Jura-Capresso 13185 Impressa F7 Espresso Machine, Silver Metallic
I have had the Capresso for just about 2 years (see my earlier rating.)
It is worth it's weight in gold. The coffee is terrific....I have no desire to stop at Starbucks on the way home from work for my usual evening caffiene fix.
The customer service has been terrific. Last week the steam knob was stuck and did not turn to open. Since the warranty period of 1 year was over, I was concerned about having to spend a huge amount to get it fixed. I tried cleaning the knob(thinking maybe some milk splatters and grunge had crusted underneath), I also tried WD 40.....to no avail. When I called customer service, I spoke with 'Gunther', who kindly walked me through prying off the knob and replacing it....and now it works perfectly!
The machine is operated by my 10 and 12 year olds as well as my cleaning lady and sitter.....and it has never failed. A reproducible cup of coffee.... pretty much each time. On a rare occasion, the coffee is luke warm and has to be discarded. I have learnt the machines little nuances and can tweak the settings to make a perfect cup.
I always use whole beans. I have found that when I use ground coffee I have to put in a tremendous amount per cup brewed. I also have only used non flavored coffee beans.
The frother can get pretty crusted, so I usually take it apart and soak it in warm soapy water every other day. On occasion, if it is not reattached well it can pop off while steaming and make a bit of a mess, and possible scald you....so be careful. That has happened once or twice, and was probably why the steam knob got stuck with dried milk.
At any rate, the Jura Capresso F7 gets 5 stars from me at the 2 year mark!
After staying with friends and enjoying a morning cup of coffee from their machine, I decided to purchase my own Jura-Capresso. After a month of now owning my machine, I can not express how much I enjoy the ability to make a perfect cup of coffee. The machine works very well and I have had no problems with it. I received the optional siphoning attachment to make latte's and hot hot milk drinks. This also works well for heating the milk prior to putting in the coffee. My only question is whether to purchase the after sale factory extended warranty as it is rather pricey.
I was very excited when my F7 arrived. Out of the box it looked good. After that, it was all downhill. The first problem was with the pressure. It dripped liquid into the cup - that was the rinse cycle. The coffee cycle was worse - nothing but slow drips with a rare drizzle. The second problem I had was with all those coffee grounds in the coffee. Of all the coffees I have had (and believe me that was a lot), I have never seen so many grounds in coffee. I ran the rinse cycle several more times trying to get the pressure to work. Nothing improved. I ran a whole container of water through it with the same results every time. I went on line to find answers - Capresso's web site was zero help (and they really do need to answer their Emails. Good luck to you if you need to contact them). The third problem I had was the noise. WOW! Is that a lumber mill inside the machine?! Are they putting out a fire in there after the coffee finishes its dripping?
The bottom line is this - for $1300.00, there had better be rockets shooting that coffee out. It should be at least what they claim - same as a professional brew house espresso maker (or 18 bars). This machine is clearly not. The coffee grounds need to be reduced (a lot - my French press has fewer). Finally, the noise has to be less than my $15 grinder. I am not impressed at all. My $150.00 espresso maker put this one to shame. Too bad, the idea was a good but the F7 needs a lot of work. My F7 is on its way back.
I've been using this machine for a couple of months now and so far so good. The espresso is rich and tasty. I've used Starbucks beans as well as "Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf" beans and have had no problems with them at all. I have found that if I run the rinse cycle a little more frequently I get better espresso. The only downside I've seen is the size of the water tank - the machine will say it's out of water well before it's empty so the usable volume of the tank is much less than what they state as the size.
I actually have the Capresso C1300, but was also experiencing problems with the frother. I took the tip posted by another reader and switched out the existing frothing tip with a Krups frothing tip. (I had an old Krups espresso/capuccino machine left over, before I upgraded to the Capresso). What do you know - it totally worked! The froth is sooooo much better with the new tip!
I can't say a lot about this machine that hasn't already been said. The build quality is excellent and the coffee is the best I've ever had, consistently.
