Ray Shaw
Steam comes from boiling water (100°) hence you need a second boiler to achieve good steam volumes. But you want to use it to heat milk to 60-65°, not water it down so much that it ruins the coffee or burns the milk.
The first trick is using a container that is about 50% larger than the milk you need to steam and steam only one cup at a time. The nozzle needs to start at the bottom with both a gentle swirl and lift/descending mode. Then add it to the coffee.
Second is never to top up already steamed milk in the container for a second cup – it makes it too watery.
Tea – bags – Exceed
Depending on the tea bag type, you may want from 70 to 100° water (not steam). Green tea, for example, must use a lower temperature and black tea can stand boiling with no effect on taste.
It guides you for white, green, oolong or black – easy.
Cup sizes – flexible – Exceed
| Beverage | Standard quantity | Programmable quantity |
| ESPRESSO | 40 ml | 20-180 ml |
| COFFEE | 180 ml | 100-240 ml |
| LONG | 160 ml | 115-250 ml |
| DOPPIO+ | 120 ml | 80-180 ml |
| AMERICANO | 150 ml | 70-480 ml |
| TEA | 150 ml | 20-420 ml |
| HOT WATER | 250 ml | 20-420 m |
You can set up to six different profiles for people’s preferences.
Is it easy – PASS
You are going to have to get to know the ins and outs of everything before you venture too far from the menu screen. In a home, this is easy – at the office make sure someone becomes the in-house barista and looks after it.
Build quality – Exceed
It is a keeper. We understand that you can get service almost everywhere and a good range of accessories and spare parts.
All major areas are accessible for cleaning or replacement.
It is big – 405 (H) x 290 (W) x 468 (D) mm x 16.1kg in stainless steel and black. The 5” screen is perfect.
Noise is nil at idle, 55dB during extraction and 65dB while grinding.
Power use – Pass
This is a big machine and draws 240V/1A – 2400W in full steam. Typically, (using our EmberIQ meter) it uses 1550W and in idle 2 to 3W.
GadgetGuy’s take – DeLonghi Maestosa makes terrific coffee
As we say in the good coffee guide – don’t blame the machine. There is a lot of tech behind good coffee. DeLonghi has nailed it with this machine – almost anyone can make a great coffee – bean to cup as it was meant to be!
We played with temperatures, grinds and every user accessible setting and frankly, the defaults are best – DeLonghi knows coffee. It makes the best coffee of any machine we have tested to date.
But that is not to say it can’t do even better. Get to know it, experiment (more coffee to drink) and work out just what you like. It is flexible enough to handle almost anything.