Find Out What To Look For When Buying An Espresso Machine.

Summary: There are some enticing reasons to think about adding an espresso coffee machine to your list of kitchen appliances. If you are anything like me you will save loads of money by being able to make your own cup of espresso at home instead of forking out dollars at expensive coffee shops and restaurants. And besides you will be able to make cappuccinos and lattes as well - exactly the way you like them. But before you go off down to your local kitchen accessories shop to bu...

There are some enticing reasons to think about adding an espresso coffee machine to your list of kitchen appliances. If you are anything like me you will save loads of money by being able to make your own cup of espresso at home instead of forking out dollars at expensive coffee shops and restaurants. And besides you will be able to make cappuccinos and lattes as well - exactly the way you like them. But before you go off down to your local kitchen accessories shop to buy one, there is a bit of information you might want to consider. The secret to making the best tasting Espresso at home is a bit more complicated than forcing hot water under pressure through finely ground coffee beans. If you don't do it right, then you may as well use the old battered coffee pot. The essential part of making the best espresso that doesn't taste bitter is to extract the entire flavor while leaving out the oils in the beans. A good quality espresso machine will certainly get this right and reward you with that shot of flavor you have come to love and enjoy. One of the best accessories that come with an Espresso Machine is a frothing wand. This accessory's basic function is to force steam through the milk - it becomes all frothy so you can make delicious cappuccino style coffee. Also some models come standard with built-in grinders so you can produce your own fresh, fine grounds that are especially suitable for your new Espresso Machine. Something else that is a bit special are the all-in-one espresso coffee machines. These let you choose between brewing straight coffee or espresso. The majority of these models are programmable so you can set them to start making the coffee at any given time of the day or night. This type of machine is pure luxury if you are the kind of person who looks forward to waking up to a freshly brewed coffee in the morning without having to go to the bother of making it yourself. Just set and forget and it will do all the hard work for you. All you will have to do is pour it into your best coffee cup. There are of course alternatives to Espresso Coffee Machines. While Percolators seem to have been around forever, there are some excellent alternatives to these like coffee pots that make more than a half decent Espresso coffee. One of the better quality stovetop Espresso makers is the Moka pot which also comes in an electric plug-in version. This model has two chambers with a filter in between the water and coffee grounds compartments. Basically how it works is the water heats creating pressure, which in turn forces the steam up through the coffee grounds and then into the top compartment where it combines to make Espresso. While Moka pots work reasonably well of course they won't make as fine a cup of coffee as a dedicated espresso machine. Another alternative to using a Percolator for making Espresso is the French press. Using this devise is as easy as heating water and pouring it just off the boil into a pot of ground coffee beans. Then all you have to do is let it brew for a few minutes before using a filter type plunger to separate the grounds from the coffee. In my opinion while the French press may be cheap enough to purchase as well as quick to use and provides a no fuss clean-up, it's not really bees knees at making the perfect cup of Espresso. This is because the coffee grounds sit in the water for too long, which can create a rather bitter taste to the coffee. As you can see there is a bit to know about espresso coffee before you go out and buy a new coffee pot or brewing machine. Oh and one last thing I should warn you about, once you own a coffee machine you could very well become addicted like me and refuse anything other than the real thing. Enjoy!