Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
I used to use a steam powered espresso machine. Like the Moka pot, it does not make "true" espresso. Pressure is around 4 bar or so, higher than a Bialetti, and you do get some crema in the cup. As a bonus, you can steam milk for cappuccino. It takes a while to master the grind and the tamp to max out the product, but I was able eventually to craft perfectly acceptable cappuccinos or just shots. But oh, what a bother.
I notice Mr. Coffee now has a 10 bar pump machine for well within your budget. Probably won't last long, and probably not designed to be rebuilt, so perhaps a poor purchase, but even so, a foot in the door.
These days I am quite spoiled. My superautomatic DeLonghi after much fiddling and adjustification, now grinds, packs and tamps perfectly without me even touching the bean, heats the water just so, pumps out a perfect shot with excellent head of crema, ejects the spent puck and sorta cleans itself, and does a great job on the milk. I just have to feed the water tank and the bean hopper, descale when the LED display says it is time, and give it a deep cleaning every couple of weeks, and my morning cappa is much better than coffeeshop. Starbucks doesn't even come close. Price was around $600 I think. After two years of mostly daily use, nothing has failed on it yet, but parts are available and probably will be for as long as I live. I have nearly instant hot water for tea or soup too. No fiddling with portafilters and stuff, no need for a separate grinder. I really dont see how anyone could be disappointed with this machine, TBH. If it were to break down, I still got my$10 modified Turkish grinder and $3 pourover which makes a good American style muggajoe, until I refurb the DeLonghi.
That's not to say that the Moka pot isn't excellent within its price range. Get one that works on an induction hotplate and it is fast, except for the cleanup. Coffee is quite drinkable, good enough to make drip machine coffee remind you of cat pee in comparison. I used an aluminum one for a good while and never had a problem with it. With a consistent bean and grind, the coffee was always spot on. I DID wash mine with dish soap, and with a good hot rinse I never noticed any issues whatsoever. If I had to do it all again though, I think I would spring for something other than aluminum.
I notice Mr. Coffee now has a 10 bar pump machine for well within your budget. Probably won't last long, and probably not designed to be rebuilt, so perhaps a poor purchase, but even so, a foot in the door.
These days I am quite spoiled. My superautomatic DeLonghi after much fiddling and adjustification, now grinds, packs and tamps perfectly without me even touching the bean, heats the water just so, pumps out a perfect shot with excellent head of crema, ejects the spent puck and sorta cleans itself, and does a great job on the milk. I just have to feed the water tank and the bean hopper, descale when the LED display says it is time, and give it a deep cleaning every couple of weeks, and my morning cappa is much better than coffeeshop. Starbucks doesn't even come close. Price was around $600 I think. After two years of mostly daily use, nothing has failed on it yet, but parts are available and probably will be for as long as I live. I have nearly instant hot water for tea or soup too. No fiddling with portafilters and stuff, no need for a separate grinder. I really dont see how anyone could be disappointed with this machine, TBH. If it were to break down, I still got my$10 modified Turkish grinder and $3 pourover which makes a good American style muggajoe, until I refurb the DeLonghi.
That's not to say that the Moka pot isn't excellent within its price range. Get one that works on an induction hotplate and it is fast, except for the cleanup. Coffee is quite drinkable, good enough to make drip machine coffee remind you of cat pee in comparison. I used an aluminum one for a good while and never had a problem with it. With a consistent bean and grind, the coffee was always spot on. I DID wash mine with dish soap, and with a good hot rinse I never noticed any issues whatsoever. If I had to do it all again though, I think I would spring for something other than aluminum.
