The De'Longhi Dedica Style is a superb little espresso machine, and has long held a place in our roundup of the best coffee makers thanks to its compact build, wallet-friendly price, and consistently great results. It's a great entry-level option, so when I got the chance to test its new sibling, the equally petite De'Longhi Dedica Duo, I jumped at the chance. I'll bring you a full review soon, but my first impression is that the new version is even better.
The key difference between the Dedica Style and the Duo is that (like many of the best espresso machines I've tested this year) it can extract your coffee using either hot or cold water, so you can use it to prepare iced drinks when you want to cool off.
Unlike some machines I've used recently, it uses proper cold extraction, which takes quite a while, but gives much better flavor than just dumping a shot of hot espresso over ice and calling it a day. Like the far, far more expensive Jura J10, the new De'Longhi lets your ground coffee pre-infuse for an extended period, then pulses cold water through it. The result? Delicious and mellow, even when I used a medium-dark roast. If it wasn't already the afternoon, I'd make another one right now.
Hot extraction is excellent as well. The Casabrews 5418 Pro I reviewed the other week was so inconsistent, it had me questioning whether I actually knew how to make espresso at all, but the Dedica Duo restored my faith in my own abilities. It takes a little while to heat up, but once it does and the espresso buttons on top are illuminated, you can be confident that you're going to get a very good shot. I've been using a fairly fine grind for my coffee, and the results haven't faltered.
There's no three-way solenoid, so you can expect a little dripping after the pump has finished, but that's certainly not the end of the world.
Despite its modest price of $299.95 / £279.99 (details for Australia are yet to be announced), all of the Duo's accessories feel reassuringly sturdy. The portafilter handle has a nice heft to it, as does the tamper (no flimsy bits of plastic here), and De'Longhi hasn't cut corners by expecting you to supply your own milk pitcher (I'm looking at you again, Casabrews).
There's even a little scoop for measuring out your coffee (a sensible addition for an entry-level machine whose users might not own a suitable scale) and a generous pack of descaler.
The Duo comes in a range of cute colors, too. I chose white to avoid clashing with my rather bright green kitchen, but you can also pick stainless steel, soft sage green, or a pretty shade of pink. All are finished with chrome accents, including a nicely tactile knurled knob for controlling the steam wand.
I'll spend a few more weeks with the Dedica Duo before writing my full analysis, but so far it looks like we could have a new contender for the title of 'best small espresso machine'. I'll drink to that.
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