This is a real user review of the Sage Bambino Plus espresso machine, or the Breville Bambino Plus if you’re outside of Europe, written by someone (me, Kev) who has a lot of experience with this espresso machine, as well as lots of other espresso machines.
As of early 2023, I have a couple of years of experience with the Bambino Plus now, so this post has been continually updated as I’ve discovered more about it, from my own experience and from the experience of my readers.
I’ve also updated this review to include the Sage Bambino, the slightly cheaper “non-plus” version which is now also available in the UK.
I say real review of the Sage Bambino Plus, by the way, because it’s rare when searching for coffee machine reviews (or when searching for a review on any product) to find an actual user review, especially one written by someone who has a bit of underlying experience on the subject.
Obviously, there are other blogs and websites which publish genuine user reviews, but as you’re no doubt aware, many so-called “reviews” you’ll read aren’t really user reviews.
Even when they are, it’s quite rare to find someone reviewing products who spends enough time with the product they’re reviewing to be able to offer any real value in terms of insight that you couldn’t have found from the marketing blurb.
This is where my reviews differ from many coffee machine reviews you’ll read, simply because I started this blog purely as a hobby, and although I’m lucky enough to be able to now call this my full time “job”, I haven’t changed the way that I approach machine reviews.
I spend a lot of time with the machines I review, usually at least for a week or two before writing my review, and then using the machine more over time and updating the reviews whenever I discover anything new.
I also interact a great deal with readers, as you’ll know if you’re one of the many people who’ve emailed me. When people email me with issues or questions, this prompts more investigation, and updates to review posts, as you’ll see from the various updates to this post as you read through.
So if you’ve jumped online and searched for “Sage Bambino Plus Review” or “Sage Bambino Coffee Machine” hoping to find an actual, honest review written by someone who knows a bit about espresso machines, who’s spent quite some time using the Bambino plus (and now the Bambino, too) you’ve found what you were looking for!
So without further waffle:
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Update April 2023. BIGGEST DISCOUNT CODES EVER!
I sometimes have discounts for Sage coffee machines. From the 20th of April, for just a few days, I have the biggest discount code EVER! If you’re already a member of my “Brew Time” mailing list, just email me. If not, Click Here to join, and check your email! Be Quick! There are a limited number of codes to share, once they’re gone, they’re gone!
Read my post on best discount and sage deals:
Breville Australia produces some really innovative coffee machines – which are known in the UK as Sage coffee machines (or Sage by Heston Blumenthal) because the Breville brand name was sold in Europe in the 80s.
There’s the famous Sage Oracle range of bean to cup machines, the brilliant Sage Dual Boiler, and the equally renowned Barista range, including the Barista Express, Barista Touch & Barista Pro.
One of their most popular coffee machines within the past couple of years has been the Sage Bambino Plus, so of course, I had to get my hands on one.
I got hold of the Bambino plus initially at the beginning of 2020, I used it for a few weeks as my home espresso machine prior to writing the review.
I continued to use it for quite a while as my home espresso machine after that, as it was just such a nice machine to use. I kept hold of it and I’ve continued to use it off and on since then, including taking it on holiday with me to Cornwall a couple of times now.
During this time, lots of my fellow coffee botherers (coffeeblog readers) have also gained more experience with this machine, and have shared their findings with me, leading me to experiment and then update this post accordingly.
This is, for example, how the update about the fact that the Bambino Plus although it’s not supposed to have a hot water dispensing feature, actually does it if you press the one cup shot button and the froth level button at the same time for half a second or so (press the one cup shot button again to stop).
This doesn’t work on all versions, it depends on when you bought your machine as to which firmware your machine has, but it does seem to work on most.
Over the past five or six years, I’ve also had experience with a number of other espresso machines, which means I’m also in quite a rare position of being able to tell you how this machine compares to others that you may be considering within a similar price range.
Sage Bambino Plus Review in a Nutshell
I’m going to start this review (updated for 2023) by telling you what I think of the Bambino plus in a nutshell, after having lots of experience using it.
