Thank you for watching, comments welcome! Product links in the description above 👆🏻 Check prices here: geni.us/BrevilleEspressoMach (Breville/Sage affiliate link) Full Barista Express Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-_XgBasLKbCc.html Full La Specialista Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-2SunSQd4qvs.html
Hi Tom, it would be great to do a video about the espresso puck/shower screens (vamotto, neouza,etc.) - are they useful or useless - your opinion. We have Sage Barista Pro and we're not sure about the sense of those screen in my machine. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us!
Thanks Tom for all of your videos. They help me to choose the right coffee machine, but I have a question: has I know the Italian cafe needs about 7 8 grams for a single shot. The Sage barista have a 54 millimeter diameter and the DeLonghi 51 mm. My doubts are if the diameter is too big, the Puck will be to short? Which are Better for a single shot 7or 8 gr? And the witch of them is the more silent?
We have had the Breville unit for almost 10 years. It started leaking 2 years ago, and I pulled it apart and replaced an o-ring on the pump output. A few months ago the pump started siezing, so I ran vinegar through it and it fixed. SO all in all, been a very reliable machine that produces consistent good results. Go Australia!
@@shamrock135 The o-ring was on the output side of the high pressure pump. You need to remove the retaining clip to remove the pipe. I took the o-ring to a small engineering company in my industrial estate who charged me $1 for 2 new ones.
This is our second K-Classic. We had our first one for many years, so when we had to replace it, we wanted nothing else but this exact ru-vid.comUgkxBrV-RbF5Nk0Rlt9i15aao-YMzqzTG8Vf model. We use it for about three people everyday in the morning. The taste and quick brew is one of the reasons we like it so much. There are so many choices of brands of coffee that we would grab what was on sale and test the different brands from there. I would definitely recommend trying different brands of coffee to find the ones you like the most because there are brands that quite frankly taste horrible.
My BBE preheats (water) in about a minute. So, rather than wait longer for the brew group & portafilter to heat, I pull a blank shot while I’m grinding the beans. That water - and the drip tray contents - later gets used to water plants. No waste!
I've had the Barista Express for about 8 years now and love it. That said I had to replace the pump recently. Not a huge deal. $32 from Amazon and about 2 hours of learning how and doing it. Back to good Americanos in the morning out on the deck.
I've just bought the "Cecotec Power Espresso 20 Barista Maestro", I used to have the classic "Sage the Barista Express" and I must say, this new one is the closest thing I've ever got to the Sage one, with basically half of the price! It would be interesting to see your review of it!
I have owned my Breville Barista Express for 2 years now and love it. On days I forget to pre-heat the portafilter, I just run a blank single shot through it and wipe it out. I also purge the head after pulling my shot and it flushes out those grounds that get sucked up. Great review, I always wondered if that Delonghi was any better and now I know I made the right choice!
I would like to know what you thought of the flavor of the espresso shot that each appliance produced. I often see in these reviews and in videos an espresso machine or press produce a cosmetically pleasing shot, but what does it taste like? A beautiful looking shot can still taste bitter AF or sour. Ultimately, the deciding factor for either machine is whether or not I can make minor user-friendly adjustments to espresso making (grind size, dosage, brew temp, etc) that will yield a shot that is enjoyable to my flavor preference. I have an earlier model DeLonghi La Specialista and I find that I have to make minor espresso-making adjustments with each breed or roast of coffee that I add to the grinder hopper.
On the hunt for black friday deals and had my eye out on DeLonghi for a long time. Came here to make final check and found BBE or SBE as here it is Sage ... Anyway ... Sage is almost 220€ cheaper than DeLonghi so i'm taking the plunge! Thanks for your nice video and detailed explanation.
Great review, I've tried douzaines of machines over the years. The most important things are quality of the grinder and the temperature stability. Without those two elements, it gets complicated to dial-in the perfect shot (extraction). I would go for the Breville even if the Delonghi was much cheaper. If you want an Americano, you don't need a special button, just make an ultra long espresso. The Delonghi will do nothing besides letting more water run depending on the beverage you choose, it's not really a magic feature. Again great review Tom.
