Gaggia - Velasca Prestige OTC Super Automatic Espresso Machine - Silver Model No.RI8263/47

The Velasca Prestige is a major step up from the base Velasca model. With its integrated milk carafe, it can automatically froth milk for cappuccinos and lattes, on top of brewing espressos and coffees. It’s considered a one-touch machine, because in just one touch the Velasca Prestige will craft a personalized drink exactly to your specifications, and it looks good doing it! 

The machine gets hot quick, with very little wait time between brewing and steaming, and the added benefit of being able to pull the carafe direct from the fridge when making a milk based drink. We’re in love with any machine that brews an espresso, especially on those particularly sleepy-eyed mornings, but we have a soft spot for the Velasca for its 45 second initial heat up, and barely discernible rapid steam heat up. We’ve noticed that the Velasca is hotter than other super-autos, which might be the reason for these snappy heat up times. The espresso and lungo buttons can be double clicked for automatic double brewing, and milk drinks include cappuccino, milk foam for doppios, hot cocoas and the like, and the adorably named baby cappuccino, which is a 50/50 blend of espresso and frothed milk.

The Velasca works in much the same way as the Velasca aside from milk. Its ceramic burr grinder can be adjusted across ten grind settings, giving you much needed control over the extraction of different beverages. The integrated bypass doser adds further functionality, allowing you to brew using pre-ground coffee, too. Coffee is adjustable across five strength settings, three temperature settings, and, the Prestige model boasts adjustable pre-infusion for even more control. 

The Velasca Prestige will alert you to its maintenance needs; comes with a water filter; is capable of descaling itself; and pressing the “Carafe Quick Clean” button after steaming will rinse out the milk circuit. Plus, Gaggia’s specially designed brew group is removable for easy cleaning. All of this is to say that not only does it serve up tasty bevvies, it’s easy to maintain. We love the Velasca. It’s meticulously handcrafted, steeped in tradition, and reliable to boot.