Lello 1375 Ariete Cafe Prestige Coffee Maker

I'm writing this from the perspective of a coffee drink lover, not an espresso lover. If you're an espresso purist, this is probably not the review you're looking for. I like lattes and cappuccinos. In my attempts at making them, I didn't much like the scalded flavor my old steam machine introduced into the drinks. It was time to step up to a pump machine, which was the easy decision. Much harder was deciding on a brand and model from the wide range of choices to consider. Honestly, it just didn't seem like a person should have to spend $1,000 or even $500 to score a pump machine that would produce killer coffee drinks. I wanted a machine that was easy to use, easy to clean, and designed and constructed to last, given a usage pattern of about 8 - 12 times a week. Appearance wasn't much of a factor; we don't have a designer kitchen. We do cherish counter space though, so I didn't want a huge monstrosity or something heavier than a boat anchor, thus being a real pain to move or store. Enter the Cafe Prestige. As of this writing, I've used it about 50 times, and I'm convinced I've chosen a true winner here. While my first couple of uses weren't spectacular, it didn't take long to get into a very comfortable rhythm with the machine. Now, I'm producing coffee drinks of a consistent quality that eliminates all temptation for me to make a trip to the local barista, leaving them a small investment in exchange for a fix. Friends and family, who've sampled the results, agree. Things I like about this machine: 1. Construction - sturdy. Heavy, but not excessively so. I store it on a top shelf in our pantry when not in use. 2. Ease of use. The generous water reservoir is simple to fill; I just top it off while it's mounted. The two position switch gives you either espresso or steam; no hassle. The portafilter and basket are E-Z to get on and off. Nice orientation on the steam wand. 3. Cleaning is a snap 4. Very reasonable noise level 5. Speed - quick to whip up a drink, followed by another. I've done 4 back-to-back. 5. Fantastic steam power. The wand and attachment can produce amazing, luscious foam. 6. It's forgiving The last point - forgiving - is a big one. Not being a purist, I don't have a high dollar grinder. I don't faithfully store and use my beans for maximum freshness. I don't pre-warm the utensils, other than steaming my coffee mug and microwaving the milk. Yet, I get delicious results time and again from the Cafe Prestige. What I don't like: 1. The plastic tamper. I bought a metal one to use; if this matters to you, check out my review of the one I purchased. 2. At times when steaming is first switched on, a couple of spurts of water emerge from the wand before steaming action begins. I lay a cloth underneath to catch those. 3. It feels to me that the steam wand and its swivel are a bit fragile. When I clean it, I take a cloth and pinch the top of the wand hose to keep it steady and prevent stress on the swivel point. As you can see, no showstoppers here. The only open item for me at this point is whether the Cafe Prestige has the longevity I want; time will tell regarding that. Meanwhile, if you're in the market for a pump machine mainly to use for producing coffee drinks, you should take a serious look at this one. Price-wise, performance-wise, it feels like an incredible bargain. UPDATE: July 2009 After 6 months of steady use, I can vouch for my Cafe Prestige having paid for itself twice over. Here are a few additional observations. Though I use a burr grinder, I have an extremely ancient model, an old Waring. That said, I do grind my beans about as fine as possible and tamp them very firmly into the basket. I use a range of different beans, depending on my mood, but I've made it a point to buy them from coffee shops instead of the grocery store. With the consistency of the Cafe Prestige, I've felt at times that some of my grocery store bean purchases were stale or 'off' in flavor, and, consequently, I pitched them. Fresh beans definitely make a difference. Logic has it that you should clean your maker thoroughly and frequently; some would suggest multiple times a week. For me, I rinse and wipe down the portafilter, basket, steam wand, steam attachment, flow screen, and portafilter gasket after each use. I can go about a week before cleaning the drip tray; any longer leads to interesting life forms sprouting. Lastly, I've set a 3 month schedule for flushing the maker. For this, I've found Cleancaf works wonders, which you can pick up online or at a local coffee store. It's fantastic stuff. BTW, all my cleaning is by hand, not in the dishwasher. There's only a little to do, so it doesn't take much time. My preference is for using only distilled water. It seems to help ensure consistency in your brews. Also, it tends not to deposit as much scale in the maker, which eases cleaning. Don't forget to occasionally empty and clean the plastic water reservoir as I've found even distilled water can pick up stray flavors when it sits for a while. Finally, I can't say that I've had any explosions with my Cafe Prestige, but I did have a traumatic event that might count as such. With regular use, the portafilter seems to become a bit loose in its twist mount. When I first started using the maker, I could let it dispense a double shot without me touching it. Then, one day, the pump pressure caused the portafilter to unscrew and fall off, which sent steam and espresso spraying, explosive-like. Since then, I make sure I keep one hand on the portafilter handle when the espresso is flowing, and I've had no other incidents or problems. I certainly don't consider this a critical flaw or a reason not to purchase the Cafe Prestige. Strongly recommended... still.

