Staff Picks: May 2021

coffee · espresso · news · staff picks
Written by Pat C
Content Creator
Published on May 19, 2021
Pat is an espresso machine enthusiast with a passion for perfecting every shot. With years of hands-on experience testing espresso machines, coffee makers and everything in between, Pat provides detailed, no-nonsense reviews to help coffee lovers find the right fit.
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Staff Picks: May 2021

Have you ever wondered where the little “Staff Pick” badge on many of our products comes from? It’s actually quite the process! A couple of times per year we survey every employee in the company to find out what their favorite coffee gear is. Based on the number of votes that different machines get, we pick a collection of staff picks! We don’t put a hard limit on picks, we just want to highlight the gear that has our staff buzzing! It’s time for another round of picks, so let’s check out some of our favs!

Semi-Automatic Espresso Machines

We obviously love semi-automatic espresso machines. There’s a lot of passion around our offices, warehouses, and stores for these machines. This passion always leads to some pretty contentious staff picks! This round of picks sees several Rocket Espresso machines in the mix, including the Appartamento Nera, Mozzafiato, R Nine One, and R58 Cinquantotto. These higher end machines really fuel a lot of our employees! Both the Rancilio Silvia Pro and the Silvia PID also received enough votes to make the cut, along with the Linea Mini on the higher end of the category. Breville saw a few machines making the Staff Picks cut as well with the Barista Express, Barista Pro, and Dynamic Duo bundle all getting recognized! Finally, the Solis Barista Perfetta had a strong showing as an entry level machine we’re really loving.

Superauto Espresso Machines

In the superauto category we saw multiple Philips machines making the cut. On the entry level side the Carina was very popular, and the 3200 LatteGo also made the cut. Excitingly, the brand new 4300 LatteGo gained a lot of votes thanks to its unique interface. On the higher end of the superauto spectrum we saw Staff Pick awards go to the Saeco Xelsis, Miele CM6350, and Breville Oracle Touch.

Espresso Grinders

We break our grinder categories out into espresso and brew grinders to get a little more granular. In the espresso grinder category we saw big pushes for Eureka’s lineup. The Mignon Notte, Mignon Specialita, and Atom 75 all made the cut. Rocket Espresso’s Fausto Touch and Faustino are also winners, and the Baratza Sette 270Wi and Rancilio Rocky received Staff Pick awards as well!

Coffee Grinders

For our coffee grinder picks we saw big wins for Baratza. The Encore, Forte BG, and Virtuoso+ all made the cut. Eureka’s Mignon Brew Pro also made the list alongside the Fellow Ode and the delightfully compact and affordable Solis Scala.

Drip Brewers

In the drip brewer category we awarded Staff Picks to two Technivorm models, the Moccamaster KBG741, Moccamaster KBT741, and the Moccamaster KBGV Select. The Breville Precision Brewer Tribute Edition also received a staff pick, as well as the Bonavita Connoisseur and Ratio Six.

Presses

In the coffee press category we saw many votes for the AeroPress and AeroPress Go coffee makers. The Bodum Brazil and Primula Melrose also received awards. Finally, Espro’s P3 and P7 were both selected by our team for Staff Picks!

Stovetop

Just one stovetop brewer made our Staff Picks list this time - the Ilsa Turbo!

Cold Brew

In the cold brew category we saw a lot of love for the Espro Cold Brew Coffee Maker, the Bruer Slow-Drip Cold Brewer, the OXO Cold Brew Coffee Maker, and the Toddy Cold Brew System. All of them received Staff Picks!

Pour Overs

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Hario V60 was very popular alongside the Kalita Wave and Chemex Classic.

Scales

On the high end, Acaia’s Pearl S and Lunar scales were big winners in this category. The OXO Precision Scale and Timer and the Hario V60 Drip Scale also made the cut.

Kettles

Fellow’s Stagg EKG and EKG+ both won in this category along with the Bonavita 1L Electric Gooseneck Variable Temperature Kettle and the Hario Buono Coffee Drip Kettle. But that’s not all! You can see our Staff Pick coffee blends here, and all of our staff picks for gear right here!

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