Expert review Sage Barista Express Impress

I want to start by saying that I have the predecessor of the Barista Express Impress on my counter at home, the Barista Express. This means I have a clear image of how this machine works and what it looks like. I notice that both machines look very similar, but the Barista Express Impress is slightly larger than its predecessor. The automatic tamper catches my attention right away. The box includes a milk pitcher, various filter holders, and maintenance supplies. I can't wait to test this machine. Here we go.

There's a bean grinder on top of the piston machine that grinds the coffee beans before you make an espresso. The bean grinder has a capacity of 250g of coffee beans. That way, you can fill it with a small back of coffee beans. The bean grinder has 25 grind settings. The finer the grind size, the higher the number, and the coarser the grind size, the lower the number. The manual recommends you to start at setting 16. When you determine the grind size, you should press 'dose'. The coffee grinder will start to grind the beans.

Once the ground coffee is in the portafilter, you tamp the coffee in the portafilter. The piston machine has a built-in tamper that allows you to tamp the coffee evenly. There's a handle on the side of the machine that you'll have to press down for this. You'll see different bars on the front of the machine that indicate the tamp-level. The bar with the smiley face speaks for itself. If this bar is on, you know you're using the right force for the espresso.

The piston machine has a powerful steam wand with which you can make good milk foam. A milk pitcher is included in the box, so you can get started with frothing milk right away. If you don't have experience with this, you might need to practice before you get the hang of it. The manual has various tips on how to get silky-soft milk foam. After use, you can easily clean the steam wand with a cloth.

Being an experienced barista myself, I'd say that you can make an espresso in a professional way with this Sage piston machine. The bean grinder grinds the coffee very finely for a good espresso. The machine has a robust casing and is sturdy. When you place the portafilter in the machine, the machine doesn't move along. You have a lot of influence on the taste, because you can adjust the grind size, amount of coffee, and the shot volume. Thanks to this, you can really make an espresso to your taste.