Hi there, you are right on most points, but for an Americano, the Delonghi actually pulls a shot, then adds hot water through the hot water spigot. So, it does not just pull a longer shot. But yes, the grinder and heated brew group (although it takes a long time to heat) of the BBE make it the winner.
@@TomsCoffeeCorner Thanks for the extra info. I’m curious, does it make a difference in quality? At that point, there’s so little left to extract from the coffee, it’s just yellow water.
@@rioriggs3568I'm not really sure how it compares to the breville but the delonghi Americanos are really delicious. It pulls the shot and then adds hot water on top of it. So long as you have a good shot you have a good Americano in my experience
My barista express does not take anywhere near that long to start steam, I would say about half that. that being said, I do steam basically strait after pulling a shot, so maybe the heater is already a lot warmer. (i did see the note in the video about the 20-30 depending on usage, so less of a point i guess) the downsides to the La Specialista are a bit hard to dismiss, the grinder is the biggest one in my opinion. the level sensor is nice, I wish the breville had it, but its not a major issue. I really like how breville stand behind their products, on my second bag of beans I had a foreign object that I missed when filling the hopper that lodged in the grinder and shredded the gears inside (the foreign object looked like it was perfectly shaped to break a grinder). I contacted both the bean manufacturer and breville, the bean company basically did not believe me and wanted me to provide the object, which I could not as it was jammed in the machine. breville booked me in for a 'free quote' to diagnose the issue with instructions to the repair shop to pull the machine down and provide me the object (free of charge), I took it in, they a day later they said they had the object out and what the issue was and that they were waiting on parts. I asked how much it would cost and they said breville authorised the repair for free. have not had another issued with it in 3 years. took me 6 months with the bean manufacturer to get them to do anything. If my barista express were to die, I would probably not buy another one, but thats only because I would probably upgrade to a 'prosumer' level machine with separate grinder. not because the machine is bad in any way, I love it and use it every day. I do not see myself replacing it until it does eventually kick the bucket (unless I come across an unbeatable deal on a better machine. thats unlikely to happen).
I bought the Breville Express in solid stainless steel for $1,000 (Canadian) and I LOVE it! I agree that the (only) downside is running out of water mid stream but you learn quickly to check the water levels more regularly. I had to justify spending that kind of money for a coffee machine but if you love your coffee and can afford it, go for it!
Great video! I received the BBE as a Christmas gift and love it. It actually came with a funnel which allows me to grind into my portafilter without making a mess.
Only complains and not really complains I have about my barista express is that I wish I was double boiler and the wand a bit longer other than that is an amazing entry level machine and once u get used to it the only reason to upgrade or change is if it ever breaks
You’ll never truly appreciate the BES860/870 until you put a good grinder like the V4 Nano next to it. And if you shop wisely, you can still do it for around $1100.
My Barista express has been a daily driver for over 5 years and it's still pushing out great coffee. I have already bought another ready for the day it finally dies.
One very key point is the temperature stability during the brewing stage. I am surprise to see that Delonghi didn't realize about this very basic thing. This is the main killer especially for coffee savvy folks !!!
Currently the Delonghi is nearly £200 cheaper than the BBE in the UK but I still bought the BBE which is called Sage on my model. Thanks for the comparison.
I don't know if in the USA it's the same as in France. But the Sage is €729 while the De'Longhi is €547. It's 33% difference and therefore difficult to put them in the same category. However, the test remains very interesting and highlights important differences. On the other hand, the Breville VCF152X Barista Max+ which costs €400 seems to me to be very interesting.
I see you went through the motions of giving the Delonghi a "fair" deal but it was never going to make the grade, was it? 😁😁 I wholeheartedly agree though! I have had the Barista Express for 2 years now and as a result I look forward to waking up every morning for my coffee!!😍
Yes, I gave the Arte a fair shake. I am a Delonghi fan. But I recognize that these are two different machines. I hope Delonghi brings their A game next time, because I know they can do it!