I will give this five stars. Not the same five stars I would give something along the lines of a Gaggia Carezza mind you. This five stars should be taken as a rating relative to its price. If this were the same cost of the Gaggia I would probably have to give it a 3.5 I should note I prefer americanos, cappuccinos, lattes, etc over straight espresso. I bought this for a second house. If I were to be drinking a lot of straight espresso I would have bought the Gaggia. One important detail which is not in the description is this unit will use ESE pods. The portafilter has inserts for single and double shot amounts, as do most machines. The single shot has a small ledge around it which is designed so it may be used for both single shots and ESE pods, with a pod fitting perfectly into the area created by the little ledge. This is a big advantage for those days when you are in a rush. Construction. This thing is solid. When I ordered it I thought it would not really be steel, just chromed plastic. Well it is stainless steel. And the finish is beautiful. This has to be the most impressive looking espresso machine this side of $300. One plus of being so heavy is you don't have to hold it down when tightening the portafilter. Something I never liked about the lighter units. Despite the description noting a rather weak looking 950-watt heater, I was pleasantly surprised by the speed at which it warms up. This had worried me at first, but now that I have it I have discovered no reason to be disappointed. While using the steam feature to froth it has enough power to be ready to pull a shot immediately with no need to wait. And after pulling a double shot it seems like it is ready in seconds for the next shot, well before I have time to remove the portafilter and get it cleaned and reloaded. Another impressive feature here is the warming plate on the top of the unit. Once again, as with the 950-watt rating, I was expecting a rather weak showing on the warming front. Wow, another shocker. It works! I turn the unit on in the morning and prepare my first drink. Then I leave it on. Make sure at this point you clean the portafilter and place it on the unit empty. By the time you roll around to getting your second cup, the cups on top are nicely heated and the portafilter is warmed up as well. The drip cup and water reservoirs are quite generous. The drip cup underneath the bottom plate even has an ingenious little pop up float near the back which raises with the water level. Instead of constantly pulling up the plate, you can tell if it is getting full by simply looking to see if the float is starting to pop up. What a nifty little feature! There is one drawback. The portafilter is what Ariete calls their "Thermocream" design. The problem with this design is it is created to produce a "crema like" crema on the top of every cup. This somewhat hides whether or not you are doing your job right and the crema is a product of a good grind, good tamp, and good pull. I prefer the crema production to be a function of how well I doing my job, not a function of some little device that makes stuff that looks like crema even if it is not. I would like to add that the Group Head (the thing the portafilter attaches to when you put it on) is not solid metal. Parts of it are plastic. But given the price I am not willing to deduct a star for this (or the Thermocream feature) as I would if I were comparing to the $200 machines.

