 Authentic Italian espresso at an affordable price |
| Review Date: September 5, 2005 |
| Reviewer: Veggiechiliqueen, |
After many happy (and dare I say, naive) years with our DeLonghi Caffe Espresso, it was time to replace our old workhorse. Having just spent the summer in Spain, where no bar is complete without the standard superautomatic Gaggia espresso maker, I decided that truly great espresso was a daily necessity. I was tired of incompetent teenagers / college students who work at local coffee shops mangling something as simple as a cappuccino (one part espresso, one part milk, one part foam) into a milk-drowned latte with no foam.
I wanted something in the range of $200, with a dependable track record and plenty of power to spare. I waded through a myriad of reviews for the Gaggia Carezza, hailed as a champion of its class, but read a number of negative reviews concerning design shortcomings.
Enter the Gaggia Evolution. Although the Gaggia Carezza and Evolution share the same innards, the Evolution boasts several improvements in design. With its 17.5 bar pump and high wattage, dual element boiler, the Gaggia Evolution is ready to brew in around 5-10 minutes (I always prime the boiler first).
Design improvements over the Carezza include: a larger drip tray, a cup warmer (although, as usual, it's more effective to preheat your cups by filling them with hot water, which can be done during priming), anti-vibration mounts (once primed, the Gaggia Evolution is nearly whisper-quiet), and a brass commercial portafilter (the spouts on the Carezza were changed to plastic). My Evolution came with the Perfect Crema device (which is supposed to go under the single filter basket in order to create additional pressure/allow a coarser grind), but having read numerous negative reviews of the ineffective device, I simply left it in the box with the packing material.
Five stars for the instruction manuals and CD-ROM: the Gaggia Evolution comes with not one, but two instruction manuals: one from the manufacturer (Gaggia), and one from the North American importer (Importika). The Importika manual is intuitive, easy to read and injected with coffee humor, although the Evolution is not among the Gaggia models listed in the Appendix. The included CD-ROM walks you through setup in the form of short movies and narration, along with more advanced tips and techniques for coffee connoisseurs. We put our laptop on the kitchen table and followed along after unpacking our new Gaggia (thankfully, nothing was broken in the mail, as happened to several Gaggia Carezza owners). Although the manual hinted that your first coffee might not be potable, we'd followed various tips online (prime your new machine several times to remove any residue and plastic-y taste), and our first espresso was laden with crema. The Turbo Frother attachment made the creamiest, densest microfoam I have ever seen-it looked more like meringue (hint: use skim milk for best results). My only complaint would be the cheapness of the included coffee scoop, and you definitely want to invest in a better tamp for maximum extraction (the Gaggia takes a 58 mm tamp at a recommended 30 pounds of pressure).
If you're not in the market to buy a $200-300 grinder (Rancilio Rocky or Gaggia 8002 MDF Burr Grinder) to go with your new Gaggia, Illy makes a delicious, dependable espresso grind, available in tins (decaf, too) or Pods. The Evolution is Pod-ready, simply use the single shot basket with the portafilter. Tip: "classic" double shots should take around 20-25 seconds to extract.
The Evolution is a steal for the current price, since it contains the same innards as other Gaggias in the $400-500 range. Although it runs around $50-100 more than the Carezza, I appreciated the design improvements, stylish lines (I have a Tuscan kitchen with hand-painted ceramics and terra cotta tiles and was afraid that the "modern" styling would stand out, but the Evolution is much more traditional-looking and unobtrusive than the Carezza), and performance. (Note: the Evolution is also available in an all-silver model, but it will set you back another $50. The black model features a black base and sides and a silver front and silver drip tray.)
Excellent for the espresso novice or connoisseur, easy to use and clean, and it makes better espresso than some $500-1,000 machines I've tried!
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Superb value, nice design, some corners cut
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| Review Date: May 20, 2006 |
| Reviewer: Ray Stoecklin, New York, NY United States |
After calculating exactly how much money I've forked over to Starbuck$ in the last 4 years in exchange for burnt-coffee-flavored milk, I decided to look for a tastier, "wordlier", yet money-saving option. I did give the Nespresso machines a hard look (those use a metal capsule and they are quick, clean, and the coffee tastes quite good), but I eventually decided against them because the capsules are somewhat expensive ($0.50/piece plus shipping), and only available in a few different "beans". A regular espresso machine, such as this Gaggia model, opens up the world of exotic coffees and the pleasure of preparing them.
On to the machine. The black-and-silver design of this device would blend in nicely in a modern kitchen; I personally think it's quite stylish. Sadly though, the black plastic of which it is made is of the shiny kind, which does not only show every smudge or drop of water, but scratches easily when you so much as wipe it with a dry paper towel (think ipod nano). The drip tray is quite flimsy; not a problem but just screams "cheap". The only badly designed piece is the cup warmer: it's situated in the back half of the (slightly slanted) top, which barely gets lukewarm - unlike the front half which does get hot, but can't be used because it's rounded and your cups would fall off. Again, this is not really a problem, as you can just use hot water to preheat your cups, but it makes you think that perhaps they shouldn't advertise that feature.
Two things surprised me very positively. It's very easy to fill the machine with water; you just slide out the container to the left, even while you're making espresso. The other surprise was the milk frother. The steam "pipe" has a plastic attachment to it which contains air channels; some ingenious solution which ends up making perfectly frothed milk. A reviewer claimed that it doesn't heat up the milk enough; I cannot verify that statement, but then I only prepare small amounts of milk, enough for one or two cappuccinos.