It is interesting that the amount of water needed is no an issue for you, for the Breville company, and...I get it, for many. I am from Monterrey, Mexico and last season we had a drought, and they might be more of that in the future. So, in order to make a 60ml coffee I will waste the same amount of water, It does not make much sense. That is the main reason I would pick the Delonghi. Maybe in another moment it would be different, but I have developed this water conscience the hard way.
We use the La Specialista in the second year now. We were not able to set the machine up for a good espresso and a good "coffee crema" at the same time. Since I bought an external mill for my espresso everything is just fine. The grinder of the La Specialista is now used for "coffee crema" only. The external mill holds another type of beans and is grinding much finer for espresso. Temping is done in both cases with the build in temper of the DeLonghi. I like the speed and ease of use of the La Specialista - and of course the quality of the coffee.
Please don't change the internal grind setting initially especially to 2 before you are sure you need it. My grind dial started creeping right from the get go.
This is just what I've been looking for thank you! Do you find there's much difference in the temperature of the shot once it's made? I'm also interested to know how hot these machines can make milk based drinks such as lattes?
Hi there! Well the finished shot will depend also on how well you pre-warmed your espresso cup. But they are plenty hot. I would venture to say the BBE can offer hotter extractions. I was extracting at the medium setting on the BBE, and it can go +2 degrees more. The Specialista was already extracting at its highest temp. Both machines make good hot milk drinks. You just have to froth until it's hot enough.
i returned the barista express because grinder simply was not up to par. could not grind some beans fine enough to pull decent shots. would be nice if the removable hopper had a bean shutoff so you could remove, dump beans and switch to different beans rather that having to grind all first or fish out manually. probably a good idea to modify oth grinders as to increase grinding range.
@@OnreleTehMusicPlayer i did not want to mess with it as to possibly void store return policy. the breville grind quality paled compared to my ascaso or rocky grinder neither of which are high end. (low end)
did you use good-quality beans? If you buy beans from the grocery shop your beans are probably old and it is really hard to get a decent shot of coffee. And also it is not recommended to keep your beans inside your grinder, but the best way is to weigh every time your beans and put just that quantity. You can change the grinding range inside the grinder, and it is recommended in the manual. There are way better grinders, but they cost almost the same as this machine.
@@devil88bg62 i never use the grinder to store beans. just enough for amount of coffee at time. at that time i was using beans from a local roaster and recently roasted. besides currently using an ascaso and rocky grinder, in the past had a mazzer mini as well as a gaggia mdf.
@@s96822 Ok so maybe you got a bad-calibrated grinder I would say. I only had issues with the grinder when I bought the beans from the grocery (lavazza, illy, etc). In that case yes. But again it is really easy to modify the grinder setting inside, I changed mine because I was always at the lower end of the grinder setting. Now I am consistently between 6 to 8. But despite the machine is an entry-level it took a bit to have some good shot and understand how it works... so yes it is entry-level but not easy instant result. Probably with a good external grinder you will get better results, no doubt about it. But honestly, I paid mine on Amazon 415£, no way I could go anywhere near that price with any other setup. But now the same machine cost 629£ without any discount, and for that price or slightly more you can get a better setup.
I finally caved and got myself an espresso machine last Black Friday, got the Specialista on sale at Target for $499, plus the RedCard 5% discount, plus a $75 gift card I had. Absolutely loved it, dialed in my shots pretty quick, and then got my frothing down rather well too. However, about two weeks ago I noticed the selector knob was stuck on Americano--no matter what I select, American stays selected. I ended up calling Delonghi ten days ago, and they said they'd contact me again. Finally got an e-mail yesterday telling me they're gonna send me a box so I can send it in for repairs. I don't know, I've loved the machine, but things are starting to get me a little concerned with the machine's build and their service. I hope I can get it resolved and I can enjoy this machine for years, and don't end up regretting I didn't get the Barista!
