Some observations; # 150 degree F water temp is way too low for espresso which should be around 190 F. Coffee quality will suffer. #The espresso shot seems to have been pulled too fast. # Though it might not have the body of a Slayer pulled shot Nespresso crema is not fake. Using that logic you can also allege the superauto machine crema is subpar compared to a manual or semi auto espresso machine. The crema on the coffee in this video is poor. Pale color and appears to have poor body. Can be related to water temp too low and extraction time too fast. A good crema will float sugar for a few seconds. Try to adjust water temp and finer grind so shot pulls slower than re-evaluate crema.
This is an AMAZING espresso machine. It's very high quality, looks beautiful, and quickly & easily produces a fine cup of espresso, café americano, lungo, or a MYCUP of your own preference.
Thanks for the review and looking forward to part 2! How does the coffee it makes compare to a Nespresso like the Breville Creatista Plus? I'm debating between the 2 machines at the moment and the Creatista had great reviews (including yours) while this Cafe Affetto is so new it makes me nervous to be an early adopter!
It's not really fair to try to compare the two since they are two totally different animals. But I will anyway. The Creatista Plus is super convenient and has a steam wand for creating hot milk and froth for lattes and cappuccinos, etc. This model of the Cafe Affetto is also super convenient but does not have a steam wand. The Cafe Affetto is fantastic and uses your own beans (but not oily beans). In my opinion the espresso is much better than a nespresso. It has to be since if you use fresh roasted beans it will be fresher than any nespresso pod will ever be. The crema from this is real crema, not fake crema like a nespresso develops. And eventually you will save so much money by not having to pay for overpriced nespresso pods, that this machine will eventually pay for itself.
I know that this is an old video, but I've been exploring the option of using pre-ground coffee in the brew unit. I have found that it actually does work if you don't have any beans in the hopper.... But does anyone know if you can bypass the grinding if you put pre-ground in the back Brew unit?
@@whitneyburkholder It makes sense that you could put pre-ground coffee into the brewer but why? No you can’t bypass the grinding. The machine is not designed to operate that way.
@@michaelerbreviews so I don't drink caffeinated coffee but my husband does. With some other units you are able to have two different canisters for different types of beans. The workaround that we have used is measuring out how much one espresso shot is and it's approximately 1 tbsp. And just putting beans in per time. For example if I want to make an espresso I put one tablespoon of beans into the hopper and it uses most if not all of the beans. If my husband wants to drink caffeinated espresso he does the same except with the caffeinated beans
@@whitneyburkholder that’s a workaround. But even though you could do that, each time you grind a certain type of bean there is going to be a certain amount of that ground coffee still left inside the grinder and that’s called retention. So that will affect the next coffee and if you try to get rid of that extra coffee then you’re just wasting coffee. Not a lot of coffee but over time it sure does add up. But if it works for you that’s great.
My empty waste message is staying on and not allowing me to do anything I’ve cleaned it with the bristle brush and even cleaned the grinder. Turned it off for 10 minutes and plugged back, nothing works Can you help?
I have loved this machine for the past several months, but this week the milk frother stopped "frothing" milk. It still steams the milk, but zero froth and foam. I've tried descaling multiple times, but no luck. Help!
Automatic steam wands usually inject air into the steam through a small hole on the wand that is above the liquid level. This hole is probably blocked as descaling won't reach it. Id dismantle and soak the wand.
This is a year old....do you still have it or do you have an update? If you are an uber coffee snob, any super automatic espresso machine will probably disappoint you. Just go get yourself a $1000-$2000 espresso machine and leave the rest of us alone. Thank you. For the rest of us "normies" this looks great. Also, great review. 😀👍
I do not have it. The machine was fine but the Tchibo which I have also reviewed is essentially the same at a lower price. I don't have that any longer either. I review a lot of coffee machines and they come and go.
Thank you for a great review. Can you set it to start from the app, pre set it, or do you have to be there to make it work? When making americano can you set volume through app, ex. I want 10oz, or would you have to run the cycle twice?
@@dianabrown256 I think you made a wise choice. The café affeto is way overpriced and the Tchibo provides comparable performance since the mechanism is essentially identical.
