Sage (Breville) Barista Express Vs Barista Express Impress. Side by Side Comparison & Taste Test.

[@BrewsAndChewsND]

Oh the little finger was the true winner

[@keiranmason3466]

Thank you for your videos…when I finally take the leap to get my first ‘training’ coffee machine…your videos will be on speed dial

[@Coffee_Kev]

Thanks for the kind words 🙂👍

[@konstantinosgavriilidis]

Another great video Kev. Very enjoyable to watch and informative 👍

[@Coffee_Kev]

Thanks, very kind of you 👍🙂

[@alexdawson-smith1956]

Thanks Kev, really informative, I'm trying to decide between the two at the moment (just getting into the world of coffee). The benefits highlighted in the impress seem to be far less mess and far more consistency. I'm just trying to understand why the difference between the OVP and the impress being 9 bar, compared to the express 14 bar will make?

[@Chris-jg3cl]

Love the video comparison, thanks! So did anyone else notice his pinky sliding under the glass? One could easily feel the tape I imagine

[@Coffee_Kev]

Haha, a few people have said that, but actually not at all, I had no clue

[@Reefrugab]

Me encantan tus reviews. Estoy pensando en comprar una máquina Sage y tus vídeos me ayudarán a elegir modelo. Saludos desde España.

[@michaelfarkas2396]

Great video, thanks! Quick question… you mentioned that the OPV on the Express is set to around 14 bar, but on the Sage website it mentions the Express using a 9 bar extraction process (“espresso starts with low pressure pre-infusions, followed by a high pressure (9 bar) extraction process”)… is there something I’m missing here?

[@Coffee_Kev]

Yeah the pressure in the basket depends on the resistance of the coffee in the basket, so getting 9 bars in the basket is achieved by getting the grind size right. Having a 9 bar over pressure valve is helpful as any pressure in excess of this is fired off through the OPV, and this is the case on all of the other Sage machines, but on all the Barista Express machines I've tested (this could have changed in the meantime but it was the case on the last one I checked which had a 2021 manufacture date) the OPV has been set higher. Cheers, Kev.

[@pbh805]

Would you take one of these over the Barista Touch? It seems so much easier where the touch looks a bit more complicated. Easier with the tamping but you’re on your own for milk frothing. So confused. Thanks.

[@Coffee_Kev]

The touch has the touch screen of the oracle touch, and the personalisation, and the auto steam wand, but no automation or assistance on the espresso side of things. So yeah the barista touch Vs the express impress is a bit one extreme to the other, touch: no assistance with espresso, impress: no assistance with milk. I think most people would probably end up with better, more consistent espresso with the impress, and steaming milk manually takes a bit of practice but it's really not that difficult to get the knack of. Ta, Kev

[@woeismeithink3901]

At least you admitted the cheating.. can see you rubbing the bottom of the glasses each time when testing to find the tape😊

[@Coffee_Kev]

😂 I actually didn't have the foggiest idea which was which, and the difference was so tiny anyway - looking at it from the front when the two coffees are side by side, I added just slightly less water so that's probably the difference, next time we do a test like this we'll weigh the shots and the water to make a more precise test.

[@MrBenjibb]

Yeh was so an obvious cheat lol

[@marthinlarsen1473]

You can literally see which americano has most foam and crema

[@doubleedge372]

Great vids. I just bought the Impress and like the simplicity of it all. It is early days but I am struggling to get it dialled in. I am using good quality, medium roast beans but it either runs too fast or too slow and the flavour isn’t there yet. It may the beans or the user but any tips you can give will be appreciated!

[@iainlindsley9226]

I am in literally the same position as you, absolutely love the machine so far though

[@u01ijm7]

Do you think some of the difference could be down to distribution?

[@Coffee_Kev]

Yeah could be, although the difference was very small, splitting hairs really, could just be that I added slightly less water to mine so it tasted a tad less diluted. Cheers, Kev

[@crax0r85]

@@Coffee_Kev There was a good 5mm more water in the Impress one

[@glyncorrwgmot1035]

Hi kev I really want the Sage Dual boiler machine but I don’t quite have the Budget!!! So my next best step would be the express impress but I’m unsure about the thermostat coil and don’t want to be waiting to heat the Milk etc when making 2-3 lattes at a time??? Would you have any info on this ??

[@adek86]

The Impress is running at low-ish pressure during this double shot (please mind the pressure gauge). Based on what I see at my unit at home, when properly set-up, yours is running at around 7-8 bars - this would implicate too coarse grind setting for this comparison.

