and I got a $75 credit for the Nespresso store with my purchase (they seem to run these kinds of promotions fairly often). If you live near a Bloomingdale's with a Nespresso boutique, you can take back the used pods for recycling (at least you can at the one in DC). As far as I know, the Bloomingdale's Nespresso stores are the only brick-and-mortar stores that carry the capsules. Again, I think that's how they ensure that you get good results--they can tightly control the freshness of the product.

So if you're willing to give up some control to get a good result every time, with no fiddling or fussing or cleanup, Nespresso is perfect. If you're a control freak who wants to manage every variable of the experience, then Nespresso probably isn't for you. But if you appreciate the melding of form and function, and you want a better-than-average shot of espresso in less than a minute with no mess or fuss, you'll love the CitiZ. I sure do.

Mr. Coffee FTTX95-1 10-Cup Thermal Coffeemaker, Black

First the good:

--It looks nice sitting on your counter.

--The beeping sound to signify the end of the brewing cycle is nice.

Now the bad:

--You will never get anything but a warm cup of coffee out of this coffee maker. And if you add milk or cream to your coffee, the result is lukewarm at best. You will aways have to put your coffee in the microwave. This is true no matter how close you follow the directions, and no matter how creative you get. Even if you remove the carafe from the unit after the brewing cycle is completed, your coffee will only be warm. The instruction manual says to completely fill the carafe with very hot water and let it sit for 10 minutes before brewing in order to heat up the carafe. Okay, during the morning rush to get out to work, who has time to let their kitchen faucet run for a few minutes to get hot water (especially in the winter) and then wait for 10 minutes with the water in the carafe and then wait for the brewing cycle to end?

--The carafe is stainless steel no glass lining (which is the best insulation material) Not sure who the genius is that thinks stainless steel is an insulator.

--The Pause-and-serve mechanism broke on the third day. I went to pull out the carafe to grab a cup and coffee came splashing down all over my hand.

--This isn't a huge deal but the clock is so bright I'm fairly certain it could serve as a beacon to guide large ships sailing past rocky coast lines.

this was a gift for my husband, we've had it for about 2 weeks. he tends to nurse a pot of coffee over several hours, so we thought this would be better than the conventional coffee makers. it doesn't have a warming plate, so we don't have to worry about leaving it "on" accidentally. the coffee doesn't burn after sitting there for a couple of hours. it also has a water filter insert. my husband is overjoyed, he has his hot coffee when he wants it and says it tastes better than our old coffee maker coffee. he loves the programmable coffee brewing feature as well.

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I had one of these for about 3 months before it died. I used it to make about 5 cups a day and after a while it just quit working. Aparently the element burned out from the low water levels I was using. Mr. Coffee customer service was great though, after an email I had a replacement in just a couple days. When it worked, the coffee was good once I adjusted recipes to match the machine. The water filter is a nice touch if a bit pricey for replacements and it seemed to be effective. One hint, use hot water to preheat the carafe and the coffee will stay warmer longer.

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I had this coffee maker for about 6 months before I moved into a new house, unboxed it, and started using it. As the user image I added to Amazon can attest, this coffee maker and I did not part ways amicably (unless you consider being thrown off a 15 foot high deck on to a boulder in 5 degree weather an amicable breakup). You should strongly consider buying another model, but I don't know what to tell you to get ... none of the coffee makers I can find in stores appear to be truly well made.

First, the cons:

In summary, what you are looking at here is a coffee maker that will make increasingly bitter lukewarm coffee that you may, depending on the day and your luck, find in the "thermal carafe," or find all over your counter, cabinets, and the floor below. The details:

The filter basket is cheap plastic and has a tightly ribbed bottom surface that is impossible to clean. This seems endemic to most every drip coffee maker on the market today. My kingdom for a coffee maker with a stainless filter basked that I can surgically clean! The gunk builds up on the little plastic ribs in these plastic baskets. It is impossible to clean (ever try to get the brown staining out of a white plastic filter basket?) and it contributes to coffee that gets increasingly bitter over time.

Unless you follow the instructions and pre-heat the carafe with hot water, your coffee will never come out anything more than tepid. The "thermal carafe," as someone else has pointed out, is stainless steel inside and out -stainless steel is an efficient _conductor_ of heat, not an insulator. How about a true thermal carafe, with a glass lining on the inside and some actual additional insulating material between the glass and the outer stainless steel shell?