Hey there, I had the exact same problem. I contacted Delonghi, and after a 40-minute call and a quick video chat to show them the problem, I had a new machine in 5 days', which included them processing the request and then 3 days of shipping. I also got mine for $500 on black Friday from best buy. I had the one he showed in the video(EC9155MB), but they said they were out of stock, so they sent me the refreshed machine(EC9155M). The only difference I can notice is that the sides of the device and the bottom tray are silver instead of black, and all of the specs listed seemed to be the same. They were also supposed to send me a shipping label to return my broken machine, but they still need to. I gave it to my sister, with the workaround being to stop the water after extracting the espresso.
@@michaelbychkov8030 That sounds like a pretty good deal! I wonder why I'm not getting the same treatment. I've been stopping it before the water pours whenever I want to make espresso, but now it's asking me to do a descaling, so I hope they don't take too long!
@@michaelbychkov8030 they didn't, they asked me to show them the problem through a video chat, asked for proof of purchase, I sent it during the call, and the lady said it looked good and I'd be getting a call back from tech support. That was week on Monday, and I barely got an email yesterday saying my proof of purchase was valid, and to expect a box to ship it to them for repairs in the mail soon. But no mention of a replacement, just a repair.
Hi, great review! Have you tested the Barista Pro, too? How does it compare to the Express, especially in terms of heat development and preheating the shower and filter?
Thank you for your video, I’m absolutely new to the space but I’ve always loved coffee. Could you please answer my questions? - I have been having pod coffees and do you think I’ll be able to tell the difference and love the actual espresso? - breville is about $400 more expensive $1000 vs $630 at where I live, do you think it’s worth it? - I see that specialista isn’t recommended much, would you say it’s a bad machine or is it just not perfect enough for actual coffee folks, do you still recommend that machine for me? Or should I save up and get the express but I might also end up not buying anything because it’s too expensive. Thank you!!!❤
You'll notice a huge difference between pods and actual espresso, yes. The Sage is better than the Delonghi for a number of reasons. Maybe wait for a sale?
I bought My Delonghi around 2 years ago, so far I'm pretty happy and it was 150dlls less than the Breville. However, now that there are so many reviews available I would Buy Breville.
In México, the Breville price is higher than the Delongui price (1000 vs 600 dlls) , and the after-sales service is bad. Their reviews on the sales pages refer to many problems and few solutions in terms of maintenance. I am learning a lot from you, greetings
Hello Mr Tom. I hope you can reply my question below. I just started to love drinking barista coffee a few months back. Normally I just do americano instant coffee or 3-in-1 coffee. I am thinking to buy a machine just for myself use everyday (1-2 cups per day). I love latte. Which machine do you recommend? Cheap but good quality coffee. Thank you very much.
Got the barista express for nearly 2 years now and it is an amazing machine. There is a reason why is still on the market for so long and it is the best seller for the semi-manual machines bean-to-cup. I drink espresso everyday and I can always pull great shots. Honestly in that range of price/budget I wouldn't even think an alternative. The only issue with the barista is that you need to wait at least 5-10 minutes so the machine goes in temperature... not a big deal for me, because if you love coffee you are not really in a rush and you can afford 10 minutes to switch and do something else, then get your coffee. If you can't probably this machine is not for you.
Tom, I have had the Barista for a couple of years and my mother has had the de Longhi- and have come to the same conclusions. The Breville is easier to dial in the grinder, the head is warmer, it pulls better shots most times, and is easier to clean. The de Longhi water tank seems to need filling less often, but the grinder of a pain to clean. In terms of reliability, zero issues with the Breville (it gets hammered with 4 adults) but my mum is on her second de Longhi. She did try a Barista but did not Like it….
Hi Tom, given the same coffee ground which one would you say produce better espresso? From your video It looks the Breville produces more watery espresso with less crema than Delonghi.. which is a big minus for me although the Breville is the winner on other features based on your review..
