Baby Gaggia Twin
I am on my third Baby Gaggia Twin since February and the third one does seem to be the charm. The first machine had an impotent steamer and was sent back, the second, the steam wand came off entirely. I did notice that happened to another reviewer but went with this machine as it was in my price range and I felt lucky.
The first one was purchased through Essential Espresso (avoid at all costs) who when I called to address the problem were very "We don''t want to hear it, talk to the manufacturer" even though their site boasts a 30 day no hassle return. I wish I read the reviews on them before purchase. I won''t go into every detail but dealing with them was so unpleasant and they took so long to do anything that I decided that I would get my replacement from BBandBeyond, where I learned they would price-match even with a 300 dollar difference and free shipping!!
So, BBandBeyond gave me a truly hassle free exchange for the second machine and it''s faulty steam wand and now I am reasonably happy with the machine. The customer service there is among the best I have experienced.
The steamer takes a little getting used to. You need to purge it of water till the lights flash, turn it off and then back on again, keeping the wand out of your milk until it is up to "full steam" then turn it off again and put it in your milk pitcher. It sounds more painful than it is and all happens in about a minute and change.
Pros: Looks great, seems sturdy, is easy to use and clean, heats up quickly, makes very good espresso
The steamer takes a little getting used to. You need to purge it of water till the lights flash, turn it off and then back on again, keeping the wand out of your milk until it is up to "full steam" then turn it off again and put it in your milk pitcher. It sounds more painful than it is and all happens in about a minute and change.
Cons: There is a smell from the steam wand, it gets less over time and I am told that running descaler through it will eliminate it. (Why couldn''t they do that?) The group head is configured in such a way that you cannot really fill the portafilter full of coffee and have to leave a bit of room at the top. This is a slight bummer for me as I like my morning coffee a nice long pull and with our former machine could get enough coffee for 2 such pulls at one time for both me and the hubby. True, it is no Greek tragedy to pull 2 shots but just not as convenient. If you are pulling for one, there is no problem.
However, Gaggia itself and its U.S. representative,are lacking in customer service in my opinion.
After receiving my third machine, I sent an email asking about a pressurized portafilter for the machine. I also added that it would be nice of them to offer some discount on same taking into to consideration the inconvenience I had been through having 2 defective machines.
Both Importika in the U.S. and Gaggia in Italy totally ignored this. I would not buy from them again for that reason. To me, it would be a no brainer to comp a relatively inexpensive item to compensate for the inconvenience and leave the customer feeling that you value their business and regret the inconvenience. They obviously don''t.
It does take away some of the enjoyment of owning it
UPDATE
I no longer own this machine, it started leaking around the grouphead and after replacing the gasket and the filter basket to no avail, I returned it and went with another model. Various forums have given consistently good reviews to the Classic which is not a "snazzy" looking or programmable to your preferred size of shot. So far I am happy with it. You can tell right away that the steamer is better the crema is a litle thicker (probably because whatever was causing the leaking was not providing the proper pressure for "expression" of flavor. We decided to get a grinder also as this machine likes a finer grind than I can get in some places. After a few weeks, I will write a separate review for it but after 3 Baby Twins in 5 months, I can not recommend them from anything but a decorative standpoint.
This is a great espresso machine for home use if you are an espresso lover. However, avoid this machine if you want to make latte or cappuccino. I have had this machine for more than a month now and I have been using it relatively frequently. The foamer works great but the foam always comes out smelly. (like plastic or rubber smell). This problem was also addressed in another review on Amazon.
Overall, Gaggia Baby twin is a very aesthetically pleasing and durable espresso maker. It''s very well made and it will last you a life time. However I would avoid this machine just for the fact that you can''t make good latte or cappuccino with it.
Update: 1/27/2012
I owned this machine for more than 3 years now and it has been very disappointing. The milk frother broker after 6 months of use. I took the machine to a designated repair center and the center held it for almost a year because they were waiting for Gaggia to ship the necessary parts from Italy. (Worst product experience EVER) I finally requested the repair center to return my machine (still broken) so I can at least use it for just espresso. Now the electric touch pad is broken and the dumb thing is just sitting on my counter-top as a reminder of how crappy Gaggia products are.
