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BonJour Cafe Milano 6-Cup Stovetop Espresso Maker

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Brand: BonJour
Category: Kitchen

Buy New: $300.00

Avg. Customer Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

8 reviews
Sales Rank: 118357

Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Fragile: Yes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.8
Dimensions (in): 5.5 x 4.5 x 8.3

MPN: 53440
Model: 53440
UPC: 747660751162
EAN: 0747660751162
ASIN: B00004R8YW

Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 6-8 of 8

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Good for those who don't mind a challenge at first March 13, 2006
25 out of 25 found this review helpful

I just bought the 9-cupper and was suprised at how little it was. That's 9 cups? I said to myself. It's more like one! But espresso is supposedly taken in itty bitty cups (shot glasses with handles), hence the smallness.

Next surprise was the lack of instructions. I had to fiddle with it and experiment, so I'm going to share what I learned. First, take the thing COMPLETELY apart and wash. Unscrew the pot in the middle. Take out the filter in the bottom part that holds the ground. Now, (I missed this part) take out the filter in the top part that will hold your finished coffee. There's a gasket that holds in in. Get your fingernail under it and just lift it out. Mine was put in backwards and it prevented the coffee from rising to the upper chamber. Very frustrating. Wash and dry.

To brew, fill the bottom chamber with cold water up to just beneath the overfill hole - it's a brass nut with a hole in it. Set the funnel-filter in and add your grounds. Grounds should be a fine powder for better taste. Don't overfill and no need to tamp down. I take 4 tablespoons of beans and grind them myself for a little over 4 tbsp of grounds. Before putting the upper chamber back on, make sure the filter is back in with gasket. The smooth side should be down, facing the grounds. Screw the 2 halves back together and put on the stove over high heat (electric) or a flame. You'll hear it and see steam when the water starts to boil and percolate up.

I'm still working out how much time to let it steam, but I'd say give it about 3-5 minutes to fill up the upper chamber. There is a lot of guesswork and estimation here and you just have to figure it out. The first pot will taste terrible. I spat it out and tried again. Each time I make a pot, the coffee tastes better than the last time. Since my first day was an exercise in frustration, by the time I got it right, I was climbing the wall. The coffee will be better - much better - than most espresso stands, more like a Turkish coffee than Starbucks.

Don't overcook it or it'll be burnt and horrible. Don't try to boil off all the water in the bottom chamber. You'll always leave some unboiled. Don't worry about keeping it clean and shiny. The interior quickly stains. I think a thin layer of coffee grime actually protects your final coffee from that metallic aluminum taste, in fact, and explains why a used pot makes better coffee than one right out of the box. However, I like it to shine on the outside, so I do use dishwater and just swish it around on the inside to get the grounds out.

It's not as easy to use as an electric coffee maker, but it's worth it for the superior coffee.

3 out of 5 stars

It's Small! October 10, 2005
3 out of 3 found this review helpful

I bought this item after I visited my friend in Paris and she made me some coffee in one excatly like this one. I have tried making it myself...but for some reason it does not taste the same. It might just be me...but I do like it for being small, that way you do not have to make a huge amount and then waste it.

5 out of 5 stars

Easy to use August 23, 2005
4 out of 5 found this review helpful

I couldn't be happier with this product. It's so easy to use and makes great espresso in just a few minutes.

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