The check valve in the lid of the "thermal carafe" will stick shut on you. For me, it took maybe 6 uses for this to occur. When this happens, the coffee will be unable to enter the carafe as it exits the filter basket, instead pooling on the carafe lid, then continuing to spill on down the sides of the carafe, all over your counter, and down into whatever is below that (unless you have a counter that will pool 10 cups of water around your coffee maker for you). When the coffee got into my new cabinetry as it dripped over the edge of the counter on its way to spreading across the floor, that is when the coffee maker found itself hurtling to the boulders below my deck.

A timer feature is useless on a coffee maker that requires as much user involvement as this one. On coffee makers I've had in the past, I would set to brew coffee at approximately the same time I woke up. With this one, if I were to properly use this machine, I would need to wake up 1/2 hour before the timer was set so I could go and pre-heat the carafe, then stand watch over the unit until I was satisfied that the machine was not about to make coffee for the counter, cabinets, and floor instead of for its own carafe.

Pros:

For a machine that smacked into a boulder after being thrown downward from approximately 15 feet, it suffered surprisingly little damage. The plate where the carafe is normally placed shattered, revealing the guts of the machine below, and it was a bit scuffed up, but that was about it. I think this is because it took more of a glancing blow off of the boulder, although in my blind rage I must admit I really didn't watch that closely ... I was more concerned with cleaning up the mess back in the kitchen.

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When our last coffee pot died, we looked at many models, since my husband and I drink a lot of coffee. I wouldn't call us coffee snobs, but we do have definite opinions on good versus bad coffee. Our previous coffeemaker, which we loved, had a thermal carafe, and the only problem we ever had with it (until it finally expired after years of faithful and trouble-free service) was that pouring out of the carafe always ended in a few drips. Mildly annoying, but certainly not a deal-breaker.

We got this one because of the features and the thermal carafe. Here's how it works:

First, you can't pour the water into the reservoir at any rate faster than a drip without having it splash all over the place. This is because they handily placed a flat panel in the middle of the grill over the reservoir, apparently just to splash the water back in your face. So, having splashed about a quarter of your coffee water onto your counter, you wipe it up, get more water and pour it S-L-O-W-L-Y into the grill. Then you put in the coffee grounds and turn it on. I didn't time it, but it felt like about 20 minutes to get that water through the grounds and into the pot. I once made the mistake of moving my hand near the top of the coffeemaker during this process (intending to turn on the disposal), and discovered serendipitously that quite a lot of steam escapes from the top where the edges of the lid don't quite meet the sides. Ouch.

Another ouch: don't -DON'T -try to remove the carafe and pour the coffee before it's finished. The stop-pour feature simply does not work. You'll get burned and make a mess. But not to worry; it's just the beginning of the mess.

Ok, now you try to pour your coffee. You tilt the carafe forward while pressing a button on the handle with your thumb. No matter how hard you press, you will get --a trickle. If you are like me and drink from a mug that holds closer to 16 ounces than eight, this means you are holding the d*** carafe for a full two minutes, with your thumb losing circulation all the while. And the less coffee in the carafe, the slower it comes out. And to add to the fun, the spout is not designed to inhibit dripping, so you now have coffee drips all over the counter you had just wiped to clean up the water that splashed back on you from the grille.

So. You bite back the language you don't want your kids to hear, and simply unscrew the lid of the carafe to pour the coffee. Right? Wrong. You unscrew the lid alright, but here's what happens: coffee goes everywhere. There are copious, large coffee drops hanging off the bottom of the lid. I can't figure out how they designed this lid so that there is a good ounce hanging there. And it goes all over the counter, which (by the second or third time you've used this wonderful product) you now have covered with paper towels. The lid is finally off, the counter is protected, but your coffee cup is still empty. You tilt the unlidded carafe forward, carefully, and observe a flow of liquid that more closely resembles rafting-grade whitewater than anything that should ever come out of a spout. Lots of coffee goes into your cup, and lots more goes on the paper towels.

You wipe the drips (there are several) off the sides of your cup, and put the top back on the carafe. Here's where the thermal carafe should keep the coffee warm. Well, I have to agree with someone else here who posed the question: what idiot thought that stainless steel is a good insulator? This carafe has no glass. Buyer beware. The coffee wasn't even that hot in the first place because I had ignored the printed instructions to fill the carafe with hot water and empty it again BEFORE I brew the coffee, so that the carafe won't suck all the heat out of the coffee immediately. They MUST be kidding, right? Ahhh -apparently not. Hear me now: ignore this instruction at your own risk, unless you like lukewarm coffee. And if you have to keep taking the lid on and off to pour your coffee without getting carpal tunnel syndrome from that d*** button, the carafe insulates even less.

