Sage The Barista Express Coffee Machine and Grinder, 1700 Watt - Silver

This machine is originally manufacture by BREVILLE. So the Sage Barista Express sold in UK is the same as BREVILLE BES870XL in north America. I bought it for my home in Paris, so i'm using a UK to French plug adaptor. Delivery very quick from UK to paris (2 days), Good packing condition. The instructions are very easy to understand, i don't see very tricky use for this machine. There is a filter inside the water tank, that i recommend to change every 2 month (the 6 units package, 1 year of filters, is sold 12£ by Sage website). But to increase the lifetime of the filter (so i dont change it too much and save money) i'm using water from Britta water filter so i change the filter every 3 month instead of 2. I grind the coffee beans with level 4 (French café Carte noire, 100% Arabica, 1Kg for 9£), quantity setup knob at 3'oclock so the pressure indicator goes to the prefect range of extraction. I love it i love it ! It provides also immédiat hot water (for tea), and water steam to froth milk. Very good conception, nice design, very heavy and stable, 1 cup and 2 cups filters are supplied, cleaning tools as well. All you need for the first 2 month of use. Then, don't forget to buy replacement filters for the water tank and Decalcifying Tablets. Update: Aug 1st 2017: After 9 month of daily uses, the machine still works perfectly. No issues at all ! I bought green un-roasted Arabica from Ethiopia. I Roast every sunday morning the café beans in a pan until i got a black italian roast, so i got fresh coffee every week. :) I'm in love with this machine, and my friends too !

People of Great Britain, this is a great espresso machine at an amazing price! Set aside your opinion of Heston Blumenthal, positive or negative, because he did not design or manufacture this machine. The credit goes to engineers and designers in Australia and factory managers in China. Sage is made by Breville Australia. Breville in Europe is a different company from the Breville based in Australia. These machines are identical except for the voltage and name plate to those sold by Breville (US, Canada, Australia, etc), Gastroback (DE), Catler (CZ, SK) and Bar & Riviera (F) In particular, this is the equivalent of the BES870XL model, with only a different voltage/plug as well as VAT (hence the much higher price). Note that the slightly different older model had a square bean hopper, no PID temperature control, no water spout. Compare feature for feature and you will discover that no other machine comes close. Where else can you find PID temperature control, timed grinding, timed shots, automated cleaning, a pressure gauge? Is it reliable? This is my third machine from the same origin. I am now living in Italy and left the other two back in the US, both working perfectly, because of the voltage mismatch. No one sells these machines in Italy. I chose this machine over something local, with local service. Italy is the birthplace of espresso and the availability everywhere means that home espresso is not well developed. The Italian machines are either sturdy and primitive in comparison or flimsy and deliver poor results. Before my Dual Boiler and my Barista Express in the US I had a Rancilio Silvia for ten years. Sturdy indeed, but very difficult to control temperature, and very slow to warm up. Did I not ever have problems with these machines? Three very minor things. First, the metal cap on the tamper came off and it was not possible for the magnet to hold the tamper in position. With one phone call, I received a replacement in a few days. Second, I have noticed that the grinds that spill in the drip tray can land on the 'Empty Me' float and prevent it from floating up to tell you that it is time to drain the tray. Now, I lift up the cover and peek once in a while. Third, the beans sometimes need a bit of help to fall down into the grinder, especially the oily ones. You can hear the grinding sound change when there is no flow of beans. A couple smart taps on the rubber lid of the hopper during grinding fixes that. My advice: Buy one. Read the manual. Get freshly roasted beans. Follow the cleaning/decalcifying instructions. You will be another happy customer.

We are delighted with this machine and still believe we got the best coffee maker for the money. It does all that we were looking for and the build quality is great. There are coffee makers out there that cost thousands and you would expect them to be very capable, reliable and well made but this is an excellent piece of kit for £500 and time will tell about it's reliability. I checked out this machine in person and was impressed with the quality of it's finish and features (before I bought from Amazon when the others would not consider a price match) We bought just in time for Xmas 2016 and it saw lots of action straight away. It's easy to use, easy to keep clean and has a good sized water tank. The dimensions are a little misleading if these are important to you - the unit height is 330mm but then with the bean hopper fitted it actually measures 415mm ! The jug is ideal for making a single cappo or latte only. More than that and you will need a larger jug, but hey, try it and see how you get on. We would suggest that you invest in good quality, fresh beans and be careful where you buy from. Some shops that sell them loose may have stored them for weeks! Check out the videos on the Sage website for good operating tips. Finally, use the steamer to make the best, hot, foamy, creamy, rich, drinking chocolate ever! Have fun.

If you're looking into getting into decent coffee similar to what boutique coffee shop offer, then this is a great place to start. I'm not a coffee expert, but I love a good coffee, and this makes just that. In terms of performance, I get a pretty consistent shot with this machine, without too much fiddling around with the grind size/tamp/amount. The more you grind your own coffee, the more you'll realise that there are many external factors to making a great shot. Fresh beans are single handedly the most important factor to this. Try to use beans roasted within the last month, at a max. Steaming milk can take a while, in comparison to industrial coffee machines anyway. You're looking at around 2 minutes per drink. Not too bad. Whilst the machine is only covered in metal (plastic inside), the build quality is second to none. The portafilter carries a lot of weight and feels premium, however it is important to realise that it isn't the standard full size (only by a few mm). The drip tray can scratch fairly easily if you're not careful, but personally this doesn't bother me too much. At the end of the day, this is a fantastic machine. Yes, you're paying a slight premium for the aesthetics of it, but I don't want something ugly like a Gaggia/grinder in my kitchen. It gets a lot of attention and never disappoints. Cleaning is extremely easy and time-efficient for those cold mornings before the commute. Take a punt!