The Sage Bambino Plus is a stonking little machine, for the money. At the under four hundred quid price point, there’s not much that competes.
Sure there’s a bit of competition if you spend a bit more, but if your budget stops bang on £400 – the Bambino plus is hard to beat. As I’ll explain shortly, there are lots of cheaper machines too which may seem like competitors, but they’re really not, they’re not in the same league. The only (slightly) cheaper machine I think does compete, is the Bambino (not the plus), and more on that towards the end of this post.
It’s a very compact machine, it heats up in around the time it takes to say “Sage Bambino Plus” unless you’ve consumed far too much coffee and are talking fairly fast (3 seconds). It has a respectably large 1.9L water tank for such a small machine, and it’s ultra user friendly.
When it comes to the espresso side of things – if you’re one of the users who would use this with the dual walled baskets (it comes with dual walled, pressurized baskets and standard baskets – in the UK at least) and a cheaper grinder or pre-ground coffee beans, I think I can say with some confidence that you’ll get better espresso than you will with most of the cheaper (generally £100-£200) options.
This is thanks to the better temperature stability you’ll get with the Bambino Plus thanks to the PID, the overpressure valve limiting the pressure to 9 bars, and the low-pressure preinfusion, and these are high-end features that I wouldn’t usually expect to find on a sub £500 espresso machine, in fact, you don’t usually find these on sub £1,000 machines!
If you’re on the home barista path, and you’re going to be using this machine with standard, traditional espresso baskets, and an espresso capable grinder such as the Sage Smart Grinder Pro, for example, Dose Control Pro, or one of the Eureka Mignon range, then you will be able to find an espresso machine which is capable of better results, but not quite at this price.
Even if you spend a bit more for the likes of the Gaggia Classic Pro or Rancilio Silvia, out of the box – I personally don’t think these quite compete either, purely focusing on performance straight out of the box without any modding, and not taking things like longevity into the equation.
The espresso the Bambino Plus is capable of, with standard baskets, in the hands of someone who’s put in a bit of time to get through the home barista learning curve, is very, very impressive – as is the potential quality of textured milk this little machine can create.
Check out the video below, which goes to prove what I’m saying here.
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This recent video (Jan 2022) is of a head to head battle, professionally judged, between a pro Barista using the Bambino (the cheaper one, not the plus) with the Sage Smart Grinder Pro vs a novice using a pro machine costing tens of thousands paired with a high-end commercial grinder, and… spoiler alert – the Bambino won.
While this is of course a glowing testimonial for the Bambino, I think it also puts things into some perspective in terms of the importance of skill and experience over gear.
Watch my video on the fundamentals of dialing in using the Bambino:
Many home baristas will be thinking that they need to scrape together a couple more hundred quid to get a machine that is capable of producing better espresso, but really, it’s practice and experience which will lead to better espresso. The machine itself – as long as it’s capable, which the Bambino and Bambino plus clearly are – isn’t really going to make a massive difference.
Let’s quickly do a Vs to illustrate what I’m on about here. Bambino or Bambino Plus Vs Sage Dual Boiler.
If you spend roughly three times the price on the Dual Boiler, there are benefits to this, of course – and quite a few of them.
The Dual Boiler is just as user friendly as the Bambino Plus, it’s more temperature stable (than most home barista machines, to be fair, it takes some beating), it has more steam power so it takes less time to steam, and it’s a bit easier, in my opinion, to get good results with milk texturing.
But when all is said & done, most home users are going to get a very similar quality espresso, using the same coffee beans, with both machines, and very similar steamed milk – at least up to a certain point.
There will come a time when the home barista who is continually developing their skills outgrows the Bambino or Bambino plus and craves a more premium set up to help them further hone their skills, and there’s no doubt that being able to steam milk and pull shots at the same time is a plus, too.
However, at that point, you could then upgrade your gear. Up to this point, you’ll likely have been experiencing similar quality espresso and espresso-based coffees than you would have with the Dual Boiler.
Until your home barista skills reach a certain level, it’s unlikely that owning a much more premium machine would have yielded much in terms of additional cup quality.
