Bialetti Moka Express Review

The Moka Express is one of the most-owned coffee devices ever made, essentially unchanged since 1933: an aluminum octagon that uses steam pressure to push water up through a basket of grounds. What it produces is not espresso— 1-2 bars of pressure versus espresso's ~9, so no real crema — but it is the strongest, most-concentrated coffee you can make for this little money, and the backbone of countless milk drinks made at home.

Its reputation for bitterness is a technique problem with a known fix: start with hot water in the base (less time cooking the grounds), medium-fine — not espresso-fine — grind, moderate heat, and pull it off the flame when the gurgle starts. Done that way, a Moka pot makes genuinely sweet, intense coffee; done carelessly it makes the burnt stereotype. The machine has no settings, so the settings are you.

Below it sits with its own family: the Brikka, whose weighted valve fakes a higher-pressure, foam-topped result — the closest a stovetop gets to espresso-like — and the Moka Induction, the steel-based version for induction cooktops the classic aluminum won't work on.

Grind and heat are two of the three things that decide whether this pot delights you; the third is the bag. Our guide to the best coffee for a moka pot covers which roasts suit one-to-two-bar brewing, and how to make espresso without a machine is the honest comparison if a crema-topped shot is what you were really after.