For the money it is a very nice unit. It is a seemingly well made mostly metal. The unit is bigger than I thought it would be, not quite as tall but wider than my normal 12 cup drip maker. Has good weight to it and won't "scoot" across the counter when one makes coffee as the "pump" on the unit makes it's presence known. I will admit when I get my Cappuccino "out"($4 or more) made on a $2,000+ machine it is (usually) better. Now I don't know if it's the machine or the skill of the person but this puts out a"decent" fairly hot brew. The initial Espresso appears to come with the proper "Crema" froth. Now again, whether it is proper, I don't know but it looks to be within reason. I never purchased too many Espresso's myself but the ones I've made are okay. I just tend to go towards that Cappuccino or for me, Caffe Latte' or better yet (French) Cafe'au lait, mind you I drink my American coffee with a good dose of "Creamora" and will even on occasion have my tea with the same venerable powder when I go English. So in the simplistics of terms, I lean towards "Cream & Sugar". The up-top "warming" shelf is a nice touch but is "just" warm. The Steamer-Wand, what drives a person such as myself to lust after this kind of unit works well and is of "okay" design but allows for a depth in ones "Steamer-Cup" of 3.75 inches only (well less but NOT more). Now, this may not be of any real importance, however, it is a limitation as to the design of the "Steamer-Cup" you can use/choose and mind you, that "part" is not included anyway. As with "some" Amazon things price can vary. When I purchased this unit it was $89 with the free shipping. I had a $50 coupon from my Amazon "points" so a $39 frivolous purchase was rather enjoyable. I will say that for less than $100 IMHO this is a very nice unit that produces a fairly quick, tasty and hot (although not scalding which is "my" preferance) cup-o-mud in a number of snob configurations. There is a decent sized (but plastic) water "reservoir" on the rear that works well, the unit itself is fairly easy to clean and well, looks cool. Hey for $300 on up (and that can be way UP) you "can" do better but (for me at $40) this is quite the Bang-For-The Buck for that specialty cup of Joe should the mood hit at home. Add a little Amaretto for an Itialian boost or Kahlua for a more mainstream ambience and it might even improve the looks of some of us two or three star guys. The price of this unit kind of keeps the "Star" (points) up. In my book as it is a good but not great Espresso/Cappuccino Maker for the home user. Be aware that the part of the unit that holds the coffee grinds needs to lock on by going "FULL" right and not centered to avoid the chance it might blow off during the brewing process. I note this only as a few people commented that this arm came off during brewing and the instructions don't (seem)to mention any specific position of this arm. Logic would seem to just center the arm but I found it moves well past center at the same angle it "starts" at on the left but locks with a right (counter clock) turn. Now the "purist" will shudder but as I said it's just a tad under hot enough for me so while I froth the milk I pop my Espresso in the microwave for 20 seconds. I tend to use a 50/50 mix (coffee/milk)more inline with Cafe au Lait but I prefer the "foam" spooned into my brew. I find this unit very easy to froth the milk (even skimmed) to a seemingly "rich" spoon-able texture. If I rated this unit against other machines regardless of cost it would be closer to "lower middle class" but for less than $100 it is very nice and looks like it costs much more.

For those buying this machine, as I did, as a step up to replace an inexpensive home type "espresso" machine without a pump, for a few dollars more, it is not really good. It is not for non-coffee-aficionados. This machine makes better espresso, about a 3 star on that, for convenience and ease of use 1/2 star. Don't buy this machine if you want a quick latte, etc before leaving for work. 1. It is not "automatic" You do not put your cup under there and come back for the coffee. You must turn the steam on and then off when you think it is done. You must wait for it to heat up between processes. Now I understand why making good espresso is considered an art. Not really a negative if you are espresso savvy. I am not. 2. The water reservoir is a pain. Who wants to leave water in a plastic container over night and then use it for coffee. So to get fresh water you have to take this clumsy, cheaply made container that is too big to fit easily in the sink out of its place on the back (you have to pull out the machine to fill it), empty it and refill and replace it with some difficulty. 3. It is not exactly as described, If it were I would give it better marks. There is not lever on the handle to expell the coffee holder as described in the instructions. The coffee holder is really difficult to put into the handle thing. It says there are some slots to match up, but there are not so you are trying to press it in without spilling the ground coffee. Then afterwards you cannot just expel it, you have to put your fingers on it (hot)and pull or leverage it out. Also it says there is a pick to clean the holes and there is not. 4. It is very heavy and quite large. On the counter top, under a cabinet is not a good place to put it. Really needs it own table.. 5. The special steam head for frothing is a made of a really smelly, soft rubber. Ok if you want your milk to taste like rubber. Too smelly for my kitchen, I threw it away. I had a Braun simple inexpensive home type machine, that made pretty good latte's, not real espresso, but ok for me. I took it with me every where. It lasted for three years being used every day. Not sure if I will keep this one. It does make better espresso. This is my first impression, the first day, I do not know if it will break in a few days, etc.