I had avoided automatics for a while simply because pulling a shot seemed like such a romantic notion. Hah! Switching to a schedule that kicks off at 5:45 AM makes anything 'automatic' look a whole lot sexier. I am setting aside $$$ so that when this one finally fails (and that should be a while - this machine demonstrates superior engineering), I can dart right to the store and buy another.
And, although I think microfoam might be another romantic notion (if it tastes good and wakes me up, I'm good), the previous reviewer might want to check his or her water quality - I have deliciously pure backwoods North Carolina well water that gives me superb crema.
This machine is outstanding, however this is just a silver-metalic version of the E8, which is less expensive. They both do anything and everything you would want to do if you're a coffee snob, so unless you're trying to match other shiney silver stuff in your kitchen, save a couple hundred $$$ and get an E8.
After 7 years or so of using a bulletproof Starbucks Barista which produced great espresso and copious microfoam, I bought this machine for my wife for Christmas (although she swears it was yet another gift to myself). The build quality and ease of use is great. The espresso is very good (but not up to the standards of a well pulled shot off a semi-auto). Nevertheless, the lack of any mess and pushbutton convenience outweighs any complaints about the quality of the shot - don't get me wrong, it pulls a very nice shot. What it doesnt do well is create the beautiful microfoam an experienced user can get using a traditional steam wand. All of these super-autos have that annoying steam-assist wand which is supposed to require no skill to create foam. Unfortunately all it does it create these large crappy bubbles and very little foam. To make matters worse, the side steam holes get clogged very easily and then the result is NO FOAM. I called wholelattelove and Capresso looking for a solution and they each had no clue either (a) how to solve the problem, or (b) why in the world I didnt like the crappy large soap bubble excuse for microfoam. Well for $8 I found a Krups metal steam tip off the net (go to culinaryparts.com for a $1.99 steam tip plus $6 shipping) and screwed it on to the end of the metal wand after having discarded the useless steaming aid sleeve and old plastic tip, and VOILA! -- awesome foam made in half the time I could do the same thing with my old Starbucks Barista. These machines all have a Thermoblock for steaming unlike the traditional boiler on a better semi-auto. Nevertheless it is enough and the foam is first rate as I said. The only other thing to be aware of is that these machines cant use my beloved Peats coffee beans - too oily and they get stuck in the hopper- so I am still searching for a good dark roast which is not too oily. But for now after a month of use, I am happy with the espresso and the foam and delighted to make my morning cap with a minimum of effort. The F7 in particular is a great machine as against the other Juras. It is more programmible than the E* and much simpler to use (and smaller footprint) than the pricier units. I almost bought the F9 but there is just too much to think about on that machine and the bright chrome is a bit too shiny and pretentious. The F7 is the perfect mix of functionality and understated good looks. It is also the newest technology from Jura so it has some small touches that the F9 doesnt have, such as a 120 second steam timer versus the 60 second timer on the F9.
Update to the above review:
After many more months of use I am loving the Jura F7, and I found the beans to use: Blue Bottle Coffee Hayes Valley Espresso. Not too oily but very flavorful. Perfect for this machine. Better than Peats, and definitely fresher. I am not going to list their website here cause I dont want to look like a shill for them. But you can find them, I am confident. They will mail out to you for no additional cost.
By the way, the review above that says the F7 is a shinier version of the E8 is incorrect. The basic mechanism may be the same, but the programming functions and other nice features are significantly different. If you're already spending this much coin, the F7 is a better deal than the E8. Just my humble opinion.
I got the Impressa F7 for mother's day and it has changed my life around! The coffee is predictably par excellence and both my husband and I have no desire to go out for coffee anymore. In fact when we are out, we would rather come home than go to Starbucks.
The machine seemed formidable at first (I find any thing with manuals to be intimidating), but after reading the manual and trying out the F7 a few times I got it right. I have since perfected the art of frothing and steaming. It comes with a video, though I did not watch it.
