Ascaso Steel Duo Espresso Machine

This is my first manual espresso machine after starting with a cheap full auto and later upgrading to a semi-auto BES870XL. I love the sheer amount of control that I have over my shots, from the pressure the machine brews at to the amount of water that goes into the shot (more so with a double), pre-infusion time, and flow of the steam coming out of the wand. It takes a lot of time getting dialed in right to produce a good shot, and I am still working on my technique, though it has improved greatly in the past few weeks that I've had this machine.

Out of the box:
I'll start with the most disappointing thing for anyone who reads this: The tamper this machine comes with is a cheap, flimsy, plastic 48mm disc that doesn't even cover the surface area of your 49mm portafilter. If you don't have one already, save yourself the extra wait and get yourself a nice, heavy 49mm tamper when you buy this (I got a solid stainless tamper by Silmur and it's perfect) and throw the plastic one into the trash upon arrival.
Now for the good: Everything was well-packaged in molded styrofoam to minimize the chance of impact damage. Everything came out looking shiny and beautiful with no damage. Assembly was pretty straightforward, and the owner's manual gives you just enough information to get started. Disclaimer: the manual does not tell the user how to adjust the pressurestat if you find that your machine is not in the right zone out of the box, or if you really want to fine-tune your extraction. But fear not: simple but tedious pressurestat adjustments are a quick Google/YouTube search away (butter knife and small ratchet with phillips and flat head bits to get the job done not included).

Brewing with this bad boy requires a ton of patience. If you're new to manuals, do not expect to pull amazing shots right away. Even semi-autos have their nuances, though not nearly as many. First, make sure that you can see the meniscus (that bottom line at the top of your water) in the sight glass. This will ensure that your boiler is neither under nor overfilled. It doesn't take long to heat up and get to pressure. Once it's ready to go, the rest is up to you (take lots of notes; it helps!). After a few weeks of active use, I've just about gotten it down (until I get different beans, that is). The steam wand is another well-designed piece of this machine, and produces the silkiest microfoam I have ever made. You control the output, and it is immediate steam on demand. Do let some out to get the wand up to temp and avoid it shooting straight hot water into your pitcher before frothing it up. Back to brewing: It does seem to run a bit hot, and I've read that the general consensus is that the ideal brewing temperature is right when it gets up to pressure, and then after that the user should to apply a cold cloth to the groupset to keep temperatures down and avoid burnt shots. I'll start following that advice and see how my extraction improves.

I've been having a ton of fun with this machine, and don't think I could ever go back to anything short of a manual espresso machine after this experience. It's definitely one of my favorite additions to my coffee-making collection, and I'll probably love it even more when I finally do pull that perfect shot.

Beautiful….. well presented all possible needed tools and reflects excellence and competence of design and craftsmanship…...

Comiso Coffee is my go to for me espresso machine and Eureka grinder. Fast delivery and free shipping.

Love the micro fine adjustments that it will make takes some getting use to but when you dial it in it’s great

Incorporates many of the features of the larger 2 boiler model in a more counter friendly configuration. High quality design and construction

Okay, let me tell you about the Fiorenzato All Ground Coffee Grinder. This thing is a BEAST. I've tried a few grinders in the past, but none of them compare to the consistency and precision of this one. And you know what's the best part? It's so darn easy to use. All you need to do is pour in your beans, choose your grind size, and press a button. Boom! You've got yourself a perfect cup of coffee.

But let me tell you, I had a little issue with the grinder a few days after I got it. I reached out to Comiso Coffee, where I bought it from, and they were SO helpful. They responded quickly and even walked me through a few troubleshooting steps to fix the issue. When it turned out I needed a replacement part, they shipped it to me right away and even gave me a discount on my next purchase as an apology for the inconvenience.

Overall, I can't recommend the Fiorenzato All Ground Coffee Grinder and Comiso Coffee enough. If you're serious about your coffee, this grinder is a game-changer. And if you want to buy it from a company that truly cares about their customers, go with Comiso Coffee. They're the real deal.

Eureka Mignon Coffee Grinder

I wanted something to upgrade from a failed Bambino Plus and after some looking settled on the Victoria. I don't really make milk drinks, so the single main "weakness" of being single boiler doesn't bother me. I got a wifi controllable outlet so I can heat it up from up in my office, but warm up isn't that long anyways. The porta-filter goes in kind of hard, but it does seal and work OK so long as I don't over-fill with coffee, so not really an issue. I'd recommend the Victoria for someone wanted to stay at or below $1000 and get a proper Italian machine that you can service if it ever fails (vs breville which isn't really made to be repaired).

It's perfect. High group, PID control, professional size portafilter in 58 mm, OPV valve set from the factory, automatic water discharge into the tray after steam whipping, boiler for 300 ml and timer. The order came faster than I expected and was perfectly packaged. Thank you so much for the amazing espresso machine!

Ordered my Lelit Bianca V3 in Black and very excited to try it. Delivery was smooth and fast. However i have noticed a slight flaw on the machine. Contacted Cust Serv and they assured me that it wont be an issue (i hope) they even reached out to Lelit and made sure it wont affect the machines warranty and function. We will see in the future :-)

I love this machine!

Really great machine, great espresso and easy to use ..

I love my new Victoria. It’s the most amazing machine I’ve owned.
Working with Comiso was outstanding. They had the best price and were so helpful. I don’t know why anyone would purchase and espresso machine from anywhere else.

It’s been a month using MaraX and I’m very pleased with it and the espresso that I’m able to produce. IMO it’s very aesthetically pleasing, love the black body with the maple wood, looking beautiful in my kitchen! I knew that it lacked in its feet, poorly designed and just tiny rubbery feet aren’t worthy of the overall machine and also for the price. So I’m fixing that by getting maple wood feet custom made (Etsy) so hopefully that will correct the problem also with moving the machine around. Lelit should definitely correct that moving forward maybe for v3 I guess. I come from a Breville Barista Express so this machine feels way more “premium or commercial”. Love the maple wood pf and the tactile experience with the steam and water knobs and lever. The features selecting preset brew temperatures for different roast types and the coffee/steam priority all work wonderful and it makes a very simple machine that it’s super easy to use a more capable and adjustable interface. One complaint right out of the box is the fact that Lelit didn’t add an exposed adjustment for the OPV to bring the brew pressure down to 9 bars or lower. Know that this machine comes from factory set at 10 bars. It makes zero sense why they’d do that. You have to unscrew several screws and open the top casing to adjust the brew pressure. This should be done by Lelit factory set to the industry standard of 9 bars. Ok back to positive- it comes with an awesome tamper - this is a true solid and beautiful tamper. Also it comes with IMS filter baskets- they seem pretty legit precision baskets, single, double and triple. Sad they don’t include a bottomless pf like they do with the Bianca…Anyways all you need is a good WDT and use the Lelit tamper and you’ll be on your way to make great espresso. Of course you need a good grinder. I paired it with Niche Zero and I’m enjoying amazing espresso. The steaming power is a bit weak when set to coffee mode but still way better than what I was used to with Breville. However when set to steam mode it’s really good. Overall steaming is good for my needs. I don’t need a super end game machine like the bigger Bianca so Mara meets my needs and I find it beautiful! Overall I recommend it and I’d probably buy it again knowing what I know now.

Excellent grinder. Glad I picked the 75 over the 65. Works well with my Dalla Corte Mina espresso machine. I did modify a Eureka Mignon single dose hopper to work with the Eureka 75. Works great with very little retention.