The Italian Delonghi has long been a cult brand in the espresso coffee machine segment. For development and production, the company uses one production center in Italy, two in China, three in Romania, and a share in a joint venture with the TCL Group in China.
Delonghi coffee machines
Today, Delonghi offers some popular lines, including Magnifica, Dinamica, PrimaDonna, Eletta, Maestosa, La Specialista, etc. All models are built on one of three platforms, including ESAM for large models with increased reliability and longevity, universal ECAM and compact ETAM.
Of course, each series has key features. For example, PrimaDonna Soul offers a unique Bean Adapt technology, which optimizes grinding depending on the type of beans and their roasting.
Extravagant design in the Steampunk style has become the hallmark of the La Specialista series. Initially, it included the budget-friendly Arte, mid-budget Prestigio and flagship Maestro.
In the hybrid espresso machine segment, La Specialista mainly competes with Australian Breville models with similar design.
Stylish design, high quality and quite affordable prices quickly ensured its popularity. The Delonghi’s management responded adequately to the on consumer demand, expanding the model range of this family. As a result, in a few years it has been replenished with:
– Specialista Arte Evo is an improved version of Specialista Arte with Cold Brew technology;
– La Specialista Opera – Prestigio version with Cold Brew technology and 3-way solenoid;
– Specialista Touch – new Maestro version with a large 3.5-inch intuitive touchscreen.
The list of differences between Opera vs Prestigio is shot:
– $ 700 vs $ 900 price;
– Cold Brew technology (extraction with cold water);
– 3-way solenoid valve to control the flow of liquids, and bean sensor;
– quieter coffee grinder with 15 vs 8 grind settings.
Platform
– sleek stainless steel body;
– convenient tamping lever on the left;
– 51mm portafilter;
– 7-ounce (200 g) bean hopper;
– 67-ounce (2 l) water tank.
The model comes with a stainless steel milk jug.
La Specialista Opera EC 9555
The model offers five pre-installed programs, including Espresso, Americano, Hot Water, Espresso Cool and Cold Brew. Opera costs ~$ 700 / € 810 / £ 800, has dual spouts for brewing both single and double shots and is equipped with DeLonghi’s insulated steam wand, which perfectly froths milk for milk-based coffee drinks.
The depth is suitable for placing the coffee machine on almost any countertop. But the coffee grinder increases its height to 17.5 inches (44.45 cm), which can create a problem when placed under a kitchen cabinet.
A fairly large weight of 28 lbs / 12.7 kg provides it with reliable stability.
A maximum cup height reaches 4.2 inches / 10.5 cm. This is enough for most standard-sized coffee mugs but not travel mugs.
The Opera comes with a 51 mm stainless steel portafilter. For brewing two shots, its dual-spout design divides brewed espresso into two separate streams for two cups. The single and double-shot filter baskets provide fast switching between modes.
Like other Specialista models, Opera uses thermoblock heating instead of a boiler. By rapidly heating water, it provides a precise temperature control and maintains optimal brewing temperatures throughout extraction. In addition, thermoblock is more energy efficient. To be fair, a coffee machine with a powerful boiler is more convenient for making coffee for a large company.
Unlike other Specialista models, Opera has a 19 Bar pump instead of the traditional 15 Bar version. Frankly, the increased power is not very important. In fact, it potentially reduces the brewing time, but even 15 Bar is excessive. As known, at the first stage of pre-infusion the pump provides a minimum pressure of several bars, which gradually increases to the standard 9 bars.
Cold Extraction technology
Of course, Cold Extraction technology is one of Opera’s main bonuses. The Cold Coffee option began to appear in coffee machines several years ago and meant only cooling the drink with ice cubes. Of course, this has nothing to do with cold extraction technology, which involves using relatively cold water. As a result, the coffee temp in the cup is approximately 30°C – 35°C.
This method was invented by Dutch merchants. Hot water was very limited on ships during the voyage. This technology uses coarsely ground beans and their infusion in cold water from 12 to 24 hours, solving this problem.
Later, the new recipe penetrated into Japan and received name ‘Kyoto’. In the 1960s, American Todd Simpson invented a coffee maker with this technology, making cold coffee popular throughout the world.
