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Sage Bambino

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    #2
    Hodors Appletart
    Registered Users Posts: 2,020 ✭✭✭Hodors Appletart


    What about an Aeropress and a decent burr grinder?


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    #3
    Klopp
    Registered Users Posts: 480 ✭✭Klopp


    Bluefoam wrote: »
    I enjoy a good coffee & usually treat myself at Kaph or Nicks, but have been restricted to tea at home during the lock'in...

    I'm thinking of investing in a machine... I used to have a Gaggia more than 10 years ago & didn't like it... it was too messy and I didn't get a good cup out of it. Preparation and clean up weren't worth the results.

    However, no I have time & enjoy an occassional cup... so just wondering what people thought of the Sage Bambino Plus? I was drawn to it because of the quality reviews for the milk frother, which is important to me...

    Are there any others I should be looking at? €300 is above my upper limit...

    https://www.sageappliances.com/uk/en/products/espresso/bes500.html

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sage-SES500BSS-Bambino-Plus-1600/dp/B07GB2JVD7/ref=as_li_ss_il?keywords=bambino+plus+sage&qid=1554284234&s=gateway&sr=8-1-fkmrnull&linkCode=li3&tag=trustedcoffee-21&linkId=bb65018da3610391c81202fdacfc42ff&language=en_GB

    The DeLongi Dedica seems good too... Any thoughts appreciated.


    I bought the Sage Bambino back in March and while i found it good, I found the portafilter extremely tough to lock and turn. It involved me getting the machine in a bear hug/headlock position. I thought it might get easier being new and gave it a period of time before returning. I came across similar posts online referring to bear hug tac so it wasn't just me or the machine i had. Curry's had it on sale for 250euro at the time.


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    #4
    Technocentral
    Registered Users Posts: 6,101 ✭✭✭Technocentral


    Bluefoam wrote: »
    I enjoy a good coffee & usually treat myself at Kaph or Nicks, but have been restricted to tea at home during the lock'in...

    I'm thinking of investing in a machine... I used to have a Gaggia more than 10 years ago & didn't like it... it was too messy and I didn't get a good cup out of it. Preparation and clean up weren't worth the results.

    However, no I have time & enjoy an occassional cup... so just wondering what people thought of the Sage Bambino Plus? I was drawn to it because of the quality reviews for the milk frother, which is important to me...

    Are there any others I should be looking at? €300 is above my upper limit...

    https://www.sageappliances.com/uk/en/products/espresso/bes500.html

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sage-SES500BSS-Bambino-Plus-1600/dp/B07GB2JVD7/ref=as_li_ss_il?keywords=bambino+plus+sage&qid=1554284234&s=gateway&sr=8-1-fkmrnull&linkCode=li3&tag=trustedcoffee-21&linkId=bb65018da3610391c81202fdacfc42ff&language=en_GB

    The DeLongi Dedica seems good too... Any thoughts appreciated.

    Have the Dedica, makes a lovely cup with the right beans.


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    #5
    Bluefoam
    Registered Users Posts: 7,715 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    Thanks, I've found the Sage in Harvey Norman or €299... Seems like good value. Will sleep on it.


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    #6
    The Hound Gone Wild
    Registered Users Posts: 255 ✭✭The Hound Gone Wild


    Bluefoam wrote: »
    Thanks, I've found the Sage in Harvey Norman or €299... Seems like good value. Will sleep on it.

    Coudpicker have this machine for the same price & ships with a bag of coffee. Consider buying from them instead of Harvey Norman.

    https://cloudpickercoffee.ie/collections/equipment/products/sage-the-bambino-plus-save-100-april-special-only


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    #7
    Hodors Appletart
    Registered Users Posts: 2,020 ✭✭✭Hodors Appletart


    The Hound Gone Wild wrote: »
    Coudpicker have this machine for the same price & ships with a bag of coffee. Consider buying from them instead of Harvey Norman.

    https://cloudpickercoffee.ie/collections/equipment/products/sage-the-bambino-plus-save-100-april-special-only

    great shout


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    #8
    Bluefoam
    Registered Users Posts: 7,715 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    The Hound Gone Wild wrote: »
    Coudpicker have this machine for the same price & ships with a bag of coffee. Consider buying from them instead of Harvey Norman.

    https://cloudpickercoffee.ie/collections/equipment/products/sage-the-bambino-plus-save-100-april-special-only

    I missed that by minutes... Order placed already. A great offer and sorry I missed it. This whole thing is a rabbit hole...