CONS: has a fairly large foot print....needs a lot of counter space.
Flavored coffee beans cannot be used in the grinder....something to do with the oils. Because of this I have switched from hazelnut coffee to unflavored coffee, and frankly, the coffee is so good that I don't miss the flavored kind.
The accessories such as the water filter and the cleaning tablets are not easily available.....I have to order them directly from Capresso, or from Williams and Sonoma.
Finally, although this is a somewhat expensive machine ($1400), we have recovered half the cost of the machine over the past 3 months by not going to specialty coffee stores and spending $3 for each cup.
Hope you find this review helpful.
KS
I am not a coffee shop expert so my expectations may be different than yours. My needs were the following when considering buying this machine:
1. Consistant coffee shop taste and quality.
2. Easy to use
3. Easy clean up
4. An intelligent machine
5. Well built
This machine is really cool. It makes the whole coffee making process so simple. The results are fabulous. Everything comes out nice and hot. The machine is very intelligent with a lot of cool little features in place to make your life easier. The frother works great. Setup was a breeze. I got it on amazon.com for $853.00 brand new from a marketplace seller. A great deal it was!
My wife LOVES coffee...I like coffee...she works ..I work...we have three kids...I would try to stay in bed longer than her to keep from having to make the coffee in the morning.. For Christmas I bought an Impressa F7 ..I was only prepared to spend about $1000 on a coffee machine at Williams-Sonoma...but the machine I could get for that really lacked some basic features...there were more expensive machines...but the F7 seemed to have most of what I wanted ...I got up Christmas morning to set up the machine, which was relatively easy...(although after 7 or 8 cups of "tweeking" the machine, my heart was pounding up in my throat and when the kids came down to see what Santa had left them I sent them back upstairs for making too much noise)...The coffee was REALLY good...it took a while to learn how to adjust the machine to get what we each liked, but now we love the machine...although there are occassional issues such as a luke warm cup now and then and the frother is marginal...it has made our life in the morning a very pleasant experience...it really doesn't require much upkeep ....wouldn't give it up now...
I have had the Capresso for just about 2 years (see my earlier rating.)
It is worth it's weight in gold. The coffee is terrific....I have no desire to stop at Starbucks on the way home from work for my usual evening caffiene fix.
The customer service has been terrific. Last week the steam knob was stuck and did not turn to open. Since the warranty period of 1 year was over, I was concerned about having to spend a huge amount to get it fixed. I tried cleaning the knob(thinking maybe some milk splatters and grunge had crusted underneath), I also tried WD 40.....to no avail. When I called customer service, I spoke with 'Gunther', who kindly walked me through prying off the knob and replacing it....and now it works perfectly!
The machine is operated by my 10 and 12 year olds as well as my cleaning lady and sitter.....and it has never failed. A reproducible cup of coffee.... pretty much each time. On a rare occasion, the coffee is luke warm and has to be discarded. I have learnt the machines little nuances and can tweak the settings to make a perfect cup.
I always use whole beans. I have found that when I use ground coffee I have to put in a tremendous amount per cup brewed. I also have only used non flavored coffee beans.
The frother can get pretty crusted, so I usually take it apart and soak it in warm soapy water every other day. On occasion, if it is not reattached well it can pop off while steaming and make a bit of a mess, and possible scald you....so be careful. That has happened once or twice, and was probably why the steam knob got stuck with dried milk.
At any rate, the Jura Capresso F7 gets 5 stars from me at the 2 year mark!
After staying with friends and enjoying a morning cup of coffee from their machine, I decided to purchase my own Jura-Capresso. After a month of now owning my machine, I can not express how much I enjoy the ability to make a perfect cup of coffee. The machine works very well and I have had no problems with it. I received the optional siphoning attachment to make latte's and hot hot milk drinks. This also works well for heating the milk prior to putting in the coffee. My only question is whether to purchase the after sale factory extended warranty as it is rather pricey.
