I got a Breville Barista Touch Impress for my birthday. I was honestly shocked cause I hadn’t done any research on it and was very grateful that my mom got this for me. She mentioned that if it’s not the one I wanted we could exchange it, not sure where she bought it from. Should I try to exchange it for the Breville Dual Boiler? Or maybe another machine? Or should I give the Touch Impress a shot?
Fo reference I currently have a Bambino, 1Zpresso J-Ultra, Normcore tamper and bottomless portafilter, WDT, and Gravity Distributor.
Mom’s are the best.
Picture just in case I wrote the wrong budget.
by Rosales1028
23 Comments
Forgot to add that I make a latte every morning. I have an Americano once in a while. I want to get into better tasting espresso without the need of milk just for the fun, but I love my lattes.
Ok hear me out. Return it, with $1500 you can get a damn beast espresso machine AND grinder
Touch impress is convenient but you are well set up with the Bambino and the prep tools. It will be hard to beat the flavors coming out of your J-Ultra with the built in grinder on the Touch Impress’ robotic tamping is cool but it won’t be better than you at puck prep.
I would return it and see if you can get in on the Nov order window for the Zerno Z1. This way you get an awesome grinder which will up your coffee flavors to the next level:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOBSLD1JCZQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOBSLD1JCZQ)
I have the non-touch and enjoy it multiple times a day.
It’s a great machine if you are not an espresso nerd. I have one.
If you do go for something else like others are recommending (Gaggia Classic Pro + grinder), just know that it’s nowhere near the convenience level of the Touch Impress. You will have to learn a lot of things in order to brew a nice espresso, steam a good milk, and clean and maintain your machine.
The high-res color display of the Touch Impress will show you exactly how to clean and maintain your machine. The auto milk froth will give you good milk every time. The tamping system will ensure the right dose every time.
So it’s really about much more than just “what’s the best machine”. It’s really about who you are as a person, and whether or not you want a new hobby.
I don’t exactly regret getting the Touch Impress, but personally I’m so deep into the rabbit hole now that I’m going to upgrade eventually. I just didn’t think I would be.
Most of the replies did not seem to have seen the gear OP already has. The touch impress will probably not improve his or her coffee currently. Sure the grinder might improve process but at what cost.
IMO definitely return the machine. Exchange for something else the store has. Better if you can return it. To get a automatic grinder that equals the J-ultra in grind quality would probably be really expensive.
return it. its a downgrade for your current setup
I had this machine and sold it after a year. I found the touchscreen utterly useless for the different drinks.
I would return it and go for the double boiler and less automation. The “automation” that the touchscreen suggests was useless to me because you needed to dial in each drink separately. The machine is not intelligent enough to take an espresso setting and then adapt and apply that to the other drinks. So if you use several drink settings and get new beans you need to change all the setting again. I hated it.
Also, the grinder is not consistent at all and I really realized that when I got a true independent quality grinder.
Personally, I would exchange it for a new grinder.
Maybe a lagom p64 😉
Since you have a grinder and tamp you’re used to I would exchange that machine for the Breville Dual Boiler, about the same price. If you really want more control of the extraction get a Gaggia Classic and turn it into a Gaggiuino.
I have this machine and we love it but we started with zero experience. If you already have a good base you can maybe find something better but it won’t be as easy as this.
It’s one of those things that should not have a touch screen. It’s just never really good
Make coffee or sell
Keep it. IT can a lot. Both temp control on the shot. It have the baratza burrs. So unless you want to single shot, where you can use your handgrinder, it will do just fine. I will argue that your shots will be as good as the Dual Boiler.
Have a cup of coffee & think about it 😀
You could regift it and send it to me for my birthday tomorrow 🤔 also happy birthday to you and hopefully you enjoy the machine 👍🏻
I have the barista touch and really love it, and also make a latte every morning and the occasional other drink. Personally it has improved my coffee a lot and it’s really straightforward to use which is why I got it. Not sure if it will improve your coffee experience, but I vote to keep it
Get something that will last. Something that you tell your kids about how you got it from your mother. Could also be a nice opportunity to venture into something with a lever.
Make coffee i guess
You have a killer setup and the BBTI is focused on convenience over quality.
If you’re okay with continuing with a hand grinder, go with the dual boiler, it’ll be a joy to use. More traditional machines (less features, higher build quality) are often above budget (ECM/Profitec/Rocket).
If you want to up your grinder, it’s going to take something to beat the J-Ultra, think Mazzer Philos I189D (or Timemore 078s/DF83v is you’re okay with Chinese manufacturing)(there are MANY more options).
You’ve been making espressos on a great setup so you probably know what you want/need/lack. Use this budget to make the next leap. Enjoy!!
You can donate it to the needy
Aka
Me
Even IF you have a need to improve on your current setup it is difficult to improve it significantly with a 1500 USD investment. I would probably return it and put everything into an all world ETF, forget about it for 20 years and thank your mom.
You’re all missing the big picture here: bring it to the office and have amazing coffee easy all day.