    Already looking at grinders... And hoping that the machine I get has the additional non-pressurised baskets that seem to ship with newer units... even though I have no idea how to take advantage of them... This whole experience is going to be fun.


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    #9
    The Hound Gone Wild
    Registered Users Posts: 255 ✭✭The Hound Gone Wild


    Bluefoam wrote: »
    I missed that by minutes... Order placed already. A great offer and sorry I missed it. This whole thing is a rabbit hole...

    Already looking at grinders... And hoping that the machine I get has the additional non-pressurised baskets that seem to ship with newer units... even though I have no idea how to take advantage of them... This whole experience is going to be fun.

    It will be a constant nightmare :P . You haven't bought a coffee machine, you've bought a hobby. This is capable of pulling really great shots of espresso, but it's only as good as the grounds you put in... You will need a good quality grinder to get great results.


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    #10
    mad m
    Registered Users Posts: 9,002 ✭✭✭mad m


    So is the Sage an upgrade from the Gaggia Classic. My current setup is Gaggia classic with Mahlkönig Vario Home V3 grinder.


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    #11
    Squidgy Black
    Registered Users Posts: 21,605 ✭✭✭✭Squidgy Black


    mad m wrote: »
    So is the Sage an upgrade from the Gaggia Classic. My current setup is Gaggia classic with Mahlkönig Vario Home V3 grinder.

    They'd be on a similar level out of the box but the classic is a great platform for upgrading.

    Few common mods would be lowering the brew pressure by the OPV, changing the steam wand out for a Silvia one and adding a PID for stable brew temperature and better steaming capability.


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    #12
    Bluefoam
    Registered Users Posts: 7,715 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    Waiting for the machine to arrive... Plaguing myself with YouTube videos...

    What do you guys use for your coffee shots, cappuccino, lattes, flat whites... single or double shots?

    Watching American videos, they seem to use only doubles, is that also the norm here.? I always ask for a single shot...


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    #13
    Hodors Appletart
    Registered Users Posts: 2,020 ✭✭✭Hodors Appletart


    most coffee shops here use double shots.


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    #14
    Squidgy Black
    Registered Users Posts: 21,605 ✭✭✭✭Squidgy Black


    Double shot would be the norm in general.

    It's also easier (generally!) to pull a double shot compared to using a single basket with the lower dose which can be a bit finicky.


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    #15
    wexfordman2
    Registered Users Posts: 2,541 ✭✭✭wexfordman2


    Klopp wrote: »
    I bought the Sage Bambino back in March and while i found it good, I found the portafilter extremely tough to lock and turn. It involved me getting the machine in a bear hug/headlock position. I thought it might get easier being new and gave it a period of time before returning. I came across similar posts online referring to bear hug tac so it wasn't just me or the machine i had. Curry's had it on sale for 250euro at the time.

    I think you might have been overfilling the grinds, I notice it the odd time with my larger sage barrista, and it's always fixed by lessening the grind fill


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    #16
    Bluefoam
    Registered Users Posts: 7,715 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    wexfordman2 wrote: »
    I think you might have been overfilling the grinds, I notice it the odd time with my larger sage barrista, and it's always fixed by lessening the grind fill

    Thats good to know, I'll keep an eye on it... I also had advice from Cloud Picker, to grind slightly more coarse than commercial... Machine arrives today, very excited...


