De'Longhi La Specialista Maestro review

Balanced, crema-topped shots on darker beans, with light roasts and cold brew less certain9.5/10

The espresso is the reason to buy this machine, and it is praised almost without exception. Shots come out balanced and full-bodied with a dense crema, helped by automatic pre-infusion and several temperature settings you can match to the roast.

“All of mine are extracted with a nice, thick crema, a well-balanced flavour profile, and they come out hot, but drinkable.”

Consistency is the other strength. Home Coffee Expert says that once the settings are right, "the consistency is superb"1, and Biraj Girvan saw the brew temperature hold steady across a long session.

The limits are at the edges. Light roasts are unlikely to give a great shot here. The cold recipes get a mixed reception: Seattle Coffee Gear liked a cold brew that tasted like a concentrate, while ECS Coffee preferred the cool espresso and said of the alternative "there's not a ton of flavor to it"2.

Effortless carafe foam, and a manual wand with one firm critic7.0/10

Milk is widely liked, mostly because of the automatic side. The LatteCrema carafe has adjustable foam levels and turns out smooth, steady foam at a button press, which makes it the easy choice on a weekday morning.3 You cannot change the milk volume, only the foam.

The manual wand is where views part. Coffeeness had no trouble with its power and made "fluffy, silky cappuccino milk foam"4, and Woman & Home found it easy to angle and as good with almond and oat milk as with dairy. ECS Coffee calls the same wand just okay and too weak to make latte art easy.5

Either way the wand takes practice, and whole milk is easier than skimmed. You also cannot brew a shot and steam by hand at the same moment.6

Lever tamping and lit buttons, with grind and dose still yours to find6.0/10

Ease divides opinion: the routine is simple, the dial-in is not. The machine grinds into the portafilter and tamps with a lever, so there is no loose tamper and little mess. Woman & Home calls the result "a wonderfully low stress experience"7.

The catch is the first bag of beans. Lbtechreviews puts it plainly: "Setting the right grind and the desired amount can be tricky."8 Expect a few wasted shots while you learn it, and expect to stand by the machine through each drink.

The front panel does not help at first glance. Seattle Coffee Gear finds it "extremely busy"9 with icons and buttons, though it credits a very detailed manual. If you want to control every detail of a shot by hand, the automation will feel restrictive; if you want a true push-button machine, there are easier ones.

35.2 lb of mostly stainless steel, too tall for some cabinets7.9/10

Build is widely liked. The casing is now stainless steel where earlier versions had more plastic, and the finish reads as solid and well made.10 Woman & Home describes a long-used, rarely cleaned example that still looks and works well.

Size is the practical problem. At 35.2 lb it is a job to unbox, and it is larger than most machines of its type. Lbtechreviews found it "two centimeters too high"11 to fit under a kitchen cabinet with the grinder on top, and the 67.6 fl oz tank sits at the back.

The faults on record are second-hand. Perfect Pick relays reports of the grinder jamming or running noisy, and of minor leaks from the nozzles or drip tray.12 The warranty gains an extra year when you register the machine.

Rinses at a turn of the dial, and more parts to keep up with6.1/10

Cleaning suits some kitchens and not others. The daily jobs are light: the carafe rinses itself when you turn its dial to clean, the wand clears itself, and the carafe and drip tray can go in the dishwasher. Icons tell you when a rinse or descale is due.

The work adds up because there is so much machine. Seattle Coffee Gear counts "an extra number of cleaning steps"13 compared with a simpler machine, and the quick milk rinse is not a deep clean. ECS Coffee warns that skipping the proper cleaning cycle with solution will eventually stop the frothing.

Expect some wiping too. Coffee splashes onto the front during extraction, the brushed steel holds fingerprints, and the grinder chute can clog and cut the dose.

Hot in seconds, cold brew in minutes, and no shot while you steam by hand7.0/10

Speed is widely liked. Coffeeness was surprised by the heat-up: "It only took a few seconds!"14 Shots run quickly, and the lever tamping keeps back-to-back drinks moving.

The cold brew takes minutes where a shot takes seconds. That is fast for cold brew and slow beside hot espresso, and the machine flushes the group with cold water first.

The pause between brewing and manual steaming is short, but the two cannot overlap. A round of hand-steamed drinks goes one step at a time.

A full box at $1,399, hard to justify for a few cups a week7.0/10

Value is widely liked, most of all in a kitchen that uses the machine daily. The box is generous, with baskets, cold brew filters and milk kit included; Woman & Home says De'Longhi gives you "the complete set of everything you could possibly need"15. The grinder is built in, so there is nothing else to buy.

At $1,399 it is still a serious outlay, and dearer than many manual machines paired with a separate grinder. Biraj Girvan's test is the useful one: on a tight budget, or at a few coffees a week, the convenience may not earn its cost.16

Our verdict

Buy the Maestro if you make milk drinks every day and want good espresso without a separate grinder, a loose tamper or a milk-steaming apprenticeship. Skip it if you drink light roasts, brew only now and then, or have low cabinets over a shallow counter. Before ordering, measure the height under your cabinets and plan how you will reach the tank at the back. Then give it a bag of beans to settle the grind and dose before judging the coffee.