Watch me unbox and review the Dual Boiler:
Yes, it may have been a bit nicer to use, with the great features that the Dual Boiler has, but forgetting all that and focusing purely on cup quality, a lot of this is down to the skill of the user as the video above clearly demonstrates.
It’s for espresso roasts.
A very quick point I wanted to shoe-horn into this “nutshell” version (it’s a big nut) of the review, is that this machine isn’t for you if you’re wanting to use lighter roasts.
I go into more detail on this further in this post, as I updated this review a while ago when I received a number of emails from users saying they were getting nothing but sour shots from the Bambino Plus, and I figured out that this was people trying to use lighter roasted beans.
If you’re using any relatively entry-level espresso machine and grinder pairing, you’d be better off sticking to espresso roasts. Most “medium” roasted coffee beans these days, if you’re buying good quality, third-wave coffee (freshly roasted beans from a small batch roaster) will be quite light in comparison to a traditional espresso roast.
Best coffee beans for espresso
Lighter roasts demand more from the grinder, and more from the espresso machine, and using most entry-level grinders and espresso machines, you’ll usually struggle a bit with lighter roasts.
On the grinder side of things, it’ll depend on your grinder, but you may find that lighter roasts stall your machine. With the Sage grinders (and this is a recent update after a couple of emails led me to further investigation) this, thankfully, wouldn’t usually break your grinder.
There’s something called a slipper clutch that kicks in and prevents this, with the standalone Sage grinders and the integrated grinder machines. This is why you may find if you try to grind a lighter roasted bean fine enough for use with standard baskets, that your grinder starts making a very disconcerting clicking sound, and won’t grind them.
If your grinder can cope with the lighter roasted beans, it’ll also need to be able to grind finely enough, as lighter roasts often require a finer grind.
After all this, you’re still quite likely to end up with lackluster results with lighter roasts, simply because a hotter brew temperature is usually required to properly extract, and this is why many people complain about sour shots with the Bambino, Bambino plus, and other entry to mid range options.
Just keep in mind that if you do want to work with lighter roasted coffee beans, you’re probably looking completely at the wrong side of the price range, and also, lighter roasts are quite a challenge anyway, even for more experienced baristas.
My advice would be to start out at the more traditional espresso roast side of things, and consider lighter roasts a bit later in the game once you have the skills and the gear.
Learn more about coffee origins :
Coffee Flavour Profiles by Origin
The negatives.
I’ll deal with these in more detail in the longer version of the review, but really it’s just the very small drip tray, and that’s something you’ll get used to.
There’s also the fact that the machine is very lightweight so it’ll move on the worktop as you lock and unlock the portafilter, but you’ll get used to that, I instinctively hold the machine still with my free hand, without even thinking about it.
Over the years, there have been no other common gripes I’ve had from readers, other than the sour shot thing I’ve just covered.
Yes, there have been some faults, but you’re always going to get that – and everyone I’ve ever heard from with a fault – it’s always showed itself fairly early on, within the warranty period, and Sage has usually dealt with it by swapping out the machine.
So that’s it for the nutshell version – and don’t forget, if you’re about to buy one of these machines, it’s always worth dropping me an email to see if I have a discount code to share. Also, if you had any questions or concerns that you’d like me to have answered in this nutshell version, please let me know, feedback is always very much welcomed as it helps me to better assist others.
Sage Bambino Plus (and Bambino) Review – Full Version. Updated for 2023
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Dimensions & Specs
Size: 19.5 cm wide, 32cm deep & 31cm tall.
Construction: Stainless Steel
Boiler: The new ThermoJet® thermocoil.
Water Tank: 1.9L, removable, with filter.
Steam wand: Proper steam wand (not a Panarello) with both auto milk frothing, and manual texturing. Four hole steam tip.
Power: 1600 Watts.
Warm up time: 3 Seconds…
Warranty: 2 Year Repair, Replace or Refund Guarantee.
Baskets: Current stock ship with single and double standard baskets and single and double dual wall baskets. (This is in the UK, may not be the same with Breville versions selling in other countries)
Older stock may come with only dual walled baskets, so if you’re not buying directly from Sage Appliances , I would recommend that you check with the retailer whether you’re getting one of the newer units with the standard baskets.
