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Gaggia 90500 Titanium Super Automatic Espresso Machine, Silver | 
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| Brand: Gaggia
Buy New: $1,299.00
Rating:  10 reviews
Color: Stainless Steel
Shipping Weight (lbs): 31.8
Dimensions (in): 15 x 11 x 15
MPN: 90500
Model: 90500
UPC: 693042905008
EAN: 0693042905008
ASIN: B0007XXHD2
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Features:
| • | Automatic espresso machine | | • | A stainless steel lined brewing boiler and additional steaming boiler; 15 bar pump | | • | 60-ounce water reservoir; built-in conical burr grinder; 18 adjustable grind settings | | • | Frothing wand; rapid steam for froth with no wait time; 8-1/2-ounce bean hopper; cup warmer | | • | Measures 11 by 15-3/8 by 15-1/6 inches |
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Product Description
Features: 15-bar pump. 1250 watt thermoblock. 60-ounce removable water reservoir. Programmable volume control, pre-grinding and pre-brewing. Built-in conical burr grinder with 18 settings and 8.5-ounce capacity. TurboFrother swiveling wand with auto attachment and Rapid Steam. Programmable water hardness and rinse cycle. Bubble push buttons for convenient use. Removable brew group and drip tray. Adjustable coffee dosing.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 5 more reviews...
 The First cup's the best June 16, 2008
S. Hunter
I read the reviews and the only concern I had (other than the price tag) was that I would get the dreaded "Ventilate" message.
I didn't. Setting up the machine was relatively easy. The only pesky issue (and this still remains) is getting the front panel on. For some reason, it's a struggle to get it back on. (The only I reason I take it off is to empty the grinded coffee box.)
My first latte was so good. My second was even better.
It is a loud machine when it makes coffee so I can't use early in the morning because it would wake the wife and kids.
I purchsed the Lavazza coffee beans with it, and that is one smooth creamy cup of joe.
I've had the machine since 6/4/08 (today is 6/16) and have not experienced any badness with the machine (knock on wood).
 Gaggia Titanium SS was awful! April 9, 2008
So (CA)
Purchased and received machine from WholeLatteLove. First espresso was made perfectly. Trouble began when we attempted to use steam/hot water. Machine immediately said "close knob". We closed the knob and the machine said "ventilate". We read the instructions and manually primed the water pump with the cheap, plastic, ill-fitted primer they sent with the machine. This worked. The real problem arose when the machine asked us to "ventilate" every time we initiated the steam/hot water. We had to manually prime the pump over and over and over again. The company took the defective machine back but asked us WHY we did not want another one to replace it. Go figure. Would not recommend this machine to anyone.
 Super Latte! March 19, 2008
A. Momon (USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
No more Starbucks! This machine will pay for itself within a year since I'm saving over $30 a week by not buying coffee and lattes from stores. It's extremely easy to use; press OK to start rinse cycle and warm up machine (takes around 10 seconds), press small, medium, or large for the size of coffee (press twice to make it a double!), use the frothing wand to warm up milk if desired. Entire process takes about a minute to complete.
Big Disappointment; Very Poor Service July 16, 2007
Atman (Everywhere)
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
I should've known better. I initially purchased a Gaggia Titanium SS for myself because of Gaggia's supposed excellence in the espresso device market. I'll have to admit, the machine looks beautiful and when it works its awesome. However, after about 2-3 months of use, the machine started to leak in the inside upper-right corner. Puddles and puddles of water on my countertop! If that weren't enough, the increased humidity and steam from leakage caused the digital display to appear distorted and fuzzy! If that weren't enough, I keep on getting a "Close Door" message even though the door is closed! I'm not finished! The grinder adjustment knob doesn't work! I have the grind set at the finest setting and I'm getting coarse coffee grinds!
I called Importika to get this machine serviced and spoke to a "Sally" who takes care of service related issues. After 1 month of emailing and phone calls, "Sally" never gave me a "Return Authorization" which is required for machine to be sent back. She just ignored me. I gave up on this company and decided to get it fixed at a different company.
Save your money! Get a different brand! Do your research!
