A great cup of espresso

When I started looking for an espresso maker, I had a few specific criterias in mind. Firstly, it needed to be compact, not taking up much space. Secondly, it had to be straightforward to use – press a button and you get your espresso. Lastly, it had to make a damn good cup of espresso. The cup of espresso that would leave me feeling sad if it's finished. The cup of espresso that fills me up with anticipation every night while going to bed. The cup of espresso that I look forward to every morning, just like the coffee Jesus himself.

I'm happy to report that the Gaggia Classic Pro meets all these requirements perfectly. The semi automatic machine is small enough to sit unassumingly in a corner of the kitchen counter top. It has a small top to keep couple of cups for warming up before you pour your espresso in it. The water inlet is conveniently located for refills.

The Italian maker is in business for the past 80+ years and it shows in the Pro's interface. It just has three buttons. The first one turns on the machine. The second brews the espresso. And third prepares the steam for foaming the milk.

This simplifies my daily routine: turn on the machine, grind and load the coffee into the portafilter, press the espresso button, and in 20 seconds, you have a great cup of espresso. Espresso that fills me up with content and a tiny bit of fascination that all it takes for such a fine tasting coffee?

Although, it does take a few tries with new coffee beans to get the perfect balance of acidity and fruitiness, but it’s usually about the grind size. For darker roasts, I need to dial back the grind size (coarser), and for medium to medium-dark roasts, dial it back in (finer).

Since this is a semi automatic machine, I still feel a sense of accomplishment after brewing. I have to carefully measure the coffee, monitor the espresso flow, and decide how long to let it run. It’s not a lot of work, but enough to keep it from running on autopilot.

However, it's not all roses for the Gaggia. The distance between the brewing unit and the drip tray is annoyingly short so I had to order cups that were small enough to fit in that place. It also takes it sweet time to warm it self up. And sometimes the flow of brewed espresso isn't constant either. But, none of these are dealbreakers.

After brewing roughly 200ish cups of espresso in the past couple of months, I can whole heartedly recommend this fine Italian piece of marvel that has the potential to fill you with joy every morning as you brew and savor that espresso.