I have always wanted my very own Espresso machine and after being a good boy all year Santa brought me one for Christmas after my wife informed him that I really wanted one. My wife may have told him I wanted one, but I did end up paying £129 for the pleasure of ensuring Santa left it in my stocking.
Fed up to the back teeth with plain old filter coffee, or god forbid, instant freeze dried filth actually having the Cubika now sitting in my kitchen is nothing short of a godsend first thing in the morning and is officially the boys toy that my friends and I spent most of Chjristmas day playing with and frankly it is so user friendly, we had steaming hot espresso flowing freely within 30 minutes of removing it from the box. There are no fiddly parts that require construction so it is just a case of removing it from the box, placing the main water tank within the machine and pluggig it in. Obviously ground coffee beans are required but that is as complex as it gets.
I am no Barrista so I don't know the technical term for this part of the machone, but the handle that is unscrewed and removed to insert the ground beans is easy to remove and replace. The unit has enough weight in it before being filled with water to ensure that the entire device doesn't start shuffling around the side of the counter as you do this. As far as controls are concerned it is just a case of 3 simple buttons.
1 - Powe on/off 2 - Espresso 3 - Steam
The power button is self explanatory and so is the espresso. As soon as this button is pressed the water is heated to boiling point and then forced through the coffee beans providing a coffee that is just beautiful. The noises it makes as the water boils is quite comical and drew comparisons between it and my stomach after a dodgy vindaloo.
To the side of the machine is the steamer which allows, yes you guessed it, the steaming of milk to enable users to make home-made cappucino. Unfortunately a temperature gauge does not come with the machone so it is adviseable to buy one before using just to make sure you get the best results as I have found trying to froth my milk to be very hit and miss. It can take 20 seconds one day and 40 the day after depending upon how long the Cubika has been plugged in and powered up.
Overall I am delighted with the Cubika. It is a good brand name that produces lovely rich espresso every time and once I have a thermometer it will also assist me in making impressive cappucino to dazzle guests. The unit doesn't heat up externally so it is very safe and at compared with other makes and models of espresso maker I feel I have got a real steal. Thanks Santa.
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Gaggia Cubika The design objective of the Gaggia Cubika was to accommodate as many ... more
features of a top of the range machine in a small home model capable of satisfying the needs of a wide audience. With a neat brushed stainless steel casing, larg...
Postage & Packaging: refer to website Availability: In stock
Jan 1st, 2008
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