I've used the Lello 45900 Ariete Espresso/Cappuccino Maker every day for about a month now and it is one excellent machine. It seems to be made from high quality materials with the primary material being stainless steel. It looks as well as feels good and makes excellent espresso. If you like cappuccino or latte, the steamer/frother does an excellent job as well. The steamer/frother works independently from the espresso brewer. After only several minutes warm up, a shot of VERY good espresso along with the "crema" is made in about 3 or 4 seconds. The water tanks holds about two and half liters of water and one can add water at any time as the whole tank does not heat up. This machine appears to be high quality enough to make espresso on a continuous basis. The top of the machine heats up and is designed to warm up the waiting espresso cups. I paid around $[...] for a Krups espresso machine which was dropped off at a Salvation Army box just after the Lello 45900 arrived. The Lello 45900 only cost about $[...] and is about ten to twenty times better than the Krups. I believe the Lello is on par with espresso machines which cost $[...] to $[...] and one would have to spend around $[...] or more to find a machine with any appreciable difference. Billy Baty [...] Well, above was my review after only a short while... I now dislike the machine and would not advise anyone to purchase one. The pump went out after about a year. I got a inexpensive Mr Coffee steam espresso machine just so I could be back espresso making quickly. I liked the Mr Coffee's espresso and milk frothing better, much better than the Lello! The water from the Lello didn't get as hot as the Mr Coffee's does, for both the espresso and the frothing. In the meantime I also discovered that the Lello was made in China, not Italy like I has assumed by its name, so that explains the pump going out. The Mr Coffee machine finally gave up the ghost and I have ordered the DeLonghi EC155 and will write a review. Billy Baty

The price is right for a solid espresso machine. However, I have owned two (both dead now) and each had a life of about 2 years. In both cases the handle on the filter holder broke (probably due to expansion of the metal) but a small hose clamp fixes that, although it may not be attractive. On the first machine the heater element eventually failed and on the second the pump failed. Possibly partly my fault since I did not do regular cleaning. However, the price, compared to high end machines, makes it almost reasonable to replace every couple years. I just got an Espressione Café Minuetto to replace the second machine. Although the Espressione appears to be the same internal machine and may still quit after a couple years, it does have some advantages like a better handle and a plastic drip pan that won't corrode like the Ariete did.

I did wait 4 months for mine but I think the quality is fantastic. Makes great espresso. Steams milk so easily. My daughter can have steamed milk every breakfast now. So quick. Cafe Americano is a breeze, too. WARNING: Do NOT use TURKISH ground coffee in the unit. The ground was too fine and blocked the filter and almost exploded the machine! Instructions are weak. Luckily, easy to use. Mine was missing the filter lock as well but still works fine. Even with these minor glitches, it makes amazing espresso. Perfect creme' I have had 3 other espresso machines priced $100-190 in the past, and this one is far superior. (Note: 1 shot of espresso is only 1&1/2 ounces - for those who complained that coffee comes out only for a a minute or so ) If you enjoy good espresso, this is a great machine. Overall,highly recommend. Update after 3&1/2 years: I love, love, love this espresso machine. I have had it for about 3&1/2 years now and it makes an awesome cafe americano. There are some things you should know about the machine. First, it needs at least 10 mins to warm up. The ready light is incorrect. Second, if your filter get clogged, just burn it off on top of the stove. After it stops steaming and smoking, just rinse and it is good as new. After all this time, the machine finally started malfunctioning. We found the rubber seal had worn out. I called customer service at (201)939-2555 and asked if I can purchase an new rubber real, but he said he will send a new one at no charge!! I have had 3 espresso machines before this and this is the best, no contest. And the price is soooo cheap for the quality! It is heavy stainless steel. It makes amazing coffee and great crema. I use starbucks Verona and decaf Sumatra means ground to #3. I only go to starbucks to buy beans, now. Couldn't be happier.

I lived in Europe for a while, I got hooked on the Espresso. Came back here and almost bought a breville, for $400 and read some reviews on how it wasn't that good. I usually buy the most expensive item when I shop- thus I relate it to quality. This machine is NICE, it's heavy duty, all metal, works fast, and if you use some good espresso like ILLY, it'll crank out some very good cups of espresso. Seriously I saw some of the bad reviews but they are really from people who have their nose up and think making coffee should be some sort of art-- GET A GRIP, MAKE your espresso, and GET to WORK-that's exactly what this machine does. It's a no joke, no frills espresso machine. This machine is nice, looks great, and makes great espresso, just use good grinds ( fine ILLY) and you're set. I love how this thing isn't expensive. I mean under $100 that's awesome. I think this is the BEST espresso machine for the money - I never write reviews, but after I used this one, I knew that it deserved something. It saved me money and the espresso is good with good crema. Plus, people dig the way it looks in my kitchen. WORD!