I was very excited when my F7 arrived. Out of the box it looked good. After that, it was all downhill. The first problem was with the pressure. It dripped liquid into the cup - that was the rinse cycle. The coffee cycle was worse - nothing but slow drips with a rare drizzle. The second problem I had was with all those coffee grounds in the coffee. Of all the coffees I have had (and believe me that was a lot), I have never seen so many grounds in coffee. I ran the rinse cycle several more times trying to get the pressure to work. Nothing improved. I ran a whole container of water through it with the same results every time. I went on line to find answers - Capresso's web site was zero help (and they really do need to answer their Emails. Good luck to you if you need to contact them). The third problem I had was the noise. WOW! Is that a lumber mill inside the machine?! Are they putting out a fire in there after the coffee finishes its dripping?
The bottom line is this - for $1300.00, there had better be rockets shooting that coffee out. It should be at least what they claim - same as a professional brew house espresso maker (or 18 bars). This machine is clearly not. The coffee grounds need to be reduced (a lot - my French press has fewer). Finally, the noise has to be less than my $15 grinder. I am not impressed at all. My $150.00 espresso maker put this one to shame. Too bad, the idea was a good but the F7 needs a lot of work. My F7 is on its way back.
I've been using this machine for a couple of months now and so far so good. The espresso is rich and tasty. I've used Starbucks beans as well as "Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf" beans and have had no problems with them at all. I have found that if I run the rinse cycle a little more frequently I get better espresso. The only downside I've seen is the size of the water tank - the machine will say it's out of water well before it's empty so the usable volume of the tank is much less than what they state as the size.
I actually have the Capresso C1300, but was also experiencing problems with the frother. I took the tip posted by another reader and switched out the existing frothing tip with a Krups frothing tip. (I had an old Krups espresso/capuccino machine left over, before I upgraded to the Capresso). What do you know - it totally worked! The froth is sooooo much better with the new tip!
I can't say a lot about this machine that hasn't already been said. The build quality is excellent and the coffee is the best I've ever had, consistently.
I had avoided automatics for a while simply because pulling a shot seemed like such a romantic notion. Hah! Switching to a schedule that kicks off at 5:45 AM makes anything 'automatic' look a whole lot sexier. I am setting aside $$$ so that when this one finally fails (and that should be a while - this machine demonstrates superior engineering), I can dart right to the store and buy another.
And, although I think microfoam might be another romantic notion (if it tastes good and wakes me up, I'm good), the previous reviewer might want to check his or her water quality - I have deliciously pure backwoods North Carolina well water that gives me superb crema.
This machine is outstanding, however this is just a silver-metalic version of the E8, which is less expensive. They both do anything and everything you would want to do if you're a coffee snob, so unless you're trying to match other shiney silver stuff in your kitchen, save a couple hundred $$$ and get an E8.
After 7 years or so of using a bulletproof Starbucks Barista which produced great espresso and copious microfoam, I bought this machine for my wife for Christmas (although she swears it was yet another gift to myself). The build quality and ease of use is great. The espresso is very good (but not up to the standards of a well pulled shot off a semi-auto). Nevertheless, the lack of any mess and pushbutton convenience outweighs any complaints about the quality of the shot - don't get me wrong, it pulls a very nice shot. What it doesnt do well is create the beautiful microfoam an experienced user can get using a traditional steam wand. All of these super-autos have that annoying steam-assist wand which is supposed to require no skill to create foam. Unfortunately all it does it create these large crappy bubbles and very little foam. To make matters worse, the side steam holes get clogged very easily and then the result is NO FOAM. I called wholelattelove and Capresso looking for a solution and they each had no clue either (a) how to solve the problem, or (b) why in the world I didnt like the crappy large soap bubble excuse for microfoam. Well for $8 I found a Krups metal steam tip off the net (go to culinaryparts.com for a $1.99 steam tip plus $6 shipping) and screwed it on to the end of the metal wand after having discarded the useless steaming aid sleeve and old plastic tip, and VOILA! -- awesome foam made in half the time I could do the same thing with my old Starbucks Barista. These machines all have a Thermoblock for steaming unlike the traditional boiler on a better semi-auto. Nevertheless it is enough and the foam is first rate as I said. The only other thing to be aware of is that these machines cant use my beloved Peats coffee beans - too oily and they get stuck in the hopper- so I am still searching for a good dark roast which is not too oily. But for now after a month of use, I am happy with the espresso and the foam and delighted to make my morning cap with a minimum of effort. The F7 in particular is a great machine as against the other Juras. It is more programmible than the E* and much simpler to use (and smaller footprint) than the pricier units. I almost bought the F9 but there is just too much to think about on that machine and the bright chrome is a bit too shiny and pretentious. The F7 is the perfect mix of functionality and understated good looks. It is also the newest technology from Jura so it has some small touches that the F9 doesnt have, such as a 120 second steam timer versus the 60 second timer on the F9.
