Is Smeg's new cold brew coffee machine worth its £500 price tag? If you're looking for the most stylish espresso machine around then maybe

Retro appliance maker Smeg have just launched a coffee machine I've never seen before; an espresso machine and cold brew maker in one appliance (for £499.96 via Smeg).

After a week of tests, I've found it a brilliant espresso machine with lots to recommend it. However, I'm not sure the cold brew function works as advertised.

Save £150

Smeg Coffee Preparation Bundle : was £699.91 now £549.91 at SMEG

This Black Friday you can save on this recently released coffee machine along with its matching grinder, with £150 off the price tag of both in a bundle.

View Deal

In a nutshell

Cold brew is on the rise in Britain. Rather than forcing pressured water through coffee grounds, this method of brewing coffee steeps cold water in coffee grounds for hours. The idea is that this gentler process produces sweeter, less acidic coffee that's gentler on your stomach.

The drawback with cold brew is that it can take up to a day to brew, and dedicated cold brew cafetières can take up a lot of room in a fridge.

Smeg aims to remove these issues with the new Smeg Cold Brew Espresso Coffee Machine, which can make both espresso and cold brew.

But Smeg appliance always come with a high price tag. A £500 espresso machine had better be worth it, so I put this machine to the test for a week to see how it fares in a real home.

I've found that this machine makes genuinely good espresso, and it has one of the best steam wands I've every used, and it's perfect for making cappuccinos.

However, that cold brew function isn't really cold brew. It's a glorified iced coffee function, and while it's fine for hot summers day, there are much better iced coffee makers out there for a fraction of the price.

Smeg Cold Brew Espresso Coffee Machine product specs

• Type: Espresso
• Water tank capacity: 1.4 litres
• Bean hopper: 275g
• Pressure: 15 bar
• Dimensions: H 36.4cm x W 20ccm x D 29.5cm
• RRP: £499.96

Unboxing and first impressions

This is a fairly straightforward espresso machine. It has a steam wand and comes with a tamp, filters for single and double shots of espresso, two more filters for cold brew, and a portafilter. It also includes a a brush.

There is a space on top of the machine to hold some espresso cups and keep them warm for coffee, and the drip tray is removeable, which hides some handy storage for the filters and brush.

However, here I found the first issue with setup. There's a QR code to help you set up the machine but I couldn't get this to work; the code is printed in light grey against against a dark grey background, so I couldn't get it to scan, which was a little frustating.

You have to wash all the parts, which is quick, though they aren't dishwasher safe.

After that, you must flush the machine through five times, but this was very straightforward and fast, as was flushing through the wand. It's fast to heat, too.

What is it like to use?

This machine is easy to use, so it's a good choice if you want to make homemade espresso but you're new to the process. You switch it on at the side, then the three buttons pulse white to let you know it's heating up. Once it's at temperature, the buttons glow solid white. All you need to do is press the desired shot quantity and it will dispense espresso.

It's a similar process for steaming milk - you just press the steam button, wait for it to hit temperature, then pull down the lever for steam. The water tank holds 1.4l, so I found that you rarely need to top it up.

I love the sturdy portafilter but the most striking thing is the tamper. It's a solid lump of steel weighing in at 445g (15.7oz), so it's easy to get a perfect puck of coffee. The only potential issue here is that I noticed that the portafilter handle is at a slight angle, not 90 degrees, which makes for a slightly angled puck. If you don't use a WDT tool to distribute the coffee evenly you can end up with two mismatched shots of espresso.

An incredibly minor problem with ease of use is the 50s-style pressure gauge on the front of the machine. It's useful but it doesn’t show pressure in bars, just ‘espresso’, so if you want to dial in the pressure you’re out of luck. However, only truly obsessive coffee drinkers will miss this - most domestic coffee machines don't include this information.

Espresso

I mentioned above that the portafilter makes for a slightly angled puck, and this showed in my first espresso test.

My first time using this machine, I used it as a beginner might, loading up the portafilter, tamping it, then pulling a shot. However, the slight angle on the ground coffee led to two mismatched shots, because it extracted a lot more on one side than onto the other. The coffee was good, but there was a good shot of coffee on the left with a smooth, rich taste, and a poor shot on the right, which was watery and a little bitter.

However, I found that using a WDT tool like this from Amazon solves this problem. For the uninitiated, a WDT tool is just some needles attached to a handle. You stir it through ground coffee to whisk it up and break up any clumps, which makes it easier to tamp.

After using a WDT too, I hugely improved the quality of the espresso. It was thick and rich with a good crema. It was quiet too, maxing out at 56.6db and averaging 52.4db.

In short, if you're a beginner, you'll be amazed at what you can achieve with this. Pros, however, might find it a little basic.

Cold brew

The USP of this particular machine is that unlike other espresso machines, this can make cold brew. Smeg marketing says that the company has 'worked closely with coffee consultants to develop a faster, easier method' for cold brew that takes the waiting out of cold brew.

However, I was sceptical. Cold brew is made by steeping coffee in a fridge for hours, so I was a little mistrustful of a machine which says it can make cold brew in a matter of minutes. Cold brew also takes a different ratio of coffee to water (1:8) to espresso (1:2).