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    #17
    mad m
    Registered Users Posts: 9,002 ✭✭✭mad m


    Bluefoam wrote: »
    Thats good to know, I'll keep an eye on it... I also had advice from Cloud Picker, to grind slightly more coarse than commercial... Machine arrives today, very excited...

    Let us know how it goes. Toying with buying one


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    #18
    wexfordman2
    Registered Users Posts: 2,541 ✭✭✭wexfordman2


    Bluefoam wrote: »
    Thats good to know, I'll keep an eye on it... I also had advice from Cloud Picker, to grind slightly more coarse than commercial... Machine arrives today, very excited...

    I love my sage, it's the barista model, have it prob about 4 or 5 years now.


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    #19
    Bluefoam
    Registered Users Posts: 7,715 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    Unfortunately the machine was delivered yesterday, but was dead on arrival. Couldn't get power to it. Sage customer care were good, but not much they can do, so I'm waiting patiently (not really) for Harvey Norman to get in touch to arrange the replacement. I have to say, this is very frustrating when you have no control, phone lines are not manned and all you can do is wait for someone to aknowledge your emails...

    Its been a week since initial order, I guess it could be another week before its sorted... & 500kg of freshly ground coffee for the bin.

    These things happen... & I'm not dissappointed with the machine, with Sage or with Harvey Norman, but it is frustrating. Looking forward to getting a positive resolution & preparing some coffee while I'm still working from home.


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    #20
    The Hound Gone Wild
    Registered Users Posts: 255 ✭✭The Hound Gone Wild


    Bluefoam wrote: »
    Unfortunately the machine was delivered yesterday, but was dead on arrival. Couldn't get power to it. Sage customer care were good, but not much they can do, so I'm waiting patiently (not really) for Harvey Norman to get in touch to arrange the replacement. I have to say, this is very frustrating when you have no control, phone lines are not manned and all you can do is wait for someone to aknowledge your emails...

    Its been a week since initial order, I guess it could be another week before its sorted... & 500kg of freshly ground coffee for the bin.

    These things happen... & I'm not dissappointed with the machine, with Sage or with Harvey Norman, but it is frustrating. Looking forward to getting a positive resolution & preparing some coffee while I'm still working from home.

    Don't throw out coffee!! If it's in the unopened bag from the roaster put it into the freezer. If it's opened put it in a ziplock bag, squeeze the air out and put the bag in a Tupperware box in the freezer. Take it out 24h before you need it and keep it at room temperature until thawed. Do not open it for any reason before then. It will destroy your coffee with condensation.

    Its frustrating but it will be more frustrating trying to pull good shots :P

    Use this time to get a **small** scale that weighs in 0.1g increments. It's a life saver for getting good espresso. You can get them from Amazon for less that €20


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    #21
    Bluefoam
    Registered Users Posts: 7,715 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    Harvey Norman are out of stock & would need to get one sent to them and then sent on to me... so I've requested a refund and have now ordered from CloudPicker as their offer has free shipping and a free bag of coffee.

    Still looking forward to getting a cup of coffee before the lock-in is over...


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    #22
    Bluefoam
    Registered Users Posts: 7,715 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    Finally arrived today... Have managed to get a couple of mediocre coffee's out of her... Looking forward to too much coffee & figuring out how to get a good quality expresso.

    511479.jpg


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    #23
    FCB1899
    Registered Users Posts: 105 ✭✭FCB1899


    Bluefoam wrote: »
    Finally arrived today... Have managed to get a couple of mediocre coffee's out of her... Looking forward to too much coffee & figuring out how to get a good quality expresso.

    511479.jpg
    How are you getting on with your Sage? Cloudpicker have it back on sale and I am tempted to purchase


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    #24
    Bluefoam
    Registered Users Posts: 7,715 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    I'm loving it... Have the Smart Grinder Pro too... I'm getting really good quality cappuccino and am getting good espresso now too.

    I'm glad I went this route rather than a grinder combined machine. It genuinely heats up in 3 seconds and the milk froth function is extremely good.


