Review of the Gaggia Classic 2019 by Rob Armes
.. Having known the Classic well, right from its origins in the late 1990s, the Classic 2019 is in my view, undoubtedly the best Classic ever. ...
Rob Armes is an expert in coffee and coffee machines. Rob and his wife Alison own and run a Tea and Coffee Merchant shop called Rosie and Java based in Richmond upon Thames. Rob was formerly the head of the machine marketing division of Whittard of Chelsea, and is well known in the coffee world, here and abroad. You can see a range of Gaggia machines at Rosie and Java. The Classic 2019 now takes pride of place and is available for demonstration in the shop.
GAGGIA Classic 2019
My name is Rob Armes, I have worked in and around the tea and coffee industry for about 40 years. Much of this time has been spent buying, evaluating and selling domestic espresso machines.
I first became involved with the GAGGIA brand about 27 years ago. The Bakelite bodied Baby GAGGIA, a pioneer of home kitchen bar espresso, was the machine of this era.
The GAGGIA Coffee and the GAGGIA Coffee Classic (the luxury version of the Coffee) were launched a few years later.
Bear in mind that at this time having an electric espresso machine in your kitchen at home was the preserve of the true espresso enthusiast.
GAGGIA build solid, reliable machines to faithfully brew espresso, unlike some of the flimsy pretenders that have entered the market since.
The GAGGIA Coffee Classic featured a stylish stainless steel body (the Coffee had a painted body) and a three way solenoid valve. Together with the commercial style brewhead and brewing handle, the machine gave the user a brewing experience similar to that of a commercial machine.
In the machine’s next incarnation ‘Coffee’ was dropped from the name and the GAGGIA Classic was born. A true classic, destined to become the icon of home espresso brewing, revered by coffee aficionados and barista hobbyists alike.
Spin forward through the last 20 years, there has been a massive amount of change in the domestic espresso machine market.
Bean-to-cup machines, capsule systems and cheap, poor quality traditional machines have all impacted on a market once dominated by the GAGGIA Classic.
To keep the Classic commercially viable and in production, GAGGIA needed to make some tough decisions, such as financial restraint on design changes and where the machine was to be built.
The 2015 design changes were not popular with the Classic’s fan club, however the 2015 machine remained a solid and reliable great espresso brewer. I owned a 2015 model for three years and it still felt like an old friend.
Every story has to have a happy ending, so now for the really good news!
During the last few years GAGGIA has concentrated much of its efforts designing and building bean-to cup machines for home espresso brewing, this is a large and growing sector of the market.
In spite of this, to celebrate the GAGGIA company’s 80th birthday it was decided to revisit the design of the Classic, to create a traditional machine that Achilles Gaggia would have enjoyed using in his own kitchen when he invented "crema naturale" (crema topped espresso) back in 1938.
The design would be based on the best of the best design that the Classic has ever offered and more!
The Classic 2019 arrived in my kitchen a few weeks ago.
The 2019 is being built back in its home, Italy, where probably the best traditional espresso machines are built.
As I unpacked the new machine I was thrilled by its instantly visible outstanding build quality and its stylish updated looks.
The look and the feel of the machine all shout quality.
The new individual rocker switches and indicator lights, the sculpted sides of the body and the new curve fronted drip tray are all visually stunning.
Small things too, like scorch guards on the solenoid pipe and the steam arm.
GAGGIA have turned the Classic from being a metal box into being an object of beauty!
Next, have a look under the ‘bonnet’. The top plate is easily removed with two screws.
The build quality continues inside the machine. The wiring loom is a lesson in the best design well executed. The tidy, accessible internal layout makes any future service work easy to perform.
All the good stuff is inside the machine: three-way solenoid valve, traditional twin element GAGGIA boiler, professional chromed brass brewing group, 15 bar vibratory pump, etc.
Add to this the new professional steam arm and you have a package ready to come out fighting its way to regain the title as best of the best espresso machines in the home kitchen.
Now, put water in the reservoir and we are ready to fire-up the machine.
The power rocker switch returns to the up position when it has been pressed (the machine will return to automatic stand-by after 20 minutes.)
Place a cup under the brewhead and press the cup button to prime the machine. The pump makes a reassuring rumble as the water pours into the cup.
The Classic is much more forgiving than most pro-type machines (such as the Rancilio Silvia, which I used for a number of years.)
The Classic 2019 is flexibly adaptable to the user’s level of barista skill.
The 2019 includes a pressurised crema brewing basket (remember to use the crema pin in the brewing handle with this basket!) For the novice user, just add a couple of shot glasses, a steel frothing jug and thermometer, and some ground coffee.
With some basic brewing and frothing technique guidance from their GAGGIA Dealer, the new user will be brewing acceptably good coffee in a very short time.
With the novice user’s newly found brewing success, they will want to start adding to their library of barista skills.
Change to the traditional brewing basket (the 2019 includes both single and double traditional baskets as standard in the box.)
Now add a pro-type burr grinder (I use a Nemox Lux but have used a GAGGIA MDF in the past) and a weighty steel tamper to your essential brewing kit.
Grind and tamp skills and extraction timing will now allow the user to brew shots tasting better than countless High Street cafe bars.
Moving on up, your imagination is the only limit to your brewing innovation.
Having known the Classic well, right from its origins in the late 1990s, the Classic 2019 is in my view, undoubtedly the best Classic ever.
