Best machine. Now the search is on for the best coffee beans – The smart grinder has been the tricky bit to get right. To begin with we were making finer and finer grinds, only to find that the shots were taking over 60 seconds to extract. These were bitter to taste. Dial back the amount by one click, a nice firm tamp and the shot is done around 30 seconds. A perfect coffee. Play with the grind after that. The other thing is to buy freshly roasted beans, and shop around. This machine will really show up a poor batch of beans.

The Smart Grinder and the coffee machine really do go together. Well thought out functional machine. The water tank did not seal right off and leaked to start with, but after it was clicked in a couple of times it has been fine since.