The La Pavoni Europiccola

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"Luxury" by Mullaha

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[paul_hankin]

Please dissect the James Bond makes espresso scene in detail. And any other scenes where actors make coffee (badly!) in movies or TV shows.

[totoantibes]

little trick; if you need to refill the tank while it is hot you can use the steam wand to expel the pressure into the fresh new batch of cold water. That way the heat is actually not completely wasted as you are basically pre-heating the water that you will then fill your tank with!

[SebastiaanSwinkels]

To prevent the negative pressure potentially disrupting the puck, lift the lever first until you see water coming out of the grouphead. Back off a little until you see it stop dripping and then lock in the PF and gently pull up the lever to allow water to flow into the grouphead. That's the safest way to pull shots without setting yourself up for failure. Not only do you risk breaking the puck the way you did it, you could also lift the entire puck up which then creates that donut shape extraction you mentioned.

[thomasdaly]

I bought mine in Naples, Italy in 2000. It has travelled to UK, Falkland Islands, Chile and now has a home in NSW! I switch mine off after each pour and never had to change a thing. Only now in Sept 2022, I will look to completing a full service. Best Coffee machine ever for me, on so many levels. Preparation adds to mindfulness and gratefulness.

[TheMuffinMan]

I’ve had one for about 10 years. It’s very challenging for a complete beginner, very unforgiving if you want to practice a lot (because of overheating), but once you get the feel for it (literally, you can feel the heat through the bell) it’s a real joy. Two tricks not mentioned, one, I preheat the portafilter with boiling water about when the pressure starts turning the element off. By the time the portafilter would be fully heated, the rest of the machine is already pretty much overheated. Two, I like to purge a bit of water through the group immediately before locking in the portafilter, both to get fresh hot water and keep the path heated, but also it’s good to lock in the portafilter while the lever is raised to cutting off the water flow. This way we avoid pulling any air whatsoever through the tamped espresso. Cheers!

[lyncchoo]

I've been using an automatic espresso machine for 10 years. I just purchased a new Pavoni. I've only pulled 6 shots so far. ALL have been excellent. Life is good. Great video.

[JohannesLabusch]

I had to rewatch that Bond clip. What the HELL is he doing? He's making some super watery coffee in a huge cup, then ... frothing it with the steam wand? License to kill, please.

[martinjones]

Bought mine in 1998. Stopped using it for a while but now I am retired I have resurrected it. It's not just a coffee machine it's an essential part of my lifestyle (or routine if you like). It's also a beautiful thing to look at and a great conversation piece.

[medical_mindmaps]

There should be a video where James reviews how people make coffee in movies. That would be one heck of a video.

[ivand]

I have and use a post millenium version of these for a really long time.
Love it because of it's simplicity
Love it because it challenges me
Love it because of it quirks
Love it because it gives me regularly the best coffee I've ever tasted.
When it's bad coffee, it's my fault.
Just follow some basic stuff and you can't go wrong.
This together with the Niche AND superfresh coffee beans are a match made in heaven.
Very nice overview of this wonderful machine James!!

[antispeak]

I bought a new one as my first machine earlier in June, mostly because it fit the budget, you can definitely fiddle with some parameters that you couldn't on other pump machines in a similar price range, notably controllable pre-infusion, and pressure profiling (well, sort of inaccurate profiling unless you have a grouphead gauge), and it seems fairly serviceable without having to resort to sending it back to the manufacturer, as evidenced by the fact there are still machines made in the 70s still in use today. A few things I learned about the machine as a total beginner to brewing espresso at home:

1) I can comfortably pull 3 shots (maybe 4 if I don't flush the grouphead to preheat) back to back before I have to refill the machine. Definitely not a party machine, but you can serve a few people.
2) Temperature management is very much the key to getting consistency in this machine, and getting temp sticker strips is really useful as a data point. There are also digital thermometer mods available too. Being able to cool the grouphead directly with a cup of water also makes temperature surfing a lot less of a hassle if you're brewing back to back.
3) It takes a little finesse, but I find it easier to raise the lever just before water exits the grouphead and then put the portafilter in, this at the least prevents the puck from getting too disturbed.
4) You probably want to wait a minute or two after brewing before you remove the portafilter to avoid the dreaded portafilter sneeze, since pressure can only leak out from the bottom of the portafilter.
5) I don't have a pressure profiling gauge, so I typically find it's better to just do a single pull, and back off a little on the pressure as water starts to move through the puck more easily, but if you have a pressure profile gauge you can probably do some more fancier things.
6) Personally, I haven't figured out steaming milk yet, but there are some third party steam tips that have a single hole as opposed to the three hole for better control. From what I see, it can definitely make some good milk but my biggest gripe with the steam wand is that it only moves up and down, and that can force you into a bit of weird steaming angle.
7) The clearance between the portafilter and drip tray is... laughably short. If you're not using espresso cups, low profile cups and/or a bottomless portafilter this might be a problem if you're trying to fit a scale under it. You can remove the drip tray but the recess that the tray sits in is slightly concave, so it might not make a huge difference. The stock drip tray also feels laughably cheap too.
8) This machine definitely needs a decent grinder that has small enough adjustments for espresso. I use a Kinu M47 and I can usually dial in a coffee to my preferred parameters within two or three pulls, but I know a lot of people struggle with consistency if they're using something that's not espresso focused like an Baratza Encore.

