Is it expensive to make a good cup of coffee at home? Not a coffee pod, a real coffee, an espresso from a manual machine?
The answer could be yes. But it’s not. Well, not quite. In short, as your Facebook status might say: it’s complicated!
Except that the answer may lie in the Delonghi ECP. This small, inexpensive and well-equipped espresso machine and percolator might just be the machine you need to enter the world of the hand-crafted cup.
In this article, I’ll take a closer look at this machine to tell you all the good, and perhaps all the bad, things you need to know about it.
(I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post)
At the heart of the Delonghi ECP
Why a machine with a filter holder?
When it comes to coffee machines, you may only be familiar with a few of the many variants available on the market for making coffee at home.
- The Nespresso or Senseo type machine, into which a pod is inserted.
- The filter coffee maker, with its timeless paper filter and industrial ground coffee.
- The Moka coffee maker, which you can find out more about here if you’re still a little mystified by how it works.
- The manual machine, or percolator, with its filter holder, like this Delonghi ECP.
- There are still many ways to make coffee, but that’s not the point!
So why choose a machine with a filter holder? Because it’s a solution that makes excellent espresso. But that’s only if you have a high-performance, technical machine that you can master.
As I said in my introduction, the Delonghi ECP is an affordable machine, to be considered as an entry-level model. It is generally available for less than 140 dollars. But even at this price, the Delonghi ECP is an interesting proposition!
Technical specifications of the Delonghi ECP
This machine has a few trump cards that deserve our full attention!
A real boiler, this Delonghi ECP
The machine heats up quickly, which is something to be noted for this type of machine. Quite simply, it’s ready in 30 to 40 seconds, at pod machine speed, even though it’s not equipped with a thermoblock.
The use of stainless steel for the boiler explains this efficiency. It’s all the more appreciable as it allows the cup warmer to really heat up. You’ll still be able to take your cup in hand, but you’ll also be able to feel that it’s already hot, which prevents the coffee temperature from dropping too quickly.
For best thermal stability, especially if you’re making several coffees in a short space of time, let the machine warm up by itself as much as possible to ensure thermal stability.
You’ll note that, for its price, it doesn’t come with a PID. If you don’t know what that is, you won’t miss it. If you don’t, you’ll already know that it’s a device on this type of machine that ensures water temperature control and stability, coffee after coffee.
- Largeur : 18.5 cm
- Profondeur : 24 cm
- Hauteur : 30.5 cm
- Public : débutant
- Café accepté : Café moulu et dosettes ESE
- Type de chauffe : chaudière acier inoxydable
- PID (réglage température) : non
- Filtres fournis : filtre pressurisé 1 tasse, filtre pressurisé 2 tasses, filtre dosettes ESE
- Type de pompe : pompe à vibrations
- Qualité buse vapeur : buse vapeur inox simple
- Robinet d’eau chaude : oui par la buse
- Porte-filtre(s) fourni(s) : aluminium – 2 becs
- Diamètre du groupe d’extraction : 51 mm
- Contenance du réservoir d’eau : 1.1 L
Design, a successful aesthetic
Visually, this Delonghi ECP, apart from the different color versions, has two assets. The first is its compact size, which means it won’t take up too much space.
Secondly, its styling echoes the codes of Italian brand manual machines, with stainless steel as the dominant color. And its black version is rather aesthetic too.
There’s also Delonghi’s famous stainless steel cup-rest, always the same on their machines, and always just as easy to scratch if you don’t protect it.
SPOILER ALERT: this Delonghi ECP has a little something extra: a holder for storing filters directly inside the machine. Unless I’m mistaken, it’s the only machine to offer this, and it’s very well thought-out.
The Delonghi ECP control panel
We want good coffee, but we also want simplicity. This machine meets that need.
There’s a single circular manual selector, a button in fact, on the front panel with 4 positions: Off, On, steam nozzle, coffee nozzle. Then, on the side of the machine, you have the lever to activate the percolation function.
It’s simple, clear. It also shows that you can’t adjust many parameters on your cup of coffee. This may seem like a limitation, but on the contrary, it’s a deliberate move for a machine aimed at a beginner audience, who wants to stay within a very contained price range.
Let’s talk about the heart of this machine: the different ways in which it can be used.
Filters
The machine comes with two filters. The first is a 7g pressurized filter, while the second is a 14g filter, allowing two cups to be made at once.
A pressurized filter is ideal for this type of machine, as it produces a crema close to the crema of espresso by creating additional pressure in the filter, which allows the coffee to flow through only one (or two for the double version) outlet.
Last but not least, the machine is supplied with a filter for compatibility with E.S.E. pods. These are multi-brand pods specially designed for easy espresso making (E.S.E: Easy Serving Expresso). It’s a classic presence for this kind of machine, but pods are rather rare off the online market in France.
