KitchenAid has become something of a household name over recent years, with its high-spec, premium appliances featuring in many a high-end kitchen. From its iconic stand mixer to its various other countertop essentials, they’re the kind of tools that once you have them, quickly become indispensable – and for the coffee enthusiast, the luxury KitchenAid Fully Automatic Espresso Machine KF7 is likely to become your new morning essential.
Let’s face it; most of us rely on a quality caffeine hit to get us going in the morning, and instant coffee simply won’t cut it. But when you’re in a hurry, who has the time to manually complete all of the steps required to make the barista-quality style cup you crave?
With the KF7, you don’t have to, as it’s designed for those with fast-paced lifestyles in mind – but also those who aren’t prepared to compromise when it comes to getting a decent cup of morning (or afternoon) joe. It features a simple touchscreen interface and offers dual drink delivery so that you can make two cups at once, with more than 20 drink recipes to choose from depending on what suits your mood – and by all accounts, the quality of the drinks it produces is superior to the barista-made versions you’ll find in coffee shops.
This powerful and convenient machine has been garnering plenty of attention amongst coffee connoisseurs, so we put it to the test to find out what all the fuss was about – and can confirm, we’re converts.
Design and size
Make no mistake; this isn’t a machine for the very occasional coffee drinker – rather, it’s aimed at those who are fully committed to their daily brew. It’s not unremarkable in size, and in fact, takes up a fair bit of counter space, but when you consider its impressive build quality and the fact that it is fully automated in every sense, it’s worth clearing an area to allow it to take pride of place. Made from durable stainless steel, it looks high-end and is durable too; it’s evident that it’s built to last.
Technophobes will be glad to know that the machine comes fully assembled, so there’s no faffing around trying to get it set up – as soon as it arrives, you’re good to go and you’ll be drinking your first cup of coffee in minutes.
User interface
The KitchenAid Fully Automatic Espresso Machine comes with an incredibly user-friendly interface, too. It’s intuitive and easy to get your head around, so nobody in the house will have any excuses not to make the next brew and certainly won’t be able to get away with playing the ‘it’s too complicated’ card any longer.
It features a digital touchscreen display, and at the press of a button, you can choose your drink of choice – will it be an espresso, double, cappuccino, latte, americano? It’s entirely up to you. The dispensing head is also movable, so you can shift it up or down depending on the size of the cup you’re using, which is another handy feature.
Something we particularly love about this model is that you can even programme your water hardness levels. There’s a water hardness strip test provided with the KF7, which it’s worth making use of because hard water can affect the taste of your coffee – and the machine will adjust accordingly to ensure that no cup is ever compromised. Impressive!
We also like that you can make use of the KF7’s energy saving settings, placing it on standby when you’re not using it rather than switching it off entirely so that it’s in a more energy efficient state whilst still always being ready for action at a moment’s notice.
Grinding
The built-in conical burr grinder is a real highlight of this machine, automatically dosing and grinding the beans ready for brewing so that you don’t have to lift a finger and one of the reasons it’s such a quick and convenient appliance to have in your kitchen. The Automatic Smart Dosing Technology deserves a shout out here, and is responsible for selecting the perfect amount of beans for each cup – although it’s worth knowing that you can also add pre-ground coffee instead of whole beans to your beans if you prefer.
There are various espresso grinder settings, and you can adjust the roast profile to ensure the optimal grind and in turn, the perfect cup of coffee. As a general rule of thumb, KitchenAid recommends a finer grind setting for light roasts and a coarser setting for darker roasts.
The choice of a conical over flat burr grinder makes this a super versatile machine which holds plenty of beans at once, and because it runs at a slower speed than a flat burr grinder it’s also pleasingly quiet when in use.
Another great feature of the KF7 is its removable bean hopper, which sits on top of the machine and stores your beans until it’s time to grind them up and make your next brew, protecting them with a lid to keep them fresh. Its volume is a bonus, holding beans for up to 22 single espresso shots when full.
This is supported by a 2.2 litre water tank, which means you can make up to 20 espresso drinks on one fill or get more taller drinks out of it than you would with many other machines – and there’s a filter to prevent limescale build-up, too.
