This automatic espresso machine makes customized drinks with just one button - here's why it's worth $1,500
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- A high-quality espresso machine should be easy to use, require minimal maintenance, and make a broad array of coffee drinks.
- I like the Saeco PicoBaristo Super Automatic Espresso Machine because I don't have to grind coffee beans, try to get used grounds out of the filter, or purchase a separate milk frother - it does it all.
- Though it's on the expensive side (currently $1,499 on Amazon), it makes eight drinks that are endlessly customizable to suit your preferences, and more importantly, easy enough for a person dealing with incredible caffeine withdrawal to use.
I drink between two to eight shots of espresso every day - and it's been this way for more than 15 years. I figured out pretty early on that if I was going to sustain my low-key addiction, I would have to make my own drinks, so I purchased a cheap espresso machine and called off my long-term relationships with the local baristas. Since then, I've used electric units that range from $40 to $2,400, and in my experience, you get what you pay for.
One top name in high-end espresso machines is Saeco, an Italian company that was the first to launch a fully automatic espresso machine. Saeco bought another legacy espresso brand, Gaggia, in 1999, and as of 2009, it became a subsidiary of Philips, the Dutch electronics company.
Recently, Saeco sent me a PicoBaristo Super Automatic Espresso Machine to test out at home. Here are my experiences with it.
Design
There are two main styles of the Saeco PicoBaristo: the HD8924/47 ("the 24") and the HD8927/47 ("the 27"), which I tried out. The main differences have to do with the number of drinks the units can make and how milk is dispensed - the 27 makes more drinks than the 24 and the 24 doesn't come with a milk carafe. Instead, you put the tube from the milk frother into your own cup to create that frothy goodness, while the 27 comes with a removable carafe that is conveniently attached to the machine itself. The 27 is also currently about $600 more expensive and has better reviews on Amazon.
The design of the 27 is fairly straightforward albeit slightly clumsy. The water tank and bean hopper are located at the top of the unit. You can remove the tank and fill it at your sink, though I prefer using a pitcher since the tank's awkward shape makes it hard to maneuver without spilling. The bean hopper isn't removable so you have to dump beans into it and then adjust how coarse or fine you prefer your grind.
Read more: The best espresso machines you can buy
Specs
The overall size of the 27 is about 13-by-9-by-17, so it takes up a fair amount of counter space but will still fit under most cabinets. You can also fit coffee cups up to four inches tall under the spout.
The PicoBaristo can make eight different drinks, like a latte macchiato, ristretto, and flat white. The brand says that you can make 11 drinks with the machine but there are two sizes for cappucinos and espressos as well as a hot water option for tea or ramen, so technically, it's just eight different coffee drinks.
The unit gives you the ability to choose from five brew strengths, three different temperature options, and 10 different levels of granularity. The drink size - which it calls "length" - is also adjustable. Because there are so many customizable aspects, if you have a particular drink you enjoy regularly, definitely save it using the "Memo" function.
Setup process
The overall set-up process took me about 15 minutes and was quite easy except for one hiccup. After you remove the packaging, the first step is to fill the water tank. Then inexplicably, you're told to "Press the OK button to confirm." At this point, I hadn't been instructed to plug in and turn on the machine so I did that in order to register my button press which led to a series of other missteps that caused me to complete the set-up out of order. This didn't result in any real problems, but my advice is to skip pressing the OK button entirely, but if you do, you'll be fine.
The rest of the steps include selecting a preferred language, adding coffee beans, inserting the hot water spout, priming the machine with water, and installing the AquaClean water filter.
Read more: The best milk frothers you can buy
What makes this espresso machine stand out
The milk frothing process is incredibly easy. You just fill the carafe with milk - cow, soy, almond, whatever - and plug it into the unit where the hot water spout is located, then open the milk dispensing spout and choose a drink. Once the milk is done frothing, one press of another button cleans the spout. You can also put the entire carafe in the refrigerator to keep your milk fresh. The results rivaled what you might get at a good, independent coffee shop; I was impressed with the light, fluffy froth the PicoBaristo produced.
The PicoBaristo takes about two-and-a-half minutes from when I turn on the machine to the moment I have my double espresso in hand. The shots are strong, dark, have the level of bitterness I look for, and are also topped with a nice, thin layer of crema.
Keeping the PicoBaristo clean is effortless too. The machine tells you when to empty the drip tray underneath the unit or the grounds drawer, which is around every 15 shots of espresso for me, or you know, two days. There's also a user manual that provides a schedule for cleaning the brew group and milk carafe (both weekly), lubricating the brew group (monthly), replacing the AquaClean filter (about every 600 shots), and descaling (varies). This may sound like a lot, but each maintenance step takes only a few seconds or minutes to complete.
Lastly, I like that the machine tells me when it needs more beans or water. Cheaper machines will just run without these key ingredients, which can be harmful to the machine and annoyingly increases the time until I get my espresso. Bean and water level aren't the only warnings though; the unit will also let you know if the grounds drawer is full or the filter needs replacing, or even if the milk carafe isn't properly inserted.
Cons to consider
For espresso, I usually use the Saeco Xelsis Super Automatic Espresso Machine, which puts everything else I've tried to shame. But at around $2,400, it's impractical for most buyers. I don't bring this machine up to brag but I do mention it so you'll take my criticisms of the PicoBaristo with a grain of salt.
The first of which is that the design of the PicoBaristo's bean hopper could use some tweaking. The Xelsis has a conical hopper that allows the beans to feed easily into the grinder while PicoBaristo's hopper is long and very narrow at points, which doesn't allow gravity to do its work guiding the beans into the grinder. This means that you have to "mind the beans" more often than with a conical design. That being said though, I like that the PicoBaristo automatically grinds the beans for me and indicates when it needs more.
The positioning of the milk carafe and espresso spouts are also a little awkward. If you want to make a drink with milk, you need a cup that is sized just right to catch both the frothed milk and espresso, otherwise the left spout will likely miss your cup all together and send half of your espresso into the drip tray. This happened a couple of times before I wised up and made the milk and espresso separately by removing the milk carafe to get better access to the espresso spout. On the other hand, you might consider purchasing special mugs, such as the Libbey Tempo Glass Mugs.
The bottom line
The Saeco PicoBaristo is not the best espresso machine I've ever used (that title goes to the Xelsis), but it is the best I've used at its price point. The PicoBaristo delivers a wide range of coffeehouse-quality drinks in a matter of minutes with minimal effort, mess, clean-up, or maintenance. If you have room for it in your budget, I strongly recommend the Saeco PicoBaristo.
Pros: Eight coffee varieties, ability to customize the strength and size of drinks, grinds beans, collects used grounds, easy to clean and maintain
Cons: Bean hopper is small and oddly shaped, larger mugs may not fit under the spouts correctly