Today it’s successfully implemented in Jura Z10, Spinn Coffee Maker and some Delonghi models. But, of course, the technologies are different. In particular, the Swiss Jura compensates for the decrease in extraction performance due to lower water temperatures by increasing the area of its contact with the coffee tablet. For this purpose, the piston head has a convex shape. The company calls this technology 3D Cold Brew.
Delonghi developed its proprietary Cold Extraction Technology in collaboration with the Specialty Coffee Association. It combines a higher calibrated pressure, slower water flow and lower extraction temperature.
Frankly, most coffee lovers still prefer the traditional hot espresso with smoke above the cup. But Cold Brew has long since turned into a separate class of popular dessert drinks, which includes a huge number of recipes.
Therefore, Cold Extraction in Specialista Opera significantly expands the range of its drinks.
Key Features
Despite the abundance of buttons, Opera has a simple and convenient interface.
The model has a full set of indicator lights, including water levels, coffee bean refills, etc.
Of course, three active temperature controls remain one of the main bones of the model.
In fact, they provide extraction optimization depending on espresso beans, their density and roast levels. This option will mainly appeal to more advanced brewers. Pre-installed Cold Brew and Espresso Cool are ideal for beginners.
Conical burr grinder with 15 grind settings uses innovative sensor grinding technology. In fact, it selects the optimal grind settings, automatically adjusting times and volumes. The selection algorithm takes into account the espresso bean origin, their density and the time of their roasting (freshly or earlier). As a result, the coffee machine provides consistently high quality regardless of these factors.
The smart dosing feature provides precision and consistency of espresso preparation by automating control. As known, under-extracted espresso is dull-tasting, and over-extracted is too bitter. In fact, the intelligent built-in grinder adjusts the grind settings and dose size for real-time. It stops after reaching the required weight and grind size.
Like with the La Specialista Maestro or Breville Touch Impress, the Opera uses auto smart tamping station. By pressing the lever on the left, the tamping station provides a precise and uniform pressure of 44 lbs / 20 kg on the ground coffee.
However, a manual coffee tamper is also included.
Operation and Care
The model has excellent usability. To prepare Espresso, the coffee lover only needs to insert the portafilter with single or double-shot basket into the smart tamping station and select single or double shot. The coffee grinder will then grind the required amount of coffee beans. Lowering / raising the lever on the left starts tamping. Then the portafilter is moved into the group head and you can place a cup under its spouts.
DeLonghi’s steam wand heats rapidly and creates the ideal steam pressure, providing silky micro-foam, the quality of which is high enough even for Latte art.
Unfortunately, it’s not fully articulated and has limited mobility. But advanced insulation ensures temperature stability and eliminates the risk of burns. The steam wand is activated with the side dial on the right. After blowing with hot steam, it’s lowered into the milk jug. Steam supply starts with turning the steam dial.
Espresso Cool function prepares espresso at a lower temperature and is selected with the ‘Espresso Cool’ setting.
Cold Brew extraction is activated with the ‘Cold Brew’ setting and prepares coffee in about 5 minutes. Depending on personal preference, a coffee lover may use ice cubes to further temperature drop of the coffee, for example, on a hot day.
Care is also simple and includes:
– wiping the steam wand with a damp cloth after each operation cycle to avoid a milk crust forming;
– emptying, washing and rinsing the portafilter and drip tray after making espresso (quick purge cycle);
– descale with user manual.
Conclusions
Compared to Prestigio, Opera offers several significant improvements, including support for Cold Brew technology and a quieter coffee grinder with 15 settings. Therefore, its lower price ($ 700 vs $ 900) seems illogical. However, it always depends on the pricing strategy, which is the prerogative of management. But at current prices, Prestigio is clearly inferior to the newer Opera.
But it’s more expensive than the Breville Barista Express, which costs $ 550. In fact, with identical specs, functionality and a very similar Steampunk design, Opera offers Cold Brew technology for an additional $ 150. Perhaps the difference of 25% is too big for fans of traditional hot coffee. But given the huge range of cold coffee-based dessert drinks, it’s quite acceptable.
In any case, the Cold Brew technology and high quality, backed by the brand’s impeccable reputation, at a price of $700 provide superb value for money and, as a result, excellent marketing prospects for the model.
The video demonstrates grind and dose settings in the La Specialista Opera.