To the best of my recollection the machine goes into standby mode after a short period of non-use. Otherwise, yes to turn it completely off you would press on power button to turn it off.
@@michaelerbreviewscan you elaborate on that? Do you need a long press or a short/ regular one? Mine just beeps and the power light just switches between steady and flickering but doesn’t go off ://
I'm not familiar with the SMEG firsthand but if that is true, then there are apparently many of these types of automatic espresso machines that are using the same basic innards, In fact, I'll be reviewing the Tchibo Espresso Machine soon which shares much the same innards as the Café Affetto.
I just found this video about the SMEG. ua-cam.com/video/wkwAgjyO6M4/v-deo.html Absolutely the same innards as the Café Affetto and the Tchibo. Apparently the espresso maker is a white label item produced possibly by Severin and obviously is being used by multiple companies making automatic espresso machines. How very interesting. According to coffeeness.com, Espressione, Grundig, Caso and Beko also make machines based on the same Severin parts.
Yeah, now I’ve seen the Severin, Beko and Espressione that all look identical. Found a Cafe Affeto for a 30% off, so giving it a try. So much more compact than any of the other automatic espresso makers.
I use a 50-50 mixture of white vinegar and water in the water reservoir filled half way. Run cycles through the machine until it's empty then run clear water through to flush.
errata: At 7:22 I mention the "coffee grinder." I intended to say Coffee Brewer, but it didn't come out of my mouth that way. Sorry.
Best tutorial ever! Explains in details every single function. Thanks for your efforts 👌
Makes me happy to know that you found it helpful. Thanks a lot for commenting.
Some observations; # 150 degree F water temp is way too low for espresso which should be around 190 F. Coffee quality will suffer. #The espresso shot seems to have been pulled too fast. # Though it might not have the body of a Slayer pulled shot Nespresso crema is not fake. Using that logic you can also allege the superauto machine crema is subpar compared to a manual or semi auto espresso machine. The crema on the coffee in this video is poor. Pale color and appears to have poor body. Can be related to water temp too low and extraction time too fast. A good crema will float sugar for a few seconds. Try to adjust water temp and finer grind so shot pulls slower than re-evaluate crema.
This is an AMAZING espresso machine. It's very high quality, looks beautiful, and quickly & easily produces a fine cup of espresso, café americano, lungo, or a MYCUP of your own preference.
Great tutorial! Thanks 🙏
Thanks for the review and looking forward to part 2! How does the coffee it makes compare to a Nespresso like the Breville Creatista Plus? I'm debating between the 2 machines at the moment and the Creatista had great reviews (including yours) while this Cafe Affetto is so new it makes me nervous to be an early adopter!
It's not really fair to try to compare the two since they are two totally different animals. But I will anyway. The Creatista Plus is super convenient and has a steam wand for creating hot milk and froth for lattes and cappuccinos, etc. This model of the Cafe Affetto is also super convenient but does not have a steam wand.
The Cafe Affetto is fantastic and uses your own beans (but not oily beans). In my opinion the espresso is much better than a nespresso. It has to be since if you use fresh roasted beans it will be fresher than any nespresso pod will ever be. The crema from this is real crema, not fake crema like a nespresso develops. And eventually you will save so much money by not having to pay for overpriced nespresso pods, that this machine will eventually pay for itself.
I know that this is an old video, but I've been exploring the option of using pre-ground coffee in the brew unit. I have found that it actually does work if you don't have any beans in the hopper.... But does anyone know if you can bypass the grinding if you put pre-ground in the back Brew unit?
@@whitneyburkholder It makes sense that you could put pre-ground coffee into the brewer but why? No you can’t bypass the grinding. The machine is not designed to operate that way.
@@michaelerbreviews so I don't drink caffeinated coffee but my husband does. With some other units you are able to have two different canisters for different types of beans. The workaround that we have used is measuring out how much one espresso shot is and it's approximately 1 tbsp. And just putting beans in per time. For example if I want to make an espresso I put one tablespoon of beans into the hopper and it uses most if not all of the beans. If my husband wants to drink caffeinated espresso he does the same except with the caffeinated beans
@@whitneyburkholder that’s a workaround. But even though you could do that, each time you grind a certain type of bean there is going to be a certain amount of that ground coffee still left inside the grinder and that’s called retention. So that will affect the next coffee and if you try to get rid of that extra coffee then you’re just wasting coffee. Not a lot of coffee but over time it sure does add up. But if it works for you that’s great.
