Bialetti Moka Express 3 Cup Espresso Maker: Italian Made; Moka Pot/Percolator/Coffee Maker/Mocha Pot for an Authentic Italian Coffee-06799

Iconic Italian Coffee Moka Pot is Very Cute, but has Limitations. 1. REASONS for PURCHASE• Have been a strong coffee fan for a few years now, mostly into cappuccinos & cold brews.• Never purchased any equipment for my kitchen till now; always had coffee in cafes & restaurants.• Eventually will buy a machine, but for now as an intro thought this product will do & seems to be globally popular.• Was looking for size to make for 2 people. Already had a larger South Indian filter coffee pot since early 2020.• Had reservations ordering an aluminum utensil, but went ahead as this is globally popular & I had tight budget.2. FIRST IMPRESSIONS• The moka pot is very cute & well designed. It is practical & utilitarian.• Initially, I was very happy as the coffee I tasted was similar to the ones I was having in cafes.• I felt the size was still small for 2 people. We were adding warm milk, & using medium-size cups.• Please note I am using Lavazza & KCRoasters coffee powders.3. AFTER 1 MONTH USAGEI did a lot more research on YouTube & experimentation on the product & its usage. These are my findings:• There are a lot of precautions you need to take while using it. There have been cases of the pot exploding on YouTube. Please make sure you *never* fill water above pressure marker, pack coffee too tight, & leave it on gas for too long. Also once coffee is done, always make sure to stop the brewing process by placing the moka pot in cool water or put a cold towel around it.• A lot of studies have shown that aluminum is not preferred utensil material. Stainless steel is better as it is more durable & does not leak chemicals as much as others into food/drink, & is anyway preferred by Indian families.• You are not supposed to clean this utensil with any hard sponge or use any cleansing liquid/powder. Just use wet cloth or tissue paper.• There are a lot of steps you need to follow while making your coffee, as compared to a filter coffee pot. It can be inconvenient though it makes coffee fast (~5m ideally).4. OVERALL• It is a good product, but ideally go for a stainless steel moka pot if you have the budget.• For now I am using my larger South Indian filter coffee pot more often as it gives more coffee, is more convenient & is of stainless steel, though it takes ~15m.• After doing a lot of research, the main difference between the moka pot & filter pot is time taken to make the coffee. The coffee taste will depend more on the coffee bean powder you are using, compared to the utensil.• I might use this product more if I have to make for only myself, but still will alternate with my filter coffee pot.

Quite expensive, but an excellent product. I bought the 6 cup version.Some of the points which may not be highlighted in other reviews:Pros:1. The decoction gets done quickly (3-4 mins).2. The decoction is thick and leaves a film of trail when drawn (not watery).3. Is versatile: Can be served directly as small espresso shots served in demitasse cups, but can also be used in lieu of filter coffee decoction with milk and sugar without losing the originality of filter coffee taste (I used regular South Indian coffee grounds).4. Thorough extraction of flavour and essence – There is no point of reusing the used grounds for a second extraction, since the first extraction itself is thorough.Cons:1. Very very expensive even for an international product. USA Amazon prices for the same product are 20-30% cheaper.2. Cleaning needs some attention as the different parts need to be separated out and cleaned with plain water and no detergent.

Excellent buy, little pricy. The media could not be loaded.  ProsThe decoction is quite strong and thick compared to the traditional filter.No traces of coffee powder in the upper kettle (the regular filter used to have coffee powder settled at the bottom as it worked on gravity)ConsA little pricyWe reuse the percolator second time as the decoction is very strong and coffee powder still has essence in it. During this process, it’s difficult to separate the bottom container and the coffee powder middle stand.

Oh my gosh. This thing is magic. I’ve been a keurig user all my life and never realized how awful they were until I bought this moka pot. The difference was immediately obvious. I use cafe bustelo (arguably one of the best coffee brands available) and it tastes phenomenal. The moka pot does NOT produce espresso (which requires very high pressure) but it’s dang close, and is nowhere NEAR the watered down drip my keurig gives me. If you’re looking to not spend $600+ on an espresso machine but still want to make coffee similar in strength to espresso at home, this is totally worth the money. This has stopped me from getting tim hortons each morning.Note, I used this for the first time today and had zero technical issues. You need to use finer-ish grounds, and make sure to not add water over the gasket. Keep the stove heat on low (around 3-4) and turn it down once it starts brewing. Once it starts gurgling, it’s done. Do NOT press down/tamp the grounds like you would with an espresso machine, because again, this does not produce espresso. That will cause your coffee to burn. I’m not sure why so many people struggle using this, I think it’s very user friendly!