Gaggia: Please refund my money!
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i love the espresso this machine puts out but the entire machine is somewhat tainted for me given that the steamer has always smelled and made milk and water taste very very strongly of some kind of oil. at least there are separate espresso and steamer boilers. seriously, think motor oil or bicycle chain oil. ick, it is hard to get the taste and smell of my first few attempts at foaming out of my mouth and nose. i called the company and they suggested a descaling agent which did help, but still for the price for goodness sake it would be nice to have that taken care of at the factory.
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I needed upgrade for my cheap Gaggia Pure and I needed to pick from this model and Gaggia Baby Class D. Sorry to say I bought Twin. 99% of coffees in our house is a cappuccino and I thought additional dedicated thermo-unit would make our living easier and save us some "waiting for a steam" time. I was stupid...
The point is that though there is second "boiler" indeed it is too weak to make proper milk froth for two cappuccinos in 650 ml jug (one portion of milk in 350 ml jug is okay). It''s power isn''t enough to whirl the milk which is absolutely needed to "stretch" the milk. Of course, you can use so called "turbo-frother",the default panarello tip but you will get only that poor bubbly parody instead of pro-like froth.
With any other Gaggia, Baby Class e.g., you could do it with it''s single boiler but having your top line Baby Twin you would not.
Cons: pathetic, impotent steamer
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The Gaggia is a competent, well-made machine. It makes an excellent espresso. The dual heater system works very well. There''s no hint of foreign taste/smell from the frothing wand in our unit -something other reviewers have reported.
Things I like:
-It makes an excellent espresso.
-The dose system works well, though it occasionally dispenses an extra 10-20% volume. It''s nice not to have to vigilantly watch after you start a pull.
-The dual heaters works very well. If you use the frothing wand regularly, you''ll appreciate the machine''s ability to consistently deliver two temperatures simultaneously (alternately, actually).
-The frothing wand works very well with regular, skim, even soy milk. The swivel functionality is excellent.
-The boiler heats water faster than I can pull espresso shots.
-The drip tray is easy to service.
-The unit looks great.
Things I don''t like so much:
-Price. For the money, I think the Gaggia Baby Classic delivers more bang for the buck than the Baby Twin. The dual heater and dose system are nice, but don''t justify a 50% price increase. On the other hand, if you regularly make cappuccinos for twelve people at a time, the Baby Twin is worth every penny.
-The water tank isn''t big enough, and maddeningly, Gaggia drills the overflow hole nearly an inch lower than it needs to be.
-When first turned on, the ''water heater'' indicator on the front panel indicates it''s ready to go after only a couple of minutes. It''s not. The water''s hot, but the brew-head isn''t and you''ll end up with a luke-warm espresso. You need to wait the 6-10 minutes that Gaggia suggests. They ought to change the indicator to reflect both the water and head temperatures.
-Gaggia should knurl the compression ring on the frothing wand (it''s smooth). The wand does tend to come loose if you don''t tighten the ring thoroughly. I can develop the finger pressure to do it; my wife cannot. A rubber pad helps. Knurling would be better. Gaggia ought to fix it.
-The Baby Twin uses capacitive switches for the four selector buttons, and they''re too sensitive, in my opinion. They tend to trigger when my finger is still an 1/4" away, which leads to occasionally "pushing" the wrong button (not that big a deal -a second push cancels the operation).
-The frothing wand leaks a few drops of water now and then.
My wife and I are not espresso purists, but we enjoy a good espresso. We used a Capresso Ultima (also from Amazon) for nearly a decade. It had its own foibles (difficult to clean well), but frankly, it''s crema was superior to what we can achieve with the Gaggia. The Gaggia leaves me with the impression that it can make a really, really great espresso if I''m willing to invest the time and effort in perfecting my barista skills. Like Ferrari, Gaggia seems to be all about performance, and there''s nothing wrong with that. We just want a good espresso without too much fuss.
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