Wacaco Picopresso - Portable Espresso

I'm impressed, but didn't manage to make an espresso with crema, so not ready to give a 5/5 yet. I'll keep trying and update this if I manage to do it. FEELS PREMIUM I own a lots of gadgets and some are more expensive than this one. This one FEELS premium among them. It's weighty, has thick metal parts (not just metal finish), thick plastic, with pleasant rubberized exterior (for grip) and such. Carrying case feels similar to those you might get for premium gadgets, but somehow better. It could be because it's a little thicker, a little softer (doesn't feel like plastic), and has big zipper, which adds character. Even the box feels expensive as this has this velvety finish. When unpacking I often get disappointed at a feel of pricy things. This wasn't one of those ... MoreI'm impressed, but didn't manage to make an espresso with crema, so not ready to give a 5/5 yet. I'll keep trying and update this if I manage to do it. FEELS PREMIUM I own a lots of gadgets and some are more expensive than this one. This one FEELS premium among them. It's weighty, has thick metal parts (not just metal finish), thick plastic, with pleasant rubberized exterior (for grip) and such. Carrying case feels similar to those you might get for premium gadgets, but somehow better. It could be because it's a little thicker, a little softer (doesn't feel like plastic), and has big zipper, which adds character. Even the box feels expensive as this has this velvety finish. When unpacking I often get disappointed at a feel of pricy things. This wasn't one of those times. The few cosmetic things I would improve to perfect the feel of this kit are - Round edges on the scoop. MAYBE make it a bit thicker. Sharp edges make it look cheap within the set. - Custom brush to fit the kit. Current one feels generic (just like the one I got with every bear trimmer). It has no good place and rattles inside. - Custom Distributor tool. Again would be nice if it didn't rattle inside. My only concern for the quality of this thing is the pump. I feel like it is mostly plastic (based on how it presses), which could mean short lifespan of the gadget. COMPACT The whole kit barely takes up any space. If you manage to get it working right (I didn't yet), you get espressos anywhere out of a kit that fits in 1 hand. It's impressive. COFFEE GRINDER needed This thing is virtually worthless without correctly ground beans. This means you need an adjustable coffee grinder or access to coffee that's ground the right way. According to manual if the coffee is ground too fine you'll have blockages resulting in just strong coffee without crema (I experienced this). If it's too coarse it passes through too easily and doesn't get infused too well and obviously also no crema. It might be obvious to experts, but it wasn't to me. For what it's worth I liked the strong coffee, but it would be a stretch calling what I made an espresso. It could be might be my lack of experience with coffee brewing. DIFFICULT TO WASH There are 2 parts which are impossible to fully dry. Manual suggests leaving everything to dry for 2 hours, but I opened one of the pieces up and saw droplets inside. The cup/pump thing is the first part. You can empty the liquids, but there's always some left over inside the pumping mechanism. The second part is this little piece that cannels water into a coffee grounds, as it consists of a metal plate and a rubber cap that attaches over that plate. The rubber is removable, but doing it after each use means streching/wearing out the rubber. Moisture is a concern, because in storage this device is basically a capsule with metalic components. Add moisture to that and you have perfect conditions for rust to form. I'll update this review after I get a different coffee grinder (or learn a better technique for brewing), but for now .

