The Pompeii & Ultra Italian lever espresso machines are built in Rome and bring the very best theatre & style to your espresso service.
The most hands on form of creating espresso is without a doubt, a lever espresso machine. This is where the classic phrase of ‘pulling a shot’ comes from. There is a lot more knowledge and input required from the barista to create the perfect shot, but when used correctly, these machines are capable of producing the most beautiful shots you have ever tasted.
The introduction of traditional lever machines in 1947 saw the first coffee extracted via high pressure, not steam power, as seen previously and changed the way the world saw coffee. There are now two types of lever machines on the market: the spring piston lever and the direct lever. A spring piston lever works via an internal spring that pushes water through our ground coffee under pressure. The barista uses a lever (i.e. pulls the shot) to force the spring to compress. On release of the lever the spring then expands and forces water through the coffee at diminishing pressure. The spring automates the pressure, but we as the barista are able to affect the pre-infusion time, the volume of water through the coffee and the time in which to pull the shot.
A direct lever does not use a spring to automate the pressure; it is only the ‘pull’ of the barista that forces the water through the coffee, allowing for even more play in the espresso’s production. However, with a spring lever machine we are also able to alter the pressure if desired. We can do this either by forcing the lever back to its resting position or by restricting it from moving back; this again will alter the resulting shot. It is through such changes that we must ‘feel’ the coffee, this is where the true art of espresso lies: watching, tasting and timing to ensure we extract the best flavour from the coffee we are working with.
Unlike most automated espresso machines, lever machines have no three way valve built into the back of the group to release pressure after the shot. The advantage of this is there is no back-flushing required at the end of the day to clean the machine. An important point to bear in mind however is that there may be some residual pressure left in the group handle, especially if you have had a particularly slow extraction, so care must be taken when removing the handle to allow this pressure to release safely.
Also Available as a Package with grinder...
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