We have two certified coffee lovers in our home, both myself and my husband, a high schooler who loves the occasional cup and two younger kiddos that enjoy tea and steamed milk. Several years ago, our coffee maker wasn’t working as well as it had been working, I started the search for a replacement. We have had both lower end and higher end models of drip style coffee makers and they all have served their purpose. I happened to browse my way into our local Williams-Sonoma to see what they suggested and had in stock. The salesperson showed me the Breville Barista Touch, and long story short, I was sold.

When I share pictures of our kitchen on social media or on my blog, I always get numerous questions about our espresso maker. I typically share my morning routine of unloading the dishwasher while the coffee ‘brews’. I pair the unloading the dishwasher task (one I dislike) with making coffee (a task I enjoy) as a way to start the morning off with an empty dishwasher while ‘rewarding’ myself with a morning brew. I share many more of these rituals and systems in my newest book – pre-order it now here.

I timed it for you if you’re curious and it was 2 minutes and 20 seconds to make the coffee and about 2-3 minutes to unload the dishwasher.

I will answer those questions and share with you why we love it so much. Disclaimer: We purchased it with our own money and I don’t think Breville even knows who I am. We just love, love, love this espresso maker. We also have a Breville Blender and Toaster that we love.

Here is what Breville has to say about it:

“Create third wave specialty coffee at home with ease. Barista-quality performance with new intuitive touch screen display with pre-programmed café drinks menu and automatic milk texturing. All within a compact footprint. A built-in grinder delivers the right amount of ground coffee on demand and with a 3 second heat up time, you go from bean to cup, faster than ever before.”

image via Williams-Sonoma

Personally, I love that it makes coffee shop quality drinks in a minimal amount of time. If you love a straight up shot of espresso or a frothy latte or flat white or if you are in the mood for just a simple cup of coffee, you can easily make an Americano in the less time than it would take to brew a pot. There is a built-in grinder for fresh beans as well as a steam wand that froths up milk to the perfect temperature. I also appreciate how easily you can change the temperature, grind settings and brew time to make the perfect cup for you. The interface is intuitive and easy to use with touch screen settings. It is very easy to clean with a removable drip tray and self cleaning milk wand. 

You can also use normal coffee beans with no fancy espresso beans necessary.  We prefer a darker roast, so we choose our beans accordingly. Our go-to is whatever organic coffee is available at Costco.

My go-to drink in the morning is a double shot flat white with unsweetened vanilla almond milk. I have used both whole milk as well as almond milk for the milk and froth portion with equally wonderful results. My husband likes his drink a little cooler so we switch the temperature of the milk from 170 degrees to 140 degrees. If I brew an afternoon cup, I like to add little bit of real maple syrup or honey to lightly sweeten without being cloying. In the warmer months, I love a shot or two of espresso over ice, topped with milk for a refreshing iced coffee. I will usually use a mason jar and pour the espresso, milk, maple syrup, and ice into the jar and give it a shake for a afternoon pick-me-up.

We use the Starbucks mugs from the Wish You Were Here line. We pick them up when we travel as a souvenir that serves a fun reminder of a weekend getaway or a vacation. We also like the Bodum mugs for tea or a fancy cup of coffee.

I realize that this is a large, luxury kind of purchase. If it were to break today, I would honestly go out and buy another without hesitation. My sister bought one after a weekend at our house and immediately went out and purchased her own. She even brings it with on her girls weekend and buckles it in to the car. 

If you are racking your brain to come up with a gift idea for yourself, this is one thing that I can whole heartedly recommend. You will not regret it.


Ready to grab one?  Here are a couple links for you:
Williams-Sonoma link: https://bit.ly/2Rxqj1R
Amazon link: https://amzn.to/2IsNaKF