My final note on this was about something so stupid as to be hilarious. That notorious button on the handle, the one you press to allow the coffee to flow -no, correct that, trickle -has a picture on it. It is an icon showing the carafe in a forward-tilted position. No, really! I guess if, like me, you were stupid enough to buy this thing in the first place, you might need that icon to understand that if you hold the coffee pot level, nothing will come out of it. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa!

My husband, who is a very peaceful and non-violent man, was threatening to take this THING out into the driveway and run over it with his car before we got a replacement. We now have the Zojirushi, and all is once again well with the world.

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Bialetti Mini Express 2-Cup Stovetop Percolator

The Mini Express works great. It's easy to use and clean (remember not to use soap), and it brews some nice expresso. I'm usually just making coffee for myself, so I bent one of the spouts around so they both go into one larger cup; I'm not sure if you're supposed to do that, but it worked fine.

A couple of other remarks: The cute cups in the picture aren't included :(, and at the end of the brew, it tends to "spit" coffee until you remove it from the heat. If your cups are tall enough, it's not a problem, but otherwise you'll get little coffee specks all over your stove.

I purchased this Bialetti Mini Express as a present for my husband. We have several Bialetti mokas and are thoroughly satisfied with them so I did not hesitate in purchasing this one. Unfortunately, this model does not make two equal cups of coffee. One expresso is almost full and overly strong. The second cup is one third full and very weak. It is possible to mix the two for a double shot, but alone they are undrinkable. This product is a disappointment.

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Let me begin by saying that I am a Bialetti fan. However, I would recommend that you avoid this particular product. I've used it about 20 times since I've gotten it and only once did I get reasonably equal volumes in the two cups. Usually, it's about 70%/30%, always favoring one particular side. I've tried taking the filter out to see if there were any obstructions, but didn't see any. I've tried heating at different rates but to no avail. Rinsing the top part upside-down under the tap results in equal amounts of water coming out each spout so I know it's not plugged. Eventually I may try crimping the more productive spout a bit in order to constrict the flow in hopes that that will remedy the problem...

Anyway, I usually end up having to pour from one cup to the other to make them roughly equal volumes which is messy. Tonight, the cups were about 97%/3%, which prompted this review. I'm very, very disappointed, however, I'll still probably end up buying a Bialetti 3-cup caffetiera to replace it.

UPDATE, August 30th, 2010: This thing still sucks. I just bought a DeLonghi Espresso machine and it dispenses two equal volume cups. I'm probably going to chuck the Bialletti 2-cup.

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I purchased this brewer at a local shop in Brazil about 4 months ago, and brewed nearly daily on it. My first brews were uneven and made a mess on my stove. After quite a few bad brews and almost giving up on it, I began to understand what was going on.

I usually brewed finely-ground coffee and got mediocre results. I would, usually, fill the basket up to the top, tapping it just a little bit, and let it heat. Coffee would begin to brew unevenly, leaving me with a tiny extra-strong cup and a large extra-weak one. In other words, bad coffee. If I took too long to turn off the heat, there would also be coffee spills everywhere in the kitchen.

If you run a test brew with no coffee grounds in it, only water, you'll see it comes out perfectly even on both cups. I realized what the secret was after getting a sack of coarsely-ground gourmet coffee from a relative. Being coarser, the grounds would allow a free flow of water even if I filled the basket up to the top and tapped it. That way coffee would come out perfectly even on both cups. Coarse grounds give you a milder brew, but that's a matter of taste.

Learning from that, I realized that I couldn't fill the basket up to the top with finely-ground and tap it. Water wouldn't flow evenly and coffee would come out wrong.

Nowadays, I usually fill the basket leaving about 2-3mm free space at the top of the basket when using finely ground coffee and progressively less free space the coarser my grounds are. That leaves space for water to flow through more easily, making evrn cups of coffee.

That's a peculiarity of its unique design. There's a limit to how strong your coffee can be, and that will depend on the grind and toast of the coffee you"re using. A regular stovetop won't be limited by that, but it also wont' look this charming to a visitor.

In my opinion, this is the most charming way to enjoy a cup with your coffee-loving significant other. Great value, as long as you learn its ways.

**Regarding the coffee spills, it's all about timing when you turn off the heat. I turn it off just before air begins to come out of the coffee machine, that is, just before it ends brewing. I set the heat to minimum, wait for it to brew and, very few seconds after the brew begins to come out in a very light yellowish tint, turn the heat off. That's just before the brew ends. This reduces coffee spills to nearly zero.

Definitely NOT a novelty item!!

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I have been looking at electric countertop espresso makers for years, but was afraid to buy one because of the cost and size. We got one of these on a whim because it was so cute, and it has worked wonderfully! It only takes about 3 minutes to make 2 shots of espresso, and cleans up very easily.