The influx of posh coffee shop chains meant that after years of wallowing in the instant coffee doldrums Britons finally began to embrace the virtues of genuine coffee. It also led to strong sales for “real” coffee-making equipment including cafetières, espresso makers that use your kitchen hob, and the big daddies of them all, espresso machines.

Why fill the till at Starbucks on your way to work when you can make a cup of authentic morning java for as little as 10p, as well as having a gleaming coffee machine in your kitchen and enjoying the pose value of acting the barista for guests?

Despite many options, all espresso machines employ the same basic method. Water from a tank is heated rapidly to just below boiling point and then driven at high pressure through a filter that holds tightly packed fine-ground coffee. Most home systems can make one or two cups at a time, and the majority also have a steam nozzle or “frother” that heats and froths milk for a cappuccino or a latte.

One option is an automated beans-to-cup machine such as the Siemens under review. You put either beans or preground coffee into one end and espresso emerges from the other. The machine takes care of most cleaning and maintenance itself. What’s more, the taste and aroma of freshly ground coffee is a treat in itself. The disadvantages are price, utilitarian styling, and less swanking about pulling levers to emit your home brew. True coffee aficionados usually opt for a semi-automatic machine (fully manual models are too complex for most home use) such as the Francis Francis machine reviewed. Here, you pack the filter with coffee grounds and then tell the machine when to pour and when to froth.

Most such models have gauges or indicators to help but these are rarely 100% reliable and you usually have to develop a feel for your system. The heat of the water, the packing of the grounds in the filter and the way you froth your milk (for a latte or cappuccino) each have an effect. Get it right and you enjoy a rich espresso with plenty of heart, covered by a thick, cream-coloured foam or “crema”. Get it wrong and you’ll be drinking a bitter black coffee. Some caffeine addicts love mastering this dark art but it’s not for everyone and nor is the hassle of cleaning the filter.

There is another option. With capsule-based systems, such as the other three models on test, the coffee grounds come prepacked in pods or capsules that either slot directly into the machine or into a special holder. These systems are simpler to operate and the only cleaning is tipping out a spent capsule. Better still, the capsules stay fresh for longer than a packet of coffee grounds and are hence well suited to infrequent use.

These convenient machines have disadvantages, though. They rely on the “blades and razors” marketing principle – the hardware is often economical to buy but the supplies of capsules cost about twice as much per cup as their traditional equivalents. The machines usually limit you to buying one brand of coffee, which hinders experimentation. Most capsule systems also lack a proper milk frother and they deliver far less coffee cred among espresso geeks.

This can be mere snobbery, however, because our extensive taste tests revealed that the capsule-based machines created far better espresso than expected, although only the cream of these models were reviewed. Indeed, the Gaggia (a semi-auto espresso maker that accepts capsules) came top overall.

Several factors were considered including capacity, ease of operation, styling and, of course, value. The results were closer than expected and as personal as whether you sprinkle sugar on your latte.

JARGON BUSTER

Beans-to-cup machine Fully automated coffee-maker
Capsule Coffee grounds prepacked as individual pods that slot directly into the machine or into a special holder
Crema Creamy looking foam that floats on top of any good espresso. Formed from proteins, vegetable oils and sugars contained in the coffee bean
Semi-automatic Espresso machines in which the coffee is loaded and the water is released manually for each cup, but various aspects of pressure and temperature control remain automated

Coffee makers

HOT SHOT

Gaggia Baby Caffitaly – typically £250 from www.gaggia.uk.com

Superb value all-round performer
The Caffitaly is a variant of Gaggia’s popular semi-automated Baby model that accepts capsules rather than coffee grounds, although with an optional kit you can revert to using grounds if you later decide capsules are too expensive. The Gaggia’s espresso was marginally the best on test, with real body and bite, while the frother created a super-thick, creamy cappuccino foam. The capsule system took the hassle out of cleaning the filter, and though it was tricky to remove the water tank, you could instead fill up through a hole on top of the machine. The three-button controls proved easy to operate, largely because of the accurate indicator. Gaggia’s Ecaffe capsules cost around 25p per cup when ordered from its website, but despite a choice of flavours you are restricted. Still, given the reasonable price, classy performance and sheer simplicity, this is an all-round winner.

COFFEE COUTURE

Francis Francis X1 – typically £375 or £337 from www.gocoffee.uk

Suave looker that makes great coffee
The swanky looking Francis Francis X1 will certainly turn heads, but it is functional as well as stylish. This is a semi-automatic machine and so operation is largely manual. Fortunately the four switches were straightforward to use, and all the guesswork was removed thanks to a dial that accurately indicated when the machine was ready to create coffee or to froth milk. The X1 delivered a fine, crema-topped espresso and the most luxurious cappuccino froth on test, but filling its water tank was a little fiddly, and cleaning the coffee grounds from the filter holder soon proved to be a pain. Having said that, the machine can also use teabag-style coffee as supplied by Illy (known as ESE pods), using an optional filter holder, although using these works out at an extravagant 50p per cup (compared with just 10p a cup with coffee grounds). Nevertheless, the X1 is a flexible and stylish coffee maker.

THE ENTERTAINER

Siemens Surpresso Compact TK54001GB – typically £399 from www.johnlewis.com

From beans to cup without fuss
Despite its “compact” description this Siemens is a fairly industrial-looking beast. Once you tell the beans-to-cup machine your tastes, it supplies one or two cups at the touch of a button. You empty the waste products from the large internal bins and fill up the bean hopper and water tank every day or so. It took time to set up, largely due to controls that enable you to adjust both the strength and the quantity of coffee produced. However, the fully automated system could then conjure up almost anything – from a killer espresso to a supremely frothy cappuccino – without fuss. It worked with grounds or beans; indeed the taste and aroma of freshly ground coffee was a real treat. A pricey option, but its convenience is ideal for regular entertainers.

ONE-TRICK PONY

Magimix Le Cube – typically £169, or £150 from www.goodcookshop.com

Fast, classy espresso – but that’s it

If you hanker after decent espresso without the hassle, then this keenly priced Magimix is ideal. The retro-styled Le Cube employs the Nespresso range of capsules, which fit into a chamber atop the compact machine. Open the chamber to insert a capsule and the previous one drops into an internal bin. With this, plus a capacious water tank and drain, it proved the easiest system on test to set up, clean and operate. The espressos weren’t too far off the three premium-priced machines reviewed. The Nespresso range offers 12 varieties including decaffeinated but you must order online and costs are about 22p per cup. With no milk frother, cappuccino and latte are off the menu. Otherwise, Le Cube is warmly recommended.

SWEET AND SOUR

Krups Nescafé Dolce Gusto – typically £90 or £75 from www.amazon.co.uk

Easy option that fails the authenticity test
This quirky machine uses Nescafé’s Dolce Gusto range of capsules. It represents fine value and proved easy to operate. Remove the water tank, fill it and insert a capsule. Then prod a lever to the right . . . et voilà, your coffee is served. The only maintenance involved cleaning a drainer. Despite no frother, cappuccinos can be made by repeating this process with a second capsule of reconstituted milk. Indeed, the Dolce Gusto range also includes latte macchiato and chococcino. The espresso had bite and a decent crema but insipid body. The more exotic flavours tasted sweet and with predictably artificial-tasting froth, while using two pods doubled the running costs from about 19p a cup. Some may enjoy this saccharine taste, but lovers of real coffee will foam at the mouth.

Reviews by Stuart Andrews. Prices include Vat & delivery