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    #25
    FCB1899
    Registered Users Posts: 105 ✭✭FCB1899


    Bluefoam wrote: »
    I'm loving it... Have the Smart Grinder Pro too... I'm getting really good quality cappuccino and am getting good espresso now too.

    I'm glad I went this route rather than a grinder combined machine. It genuinely heats up in 3 seconds and the milk froth function is extremely good.


    Does it come with 2 tpes of basket for the portafilter, single and double wall or just one? Wouldn't be able to stretch to a grinder at first so could I expect decent results from freshly ground from say coffee angel/3fe?


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    #26
    Bluefoam
    Registered Users Posts: 7,715 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    FCB1899 wrote: »
    Does it come with 2 tpes of basket for the portafilter, single and double wall or just one? Wouldn't be able to stretch to a grinder at first so could I expect decent results from freshly ground from say coffee angel/3fe?

    That was my struggle... Machine didn't come with non pressurised baskets, nor could I buy any anywhere... Actually I did, I ordered one from Australia, but it has yet to arrive.

    I expressed my disappointment to Sage and in the end they offered to find a set of non pressurised baskets for me... which I am using I'm not interested in supermarket coffee, so the double wall baskets were useless to me.

    Apparently, the machines made after January have the non pressurised baskets, but I don't know how you guarantee that. I can confirm that my brother now has a silver Bambino and it has the baskets.


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    #27
    Damo 2k9
    Registered Users Posts: 3,506 ✭✭✭Damo 2k9


    Looks like a cracking setup. I have the Barista Express and feel like the grinder is something that really holds the machine back. I'm no expert, but the grinds look fairly clumpy which I can only assume is adding channeling to the espresso pour.

    I am on grind level 2 (upper burr at 4) and with 18g in I am getting 36g out in just about 25 seconds.

    I think a distributor will be a great addition to the toolkit, but we will get to that!

    Is the steam wand on the bambino good? It doesnt look like a single hole wand like the barista express, which takes an age to get going.


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    #28
    Bluefoam
    Registered Users Posts: 7,715 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    Damo 2k9 wrote: »
    Looks like a cracking setup. I have the Barista Express and feel like the grinder is something that really holds the machine back. I'm no expert, but the grinds look fairly clumpy which I can only assume is adding channeling to the espresso pour.

    I am on grind level 2 (upper burr at 4) and with 18g in I am getting 36g out in just about 25 seconds.

    I think a distributor will be a great addition to the toolkit, but we will get to that!

    Is the steam wand on the bambino good? It doesnt look like a single hole wand like the barista express, which takes an age to get going.

    Bambino's steam wand is amazing!!! it can froth automatically or manually and you can get a range of consistency and temperature to your liking. It's quick and has four holes.

    I'm currently on grind size 13 and 19g, have a little clumping, but a good tamp deals with it. I wouldn't refer to it as popcorning, it's not that severe.


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    #29
    Bluefoam
    Registered Users Posts: 7,715 ✭✭✭Bluefoam


    The way I have it set, is that I get a double shot espresso... Just right, but if I get it wrong, usually a little sour.

    Milk is mid to hot with paint like consistency and just enough creamy froth to top it off. I generally use a 10-12 Oz cup...

    My coffee is better than allot of coffee shops, but not quite Kaph quality, which is where I like to get a coffee when I'm out and about.


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    #30
    Damo 2k9
    Registered Users Posts: 3,506 ✭✭✭Damo 2k9


    Sounds great man. I just can't understand why I have to go so fine on the grinder setting to get close to ideal extraction... The coffee is good coffee, freshly roasted.

    I might try 19g tomorrow morning and see how I get on. I'll let ya know how I get on!


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    #31
    Damo 2k9
    Registered Users Posts: 3,506 ✭✭✭Damo 2k9


    19g in 41g out in 27 seconds (stopped manually @ 38g)

    I dont want to get too hung up on exact numbers, the coffee still tastes good to me at the minute, but its always good to squeeze a bit of performance out of your machine :)


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