My empty waste message is staying on and not allowing me to do anything
I’ve cleaned it with the bristle brush and even cleaned the grinder. Turned it off for 10 minutes and plugged back, nothing works
Can you help?
I'm not sure I know the solution to that. Sounds like you've done what I would have suggested already. I'd suggest contacting the company.
I have loved this machine for the past several months, but this week the milk frother stopped "frothing" milk. It still steams the milk, but zero froth and foam. I've tried descaling multiple times, but no luck. Help!
My machine did not have the frother so I can't help. Hopefully someone else may be able to.
Automatic steam wands usually inject air into the steam through a small hole on the wand that is above the liquid level. This hole is probably blocked as descaling won't reach it. Id dismantle and soak the wand.
Can you make a full cup without removing drip tray?
I'm not sure I understand your question. If your cup won't fit, then make two drinks and pour them into one larger cup.
too bad it doesn't have a bypass doser for ground coffee if you want decaf.
That would be nice. More expensive machines do have that.
This is a year old....do you still have it or do you have an update?
If you are an uber coffee snob, any super automatic espresso machine will probably disappoint you. Just go get yourself a $1000-$2000 espresso machine and leave the rest of us alone. Thank you.
For the rest of us "normies" this looks great. Also, great review. 😀👍
I do not have it. The machine was fine but the Tchibo which I have also reviewed is essentially the same at a lower price. I don't have that any longer either. I review a lot of coffee machines and they come and go.
I don't have it but not because I didn't like it, I just have too many machines.
@@michaelerbreviews I got the Tchibo. Got it about a month ago now. No regrets. Thanks for the info!
I just noticed that Amazon is selling it at a greatly reduced price compared to the price of it when I reviewed it.
@@Jor-El-Earth1
Thank you for a great review. Can you set it to start from the app, pre set it, or do you have to be there to make it work? When making americano can you set volume through app, ex. I want 10oz, or would you have to run the cycle twice?
the app doesn't provide auto start. I disliked the app. It was difficult to figure out how to customize volume and I just gave up with the app.
@@michaelerbreviews thank you so much. I watched your other reviews and ended up ordering Tchibo
@@dianabrown256 I think you made a wise choice. The café affeto is way overpriced and the Tchibo provides comparable performance since the mechanism is essentially identical.
Do you turn it off when you're not using??
To the best of my recollection the machine goes into standby mode after a short period of non-use. Otherwise, yes to turn it completely off you would press on power button to turn it off.
@@michaelerbreviewscan you elaborate on that? Do you need a long press or a short/ regular one? Mine just beeps and the power light just switches between steady and flickering but doesn’t go off ://
@@chicokay871 I can’t elaborate, because I no longer have the machine. I would check the user guide.
Great review! Looks like this is made of the same parts as the SMEG, with a little better feature set and price.
I'm not familiar with the SMEG firsthand but if that is true, then there are apparently many of these types of automatic espresso machines that are using the same basic innards, In fact, I'll be reviewing the Tchibo Espresso Machine soon which shares much the same innards as the Café Affetto.
I just found this video about the SMEG. ua-cam.com/video/wkwAgjyO6M4/v-deo.html
Absolutely the same innards as the Café Affetto and the Tchibo. Apparently the espresso maker is a white label item produced possibly by Severin and obviously is being used by multiple companies making automatic espresso machines. How very interesting. According to coffeeness.com, Espressione, Grundig, Caso and Beko also make machines based on the same Severin parts.
Yeah, now I’ve seen the Severin, Beko and Espressione that all look identical. Found a Cafe Affeto for a 30% off, so giving it a try. So much more compact than any of the other automatic espresso makers.
@@maxwelllucas896 hi Maxwell. Curious where you found the 30% off. I’m about to pull the trigger. Thanks!!
@@kevindidio7645 sorry, was just a single unit on eBay
How to descale
I use a 50-50 mixture of white vinegar and water in the water reservoir filled half way. Run cycles through the machine until it's empty then run clear water through to flush.