The guts of this machine are impeccable. It's neither underpowered nor loud, all pieces that ought to be metal actually are, and it's serviceable. The manual explains how every few weeks you are supposed to unscrew a few plates and clean them, and perhaps use a cleaning solution for the tubing.
Speaking of the manual, it gives you all you need to know to make a good espresso; the cdrom even has helpful little movies that show how a good flow looks like (neither splattering nor just dripping, just an even flow for 25 seconds).
All in all, I am extremely happy with my purchase. The manual humorously mentions that "your first espresso is probably not very good". Well, mine was delicious. Meanwhile, I've gotten my espresso routine down and find that it doesn't take much time at all to make a good cup, certainly less than waiting in line twice at Starbucks.
By the way, you will end up owning a burr-type grinder, too. Beans last longer than pre-ground coffee before things turn bitter. |
affordable quality
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| Review Date: January 21, 2007 |
| Reviewer: N. Barnard, Plain, Washington |
I own two of these machines which is helpful because this enables me to generate espresso and steam milk simultaneously. Because different temperatures are necessary for each function, this improves the execution of each task, especially when I am making more than two lattes. Nicer, more expensive machines, of course, contain separate boilers to facilitate exactly this. Even for the $500 it would cost for two, you will not likely find a machine with two boilers, so it could make sense in a purely economical/performance related context.
The exteriors of these machines are nothing special, but the internal componentry is quite up to the task. The first thing that impressed me about the units was the quality of the portafilters. They are unlike any i've seen from ordinary cheap home units and are very heavy duty, die cast, solid. More like I imagine a good commercial grade machine to have, as opposed to any machines at or below this price point that i've seen.
These machines do a good job, and have lasted me over a year now with above average use, and I would recommend them to anyone who doesn't want to spend more than these cost. However, I have a few small concerns that I want to note:
-Make sure that the water reservoir doesn't run out of water while trying to make espresso. It's a small matter, but the intake tubes will lose suction and will struggle to create a new one after the reservoir is replenished.
-The frothing wand does a great job steaming milk. I get dense micro foam, as much so as i've ever experienced. However, the boiler expends itself generally after enough milk for one cappuccino or small latte is steamed. To replenish the boiler you need engage the button normally depressed for producing espresso and wait to engage the steam until the green "ready" light comes back on. This is crucial, because without doing this, the machine effectively runs out of steam.
-And lastly, take care not to lose any of the frothing wands' internal pieces. There are a couple of really small parts inside and I recently lost one of them thus severely hampering the wands' performance.
I would recommend these machines as the best that I've seen for this price. I've noticed other reviewers warning against them for espresso junkies, pointing out that they will not hold up to regular or heavy use, but I am calling these machines work horses. I use mine at work, where I am a kitchen manager for a small retreat center in rural Washington. While I don't use these machines in a commercial application, I definitely have used them on a daily basis for over a year, and have at times served espresso drinks/cappuccinos for groups: Having two of these machines enables me to crank out drink after drink which I've done for maybe up to 16 people at once. These machines have a lightning fast heat up time, likely as fast as any from a dead start.
These machines are obviously not meant for commercial use, but the point is that they would easily be up to the task for home use. They are cheap. There are so many other, nicer machines, but they also cost more. Check out the new la spaziale vivaldi II which retails for about $1900. It's small enough to fit on your kitchen counter top, runs on 110 volt current, and would be the home barista's dream machine. Personally I use an Expobar Brewtus II at home and it is everything I could ask for in a home machine. Now that is what I'm talking about. Look's like the Gaggia's are going to be staying at work. |
Couldn't be happier with this machine!
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| Review Date: January 5, 2007 |
| Reviewer: raion, Durham, NC USA |
After much research online, I settled on this model. I agree what other reviewers have stated that the design improvements over the Carezza make this a worthy upgrade for the difference in price.
This machine is solidly built, looks great, and makes great espresso. As with anything, a reading of the manual will provide all the info you need to make great espresso drinks. After reading the instructions I was able to make great lattes after only a couple tries getting the tamp right.
I recommend starting out with the Illy fine grind coffee, available here on Amazon.com. Its highly recommended elsewhere, tastes great, and is ground correctly for use in an espresso machine. It will make it easier to fine tune your skills with the machine by removing the grind level from the equation.
I tried using the turbo milk frothing wand, which worked well, but I removed it and just use stainless steel tube, which works great and is easier to clean. I can get the milk so hot the frothing pitcher burns my hands, though you shouldn't heat the milk over 155 degrees or it will scald and change flavor. The reviewer who couldn't must not be following the directions correctly, or has a defective unit.
Since getting this machine, I've made at least one drink per day, sometimes two. I've even gotten my wife drinking lattes. You can't go wrong with this one!
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Excellent Machine for the price
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| Review Date: October 15, 2006 |
| Reviewer: Jay G, Melville, NY USA |
| After reading all the gaggia reviews (Capressa and Evolution) I decided to splurge for the extra $50 and go for the evolution. Setup was pretty easy (why the two manuals, I dont know but took about 15 minutes to setup). Overall, sturdy machine. My last one (a $75 Briel Apollo) lasted a few years and the boiler broke. This one is sturdier and feels solid. First cups came out perfect. For the money, you cant beat this machine. Highly reccommended. |
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