Made in Italy, and now one of the best-known names in that country, the Isomac brand features espresso machines that hover on the border between commercial and home items. These espresso machines look the business and exude high quality, with their use of polished metal casing. They enjoy a high technical performance rating as well. The website is fairly basic giving just enough information to allow you to make an informed choice without being over-elaborate.
Finding the website
You can visit the Isomac website by going to www.isomacespresso.com .
Finding the section on coffee makers
Once you’ve reached the home page you can click on images of products laid out below the company logo. Or go to the top of the page and click on the ‘Products’ tab. This will bring you to the Home and Light Commercial Espresso /Cappuccino Machine start page.
Selection Available
Isomac offers a useful selection of machines that range from the smaller household variety to more bulky light commercial ones. And they’re of a very high quality. Critics, they say, regard the ‘Zaffiro’ model as ‘quite possibly the best single boiler/dual use boiler machine on the market today’. Their ‘Venus’ model is designed to fill the gap between commercial and lower end machines – what they call the ‘pro-sumer’ market. It’s one of a selection of crossover items.
Information provided on the site
Go to the products page and you’ll find all of the Isomac machines laid out in columns. There’s a brief description under each one allowing you to decide whether it is a more commercial item or suitable for the home.
Click on a machine to bring up the item page. The page is designed almost as a card system with the name of the coffee maker at the top and two columns of information. In the left hand column is an image of the machine. Click on it to bring up a separate window with a larger, clearer image showing good detail. Underneath are technical details such as dimensions, weight and power. You’re also told if the machine hasn’t got commercial power requirements.
In the left hand column is a list of bullet point features with the most important ones bolded. The ‘Rituale Two’ for instance, has a new best quality expansion valve on the market today. Its pressurestat device allows you to adjust pressure and temperature within the boiler easily, while a dual pressure gauge monitors both pump and boiler pressure. As with all the products there is a comprehensive list of other features.
As well as more traditional espresso makers there is bean to cup machine with an incorporated conical burr grinder. In some machines there is a Thermal fuse that provides burnout protection if the boiler is operated without water or the water reservoir runs out of water.
The ‘Mondiale’ machine fits into the semi-commercial and home use category. It’s one for the real at home barista who wants to make the best espresso they can and look the part doing it. The machine itself is made of stainless steel that’s non-magnetic and will never rust. It features an E61 commercial group head with thermal siphon to maintain a consistent temperature throughout the brew group. And with a machine like this you can use the on-demand hot water to make hot chocolate, tea and even soup. It’s easy to clean as well because of the pressure relief valve that prevents splatter from built up pressure.
As well as coffee machines the Isomac site features conical burr mechanism coffee grinders, tampers and a polished, stainless steel ’knock box’ to go with the coffee grinders.
Where to buy
There is no distribution list on the site.
Buying from the website
There is not function for buying from the website; however Internet shops such as Coffeeitalia at www.coffeeitalia.co.uk and MyEspresso at www.myespresso.co.uk are worth a try.
Finally
There is not doubt that an Isomac coffee maker is a quality machine and the website is a no-nonsense counterpart. It gives you all the information you need and no more. It’s clear and concise. Isomac seems to be marketed with more vigour in the USA than the UK but the machines are available and they’re worth searching out on the Internet.
They’re the coffee maker for the true coffee connoisseur or for someone who just enjoys the ritual of making a great espresso. And as one reviewer said, you can even use the polished metal casing as a mirror for a last minute once over before you go out…