Coffee Machines: Automatic for the People
Waking up to a fresh cup of cappuccino is as simple as pushing a button with an automatic coffee machine. Automatic coffee machines take the grind out of fresh ground coffee by doing most of the work for you: grinding the coffee beans, tamping the grounds and brewing them up to make your morning cup of java. In this article, we will hel you select the best automatic coffee machine for your needs.
Thermoblocks in your Automatic Coffee Machine
The thermoblock is the part of the automatic coffee machine that heats the water. There are automatic coffee machines with one or two thermoblocks available. Having a single thermoblock means that it can take a little longer to brew a cup of coffee, as it has to wait a while between producing hot water for the coffee and steam for frothing milk. Dual thermoblocks speed the process up as one thermoblock produces the water while the other produces the steam. For most people, one thermoblock should be enough, but if you have a large family, if you like to entertain, or if you're just really impatient, the extra speed provided by twin thermoblocks can come in handy.
Frothing Milk with your Automatic Coffee Machine
There are several methods that automatic coffee machines use to froth milk for that authentic frothy cappuccino. The most common is the frothing wand, a steam wand that blows steam directly into the milk, but which you have to move around manually.
Newer models of coffee maker are equipped with an automatic frothing wand that takes the effort out of frothing your milk. Just turn the dial to the setting you want and the automatic frothing wand dispenses frothy milk directly into your coffee mug.
The latest technology is the one touch cappuccino dispenser, which dispenses both coffee and milk at the touch of a button, for perfect cappuccinos or lattes.
Brands of Automatic Coffee Machine
It will probably come as a surprise to absolutely no one that many of the most popular brands of automatic coffee machine are Italian. Top names from the home of frothy coffee include Saeco, which has been producing these machines for over 30 years and De Longhi, the new kids on the block. Other big names are German (Bosch, Krups, Braun) or Swiss (Jura Capresso). Clearly, if a company has the misfortune not to be Italian, it helps to come from a country that borders Italy.
