Breville Barista Express Review – Living up to the Name?

Designed With an Industrial Look

The Breville Barista Express coffee maker has a very interesting and industrial look, similar to the look of the Rancilio Silvia or to some of the stainless steel machines by Gaggia. It comes in multiple colors, among which black, silver, and red. Its chassis is made of stainless steel, but its internal parts are made of plastic.

This coffee maker has a lot of buttons, dials, and other parts that are visible on its outside. You can spot the power, grind amount, and filter size button on the left-hand side of the coffee maker. The program and the two brew buttons are located on its right side.

The pressure indicator of the internal pressure pump is located in the middle of the coffee maker’s control panel. Furthermore, the coffee maker also has a built-in bean hopper with a grinder.

This coffee machine measures 16’’ x 13.5’’ x 12.5’’ and is a bit larger than some espresso machines at its price range.

How to Make Yourself Some Coffee

Fun fact: The Morning Call Coffee Stand team considers the Barista Express by Breville to be the best espresso machine under $1000. That said, it’s completely justifiable to expect the machine to make way-above-average coffee drinks.

To make coffee, you need to first put coffee beans in the bean hopper of the Barista Express. After that, you should decide which of the four filter baskets you want to use. Once you pick your portafilter, press on one of the filter size buttons to tell the machine what kind of basket you’ve chosen.

Once you’ve made your decision, you should put the portafilter you want into the grinding bracket. The portafilters can be double or single (for double or single shots) and pressurized or unpressurized.

If you push in the bracket briefly, the grinder will grind a standard amount of coffee for your drink. However, if you push and hold the filter basket, the coffee maker will grind as much coffee as you want. The grind amount is adjustable with the Grind Amount button on the control panel of the machine. Furthermore, you can also adjust the grind size of the coffee with the dial on the left-hand side of the Express.

When you’re done grinding, take the basket out and tamper it with the tamper that’s located on the left-hand side on the Express. Then, put the basket inside the brewing bracket, lock it, and brew your coffee.

The Express lets you adjust your coffee and the brew water temperature to your preferences. These two features make sure that the coffee you get in your cup has the flavor that you want.

Frothing Milk on the Breville Barista Express

To add milk froth into your coffee, use the 360˚ swiveling steam wand. You can adjust the wand at just the right angle in your container with milk to get the foam texture that you want for your coffee.

To turn on the steam function, switch the dial on the right-hand side of the Express. The thermocoil heat exchange boiler system makes sure that the machine can brew coffee and froth milk without losing on temperature. This is how you get good-quality coffee and froth.

Cleaning the Coffee Maker

Cleaning the Breville Barista Express is not hard. Clean the milk system after each use by letting some steam pass through it. Also, wipe the steam wand after you’re done frothing.

The machine will tell you when it’s time to clean it by turning on the Clean Me light indicator on the control panel. Also, a tiny note that says ‘Empty Me!’ will pop up out of the tray once it’s time to empty it.

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FAQ About the Breville Barista Express

1. Can I use the Breville Barista Express to make 50-100 cups of coffee in my coffee shop?

We wouldn’t recommend you do that. This machine was designed for home use and will probably not be able to last for long if it makes 50-100 cups of coffee on a daily basis. Furthermore, it is a slow machine which makes it inadequate for using it in a coffee shop.

2. What kinds of coffee drinks can this coffee maker make?

It can make all sorts of drinks, from espresso and Americano to coffee drinks with milk.

3. Which accessories does this coffee maker come with?

It comes with a 54mm portafilter, single and dual pressurized and unpressurized filter baskets, a razor dose trimming tool, a stainless steel milk container, cleaning brush, disk, and tablets, water filter and filter holder, and tool and Allen key.

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Conclusion

The Breville Barista Express coffee machine has a nice design, great features, and makes good-quality coffee. It might be a little tricky to learn to operate, but that’s because it has a lot of useful features. Of course, these features help your coffee gain on quality.

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We hope that our Breville Barista Express review helped you learn more about this nice coffeemaker. If you like this machine, consider cleaning your kitchen counter and getting the Express for yourself.