Drinks
Flat white
A double shot under a thin layer of tightly textured milk. The hardest milk drink to fake: it needs dry steam, enough power to spin a small jug, and a wand with room to angle it.
- SageBarista Express BES875A PID, a real wand and a burr grinder in one body, which is why it is the machine most people learn on. It is also messy to dose and makes you wait between brewing and steaming, and both are the price of the format.Espresso8.6
- GaggiaClassic Evo ProA commercial 58 mm group and a real wand at a domestic price, with a brass boiler since the E24 revision. No PID, so you learn to time the warm-up — and almost everything on it can be replaced by hand.Espresso8.5
- SageBambino PlusThree seconds from cold to ready, and an automatic wand that textures milk better than most people do by hand. Buy it for the milk and the speed; buy the grinder separately, because there isn't one.Espresso8.4
- RancilioSilvia V6A 300 ml brass boiler and a wand borrowed from Rancilio's café machines: steam that does not run out halfway through the second jug. Heavy, no PID, and a reputation built over nearly thirty years.Espresso8.3
- LelitAnna PL41TEMThe cheapest way into a PID and a brass boiler, which is the combination that stops you guessing at temperature. The 57 mm portafilter is the catch: almost no accessory in the shops fits it.Espresso8.2
- JuraE8Sealed, one-touch and built to repeat itself for a decade. The brew unit is not meant to come out, which is the trade: you get consistency and give up the ability to service it yourself.BeanToCup8.1
- PhilipsSeries 3200 LatteGoThe milk system is the reason to buy it: two parts, no tubes, and it rinses under a tap in seconds. Note the UK code — the /50 sold here has no iced-coffee function, whatever an American review tells you.BeanToCup7.9
- De'LonghiLa Specialista Arte EC9155A grinder, non-pressurised baskets and a wand the maker genuinely aims at latte art, in a body smaller than its rivals. Eight grind settings is the constraint, and 51 mm baskets limit what you can buy for it.Espresso7.9
Related articles
- ReviewLelit Anna PL41TEM review: is 57 mm worth a PID?
- GuideSage Barista Express worth it? Only if you own no grinder
- ReviewRancilio Silvia V6 review: 8.3, and the wand you buy it for
- GuideSage Bambino Plus: 4 cheaper machines and what they lose
- ReviewDe'Longhi Magnifica S review: worth it at 7.8?
- ReviewSage Bambino Plus review: 8.4/10, and half a purchase