Robot Espresso Maker - A Comprehensive User Manual

For many coffee drinkers, espresso is the purest form of coffee. It is the purest distillation of the coffee bean and also the first instant coffee. Espresso is an Italian drink that has been adopted by people worldwide.

About Robot Espresso Maker

People have utilized the espresso machines so that everyone can enjoy a nice cup of espresso anytime and anywhere. But instead of addressing the typical coffee making machine, today we are going to introduce to you a more advanced model of espresso maker, the robot espresso makers.

The robot espresso maker is a small and high-end manual coffee making machine that makes real espresso. The machine itself is comprised of a few but non-complicated electronic parts with premium materials like the stainless steel. Unlike the typical coffee or espresso makers, robot espresso makers are completely plastic-free. All you will need is ground coffee, a pot of hot water and you are ready to go. After all, the whole point of a robot espresso maker is the making the espresso making process and simple and timely as possible.

What Can You Make with Robot Espresso Maker?

The robot espresso makers can only make espresso shots. They are not meant to act as a regular coffee maker which you can make all types of coffee. You can either drink as straight espresso, or mix with water or even milk to make an Americano or other types of coffee drinks (or milk drinks). You can use fresh ground coffee with professional and dedicated basket, or you can use pre-ground coffee using pressurized basket. So here is what you need to be able to make coffee with a robot espresso maker:

• Some hot water and some coffee
  Unlike the regular coffee makers, robot espresso makers do not use the heating or boiling mechanic to make coffee. You are in fact required to fill the machine in with water to start brewing.
• Fresh ground coffee from a coffee grinder
  You will need either an electric grinder or a manual grinder. Do not use a blade grinder. Use professional filter basket to make the best and freshest coffee.
• Pre-ground supermarket coffee
  This can be used with pressurized basket. Pre-ground coffee can really only work with dedicated pressurized basket.

How Does Robot Espresso Makers Work?

Robot espresso makers have oversized filter basket as brewing chamber. Unlike the regular coffee makers, a heater is not included in the machine, so you are not required to fill the basket up with hot water from a kettle. The moment you pour the water in just off the boil into the basket, the robot espresso maker will immediately cool to around 90 degree Celsius, which is just the optimal condition to brew the best espresso.

Robot espresso makers also do not look like our typical makers. Do not be fooled by their toy-like looks as they are actually capable of making professional and high quality espresso. By pushing down the lever arms, the pistons inside the machine forces hot water through the coffee, creating the thick syrup espresso. You will have to learn about the different extraction pressure (in bar) as a robot espresso maker is more than capable of producing a 9 bar pressure. You may have to practice several times until you can make quality espresso with a robot espresso maker.

:: Read more : What is the Coffee Robot Barista?

Is a Robot Espresso Maker Safe to Use?

The safety for the users with pressure gauges should be taking into consideration. It is generally recommended to have the machine in the 5-8 bar region for extraction. Many people will be tempted to max out the gauge, but this is definitely not recommended.

You should keep the robot espresso maker to a maximum of 8 bar at most. Going above that pressure level should only before testing or repairing purposes. The stainless arms of the robot espresso maker are no doubt robust, but the main body is made of aluminum and there is a chance of you breaking it.

The bottom line is to keep the pressure at the safety range, and you will be able to make as many espresso shots as possible. If a pressure gauge is not available, you can put a weighing scale under the robot and pull a shot. When the scale reads 18 kg (aka 40 lbs), that means the pressure is around 7 to 8 bar and the max you should be pressing down on the lever.

While pushing down on the lever arm, do not use the legs of the robot espresso maker as extra leverage. This will risk breaking the machine. Simply press straight down the lever evenly with both of your hands.

Benefits and Drawbacks of Robot Espresso Maker

The biggest takeaway about a robot espresso maker is simplicity. Both the brewing and cleaning of the machine are made extremely simple. For cleaning, you slowly press the rest of the brewing water out of the puck, unscrew the portafilter, pull out the basket and knock out the compressed puck into the trash can.

The overall cleaning experience has been reported hassle-free by the users. Also, robot espresso makers are actually cheap compared to other espresso machines (except for the highly capable electrical ones). However, some drawbacks of the robot espresso maker include:

• Weak parts:
  Some parts of the robot espresso maker have to be replaced sooner or later, with the filter screen being the especially vulnerable one. Also, the rubber gasket can wear out if you leave the basket inside the brew head for too long. You may find yourself having to purchase replaceable parts from your manufacturers or vendors consistently.
• Espresso-only:
  As we previously mentioned, robot espresso makers are espresso-only. If you want to make milk drinks or other types of copy drinks, you will have to do it manually and separately from the machine as it does not have milk-steaming capability.

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