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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great Machine When Used With Care, March 7, 2006
This review is from: Krups FNC3 Novo 3000 Premium Pump Espresso/Cappuccino/Latte Maker (Kitchen)
I've read several reviews good and bad on this unit. I can't comment on machines that are actually defective, but I have learned some tips that might account for disappointing experiences by other owners. Tamping is probably as important as getting the grind right. Since Krups provides no tamper with its machine and finding a tamper that fits is rather difficult, I suspect that many folks have had to improvise and this can easily lead to disappointing results, especially when you combine this with never having tamped espresso before. 1) The tamper size is 53mm which is hard to find because most are 50 or 58mm. Being warned in previous reviews, I experimented with the least pressure, graduating to firmer and firmer pressure and found one that works right every time. (It is true that too tight a pack will block the puck from passing the brew.) 2) Getting the right grind is all important and it's very easy to overgrind. Even the best of home grinders can make too fine a powder if left on for just a couple of seconds longer. Looking for some granularity and avoiding the powdery appearance is key. 3) Expect the puck to be consistently soupy if ejected too soon after a brew. If you wait about five minutes or so with a spare cup under the filter holder, the puck will drain and allow removal without a mess. 4) Cleaning. I try to clean the filter holder, filter, head gasket and surface within about 10 minutes of my last brew (and also between consecutive brews.) Coffee does a number on rubber or plastic-rubber seals, so I always use a dishrag with soupy but very mild detergent, then rinse a couple of times. I've had great success with this procedure and consistently good pulls without explosions or mess.
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great when you know how to use it!, May 7, 2005
This review is from: Krups FNC3 Novo 3000 Premium Pump Espresso/Cappuccino/Latte Maker (Kitchen)
Just in answer to the previous reviews by people who haven't got a clue what espresso is or how it's made... Firstly, I have this machine, it is excellent - maybe not up to the best professional cafe espresso makers but certainly capable of making excellent espresso & cappucino. The two filter bowls supplied with the machine are perfectly sized for 7gm and 14gm of coffee - 7 grams is meant to be used to make a single shot espresso (1 or 2 fl.oz depending on your tastes) so the 14g makes up to 4oz of espresso - the amount needed for a large cappucino coincidentally. Secondly, the grounds come out as a perfect solid cake IF you know how to use a tamper to tamp them down in the first place! If you can't use a tamper, or use old dried up coffee, sure they'll come out as sludge! The clearance spout is only meant to clear demitasse cups, show me an espresso maker that you can put a full length latte cup under as I've yet to see one. Incidentally, my cappucino cups happen to fit under as well. The 2 cup filter drips relatively evenly - they all use the same idea, one filter & 2 holes, what kind of perfection do you expect? Move the emptier cup under both nozzles at the end. Can't comment on the ESE filter holder myself as I don't use it but this is a perfectly respectable espresso maker with a great milk frother and certainly doesn't deserve the extremely poor reviews from people who don't seem to know what they are talking about.
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20 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointing., November 21, 2003
By A Customer
This review is from: Krups FNC3 Novo 3000 Premium Pump Espresso/Cappuccino/Latte Maker (Kitchen)
The Novo 3000 Premium is of very poor build quality. 1 - The 2 cup filter drips at different rates for each nozzle, therefore making 2 cups of espresso simultaneously next to impossible. 2 - The ESE filter holder leaks, I have only tried about six pods the leaks become more extensive with each use. Another annoyance is the used ground coffee does not empty as a hardened cake as indicated in the instruction manual, emptying the coffee after each use is a pain. This is the most disappointing item I have ever purchased from Amazon.com since 1997 so I returned it.
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