The steam nozzle
A coffee machine without a steam nozzle is not a coffee machine: that’s why they all have them. The Delonghi ECP requires a little manipulation to make it interesting. As installed on the machine, the steam nozzle produces very large bubbles in the milk, not giving your cappuccino the texture you’d expect, not allowing you to retain the heat, and ultimately offering a rather limited visual experience.
But remove the plastic part of the nozzle, it’s a simple quarter-turn, and the quality will be much better. We’re not talking about a real espresso machine nozzle, but the result is very good for a machine in this price range, with a much finer froth.
And what about the Delonghi Dedica?
If you’re interested in percolating machines, you’ve probably also come across the Delonghi Dinamica, in the same spirit as this Delonghi ECP. The differences? The ECP is more affordable in terms of price, and the Dedica a little more complete. In particular, it features a pre-infusion function, as well as settings such as temperature and water hardness.
3 operating modes, 3 verdicts
If you’re not an espresso machine aficionado, you might think there’s only one way to use this Delonghi ECP. But there are variations, and they’re important. And it’s according to each way of using it that I give you my verdict.
Use with pressurized filter and (pre-)ground coffee
You buy commercially-ground coffee, put it in the filter, then put it in the filter holder, and in a few seconds you have your coffee.
So of course it works. But here we come up against the natural limitations of espresso machines: they can’t serve coffee at its best from pre-ground coffee. The machine does the job, but not the industrial coffee.
The fault lies with industrial coffee, which is often more limited in terms of flavor and aroma due to the fact that it has been ground for several weeks, and its intrinsic quality.
Use with pressurized filter and grinder
The use of a coffee grinder is a much more interesting solution, but only if you’re equipped with a grinder capable of grinding espresso, which not everyone is.
If you have the right grinder, you’ll be able to buy coffee beans (specialty coffee costs little more than supermarket-brand coffee), and take your quality to the next level.
It’s no secret that the shorter the time between grinding the beans and percolating them, the more the coffee releases its aromas and flavors. And with a pressurized filter, it’s easy to give your coffee its creaminess.
We’re not yet at the top of our game, but using the mill takes you a qualitative leap forward all the same.
Use with bottomless, non-pressurized filter holder
The Delonghi ECP is not supplied with a non-pressurized filter. There are two reasons for this. It would have pushed up the price of a machine that is deliberately affordable, as it is designed for espresso machine beginners.
And the second reason is precisely its target audience. Using a non-pressurized filter requires more skill in the making of the grind (tamping, fineness of grinding, regularity, etc.). If you’re not used to it, you run the risk of a botched coffee, and therefore of disappointment.
But when you take the time to learn how to use a classic filter, and again use a grinder capable of grinding espresso, the result is much better. The aromas come through, the coffee has much more body, and the texture is just right.
All in all, the Delonghi ECP used with a classic filter and espresso grinder is a good machine. Except that it will require a much greater investment than you would have hoped for with the initial purchase of the machine. You’ll need about the same amount of money to buy the equipment that will really get the most out of the Delonghi ECP.
Offside method: E.S.E pods
As I’ve already said, except on Amazon, E.S.E. pods aren’t widely available. On the other hand, they’re still a good way to get a quality espresso, and a simple one at that.
In this case, you’ll be using your Delonghi ECP like a Senseo (the pods are made of filter paper), but with better results. It’s a simpler way of making coffee, and perhaps a good alternative until you can afford a good-quality grinder, for example.
Verdict of the verdict
All in all, even with the additional purchases, the Delonghi ECP remains a good choice for those who want to put both feet in the world of espresso. Technically, it makes good coffee, gets up to temperature quickly, and delivers decent lattes if you know how.
One could criticize its lack of customization, but that would be a mistake. It’s the purpose of this machine to be simple and entry-level.
Admittedly, its cost is not the same as its purchase price – you’ll only really benefit from it with a classic filter and an espresso grinder. But these are purchases that are made to last, and we’re not talking about consumables with a grinder whose lifespan is several years, and even less so for the filter, which you have no reason to change.
The ECP is an excellent choice, provided it’s used properly, and one we can only encourage!
I recommend this machine to you:
- You are looking for a machine that heats up very quickly
- You want to prepare coffees with a rich froth
- You like espresso made with ground coffee and ESE pods.
In summary:
Delonghi ECP offers an affordable entry point into coffee world for beginners.
This compact espresso machine features a pressurized filter holder that allows a good espresso extraction.
Delonghi ECP has a stainless steel boiler that heats up quickly.
It comes with two pressurized filters for one or two cups, along with an ESE pod filter for convenience.
While it lacks a PID for precise temperature control, it compensates with decent thermal stability.
Its steam wand can produce good froth, especially if the plastic tip is removed.
The Delonghi ECP can be used with pre-ground coffee, but better results are achieved with freshly ground coffee from a suitable grinder.
It works with E.S.E. pods too.
- Very compact
- Ground coffee and ESE pods
- Heats up quickly
- Simple control panel
- 2 pressurized filters (1 and 2 cups) and an ESE pod filter
- Very good extraction with the bottomless portafilter
- No PID
