Gaggia Brera Super-Automatic Espresso Machine and Cleaning Tablets Bundle

UPDATE: I’ve had this machine for nearly a year and I love it. I use it every day and it makes great tasting espresso and has been working well without any issues so far. The milk frother works great- I took the auto frother off to make it into a manual frother so I could get microfoam and a smoother, sweeter milk. Once you get your settings dialed in so your espresso tastes the way you want and you find good, fresh (non-oily!) beans, this thing works like a dream. I’ve almost completely stopped going to the coffee shop.Original review: I really want to like this machine. I have been using an inexpensive Nespresso U for years and it did a great job, but I was tired of being a slave to pods and was looking forward to getting a little higher quality of espresso at home, so I made the investment. Upon opening the box, I discovered my drip tray was cracked and the dull drip tray indicator was broken into pieces. A couple of calls to Gaggia and Amazon and they took care of that issue and paid to send out new pieces. Good customer service on both ends so far.The machine looks nice, and is fairly easy to use and set up. My issue is the espresso... I was disappointed the first day for sure. I had read the first few shots you pull could be watery, due to the unit’s “adapting” process, so I pulled shot after shot of under extracted espresso- like 12 shots. After speaking with Gaggia customer support again, they suggested I customize the single shot setting to pull less water through, lowering the fluid oz amount of the shot. This DID help slightly. The shots started tasting more concentrated, and I got a slightly better crema. However, it’s still missing that syrupy, concentrated bittersweet espresso flavor. I spoke with customer service again today, after noticing it was only taking 9 seconds to extract the shot. No wonder they are lacking flavor. The support personnel I spoke to said that the timing is irrelevant with a superauto machine, since it’s doing all the work for me. I’m not sure if that’s true or not, maybe it is. Maybe my expectations were too high for what kind of espresso I could get from a super automatic machine but all the other reviews I read had basically rave reviews about the espresso the machine produces. I’m hoping that it’s either user error or that my machine is still “adapting”.I’ll keep at it for another week or so... and update the review as needed.UPDATE: I’ve had this machine for about 5 months now. I really do love it. It makes a coffee shop quality milk based drink (usually a latte) with great frothed milk for way less than I was paying for my daily Starbucks run. I would even say that it tastes better than Starbucks does. I’m changing my original 3 star rating to a 4 star rating. It works very well- and has held up well. (I do a weekly maintenance cleaning: rinsing of the brew group, cleaning the interior as much as I can, washing the dispensed pod container, water container and the drip tray. I feel that helps contribute to a good tasting espresso). The convenience of a one touch machine makes this a worthwhile purchase for sure. I wouldn’t say it creates as good of an espresso as a semi automatic, and I don’t get a lot of crema with my espresso (even after switching my beans to a more local, freshly roasted bean) but it makes a killer milk based drink. Worth the money.