The espresso depends mostly on grind fineness, dose, and puck preparation. Therefore, each machine can do a fine job. However, the BBE eventually starts to heat the brew group which is a plus, and the pre-infusion isn't as aggressive as the Arte, which I find is also a plus. So, I'd say the BBE is better than the Arte in my experience for espresso.
The breville case is also plastic made, but is covered in a metal sheet. Better grinder with much more step positions(the impress has more up to 30 ), pid control with temp +4 -4 celsius depending on how darker your coffee is, if you hold your finger on the cup button the preinfusion function will be set on manual meaning thay you can control how long u want to take, 3way solenoid valve, overall a better product than the delonghi. The grinding, Brew temp stability and the pressure extrsction are the most important when it comes to espresso quality
The Delonghi also has temperature control in all La Specialista and Dedica models. Not sure it's a true PID (and, tbh, if it matters with thermoblock machines), but they could be set up at 92/94/96° C
My barista express always goes wrong. It's a fantastic machine when it works but unfortunately I've had to return it twice. The warranty is now void and has gone wrong for the third time (same problem) - the pressure has gone on the water tap and milk steamer. When I contacted Sage last time, they explained that it was scale but I don't believe them as my machine is descaled on a regular basis with the power and tablets. Does anyone know what the problem is I'm having? Thanks.
Is your machine leaking at all? The question is, where is it losing pressure? Might need to troubleshoot in the interior of the machine, but if you don't feel comfortable doing that, you could sell it for parts...sorry to hear it!
At 2:31 you said “So La Specialista uses the 54mm portafilter” but you showed us the barista express portafilter and then you said “DeLonghi uses its standard 51mm portafilter” and only then you showed the real DeLonghi😅 No offense to you, but tought you didn’t notice, btw accidents happen!😂 Also i am using my DeLonghi Dedica and im willing to upgrade to Sage Barista Express, because i learned the basic barista skills on my dedica and now i want to improve them on something more professional. Btw is 250€ a good price for used Sage Barista Express and what should i need to know before i buy it? I will be waiting for your answer, Tom!😊❤
Hi there! Oops, then I must have misspoke. Yes, that is a good price for a used BBE. Just make sure it's not leaking or anything. If you can find one still under warranty, that would be the best. You never know how people treated the machines before you...
Niestety nie polecam tego expresu. Po dwóch latach użytkowania tożsamej marki breville vcf126x pękła uszczelka grupy-czyli znajdująca się pod kolbą. Niestety element nie jest dostępny w sprzedaży w żadnym serwisie, kontaktowałem się również z breville polska i potwierdzili że nie ma tego elementu w sprzedaży. Zatem brak dostępności podstawowych części eksploatacyjnych. Jedyne rozwiązanie to ekspres za 2tys wyrzucić i kupić nowy - na pewno nie od tego producenta. Nie polecam.
Well, I am afraid you didn't buy one of these machines above, but rather a knock off machine, made by the Sunbeam brand. Sorry to hear about it though!
I bought an original Barista Express over 10 years ago shortly after Breville first released them. Not much seems to have changed in that time besides the change from a square to round bean hopper, and stamped plate for the drip tray instead of the originals wire mesh (which I prefer as it doesn need to be wiped every time). Sadly, it started leaking not long ago and killed a solenoid in the process. I bought the parts, but then found I couldn't pull apart the fittings that have leaked due to being locked in place from corrosion, so it may have had its day. The steam wand is definitely the Achilles heel of these machines and could be more powerful, so a bit disappointed they haven't improved it. Regarding the tank, I don't see it as a big issue to not have a sensor. Just check the level before you start, which is easy to see from the sides. Good review, I had wondered about the Delonghi, but here in Australia they're more expensive, so a Breville is a strong possibility as a repeat purchase.