This thing has no business being as good as it is. It does take a bit of time to prepare and manually extract a shot, clean everything up, and put it all away, but I find that the results are worth a few extra minutes every morning. I’ve even taken it camping for espresso off the grid.It’s the most portable manual espresso maker you can buy, and for about US$130, it’s one of the best values out there for any kind of espresso maker, period. I’m sure you can get better, more consistent results from a professional machine. But the Picopresso produces sufficient pressure to make real espresso — with thick crema and delicious flavor and aroma. You won’t get that from an Aeropress or a moka pot. And many more expensive “espresso machines” struggle to do it reliably. The ... MoreThis thing has no business being as good as it is. It does take a bit of time to prepare and manually extract a shot, clean everything up, and put it all away, but I find that the results are worth a few extra minutes every morning. I’ve even taken it camping for espresso off the grid.It’s the most portable manual espresso maker you can buy, and for about US$130, it’s one of the best values out there for any kind of espresso maker, period. I’m sure you can get better, more consistent results from a professional machine. But the Picopresso produces sufficient pressure to make real espresso — with thick crema and delicious flavor and aroma. You won’t get that from an Aeropress or a moka pot. And many more expensive “espresso machines” struggle to do it reliably. The Picopresso easily matches most home espresso makers I’ve tried in the US$500-1,000 range, in terms of shot quality. (You’ll need a good grinder.)The body of the device is lightweight and mostly plastic. While those are pluses in some regards, there’s one key drawback: I haven’t found a way to effectively preheat the device. I use near-boiling water in the tank, and (even if I take the time to pull a blank shot to preheat) the espresso that comes out is still only just warm, not quite what anyone would call hot.Still, the extraction is more than adequate, so the water does stay hot long enough to do the job. You won’t risk burning your mouth gulping down a still-too-hot shot, which is a good thing, I suppose. The lower temperature is arguably a plus if you’re making iced coffee drinks. And if you’re making an Americano or a hot milk-based drink, you’re unlikely to notice any difference.The filter basket is 52 mm diameter, which is frustratingly close to the 51 mm size used in some other espresso machines. That means if you want to use a different basket, like, say, an IMS competition basket, you’ll have to settle for one that kinda sorta almost fits. Reportedly, some of the 51 mm baskets do work, but the supplied dosing ring funnel doesn’t quite sit right, so you might want to get a 51 mm funnel also. And you might want to get a different tamper, too.Of course, this level of fussiness cuts against both the portability and affordability of the Picopresso. CAN’T YOU JUST APPRECIATE WHAT YOU HAVE? WILL ANYTHING EVER BE GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU?As is, the supplied dosing ring and tamper work just fine with the stock basket, and the whole thing does pack up quite nicely into a compact package. Sure, it would be nice if future editions came with a more “standard”-sized basket to allow better interchangeability with other, widely available filter baskets and accessories. I’ll be first in line to buy the upgraded Picopresso Pro or Picopresso Plus, or whatever they call the inevitable upgrade model. But I’m willing to wait.I’ve used the Picopresso every day for the past two months. So far the only sign of wear is that the printing on the lid has worn off, almost entirely. But that’s it. If this thing holds up through its two-year warranty period, it will have been more than worth the purchase price. I’m going to try like **** to wear it out before then.

I'm not a professional Barista by any means but I'm a fussy coffee enthusiast. I use commercial grade espresso machines daily. I bought the Picopresso with the exagrind for travelling after being frustrated by lousy coffee at cheap hotel breakfasts. Wasn't expecting what I got to be honest. First few shots were ok but after dialing the grind, by my third shot I was blown away. Seriously this thing gives some commercial espresso machines a run for their money. Thick syrupy near perfect shots. Unbelievable. You do have to dial in your shots carefully so if you're used to a pressurized basket it may not be for you. But once you get the hang of dialing it in, it's worth it. Worth the effort and worth every penny of the asking price. The body does get hot to the touch, ... MoreI'm not a professional Barista by any means but I'm a fussy coffee enthusiast. I use commercial grade espresso machines daily. I bought the Picopresso with the exagrind for travelling after being frustrated by lousy coffee at cheap hotel breakfasts. Wasn't expecting what I got to be honest. First few shots were ok but after dialing the grind, by my third shot I was blown away. Seriously this thing gives some commercial espresso machines a run for their money. Thick syrupy near perfect shots. Unbelievable. You do have to dial in your shots carefully so if you're used to a pressurized basket it may not be for you. But once you get the hang of dialing it in, it's worth it. Worth the effort and worth every penny of the asking price. The body does get hot to the touch, not burning hot but a tad uncomfortable for me but that's my only complaint and it's very minor. Build quality is exceptional. Metal parts are beautifully machined and the plastic parts look and feel very sturdy. Very happy and honestly quite surprised with my purchase. Bravo Wacaco you've got a winner here.