Sage also includes its signature Razor tool, which is used to scrape coffee from the top of your portafilter to reach the perfect even level before tamping. If you are looking at upgrading from a lower-end model, or have money to spend on a first-timer, your risk of dissatisfaction with the Barista Express Impress is low. One thing worth noting though is that, while the machine includes a few non-coffee drinks like tea, hot chocolate and babyccino’s in its line-up, there’s little technology behind creating them using the machine as they just use the hot water spout or steam wand and not much more.

The stylish Breville Barista Express Impress makes it easy to achieve great-tasting coffee in the comfort of your home. The Sage barista touch impress boasts all the bells and whistles that make you feel like you really know what you’re doing and, while there’s certainly an incredible amount of tech under the hood, it’s essentially very easy to get a brilliant cup of coffee every time, making it a great choice for coffee geeks and lazy caffeine guzzlers alike.Both beginners and those used to this style of espresso machine will find operating the Barista Impress clear and straightforward as most of it is intuitive.

It has a silicone-sealed lid that should work to keep your beans fresh and fragrant ahead of grinding.Any filter coffee that comes out while dosing can simply be brushed into the tray before emptying at a later stage. The first step is to decide which type of drink you want – you can choose from an espresso, latte, flat white, cappuccino, cafe crema or long black, as well as a few non-coffee drinks like tea, babyccino or hot chocolate, all of which are represented by full-colour images. From pulling shots and dialling in your grinder to texturing different milks for different drinks, there’s much more to brewing a tasty cup of joe than meets the eye – just ask any professional barista. When you do tamp, you should do it a couple of times to shake off any coffee excess from the grinder. A premium and reliable brand, Sage makes some of the best at-home coffee machines on the market, delivering everything from convenient capsule pumps to hi-tech super-automatic bean-to-cups.