The Breville Die Cast 800ESXL – NOT All Looks And No Brains
The Breville 800ESXL Die Cast espresso maker is stunning. Fortunately, it’s not just all looks and no brains. This superb espresso maker offers several new features that entirely remove the effort in your espresso-making experience. You’ll find the taste results won’t disappoint, either.
The unit is on the heavy side at 31 lbs (19 kg). That doesn’t guarantee good coffee but it does help stabilize the machine and prevent tipping over. No muss, no waste, no time spent cleaning up spills. The stainless steel exterior extends that theme of durability and easy clean up.
The interior parts are equally high quality. They feature a chrome-plated brass filter, which provides even thermal conductivity, and therefore excellent temperature control. Some reviewers give less than stellar marks due to the thermoblock heating component. But even the most expensive units use it, so it can hardly be considered a cheap substitute. It’s doubtful whether anyone could tell the difference in a blind taste test.
There is one area where the machine is less than ideal. Because of its dual-wall design (which has advantages for pressure and temperature control), the Breville 800ESXL Die Cast espresso maker produces grounds that are sludgy. Most espresso lovers with experience of several machines will be used to a drier, more compact puck that simply flops out of the machine during cleanup. In this reviewer’s opinion, the defect is minor.
The unit more than makes up for any less-than-ideal qualities by added convenience overall. It also, not coincidentally, produces a truly fine cup of espresso.
You’ll be particularly fond of the steam wand on this model. It’s set on a ball so you can turn it any direction you desire. That comes in very handy when you have different sized cups to fill. It can be used to fill cups with hot water, too, a nice feature for those who want to make hot tea and espresso with one machine.
The Breville Die Cast 800ESXL does a great job of creating uniformly hot water throughout the machine. Poorly designed espresso makers have hot and cold spots along the channel. Those produce inferior results. As the water passes through the grinds, different amounts of the many substances in coffee are released. That affects the final flavor.
You might not expect a thermoblock heating unit to produce quality results. But the nearly $800 DeLonghi EAM 3500 also uses this method, so no one can claim it’s nothing but a cheap substitute. Few savvy baristas would want to claim that the DeLonghi can’t make the finest possible shot, and those in the know can make the same assertion about the Breville 800ESXL.
There’s a large heating tray, which simply adds to the quality. Keeping your espresso cup warm is just one more element among many for producing the best possible final result.
The large capacity, removable water tank is another great convenience feature. If you’re making shots for a large party, you won’t have to run to get a refill every few minutes.
The Breville Die Cast 800ESXL offers convenience and high-quality in a medium-priced machine. No one could be disappointed about that.