More coffee! Just what I needed. We’ve been trying new things on the YouTube channel over the recent days, which has seen me work more. So more coffee to keep me awake is more than welcome! We’re creating new Shorts for our unboxings by the way if you didn’t realise, go and check them out. Anyway, enough of that, let’s talk coffee. Dolce Gusto, although not a new machine, has sent us one of their Infinissima machines to test with a range of new coffee flavours they’ve just released, so I thought I’d make this video talking through the machine itself, and talking about their three new flavours, that they’ve made in partnership with the coffee shop kings, Starbucks!
The Infinissima is a little bigger than what we’re used to. It stands at 37cm in height, around 18cm in width and 26cm in depth. It’s hard to get an exact measurement myself as the machine is so curvy literally everywhere, but if I said it’s no larger than a bigger sized kettle, I think I’d be pretty dead on. It also comes in a number of colours too. We’ve got a black one here, but there’s a white version, a red one and a brown one to choose from depending on your style and I suppose kitchen decor. Between Nick and I, we’ve already tested the Genio and Piccalo models, links will be up above as cards so keep a lookout for those, and these are somewhat smaller than the Infinissima. Not so much in physical counter space, as there’s not a huge difference. But certainly in the water tank. And that’s where the Infinissima looks pretty unique, so let’s start there.
Dolce Gusto has moved away from that cylindrical style tank and moved to a very unique looking triangle shape, that meets at the bottom. That’s where the water is pumped through the machine. It’s rounded on the corners too, with no harsh edges in sight, which makes the machine look extremely elegant compared to those hulking coffee machines that cost hundreds if not thousands of pounds, and it’s definitely the best looking Dolce Gusto machine to date. The tank can hold around 1.2 litres of water and is capable of making around three to five coffees before it needs a refill. And refilling the tank is easy. Just remove the top lid, which just almost rests in place, and the tank can be removed to bring it to a tap. It also makes it easy for cleaning and drying too.
On top, you can find the main controls. Well, all except the power button that’s located on the side of the base. On top is a touch-sensitive slider that you can set to determine the amount of water needed, and this is measured by a scale found on the boxes of your capsules, or capsules themselves. Above that is a toggle, which you can flick left for cold water, and right for hot water. Dolce Gusto is calling this a ‘manual’ machine. But it feels pretty automatic to me, as the water cuts out when the LED lights hit zero as it fades down depending on how much water has been dispensed. It beats my older Piccalo model as I had to guess how much water each capsule needed. Here you’ll also find the tray where your coffee pods go. Once inside, the machine will pierce the film so water can travel through the pods to dispense your coffee. Once finished, just pull the tray out and discard the pod. Make sure you remove the coffee from the pods though as these can be recycled.
The machine itself overall feels pretty solid, though most parts are made from plastic, and when it comes to the tank lid, the plastic is pretty thin though doesn’t flex much. Also, mine here is shiny, as you can probably see from my b-roll of the machine as it’s reflecting EVERYTHING, but it means that it’s a bit of a fingerprint magnet. Also, living down in the south of the UK, there’s a lot of chalk in our water, so give the machine a wipe down every so often to keep it looking fresh, as white stain marks can appear. The base itself feels pretty chunky compared to the rest of the coffee machine but it’s got to hide the motor and pump somewhere. Speaking of the pump, it’s not as loud as my Picallo but still retains that rumbling sound. But that’s I suppose pretty much on par with coffee machines these days. Especially the pod kind. It’s loud if you’re standing next to it, but it’s not going to wake up the neighbours or anything like that. This is where the drip tray is housed, and cleaning is a piece of cake as it’s all removable so you can rinse it through. It also offers several levels of height depending on the cup you’re using. It helps save any kind of splash and mess, especially when you’re using an espresso cup.
The coffee that’s dispensed, and I will say now I’m no coffee connoisseur or anything, and I know you lot down in the comments of previous videos talk about the flavour, so please, let us know your thoughts. But I think the coffee made by the machine is decent! My favourite flavour out of the new Starbucks branded ones I’ve tried is definitely the Macchiato one. I do like a milky coffee. The Americano is also pretty good, but it’s one of those coffees that will give you a caffeine buzz. The machine can also produce 15-bars of pressure too which is needed to produce that frothy milk type texture, though I’m sure there’ll be some people out there that would argue this, as it doesn’t have a dedicated frother on the side of the machine.
A complaint people might have is the fact it doesn’t have any kind of cup indicator built-in, so while the capsules state it needs a certain amount of bars, this doesn’t always match up to the size of the cup being used. Well, there’s no workaround here, use a bigger cup. Don’t be one of those people who have to sip their espresso out of an espresso cup. Just use a cup that’ll hold the indicated water. Simple.
The Dolce Gusto Infinissima coffee machine is simple and creates great tasting coffee. Of course to you coffee veterans out there, it might not be the best-tasting coffee, but if you’re wanting an upgrade to the usual instant coffee and kettle job, then this could be the product for you. It’s relatively cheap too, not just in the machine which can be found online for as little as £69.99 from some places, but for the coffee pods too. It’s a hell of a lot cheaper than picking up a Starbucks or a Costa Coffee every morning. Just make one in your travel mug.