Milk frothing
Like most automatic espresso machines, the KitchenAid Fully Automatic Espresso Machine offers a milk frothing feature. The frother, like everything with this maker, couldn’t be easier to use. You simply put the milk hose into the milk container, connect it to the dispenser head and you’re good to go – the touch screen prompts will guide you from there, and results will depend on which type of drink you’ve selected, with the ‘smart dosing’ feature providing you with the exact amount of milk and froth required for your cup of choice. Want light, fluffy foam for your cappuccino? It’s done. Thick, steamed milk and a little bit of froth for your latte? Already taken care of. You can also customise how much coffee you want added to your cup in ml, or coffee:milk ratio in ml if you prefer
One oversight that has to be mentioned, however, is that the machine doesn’t cater to non-dairy milks – which, in a time where plant milk consumption is at an all-time high, is a real shame. It does limit who can use the machine somewhat, but if you drink your coffee with oat, soy or another alternative milk then you don’t have to miss out entirely on KitchenAid’s offerings as the KitchenAid F8 model, which is a slight upgrade, has the ability to steam, heat and froth all types of milk.
Personalised drinks
Another area where the KF7 stands out is the sheer variety of coffee drinks it can make. We’re not just talking your standard coffee shop orders, but a plethora of rather sophisticated options that go above and beyond, too.
So, if you’re eager to switch up your daily americano or cappuccino and try something else, then look no further. The KF7 can whip you up an array of milky, frothy and creamy options – or for those who like to keep things simple, the ‘ristretto,’ a small shot that is a little more intense than a standard espresso, is the perfect way to start your day on a high.
You can also use it to create various different iced coffees and frappés – and even better, sophisticated coffee-based cocktails like the espresso martini or the Mexican carajillo!
And because everyone’s tastes are different, the machine allows you to create and save individual user profiles and save your drink preferences for future use. You can even fine tune your drinks down to coffee strength and drink temperature, adding a really bespoke feel to the user experience that makes every use and cup feel thoroughly luxurious.
Easy cleaning
If you’re concerned about the cleaning element of owning such a sophisticated machine, then don’t be, because this, too, is super simple and is all taken care of by the machine itself. The ‘clean me’ indicator will light up when the time comes, and prompts will then appear on the screen to guide you through it – whether it’s a quick ‘daily post brew clean,’ ‘deep milk clean’ or a ‘brew unit descaling.’ The machine also offers ‘auto bean purges’ to remove residue from old beans periodically, as well as pre-storage evaporator cleans – so you can always be sure that you’re getting a clean, pure and high-quality cup of coffee.
Quiet Mark certified
As we’ve touched upon, the choice of a conical burr grinder keeps noise to a minimum – so much so that the machine is Quiet Mark certified. The Quiet Mark is a global certification awarded only to the quietest household appliances in each category, so you can be sure that this one won’t disturb your moment of calm and will allow you the headspace you need each morning whilst waiting for your caffeine hit.
Other models in the KitchenAid Espresso Collection
The KF7 is one of three fully-automatic models (and one semi-automatic model) in the new KitchenAid Espresso Collection, with each featuring cutting-edge innovations, a durable metal body and supreme performance.
The KitchenAid Espresso Collection achieved a Red Dot Design Award for Product Design earlier this year – accolades that are awarded by an international panel focused on products demonstrating outstanding design, and it’s easy to see why. The KF6, KF7 and KF8 Fully Automatic Espresso Machines are incredibly user friendly and look the part, too; fully deserving of taking pride of place in your luxury kitchen and likely to become the star of the show.
The bottom line
Quick and convenient to use and easy to maintain, there’s a lot to love about the KitchenAid KF7 – but what really does it for us is the level of personalisation it offers. The ability to fine tune every cup of coffee down to your unique preferences really takes the user experience to the next level, and with every brew better than those of high-end coffee shops, it’s an investment you’ll be thanking yourself for for a long time to come. With the festive season upon us, it’s also the perfect choice for the coffee connoisseur in your life, and is a gift that will keep on giving.
All imagery unless stated otherwise credit: KitchenAid
