Rating  - Love the BAR32
The DeLonghi BAR32 is excellent! It's easy to use and does an outstanding job producing creama and foamed milk. For the price, it would be very difficult to beat. I highly recommend it.
Rating  - Good looking machine, but just haven't had excellent espresso out of it yet
I purchased this machine based on user reviews, both at Amazon and elsewhere. Overall, I'm pleased with the operation of the machine, ease of use, quality, etc. The only thing is that I still haven't been able to make a really good espresso or latte with it. I'm experimenting with grinds, beans, and amount of pressure on the grounds before brewing, and I hope that I do get there, but so far, it has been mediocre.
Also, I have been unable to find the 'pods' at major grocery stores or at Super Target, which was disappointing. I thought those might take a factor out of my control and it might make a better cup.
Rating  - Great foam - great looks - poorly designed portafilter - weak espresso
I love the look and design of this machine but it has some flaws that I could not live with. The portafilter's larger filter basket is too small to use enough coffee to get a strong flavorful double shot. I mostly drink cappuccino so this is very important. I could only get the proper flavor with a very very fine grind and running a single shot using the double shot filter, needing to do that three times to get a good sized cappuccino, more trouble than it's worth. Other espresso makers I've seen have a much larger portafilter/filter basket. So for me this is the main drawback of this machine.
There is no way to remove the pressurized setup in the portafilter, like in the Sirena for instance, so that you can do your own tamping and have no plastic touching your brew. I hate the rubber gasket that fits over the filter and basically the whole assembly is a pain. You have to unscrew a plastic piece then pull off a rubber casing that fits over the filter and wash everything then put it back together. It suggests a thorough cleaning of this assembly only every 300 brews but that is ridiculous; I did it each time and there was liquid coffee residue inside, it does not simply rinse out in its assembled state, so I know that just rinsing it without taking it apart each time would negatively affect flavor very quickly.
Another problem is the movement of the portafilter to get it into the proper place. It is a very tight fit and you have to be careful not to force it, just pull it toward the front only enough that it stays in place, do not tighten it. Otherwise, as others have mentioned, you take the chance of the filter basket twisting in the portafilter and your water won't flow through because it is no longer lined up correctly.
The last thing I did not like about this machine is that you can't go from steaming/foaming milk to pulling shots without first running some water through the boiler as it says in the manual that it will burn the coffee going right from steaming to brewing. So you have to pull the shot first, then steam. I personally like using one mug, steam the milk right in the mug, then pull the shot(s) into it. Only one mug for everything. The other way you have to pull the shot into something else, or steam the milk in something else, and then use yet another something to drain the water into, extra time and extra items that have to be cleaned.
One little annoying thing that kept happening to me is that one of the rubber feet wouldn't stay in.
Okay, now for the good things. I absolutely love the steaming wand, it does a great job at foam, the best I've seen, but you do have to unscrew it every time for cleaning and eventually I think the threads will wear out as it is plastic. Also, the water tank works great, no problems, easy to use.
People have complained about not being able to use a large mug but there is no problem with that; just take out the two plastic pieces underneath and a large mug fits fine. I had no problems with leakage but you can put a folded paper towel under the mug if you're worried about drips.
The size of this machine is perfect, easy to store, and it looks great. The buttons are easy to use.
If it wasn't for the portafilter design with the too small double shot filter I would give it five stars. A good price for this machine is $119.
Hopes this helps anyone looking at this espresso machine with their decision!
Laura
Rating - Great machine
I absolutely love this machine! For me it is all about the froth and this machine does it perfectly. The espresso shots are not quite as strong as another machine I had but it truly made up for it with the great froth.
Rating - Very Sensitive To Grind
Makes very good expresso, but pump is not very powerful. Fine grind (e.g., the standard expresso grind at Starbucks) plugs up the filter. If you purchase ground expresso ask for a coarser grind - or grind the beans yourself.
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Customer Reviews for Delonghi,BAR32,443872223274,0443872223274,B0002A3S66, |