Best coffee I've ever had April 11, 2007
Kurt D. Fenstermacher (Tucson, AZ United States)
10 out of 11 found this review helpful
Believe me, I thought long and hard for paying over a $1,000 for a coffee maker. The very idea struck me as a bit outrageous, since I've never paid more than $50 for a coffee maker before, but now I'm glad I did. I looked at several espresso makers, ranging from the simplest (and cheapest) to the mid-range machines on up to this beast, the Gaggia Titanium. I finally decided to take the coffee plunge and figured that I could always return it if my wife ("the decider", as I like to call her) vetoed the purchase.
I ordered the Titanium during my Amazon Prime trial, so it was shipped overnight for just a few dollars and arrived on a Monday. We had house guests at the time and while one didn't drink coffee, the other considered himself a hard-core coffee purist (he even has a roaster at home and buys his beans green). I noticed right away that the machine was packed well, which is always a good sign. I had the machine out of the box, read through the directions, and started brewing coffee in about 15 minutes. Wow. This was easily the best coffee I had ever tasted, with none of the bitterness I usually associate with espresso (at least with espresso I've made).
The machine produces four different beverages: espresso, "regular" coffee, caffe lungo, and hot water. (Caffe lungo, as it turns out, is literally "coffee long" and is similar to espresso, but with more water passed through for a longer brew time. While I'd never heard of it, it's now my wife's new morning beverage.) There's also the frothing wand and the cappuccinatore, which is an attachment that replaces the frothing wand specifically for cappuccino. While others have mentioned never using the cappuccinatore, it's all I've used so far and I've converted at least two strict coffee drinkers to cappuccino lovers.
My second (after the cost) biggest concern was that I'd been told that super automatics are a pain to clean and that it would be more hassle than it's worth. As it turns out, the Titanium's not the hard to clean. The dregdrawer (which holds the "hockey pucks" as my friend calls them) sits inside the drip tray, which easily slides out after you unlatch the door. The Titanium's blue display will let you know when it's time to empty the drip drawer. (It's not clever enough to know if you empty the dregdrawer in between these warnings, but if you empty it on your own schedule, you simply pull out the drawer for 5 seconds and slide it back in.) For the drip tray, there's a red plastic float that rises up as the tray fills to let you know that it's time to empty the tray.
The most difficult part to clean, which isn't all that hard, is the brewunit, which processes the coffee as it comes out of the grinder (or from the ground coffee slot, if you choose to use your own ground coffee). You have to unscrew a couple stainless steel plates and brush the unit (with an included brush). In short, cleaning a super automatic is no more of a chore than cleaning the separate appliances (coffee grinder and drip/espresso maker). One minor annoyance is mentioned on an orange sheet packed in the box that says that "oily" beans can clog the grinder and there's an 800 number to call for suggestions.
The only problem that I've had is that the beans (Starbuck's Caffe Verona) don't fall into the grinder properly and so every few cups the Titanium reports that the beans are empty even when there are beans in the hopper. Reaching into the hopper and pushing the beans around fixes that problem, but the rep at the 800 number reports that the oily beans will cause a buildup in the grinder and offered to send instructions on how to clean the grinder, should that become a problem. (It hasn't been for me yet, but I've only had the Titanium for a week and a half.) The suggestion I got from the 800 number was to let the beans sit on a baking sheet for an hour or so before adding them to the hopper and while this hasn't eliminated the problem of the non-empty hopper, it has reduced it.
One more tip: if you don't have a grinder, consider buying one (I bought the KitchenAid KPCG100NP Pro Line Burr Coffee Grinder, Nickel Pearl from Amazon and have been very happy with it). Sometimes (especially in the evenings, I've had requests for decaf and I'd rather not try to empty the bean hopper and grinder. Instead, you can add a scoop of ground coffee and press the "pre-ground coffee" button to tell the Titanium to use your ground coffee rather than grinding it fresh. (I suppose you could also buy already ground coffee, but if you're already spending over $1,000 on a coffee maker, what's a grinder?)
The bottom line: if you spend more than a few bucks a day on coffee, you can justify the cost and you'll wind up with great coffee. I suppose it's some measure of how much we enjoy the coffee that with three coffee drinkers, we've brewed just over 120 "coffees" (an espresso shot-sized measure of all three coffee products) in ten days. There's no question that this is a 5-star product.
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