- Three new Breville 'Barista' espresso machines: Slimline, Classic and Sense
- Barista Slimline is an affordable entry-level model with a compact footprint
- The Barista Classic and Sense are both mid-range bean-to-cup machines
If you've been thinking of buying your first coffee maker, or upgrading your existing one, you're in luck – Breville has just launched a lineup of three new espresso machines, with one for every budget and experience level.
(This is the British company Breville, which is unrelated to the American company of the same name whose products are branded 'Sage' in the UK.)
The smallest of the new trio, the Breville Barista Slimline Espresso Machine, is just 6.1 inches / 15.5cm wide, with an industry-standard 58mm portafilter. It's operated using a set of simple physical buttons, making it easy to master, and has a convenient one-touch cleaning program to flush the grouphead and screen between brews. It costs £239.99, and is available from Amazon or from Currys.
Its size, price, and specifications are all similar to the popular De'Longhi Dedica Style, so I'm curious to see how the two compare in practice.
Bean-to-cup
Next up is the Breville Barista Classic Espresso Machine, priced at £499.99 and available exclusively at Currys. This model has a conical burr grinder with auto-dosing to ensure you get exactly the right amount of coffee in your filter basket, and anti-static technology to prevent grounds flying across your kitchen and clinging to the machine (always a frustrating problem).
It's around the same price as the Ninja Luxe Café, which is currently on sale for £499.99 at Currys, but with the anti-static tech and without the automatic milk steamer.
Finally, there's the Breville Barista Sense Espresso Machine, which is on sale for £599.99 at Currys and at Amazon. It has the same burr grinder as the Barista Classic, but with the addition of a smart TempSense steam wand, which can stop steaming your milk automatically once it reaches a certain temperature to avoid accidental overheating (which can result in an unwanted custardy taste).
The wand can create different textures depending on the type of drink you want (fine and flowing microfoam for lattes and dryer foam for cappuccinos for example), and is optimized for both plant-based and dairy milk.
You can also adjust the machine's pressure profile to tailor the coffee extraction to your tastes, which is an unusual and welcome feature at this price point.
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