It was great when it lasted and used it daily for about 2 1/2 years and then pressure gauge broke etc. Glad I read the reviews on here as I was about to purchase another one thinking it was just a one off. So will for another brand as I am a bit wary of buying the newer model.

I know what you're thinking, should I buy this 5 star coffee machine. It's overly expensive and probably not as good as all the reviews say, I think I'll go with a coffee pod machine sure what's the difference. Right? WRONG! Ignore the inner mediocre coffee demon on your shoulder and buy this now! It's produces quite simply the best coffee you'll ever make at home and will knock the socks of most of the high street coffee shops (not that they're all that good anyway). The grind is always consistent, the milk frother is 'very' good for home use and produces great tasting coffee. A few tips since I've bought the machine a month ago: 1) Buy a bigger milk jug. The Andrew James 660ml is perfect. You'll be lucky to get two frothed milks out of the supplied 330ml jug. 2) To clean the milk frother clean I keep a jug of water and when I'm done I insert the nozzle into the water. Two mins later it's easy to wipe away the dried milk. 3) Get freshly roasted beans but don't fill up the beans to the top. Keep them sealed in the bag and pour in enough for a day or so at a time. Get GOOD beans, research and get them to your liking. I buy from 3fE.com in Ireland (They only ship to Ireland and Northern Ireland). I've tried a lot and these top the grade and have been voted No.1 in all of Ireland. To each their own however you don't buy a BMW and put in cheap dirty washed laundered diesel. Get good stuff. 4) Takes about 1 week to program to your liking. Experiment. You'll waste beans but totally worth it on the return you'll get. 5) Don't be making coffees for people over 10oz unless it's a double. 8oz is ideal. For my drive to work I got a Keep Cup from www.keepcup.com. Great week anti spillage cups. Get the glass version. Since I got mine now everyone wants one. 6) The only time I'd suggest pre-grinding! I drink decafé from 6pm on so I pre-grind my decafé beans to do me a week. Chopping and changing is a nuisance. 7) Clean is a sinch. You'll get two tablets with it and Sage charge an arm an a leg and then some for a pack of 12 tablets (12.99). They will last 6 months. Water filters are also £12.99. Urnex Cafiza Espresso Machine Cleaning Tablets, Pack of 100 on Amazon for £15.12. I can't find any other cheaper alternatives for the filters yet but at least you're saving on the tablets which should last you 4 years!! To clean it's really easy. You can buy a descaler solution or use 50% white vinegar and 50% water and run the cleaning cycle. You should do a clean with the tablets every two weeks and descale every month i.e. 1st of the two weeks just use tablet, 2nd of the two weeks use tablet and descale, 3rd of the two weeks just tablets etc... 8) Sit back and enjoy GREAT coffee! 8)

Okay so this is going to be the first review I just bought this machine a week and a half ago. The way this machine is built is fantastic nothing to say about that. Is really good looking and it comes with a range of accessories. First off I also want to say that I'm Italian so I'm really appreciative of good coffee and I will be comparing this machine with a standard Nespresso machine which I've been using for the last three years. The advantage of this machine is that it allows you full control of the quality of the coffee, you can establish the amount of ground coffee and the preinfusion time: all these parameters are really easy to program in the machine. A disadvantage them to be clear about this is that you create a much bigger mess than if you were using the nespresso machine, you just have to clean the machine every single time to avoid leaving a complete mess in the kitchen... But in return for that you get really great control and a "quality feel" about how this machine works... In answer to what some reviewers have been saying about the "lukewarm" temperature of the coffee: the temperature is absolutely standard, a little bit more than 60° measured in the cup and absolutely in line with the temperature of the nespresso machine (I took the time to make this test using a milk thermometer one machine after the other). You can also raise this temperature and when I went with the +2 setting the temperature of the espresso was roughly 5 to 7° more than that (approaching 70), so I'm sorry but there is absolutely no problem whatsoever with the temperature the coffee is delivered. One slightly negative thing is that to produce a good cappuccino you need to froth the milk and this is not really easy at all to do here. Practice practice practice If you're not willing to put in the time to test with the coffee you have bought and to learn all the functions do not buy this machine and stick with your nespresso: you'll be happier I will be updating this review once I have had the chance to use this machine for a longer period of time but I suspect I will keep using this machine because it gives a lot more satisfaction after learning how to make the perfect espresso

Absolutely incredible machine. There are too many little genius details to mention - once you've got one you'll know what I mean. Little things, like how everything is precisely sized and designed, such that the filter stands up on its own when left on the side, or how the puck once dispensed is dry and easily disposable, and how the presentation box is premier class and well designed. For months I've tried new things wondering if the Sage will accommodate it - and it almost always does. This makes darn good coffee too. (That is the most important thing after all!) The pressure gauge helps even the most amateur barista perfect his extraction. If I were to make any criticisms, they would only be a few: 1) the heater on the top is pretty useless 2) putting the reservoir in front of the tool tray underneath the machine itself can become a bit messy 3) the steam wand can be a bit tricky to clean due to the steam purge taking the heat away (tip: wait to clean until next use, put it underneath your test extraction of water [which you do every time u use the machine anyway], and clean with a cold wet cloth - works perfectly!) 4) due to European legislation, the standby feature is totally useless But apart from this, it's an incredible machine. I can't praise it highly enough. First espresso machine, and I couldn't be happier. You get many features saved for higher spec items.

Empezar el día en casa con un espectacular café con leche, más bueno que el de muchas cafeterías, es una maravilla. Es fácil de usar, y fácil de limpiar.