Gaggia Classic 74507BCN Coffee Maker Brushed Chrome

I was 100% right to.

My wife had done plenty of research into which Gaggia to get me, and the Gaggia Classic seemed to consistently raved about. Now it's my turn to.

Really easy to assemble, though having to remove the chrome overflow pipe to remove the tank was tricky (it's screwing it back on that's tricky as you could lose the pipe you have to screw it onto inside - maybe it was a problem with my machine).

Anyway, with minutes, I had it set up, filled with water and switched on. The tank holds loads and is very easy to fill. There's spaced for a few espresso cups and saucers on top to warm, though if you do want them to warm up, and get really hot coffee too, I agree with the other reviewers that you need to leave it on a while to really heat up.

The filter holder is very sturdy, in fact the whole machine is so robust and well put together you can feel the quality. It comes with two filter cups, one and two cup, but you'll probably only use the two cup filter cup.

It is a bit noisy, but I don't care. It's a powerful machine and you get the impression it's very much function over form with this Gaggia. It does whatever it takes to get the best possible cup of coffee.

The espresso is superb. The milk frother takes a bit of getting used to but is really effective, creating a really good frothy cappuccino time after time - you will have to rinse the frother nozzle though after each use. the only criticism is that the nozzle is quite low to the level of your worktop so getting a cup under it can be tricky. Not a real problem though.

Everyone who tastes the coffee that it produces falls in love with it and wants a Gaggia - I reckon we've probably sold 2-3 machines for Gaggia so far. If you're reading this Gaggia, we'd like commission!

Seriously though, if you want a sturdy machine, built to last, that's great looking, but not just for design’s sake, that makes impeccable coffees, this is it.

After two+ years, we can say with confidence that of all the gadgets we have bought, our Gaggia coffee maker has stood the test of time.

We drink a lot of coffee. Not sure if it was working in the US or Milan that started that one. I suspect it was the latter - our Milan MD swore that his treacle-thick espresso was safe to drink and had less caffeine than filter coffee ("Less time spent in contact with the grounds"). And American cars just dont seem to work without a bucket of coffee sitting in one of the ubiquitous cup holders.

So when I sheepishly stared at one of these in a shop window before Christmas, my wife caved in, took some advice, and bought me one (brushed steel, not chrome) .

We've used it every week, and pretty much every weekend day since I got it. It does really great coffee (so long as you use good beans or a freshly opened pack of pre-ground). Produces a great crema and the kitchen fills with the smell of a coffee shop (less the cigarette smoke, mind) in seconds.

A few gripes - the milk froths pretty well, but the nozzle is a pain to clean, even straight after use. I find myself making americano and espresso most as a result.

And it is rather noisy. Not in a swishy-swooshy-frothy way but in the ratatatat racket of the compression pump. I've nothing to compare it to to tell if this is better or worse than average.

On the other hand it heats up quickly, the water tank holds loads, the unit and its accessories are really solid (they take a real bashing), and the coffee is great - we love it.