All in all, I do remember when I was first researching this machine way back in like 2010 as a university student, the only comments that really stuck out to me were "manual machines are finicky and it takes a long time to get good results out of it, so it's not really worth the effort." While I would definitely agree that the machine is finicky, it actually doesn't take that long to get decent results out of it provided that you know the specifics of dialing in espresso. I'd argue the manual nature of it actually forces you to dial in more accurately because you either struggle to pull the lever and overextract, or you pull it very effortlessly and it ends up underextracted. I don't think it's any more effort than learning to dial in a semi-automatic machine really, and achieving the rare "god shot" is 100% more satisfying on a LP.

[spookyfm]

This was my first "real" espresso machine and I started my coffee journey on it. It had the wooden handle and cap, a real beauty. It was about 10 years old when I got it and still in great condition when I sold it again after about five more.
It is an uncompromising machine and it may well cause you physical harm if you're careless (one of the many things that can happen is the puck exploding in your face if you take off the portafilter too soon after pulling the shot because the pressure in the group head hasn't had time to dissipate). My wife affectionately (?) called it "my husband's fierce Italian woman" (that's a bad translation, but I'll go with it).
But if you treat it right, it will definitely reward you, and it's a very Zen experience, much more so than with the more automatic machines. It was a great way to learn about pressure, temperature, timing, dosage, preparing the puck, etc. because everything is totally and literally in your hands. But of course James is right, making coffee for more than two people was a hassle.
Still I'm getting quite nostalgic writing this and I'm reasonably sure that, when the kids are big and my wife and I will be too old for camping in tents, I will get one to take on holidays in a camper van.

[jamieb.]

My LP has been in use for nearly 30 years. Still functions perfectly. Spares and replacement parts readily available and relatively cheap, and it is a doddle to fix/maintain.

[jaswatts]

I've owned mine for over just on 28 years now and it's still going strong. I just have the seals replaced every 2 years or so and it just keeps on going. Looks even grander with the Eagle proudly sitting on top of the boiler cap! Perfect for making a small number of great coffees.

[channelPITRE]

Thanks. Great review. Had one in my office for 32 years. I retired and missed it so much that I purchased a new one for my home in 2015. It has given me many great coffees and I hope I will last as long as it will. They really are bullet proof.

[rxcmxrt]

I have the Professional, a europiccola which is slightly larger and has a pressure gauge built in. It's an absolute joy to use and I've had some real fun toying with preinfusions to find my ideal dose and flavor profiles. Steaming with the larger boiler is actually quite nice. I use it with the Breville/Sage Smart Grinder and I have zero complaints

[skrziwanskrziwan]

I'm happy to see Europicola here. I've had mine (second-hand pre-millennium model). I've had it for 6 years now and I modified it quite a bit. I installed a PID controller with the probe in the boiler, that sets the heater on/of at desired boiler temperature. Then I installed a thermocouple a the group head that reads my group temperature. It allows me to brew in the almost perfect temperatures. It's a very simple mod that cost me about 100 euros, and it helps a lot. A small basket is a blessing when you're dialing in coffee that is precious and you don't want to waste a lot. I use it as a guide to understanding what different beans are capable of and then I'm trying to transfer this to commercial Faema. It's a lot of fun playing with different pressures and seeing a change in your cup as well. Cool machine for any coffee geek!

[adrianscarlett]

I use one daily, i have the pro version with a pressure guage. Took me quite a while to perfect using it, but the espresso it produces is incredible. I'd advise everyone learn how to use one, as it gave me great insight into the complexities and accuracies needed to get things right.

When i was learning to use mine, there were many people using a cloth and a bowl of ice to cool the grouphead between shots. A second shot tastes horribly bitter if you don't

I also learned to prop the lever up (using an m10 nut!) just before the point where the water is released before fitting the portafilter, removing the issue of drawing air through the puck.

[garydonahue]

I have one on my kitchen counter that I've owned since I bought it new in 1999 or so, and I freaking love it. I am a firm believer in learning to do something the hard way so you appreciate the easier way, and while this machine did take me a while to master (especially when foaming milk), I have never bothered to "graduate" to a more modern machine. If you love the routine and the ritual of pulling a shot, then this machine is great in the same way that shaving with a safety or even straight razor is. As usual, loved the review!

[mortongosh]

I've had La Pavoni Pro for going on 20 years now; it is the Willys Jeep station wagon of espresso machines. I absolutely love this unit and have a specialized case for it for travel. Using a Pavoni is like learning to fly by feel and remembering when your instructor told you to close your eyes and fly.