DeLonghi Gran Dama 6600 Espresso Machine

Before choosing to buy this machine, I went to a large retail store that had them on display and you could test and sample the espresso and coffee. My main comparison was the Jura since they are about the same price (when you are looking at the top end of the range).

Pro
- easy to use
- grinder is quiet. It is quieter than the Jura
- easy to program
- easy to clean
- solid

Con
- water pump is noisier
- plastic milk container (not an issue, but glass would have been a nice touch)

During my taste test, I like the tast of the coffee/espresso better than the Jura. The story used medium Illy espresso all set to the same settings (standard with a med grind). I found the Jura to be slightly bitter (still very good) compared to the Delonghi. Both coffees were hot and the crema was good. The Jura was noisier and didn't give an option for the user to choose the intensity of the taste (Gran Dama allows you to choose extra mild, mild, standard, strong) along with the temperature.

My mistake was pooring espresso or long into a large much for tasting. It cooled quickly. This would be an issue with any machine and was a user problem.

The milk process is easy and has a self clean button. All the buttons can be set by the user to your taste.

This is a great machine. The sales people were amazed how it was quieter than the Jura. It is louder than you think when you ultimately get it home. I still go to Starbucks and realize with some tweaking you can get a better cup of coffee. My ultimate goal was to get a coffee that was similar to the ones I would get in Europe - I have it now