I ordered the Brera on a Thursday afternoon and had it on my front door step Monday morning. It shipped for free from Whole Latter Love, and it arrived secure and in perfect condition. They shipped it the same day I ordered it! Not only that they included many helpful starter pamphlets and additional instructional materials to make initial set up and use of the machine a breeze. I have subsequently created an account with them and receive points I can use for additional items ordered. Their site is a great resource for everything Coffee and Espresso related with many great instructional videos and tips to make using any of the models they sell easy to use and maintain. Cannot say enough good things about their service or their website.As for the Brera, I purchased it to upgrade from a Gaggia Evolution (which is still in perfect working condition) as I have wanted a super automatic Espresso machine for quite a while now. I have had the Evolution for 6 years now, and it was a great machine to learn on - albeit it can be a quirky machine that requires some real finesse to obtain the perfect shot. But with all of that came a great appreciation for everything that goes into making the perfect shot and what to do and not to do to obtain them.While I wanted a Super Automatic machine, I did not want to spend thousands on one, as it is usually just me using the machine, I did not need huge capacity and I also did not want to use a lot of counter real estate to accommodate one either. After much research and reading through hundreds of reviews I landed on the Brera and I could not be happier. One thing that all that reading and research provided was short cutting some of the growing pains a new machine can present (what are the best beans to use, grind settings, shot settings etc.) to get great and consistent pulls each and every time. While I have had to fiddle a little with the grind and duration of the pull etc., it was a pretty simple process and the shots are deep, rich, full bodied and crema for days!I will agree that if you are more than a two person house hold using this machine, you will need to check the water and bean reservoirs frequently if you are pulling many, many shots throughout a day. The bean reservoir on the top of the machine has a opaque/clear lid, so it is easy enough to glance and see that there are enough beans in the hopper, and the water reservoir can easily be slide out and checked and topped off if necessary. As I usually empty the drip tray and dregs drawer after each use and top off the water reservoir, maintenance is quick and easy and the machine is always at the ready for its next use.The display is easy to understand at a glance and programming and use are easy and efficient. You can program the length of each pull to customize it to the grind and bean and size of the shot you want very easily and then operation is as quick as pressing a button to get a consistent shot each and every time. I am using Lavazza Super Crema beans and the shots are deep, rich and bold, with tons of great silky crema. Heavily roasted and oily beans are not recommended as they may result in clogging of the machine, and the Lavazza Super Crema beans are a great medium espresso roast that produce great shots every time.As many other of the Super Automatic machines do, this one also makes Lungos and hot water for tea and other uses. It warms up incredibly fast, within a couple of minutes, and is ready to go. The steaming wand is ready to go in an instant and produces a strong steady stream of steam to froth as much milk as you need to make your lattes and capps. My Evolution had a Pannarello steam wand, and while some purists may prefer just a regular steam nozzle, I find the Pannarello to make heating and frothing an easy and simple task producing plenty of great micro foam that rivals any I have had from any barista anywhere.If you are looking for a solid Super Automatic machine that won't break the bank, is easy to use and maintain, and produces wonderful and consistent shots every time, this machine is for you. For households with one or two coffee fanatics, this machine is a work horse that does not require a lot of kitchen counter real estate - and its ease of use and maintenance make it a great choice as well.

YA HE COMPARDO ESTA CAFETERA Y ES DE LAS MEJORES

Why Gaggia:My previous machine (a bit more sophisticated but still was made at the same plant near Milan, Italy) is still working and makes a great coffee daily after 15 years of service! Since I need to change a water pump because it's got weaker, I decided to buy a new coffee maker but very reasonably priced. My old machine, the total repair cost over 15 years is around $250.I spent a while looking for the same type built machine.None of the brands can offer me same quality Italian brewing for this price.I don't know how long this unit will last, but I'm extremely satisfied with its previous brother.I must mention that it has the same brewing unit, which was before guaranteed for 5 years. I think this current machine is a 2-year warranty.

Compré esta máquina y funcionó por tres meses. Cuando hice la primera descalcifiación siguiendo al pie de la letra las instrucciones, dejó de funcionar. Pedí a Amazon que hicieran válida la garantía. Me refirieron a un email que nunca me dio respuesta. Muy decepcionaddo de Amazon y de Gaggia. Parece que Amazon no evalúa a sus proveedores y deja que cualquiera venda sus productos sin verificar si hacen válidas las garantías.

Addition to my review below. After one year I threw the brewer in the garbage. It kept on grinding beans, without providing coffee. It takes up to attempts for one cup of coffee. The unit would dispose the powder into the waste container, but not provide coffee. The red light for no beans would flash. In addition to this, the brewer is leaking lots of water. Worst brewer I have ever had. Hands off.We have had automatic esspresso machine from other brand before and they were much better. We don't like this one at all. Only good thing is that it is easy to handle. The water drop bowl needs to be emptied constantly, the water refill light shows up too late, so you often have a tiny coffee instead of a full cup because there wasn't enough water. So what is the reason to have a refill reminder? The overall impression is that it is poor manufactured and not very solid.I would not recommend it.

2 meses de uso y estoy encantado, es fácil de usar una vez que te acostumbras. Una vez que encontré el molido y el café ideal además de la cantidad de café según el grano y molido logré que mis cafés tuvieran la densidad y cremosidad adecuada y estoy encantado con la máquina. El único punto en contra es que el tanque de agua es un poco chico pero de resto estoy encantado.