To find out, I selected the cold brew menu by tapping the switch menu button on top of the machine and then brewing a double shot of cold brew.

It's a mildly annoying process. Bursts of coffee come out with a squeal every 20 seconds or so. It's not too loud - around 50 db - but it's an annoying, repetitive noise. It's not one to have in the background while you're on work calls, my partner found it annoying while she tried to work, and it isn't the nicest way to wake up in the morning.

It takes a while, too. Of course, the four and a half minutes is much faster than the usual hours it takes to steep traditional cold brew, but it's fairly long by coffee machine standards. The manual says to dispense it over ice but it takes so long that a decent amount of ice has melted.

That long process is made more frustrating by the yield. One of the good things about cold brew is that you can make it big batches to dilute later, but this only makes 100ml of 'cold brew', which is fairly inefficient.

Process aside, it makes good coffee, but it's a little bitter. It's pretty good black but it definitely tastes much better with some caramel syrup and milk, which is how I imagine most people would drink it.

In the end, this is good iced coffee, but purists won't think of it as cold brew. The ratio is slightly off - it took 16g of coffee for around 100ml of cold brew, so it's a 4:25 ratio rather than the usual 1:8. On a hot summer's day you probably won't care about the difference, but purists might not like that it isn't really cold brew.

Cappuccino

However, the steam wand is excellent. It makes a really good indulgent microfoam that’s feels fluffy and indulgent without ever becoming cloying or thick. The steamed milk is good too, smooth and velvety. Topped with some cinnamon, I could make an incredibly nice cappuccino.

It is, of course, a lot of faff compared to an all in one machine like the Smeg BCC13BLMUK bean-to-cup machine. You need to pull your shot, add it to the mug, steam the milk, pour the steam milk into the cup, then add the milk foam on top. However, this is part of the fun, and if you know what you're doing, it doesn't take that long.

The wand can move 360 degrees, which is helpful, and it’s easy to keep clean with a damp cloth.

The only slight issue I found with the steam wand is that it’s easy to flip the steam wand back too far to dispense water instead of steam, which would ruin your cappuccino.

What's it like to clean?

Cleaning this machine is simple but frequent. Everything can be hand washed in minutes, and you can keep the finish clean with a damp cloth or some mild detergent spray.

However, you have to do this fairly often to keep it look its best. The stainless steel finish is a magnet for finger prints and marks, and it drips between uses, so I found I was wiping the drip tray clean almost every time I used it.

I also found that it discharges excess steam into a reservoir in the drip tray, which is prone to leaking. This means you have to clean out the storage underneath the machine to keep everything hygienic. It's hardly a difficult task, but other machines don't have this issue.

How does it compare to similar models?

The problem with this Smeg machine - as with most Smeg machines - is that it's way overpriced. The espresso from this machine is great, but it's not a huge step up from cheaper machines. You can make essentially the same coffee in a Casabrews 3700 (£110.99 via Amazon) for at least £350 less, depending on sales, or the Sage Bambino, which is a little more attractive than the Casabrews for a little extra money as per our review. Sure, you don't have the Smeg build quality, but you save a lot. If it's just retro style you're after, you can hundreds by buying something like the Swan Retro Espresso Coffee Machine.

It doesn't have to be compared to competitors, either; the functionality is basically the same as the Smeg espresso machine, which is usually around £200 cheaper. If you wanted to spend more, you could get Smeg's Espresso Coffee Machine with Grinder, which unsurprisingly has a coffee grinder for fresh beans.

All this means that you're essential paying £200 for an extra cold brew function that really just makes iced coffee. It's pretty good iced coffee, but probably not worth another £200. If you bought a standard Smeg espresso machine you could make basically the same iced coffee by pouring the shot over ice and topping it up with cold water.

In short, the 'cold brew' function is a cool idea, but it doesn't taste much different to iced coffee. It's up to you if you think it's worth £200 extra over a Smeg standard espresso machine.

Should you buy this coffee machine?

I think this could be a great coffee maker for anyone who isn't that fussed about coffee. I don't mean that as an insult - if you want good coffee at home that's a step above a pod machine this is all you need - you can make pretty great espresso at the touch of a button. You don't need to know how to faff around with grind size or extraction or the specific gravity of different kinds of milk. This makes good coffee without much fuss.

I think it's could be worth buying for the style. You can't beat Smeg for retro 50s glam, and if you want to compete a set of Smeg appliances with a coffee maker, this could be the one.

However, coffee obsessives should definitely look elsewhere, because it's a fairly limited machine for the price. There are cheaper machines that can make better coffee.

Cold brew lovers also may be disappointed. If you've made the shift to cold brew for taste preference or because it's easier on your stomach) you're far better off with a dedicated cold brew machine like the Toddy Cold Brew System (£59.99 via Amazon).

About this review, and the reviewer

Alex has tested coffee machines for years at a variety of publications, including Ideal Home's sister publication Homes & Gardens. Not only does he drink coffee every day, but he has tried dozens of appliances to help you find the very best.