One of the biggest pleasures in life—quick, aromatic, rich tasting cup of coffee in the morning! A coffee machine allows you to enjoy this pleasure without breaking a sweat. The not-so-fun part (and a real headache at times) is how do I choose such a machine?
Well, at first, let’s make something clear: what is an automatic coffee machine? It’s a machine that:
- Will grind coffee beans (most of them have an option to use already ground coffee as well).
- Will pump water, heat it up to the set temperature.
- Will brew coffee using the right amount of water.
- Will pour the drink into a placed cup (some machines have an option of making two cups at once).
- Most of the automatic coffee machines have a system cleaning function.
- Automatic coffee machines will let you know when to descale.
- The machines that have milk frothers will allow you to make milk foam for your drinks.
- Automatic coffee machines that have an option of preparing coffee with milk will easily make other drinks with milk, like latte macchiato.
What you will need to do:
- Choose your favourite coffee beans.
- Take out coffee grounds and clean/descale the machine from time to time.
As you can see, you only need to do two things, and picking out your favourite coffee will be more of a pleasure, than work. Collecting grounds and occasionally cleaning are only small tasks, which are easy to do and allow you to enjoy your favourite drinks.
But enough about the benefits, let’s talk about the things you should have in mind:
Comfort
It’s a good reason why most people get an automatic coffee machine. What kind of machine are you looking for? Do you have a large, spacious kitchen, or is your kitchen table packed with appliances? Width, height and length: all this information is available when buying a machine.
It’s important to remember: you will need to refill the water tank. Usually, water tanks are very easy and comfortable to take out, but make sure that there’s a bit more space available than you need to fit your hand.
Milky drinks
It’s very simple: do you like drinks with milk? If yes, how often do you drink them? An extra milk tank is a great thing for those who enjoy milky drinks on a daily basis. If you don’t have them as often, you’ll get the most use out of a walk pipe (without a separate tank). You simply put the pipe into a pack of milk and make your drink with the milk. (Don’t forget to put the milk back into the fridge!) And if you drink your coffee with milk rarely, maybe you should get a machine without the extra milk function.
A milk frother is for those who want to prepare their coffee with milk like real professionals. A frother is used to separately make milky foam. Milk frothers are very easy to use. Just a few times, and you’ll be making really good looking cups of coffee. And if you decided that you want the most perfect coffee foam, it becomes even easier—get a machine with advanced froth aiders.
“Under the skin”
Individual/programmable drinks: most people are afraid they won’t know how to use these programs. I will tell you honestly: it will take you literally two minutes to “get it”. Every machine is very easy to program (there’s always instructions for it). An option to program is extremely useful if there will be more than one person using the machine, and especially if they like different types of coffee. It’s a comfortable function that saves a bit of time.
A grinder is a really important part of your machine. It’s pretty important to be able to control how coarse you want your beans ground. This function allows you to get the coffee just the way you like it—much of the coffee’s quality depends on how it will be ground.
Design
After all, a coffee machine will become a part of your kitchen. Once you’ve chosen the size and functions of your machine, you have to decide which coffee machine will fit your space better. Here advice becomes a bit harder to give. Different machine manufacturers follow different “styles”. Let’s say, automatic Jura coffee machines have more modern design parts. Although, you can’t be so strict here. I would advise to choose the function you’d like your machine to have and pick out a few similar in function machines, then just try to imagine them in your kitchen.
That’s it for now. I’d like to remind you: if you wish to check out any specific machine or simply get more advice—contact us. We will help with every question!