The machine is more expensive than previous Classics, nevertheless I believe that good quality at a premium price always outweighs a budget build. I also believe that potential owners will take this same view.
Well done GAGGIA, I think that Achilles Gaggia would be proud to have his name on the Classic 2019!
Rob Armes
Director - Certified Master Barista
Rosie & Java Tea & Coffee Merchant
My name is Rob Armes, I have worked in and around the tea and coffee industry for about 40 years. Much of this time has been spent buying, evaluating and selling domestic espresso machines.
I first became involved with the GAGGIA brand about 27 years ago. The Bakelite bodied Baby GAGGIA, a pioneer of home kitchen bar espresso, was the machine of this era.
The GAGGIA Coffee and the GAGGIA Coffee Classic (the luxury version of the Coffee) were launched a few years later.
Bear in mind that at this time having an electric espresso machine in your kitchen at home was the preserve of the true espresso enthusiast.
GAGGIA build solid, reliable machines to faithfully brew espresso, unlike some of the flimsy pretenders that have entered the market since.
The GAGGIA Coffee Classic featured a stylish stainless steel body (the Coffee had a painted body) and a three way solenoid valve. Together with the commercial style brewhead and brewing handle, the machine gave the user a brewing experience similar to that of a commercial machine.
In the machine’s next incarnation ‘Coffee’ was dropped from the name and the GAGGIA Classic was born. A true classic, destined to become the icon of home espresso brewing, revered by coffee aficionados and barista hobbyists alike.
Spin forward through the last 20 years, there has been a massive amount of change in the domestic espresso machine market.
Bean-to-cup machines, capsule systems and cheap, poor quality traditional machines have all impacted on a market once dominated by the GAGGIA Classic.
To keep the Classic commercially viable and in production, GAGGIA needed to make some tough decisions, such as financial restraint on design changes and where the machine was to be built.
The 2015 design changes were not popular with the Classic’s fan club, however the 2015 machine remained a solid and reliable great espresso brewer. I owned a 2015 model for three years and it still felt like an old friend.
Every story has to have a happy ending, so now for the really good news!
During the last few years GAGGIA has concentrated much of its efforts designing and building bean-to cup machines for home espresso brewing, this is a large and growing sector of the market.
In spite of this, to celebrate the GAGGIA company’s 80th birthday it was decided to revisit the design of the Classic, to create a traditional machine that Achilles Gaggia would have enjoyed using in his own kitchen when he invented "crema naturale" (crema topped espresso) back in 1938.
The design would be based on the best of the best design that the Classic has ever offered and more!
The Classic 2019 arrived in my kitchen a few weeks ago.
The 2019 is being built back in its home, Italy, where probably the best traditional espresso machines are built.
As I unpacked the new machine I was thrilled by its instantly visible outstanding build quality and its stylish updated looks.
The look and the feel of the machine all shout quality.
The new individual rocker switches and indicator lights, the sculpted sides of the body and the new curve fronted drip tray are all visually stunning.
Small things too, like scorch guards on the solenoid pipe and the steam arm.
GAGGIA have turned the Classic from being a metal box into being an object of beauty!
Next, have a look under the ‘bonnet’. The top plate is easily removed with two screws.
The build quality continues inside the machine. The wiring loom is a lesson in the best design well executed. The tidy, accessible internal layout makes any future service work easy to perform.
All the good stuff is inside the machine: three-way solenoid valve, traditional twin element GAGGIA boiler, professional chromed brass brewing group, 15 bar vibratory pump, etc.
Add to this the new professional steam arm and you have a package ready to come out fighting its way to regain the title as best of the best espresso machines in the home kitchen.
Now, put water in the reservoir and we are ready to fire-up the machine.
The power rocker switch returns to the up position when it has been pressed (the machine will return to automatic stand-by after 20 minutes.)
Place a cup under the brewhead and press the cup button to prime the machine. The pump makes a reassuring rumble as the water pours into the cup.
The Classic is much more forgiving than most pro-type machines (such as the Rancilio Silvia, which I used for a number of years.)
The Classic 2019 is flexibly adaptable to the user’s level of barista skill.
The 2019 includes a pressurised crema brewing basket (remember to use the crema pin in the brewing handle with this basket!) For the novice user, just add a couple of shot glasses, a steel frothing jug and thermometer, and some ground coffee.
With some basic brewing and frothing technique guidance from their GAGGIA Dealer, the new user will be brewing acceptably good coffee in a very short time.
With the novice user’s newly found brewing success, they will want to start adding to their library of barista skills.
Change to the traditional brewing basket (the 2019 includes both single and double traditional baskets as standard in the box.)
Now add a pro-type burr grinder (I use a Nemox Lux but have used a GAGGIA MDF in the past) and a weighty steel tamper to your essential brewing kit.
Grind and tamp skills and extraction timing will now allow the user to brew shots tasting better than countless High Street cafe bars.
Moving on up, your imagination is the only limit to your brewing innovation.
Having known the Classic well, right from its origins in the late 1990s, the Classic 2019 is in my view, undoubtedly the best Classic ever.
The machine is more expensive than previous Classics, nevertheless I believe that good quality at a premium price always outweighs a budget build. I also believe that potential owners will take this same view.
Well done GAGGIA, I think that Achilles Gaggia would be proud to have his name on the Classic 2019!
Rob Armes
Director - Certified Master Barista
Rosie & Java Tea & Coffee Merchant