Thanks for sharing, Jared. While the steam wand is slow, it does make excellent silky milk. It is unfortunate that these can be prone to leaking. I still think it is a better machine all around than the Arte. I wish there were more proper combo offers than just these two...
@Tom's Coffee Corner do you not get the Barista Pro in your market? That seems a little more advanced than the Barista Express, and has some differences internally as well from what I've seen. Though it does delete the pressure gauge unfortunately.
@@jaredbawden6707 Well, the Pro comes with the additional advantage of a lack of a heated brew group, methinks. The Bambino does not heat the brew group, and I am pretty sure the Pro uses the same technology. Also, the Pro is quite more expensive.
Hi Tom, can you please clarify for me. I have been told that bean to cup machines like these, because the beans are stored while the machine is pulling the shot and being heated up, it reduces the life and quality of the beans due to the heat of the machine operation. Is that true in this case?
Honestly I don't think there's much to worry about. Theoretically that could be the case, but the bean hopper is on the opposite of the machine as the thermoblock for one, and for two, the hoppers are small. We have to refill ours about every 2 days. Cheers!
Unfortunately, it looks like delonghi made la specialista of a ThermoBlock from ec685 and an entry level grinder. And a lot of frippery around to justify a high price. For that money you can buy a good automatic melitta or navona and make good drinks in relax mode.
Hi I bought a Delonghi Elita explore however I find my coffee does not come out super hot specially the ones with milk. I have hard time controlling the heat temperature specially the drinks with milk. Would you recommend coffee machines with a milk steaming wand?
Wow, this is a super thorough and informative review which has helped me with my decision! Does the Barista Express come with automatic dosing and tamping handle?
If you dont rinse your drip tray after every use youre just being lazy haha. Takes 10 seconds to run under hot water and place onto a drying rack to put away later. No idea how you spilt that much coffee grind into the tray either haha. My only con of the delonghi is the grinder being a tad loud but the fact it goes for 20 seconds is not that big of a deal anyway. Appart from that it's by far the best thing ive purchased and the coffee i make with it is as good as what i made as a barrista in a cafe for years. I do wish you could steam milk while pouring a shot though. All in all though absolutely love it and for the price i got it on sale i have zero regrets After 6 weeks of owning one and not buying a coffee everg day for me and my psrtner it has already paid for itself. Crazy
They both should go back to the drawing board and add/combine the positive features of each machine and call it the La Specialista Barista Express. Voila!
How do you feel about Lelit Anita? I think it’s underrated, a made in italy all in one without plastic in composition to be even cheaper than both of these espresso machines
this came like almost 2 months late for me... Anyways, I'm still happy with my Delonghi machine. I think I inclined for it mainly because I had it available in my country (unfortunately, the Breville is not sold here in Argentina). Nevertheless, great video.
Tom! Love your Espresso Machine Videos. The technical comparisons are so informative and helpful. Your videography has excelled too. Thanks. Blessings ☕☕☕☕
I'd go for the Sage to be honest, and I'd opt for the Express Impress: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-g7ETTFX8m1M.htmlsi=qJ1PsKfzEbIkmHZS
@@TomsCoffeeCorner thanks for the reply. I was set on buying the breville barista express then i saw this evo. I love the way the la specialista arte look aesthetically so i was in doubt again as it's the same price as the BBE and its just 3mos old. I was hoping on looking for some reviews about the Evo and comparing it to BBE but to my surprise there hasn't any youtuber who reviewed it yet
The new products team at DeLonghi should be fired. Literally the first thing you should do is benchmark your main competitor and aim to best it in as many aspects as possible. Looks like they worked from a photo only of the Sage/Breville and came up with their own substandard design 🤦🏼♂️
Haha, I would have to agree with you here. My explanation is maybe they were trying to reach a certain price point, rather than directly aim at beating the BBE. I'd be curious to know what their thought process was on design and pricepoint.
Well, I have some links in the video description, if that's what you mean. But I'd suggest shopping around, and seeing where you can get a deal. Cheers!
