The best-selling semi-automatic espresso machine on Amazon is one that leaves part of the work to you, from tamping the coffee to steaming the milk by hand. A few days before Prime Big Deal Days, the Breville Barista Express goes from $689.99 to $499.95 on Amazon, 28% off, for the BES870XL in Brushed Stainless Steel. It is the model with a grinder built into the top, so the beans, the grind and the shot all happen on the same square of countertop.
From Whole Beans to Espresso in Under a Minute
That time is Breville’s own claim, and it depends on the grinder. A conical burr grinder sits under a half-pound bean hopper and grinds on demand, straight into the portafilter resting in a cradle at the front, so nothing is ground until you are ready to pull the shot. A dial on the side sets the grind size and a second control sets the amount, which is what you adjust when you switch from a dark roast to a lighter one and the first cup comes out sour or bitter. On a weekday morning it means one machine to switch on and no separate grinder to clean before leaving for work.
Two things on the extraction side explain why the Barista Express costs more than an entry-level machine. The first is pre-infusion: water reaches the coffee at low pressure before the pump builds up, which wets the puck evenly ahead of the full extraction. The second is a PID controller, a digital regulator that holds the water at a set temperature, and that matters because a few degrees either way changes how espresso tastes. Shots come as singles or doubles, with a manual override if you prefer to stop the pour yourself.
Milk is handled by a steam wand, with no automatic frother. You hold the stainless steel jug, which is supplied, and texture the milk yourself into the fine microfoam used for lattes and cappuccinos. I’ll be honest about what that implies: this is a manual machine, and I would expect the first few drinks to miss before the grind, the dose and the wand technique settle down. Anyone who wants a button that delivers a cappuccino should look at a fully automatic machine.
The box is unusually complete. It has a 54 mm stainless steel portafilter, an integrated tamper, a trimming tool Breville calls the Razor for leveling the dose, and four filter baskets: single-wall and dual-wall, each in one-cup and two-cup sizes. The dual-wall baskets are the forgiving ones, useful with pre-ground coffee or while you are still learning. A cleaning disc, tablets, a brush and a water filter are also included. The water tank holds 67 oz, the machine draws 1,600 watts on a 120-volt outlet, and the warranty is one year limited, which I find short for an appliance at this price.
Finish makes no difference to what you pay: the Breville Barista Express BES870XL is $499.95 instead of $689.99 on Amazon in Brushed Stainless Steel, and Black Sesame and Black Truffle are at the same $499.95, down from a typical $699.95. Returns are free, and Breville adds two bags of specialty coffee once the machine is registered, subject to its terms and conditions.