Sage (Breville) Oracle Touch Review - My Likes & Dislikes After Weeks of Use.

This is my second video with the Sage (Breville) Oracle Touch espresso machine.

In this video, I'm showing you what my usual workflow looks like with this machine, and explaining what I really like about it & what I don't like about it, after using it for a few weeks.

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[IRsftSergeanT]

I have tested the Sage Barista Pro and Oracle Touch side by side, directly next to one another. Same Water, same Coffee etc. Both with stock baskets, later with IMS Competition Baskets.
I personally find, the Barsita Pro makes for a better espresso shot. The extractions are more even and honeylike with the BP (with correct puck prep!), the OT seems to be suffering a lot with channeling.
After 10-15sec of a warm honey like extraction, spurts and sputters occur with the OT. More than in every second shot. Very annoying for a 2k coffee investment.
The reason for this is very simple: auto tamper! Yes it grinds at a very consistent grade, but than the coffee grinds are circularly „thrown“ in the basket by the tamping fan. It helps with breaking clumps and air pockets, but it throws and presses the most ground powder to the outer areas of the puck.
Once enough grind is filled, tamping beginns. But! Due to the overfill on the outer, it is more compressed. Leading to an very uneven, undercompressed inner party, middle of the puck.
You can actually see that by stopping the grind process in the middle: all powder outside, no powder inside until the end. Due to only a rotational distribution you will never really have even distributed from the inside to the outside, or throughout the puck.
Leading to? Right, channeling! System failure by design… very annoying and frustrating for a 2k espresso machine. To be honest, the only real downside, but therefore such a hefty and unfixable one, that it ruins the whole experience for me. Bcuz the machine is build to use auto grind with auto tamp. If i could distribute and tamp by myself, problem would be solved, but thats not possible.
Since a even distribution of grind is the key to perfect extraction, a great espresso shot is very rare and pure luck.
So because you have to prepare the puck yourself with the BP, once you have a consistent method with WDT or OCD tool and tamp yourself, great extractions nearly every time. Bare in mind, BP is only 1/3 of the costs of a OT, wtf… what a design flaw.

Still, i love the auto milk steam function and the microfoam is amazing.
Upgrading to the precision IMS competation baskets made for a way better extraction and greater tasting shot, what a game changer.
But the channeling problem with the OT still exists and makes for quite unbalanced shot due to uneven extraction with over- and underextracted parts of the puck.

My go to would be the Sage Dual Boiler with the Smart Grinder Pro. The best bang for the buck from my perspective! In the Sage Magic Duo Set its nearly half the price of the OT, but with way better coffee or espresso in the end.

Cheers

[tompurvis]

You push the touch screen like it’s going to bit you.😊. I bought an Oracle Touch 4 years ago and had an issue after 18 months. Breville repaired at no charge. 30 months later, it had another issue. Broken connector on top of a pump. I was fully prepared to buy another, but called Breville support. They offered a new unit with a 25% discount, or repair mine for $550, including tax and shipping. If they are unable to repair, they will replace with a refurbished unit. I called in to request the repair, and was given a 25% discount for the repair. I sent it off the same day, as I still had the box from the previous repair, and within a week was told it could not be repaired. Without any conversation with support, an order was created for a replacement. The product number did not indicate it was refurbished. It was shipped three day UPS and was lost in shipping. It took a week to get UPS and Breville talking, but soon another was on the way. I finally received the replacement, and it was new, not refurbished. I love this machine and can’t say enough about Breville support.

[mindfixeryou]

Great review. Did you notice that the fan still kicks in on silent fan mode after pulling a shot? Can't work out if silent fan mode means it should always be off or just kicks in when necessary.

[superlimpiter]

Northern "Coffee botherer" AND you're still watching "Lost" on repeat!..🧐.What a Dude Kev!!!😜 I kept watching Lost, hoping the penny was gonna drop.🤯 This channel is So so soo entertaining (and content is spot on!) You really give me what I'm looking for when I click on the coffee vids.🤩🙏🙏

[karamjitdedyal]

I bought my Sage Barista Express in 2019 November just before the pandemic hit. The price I paid was £365.00 from Costco - and over the years I have spent some money on tampers, bigger steaming jug, etc. My same machine is now over £500 - they are profiteering now and i think this machine would have been £1K then and they are just boosting the prices knowing people working at home will still pay. I just cannot justify £2K plus on a machine like this, I would rather get a simpler machine that lets me learn how to change my grind settings to extract a better and more tasty shot. To learn how to steam the milk myself so i can get the best taste, etc. I hope whoever buys this enjoys it and fair play to them as it is their money and their enjoyment. I will not out of principle. Thanks for the video.