Update to the above review:
After many more months of use I am loving the Jura F7, and I found the beans to use: Blue Bottle Coffee Hayes Valley Espresso. Not too oily but very flavorful. Perfect for this machine. Better than Peats, and definitely fresher. I am not going to list their website here cause I dont want to look like a shill for them. But you can find them, I am confident. They will mail out to you for no additional cost.
By the way, the review above that says the F7 is a shinier version of the E8 is incorrect. The basic mechanism may be the same, but the programming functions and other nice features are significantly different. If you're already spending this much coin, the F7 is a better deal than the E8. Just my humble opinion.
I got the Impressa F7 for mother's day and it has changed my life around! The coffee is predictably par excellence and both my husband and I have no desire to go out for coffee anymore. In fact when we are out, we would rather come home than go to Starbucks.
The machine seemed formidable at first (I find any thing with manuals to be intimidating), but after reading the manual and trying out the F7 a few times I got it right. I have since perfected the art of frothing and steaming. It comes with a video, though I did not watch it.
CONS: has a fairly large foot print....needs a lot of counter space.
Flavored coffee beans cannot be used in the grinder....something to do with the oils. Because of this I have switched from hazelnut coffee to unflavored coffee, and frankly, the coffee is so good that I don't miss the flavored kind.
The accessories such as the water filter and the cleaning tablets are not easily available.....I have to order them directly from Capresso, or from Williams and Sonoma.
Finally, although this is a somewhat expensive machine ($1400), we have recovered half the cost of the machine over the past 3 months by not going to specialty coffee stores and spending $3 for each cup.
Hope you find this review helpful.
KS
I am not a coffee shop expert so my expectations may be different than yours. My needs were the following when considering buying this machine:
1. Consistant coffee shop taste and quality.
2. Easy to use
3. Easy clean up
4. An intelligent machine
5. Well built
This machine is really cool. It makes the whole coffee making process so simple. The results are fabulous. Everything comes out nice and hot. The machine is very intelligent with a lot of cool little features in place to make your life easier. The frother works great. Setup was a breeze. I got it on amazon.com for $853.00 brand new from a marketplace seller. A great deal it was!
My wife LOVES coffee...I like coffee...she works ..I work...we have three kids...I would try to stay in bed longer than her to keep from having to make the coffee in the morning.. For Christmas I bought an Impressa F7 ..I was only prepared to spend about $1000 on a coffee machine at Williams-Sonoma...but the machine I could get for that really lacked some basic features...there were more expensive machines...but the F7 seemed to have most of what I wanted ...I got up Christmas morning to set up the machine, which was relatively easy...(although after 7 or 8 cups of "tweeking" the machine, my heart was pounding up in my throat and when the kids came down to see what Santa had left them I sent them back upstairs for making too much noise)...The coffee was REALLY good...it took a while to learn how to adjust the machine to get what we each liked, but now we love the machine...although there are occassional issues such as a luke warm cup now and then and the frother is marginal...it has made our life in the morning a very pleasant experience...it really doesn't require much upkeep ....wouldn't give it up now...