[@Coffee_Kev]

This isn't what this demonstration was about, it was about the difference in the shot between someone who isn't accustomed to using a machine using the impress, with someone who is accustomed to using a machine using the express. They were both practically the same shot time, pressure gauges are difficult to see properly at that angle but they're both very similar, and the shots were almost identical too. Yeah both could have been dialled in slightly better, I think both may have benefited from a slightly finer grind. Personally I wouldn't focus on the pressure gauge too much, if you're somewhere in the espresso range I'd just go by taste. Cheers, Kev

[@stefansalzinger9346]

Very nice! Wondering why the espresso shot was that short (12s) on both machines....

[@Coffee_Kev]

They were both 23 seconds? Were you watching at double speed? ;-)

[@stefansalzinger9346]

@@Coffee_Kev Haha no, pure extraction (coffee out) was only 12s according to the video. With pre infusion it might be 23 ;-) Rule of thumb read in many posts that pre infusion time could be counted 50% at the highest, better not at all.

[@jorale2000]

I'd like to see a comparison between the impress and the bambino plus. Still trying to decide between the two. Thanks

[@Coffee_Kev]

Hi, I am going to do a whole series on the Bambino Plus including comparisons soon, Cheers Kev

[@stives466]

When I look at the extraction time and the appearance of the coffee, I would say both are bad! ! I couldn't find a single video that showed all the steps to obtain, for example, a double espresso: 1) choice 1 of setting for grind 2) test with appearance and extraction time 3) correction with choice 2 of grind setting 4) test with appearance and extraction time 5) etc until you get the correct result 6) once arrived at this result, show that it is reproducible without modifying anything which is 'normally' the strong point of this machine (personally I had to part with my manual machine because I was the only one the house to be able to produce good espresso)

[@ronanboyle2006]

good vid! I've had the impress for a month now and love it, but with a few family around today, I realised that you can't fit two coffee cups under at the same time and split a double shot - obviously I could split to two espresso cups so not a big deal. Also I find some variability in the shot volume despite programmed volume, and most of the time now I use a scale and stop the shot. Would be interested if anyone else finds this. The big win for me is that I can have a delicious coffee on a busy work morning with very little effort.

[@Coffee_Kev]

Thanks Ronan :-). This will depend on the size and shape of your cups, you should be able to split the shot using any cups though, in theory, you may just need to raise the cups up. Yeah shot volume will vary if you're changing grind size or changing coffee beans, it should be fairly consistent once you're dialled in, but I prefer to pull shots manually or semi manually, which means simply setting to a higher volume than you'll usually want, and pressing the button to start and stop the shot. Cheers, Kev

[@ronanboyle2006]

@@Coffee_Kev any thoughts on turbo shots? is it possible to set a max pressure of 6bar on the impress? I saw a video on the express and the guy held down the pre-infusion button through the entire shot to go low pressure but it didn't work on the impress! The best I got was just a coarse grind and sub 20 sec but the pressure still above 6

[@haberjennings475]

Once you’ve set the thing up it’s done. Never changed mine for 6 years. I just don’t get the impress thing Oh well

[@ravakahr]

I like when he says definitely didn’t cheat as his pinky finger continually runs under the cup feeling for a sticker.

[@Coffee_Kev]

Shhhhhhhh!!!! 🤣 Actually I didn't at all, I had no clue, but I'll remember this tip for next time 😄😄

[@hussamg]

Informative thank you

[@neildavid6375]

I’m drawn between the Pro and the Barista Touch. Wish you’d do a video on the touch. Concern is the timing over volume settings any recommendations for a good starting point with the settings on the barista touch. Thanks in advance and keep up the good work👏🏻👏🏻

[@Coffee_Kev]

Hi Neil, The Barista touch is like the Barista Pro but with an onboard barista talking you through the espresso making, and steaming the milk for you. You swipe and touch the screen to select the coffee you want to make, and the machine takes you through the process and allows you to customize that particular coffee to your taste. You grind, tamp, use the razor tool to get the dose right, insert the portafilter and press the shot button. The machine then handles the milk texture for you, and then you handle pouring the milk. Cheers Kev

[@dariuszdrozdowski5736]

14 bar??? 9 is beter of 14??

[@Coffee_Kev]

It's the OPV setting, and yeah I'd prefer a 9 bar OPV for using freshly roasted beans in traditional (single walled) baskets. Cheers, Kev.

[@levrone0075]

10:52..... not a blind test

[@Crab.Ragoon]

You can detect a slight difference with your pinky finger XD

[@Coffee_Kev]

Haha, so many people saying that, I can assure you I didn't 😆

[@justme...]

Same thing with a minor diferent looking

[@Coffee_Kev]

That certainly wasn't my conclusion.