Good esspresso. I like the looks of the machine. It seems to be well made of heavy duty materials.
Negative Product Points
Lack of power when foaming milk. Basically the foamer doesn't work.
Detailed Commentary
I have made esspresso for years with inexpensive pump machines. My last one was a Krups. It just wore out, started leaking all over the place after about 10 years. For a replacement I searched for "the best esspresso machine" via internet and decided on the Gaggia Classic. The esspresso is good I think. I am getting "tail of the mouse" shots in 14 to 24 seconds.
My problem is the steamer. I took off the black plastice thing and just used the short metal tube to steam but the machine runs out of power before I can get a small pitcher of milk steamed. I have to turn off the steam and stand around to let more build up in order to finish the steaming process. I've tried it about 5 times now always with the same result. I also tried with the black plastic attachment but it makes the foam too frothy. I couldn't get that dense creamy foam.
I sent an email to the company re the above through their website about a month ago but no response. Possibly I needed to correspond in Italian.
Now I'm considering buying another cheap steam machine just to steam milk but I don't want all the gadgets on my counter.
If I were to do it over again I would pay the extra for a machine with a dual boiler.