[gabriellefernandes]

Thanks for the great video Kev (this and the Oracle)! I am hoping to be able to adjust a few functions as/when needed as I have a dual boiler machine currently and this next purchase is for my office team. No one else knows how to make coffee but I like to do a little latte art and also am used to adjusting the grind size/quantity, along with dosing and tamp pressure. Leaning towards The Oracle so that my work team can easily make coffee without any need to learn the art of making coffee, whilst I still have some control (if I want to?)... but have been a little torn. I suppose if the only different between the two machines is the touch and programmable feature, then I would just buy the Oracle. If I am missing something though and the extra ~$1000 is giving me more than just a touch screen, then I might still consider the Oracle Touch. If I don't have the option of just choosing 'hot water' or 'hot milk' for example, with the Touch version, that will get a little annoying for me I think. Appreciate your thoughts on this one if you have the time Kev - thanks!

[aikoll]

Thank you for a nice review.
How often do I have to change the water in the water tank to drink a good coffee?

[righthererightnow]

Bring back keys!! Loved Blackberries as well! Also love the oracle as I also prefer buttons and not touch screens.

[mikehardcastle]

Hi I was always told to ensure enough coffee is in the hopper as you could suffer from the pop corn situation and get a low dose coffee.

[DrxSlump]

I'm about to open a small cafe, after more than a stressful decade of being an a design engineer. Compared to the non-automatic machines, this one looks absolutely wonderful! Semi-automatic, very balanced to operate. But is it good for professional use? From what I understand, it's a high-end home appliance.

[cristiannicoara]

What it's the best temperature brewing for the espresso? Because I've got the OT and my espresso it's a bit cold... it is setting on 96 but I don't know... its not hot enough? Any thoughts please let me know!

[NightCabbage]

Drinking a straight up double espresso, made with a Breville Barista Pro :) Eyeing off the Oracle and Touch as potential upgrades to this great machine.

Also yeah, I actually hate touch screens on devices - they're much harder to use, more prone to errors and problems, and they just don't FEEL as nice to use (and I'm a software developer who loves technology lol).

So I notice you have a "normal" Oracle in the back there, and you said you ultimately prefer that because of the controls, etc. I think I would be the same. It doesn't sound like you lose much going to the standard non-Touch Oracle, other than profiles? Also it's a bunch cheaper :)

Thanks for the video Kev! Cheers from Australia.

(lol Lost reference over a decade after the show ended :D )

[MrCbrehaut]

I made the mistake of buying the OT for $2, 800 a few years ago. The grinder and tamp is horrible but easily fixed with a WDT and tamping myself and adding a puck screen. I agree that the touch screen is not great and buttons will be much better.

[mooredad]

great review from across the pond! So close to pulling the trigger. I would prefer to get the Oracle, but they are difficult to find new. I suppose I could "live" with the touchscreen if needed, but that adds to the price as well (as it should), but I think I would prefer to manually push a button. I was sold on this after spending a weekend with a family that had the Oracle. Nothing I make at home is satisfying now.

[qficowf]

Would love to know more about milk temperature. We have a Siemens beam to cup and the milk for any milk drink, no matter what setting we use remains cold or at the very best room temperature. It's not a fault. Can I actually control milk temperature and by how much? Cheers

[Faith]

Does this portafilter have plastic components inside? I prefer to avoid any plastic contact with my coffee.

[AudioFusioNet]

Hilarious comments about Lost & really good review. Thanks for making.
I do wonder however, how would I get the coffee into a small espresso shot cup as it looks as though the coffee pours from 2 side of the portafilter & would probably splash around.
Cheers.

[TheHelicapt]

What makes a better coffee, this or the Gaggia Academia new version ?

[FazerWiz]

How much coffee did you extract from that 22g basket? It looked like a lot, more than 1:2? Problem I have with my Oracle is getting the extraction volume consistent. One day I'll get 40ml of coffee, then the next (same bean, exact same settings) it'll be 75ml or 30ml with no discernible reason why! Last of grind consistency maybe?

[umutd]

So would this be good for a small business not really an expert but would like to sell some coffee using this machine