First Impressions
On unboxing this machine, the first thing to impress me about the Bambino plus, is its compact stature, and how pretty it is to look at.
OK, this is the stainless steel one, and silver stainless steel is a pain in the bum for fingerprints, so it might not look quite as pretty after 5 minutes of use ;-).
I actually really rate the black ones now (black stainless and black truffle) as I think they’re a bit better for not showing every single finger print.
Anyway, until I’ve got my grubby mitts on it, it’s a nice shiny looking thing.
I was pleasantly surprised by the size of the water tank, nice pretty little machines like this intended for modern kitchens are usually a bit lacking in the water tank department, but this isn’t, at 1.9 litres, which I’ll have you know, is almost two litres ;-).
It’s a good size water tank for such a compact espresso machine.
If we look at other small domestic espresso machines & the size of their water tanks, the De’Longhi Dedica has a 1L water tank, De’Longhi Scultura has a 1.4L water tank. a 1.1 L water tank.
This little machine isn’t going to take up much room on your kitchen worktop, and it’s only likely to enhance the look of your kitchen.
While some espresso machines can look a bit industrial, Sage espresso machines never do, they’re always designed to look as pretty as possible in modern kitchens.
The drip tray is small, there’s no denying that. Is that the end of the world, though, if you have to regularly pick up the drip tray and chuck it in the sink? I suppose it depends on how close the sink is to where you’re going to be using your machine.
3 Second Warmup Time
The next thing to impress me about this machine is the ridiculous 3 second warm up time – and by the way, this is real, it’s not over the top marketing, this machine really does heat up in 3 seconds.
Obviously, the group, the portafilter etc., will all need a bit of warming up, so you’ll need to pull some water through the portafilter to get everything warmed up before pulling your shot.
But even after doing that you’ll still be pulling your shot within 10-15 seconds of turning on the machine, which is very impressive, and has me wondering if perhaps there’s some alien technology at work here from a certain downed craft from Roswell New Mexico…
This machine has never let me down at any point over the past couple of years since I originally reviewed it, when it comes to being ready to use in 3 seconds. Always – I press the button, flash flash flash ready. Every single time.
9 Bars of Pressure
While there are some features like the super fast warm up time and auto steaming that could be referred to as bells & whistles, one of the core features of the Bambino Plus, is the 9 bars of pressure – which is the ideal pressure for espresso.
This is one of the main things that sets this machine apart from other small, cheaper (usually quite a bit cheaper, to be fair) domestic espresso machines.
They’ll nearly all come with a 15 bar pump and no over pressure valve, as they’re being built on a smaller budget and are usually made with pressurized baskets and ESE pods in mind.
PID
Another feature critical to the Bambino Plus being such a good machine is the PID.
A PID controller, usually just referred to as a “PID”, which stands for Proportional Integral Derivative, is basically an algorithmic controller. PIDs are used for all sorts, they’re controllers which use an algorithm to keep things at a defined set point, and in the case of espresso machines, this is temperature.
What having a PID means, is that you don’t need to worry about the temperature wildly fluctuating while pulling the shot, as the temperature is controlled by the PID. What this means is better shot quality and more consistent shots than would be the case if the temperature wasn’t PID controlled.
It’s not usual to have a PID at this kind of price, in fact, it’s not normal to have a PID at double the price of the Bambino plus – other than the other Sage machines.
So when I talk about cheaper entry-level espresso machines not competing with Sage, it’s not about the bells and whistles, things that make it clever and user friendly, the mega fast warm up time, almost instant steam ready time after pulling the shot, and the almost instant shot ready time again after steaming milk.
These are little bells & whistles that are nice, but for me at least wouldn’t warrant spending the extra money on vs the cheaper machines on the market.
The reason other, cheaper machines on the market just don’t compete, in my opinion at least, is that they don’t have these two crucial elements, 9 bars of pressure and a PID.
OK I’ll be specific when I’m talking about the other small machines that don’t compete. These are the more popular machines at the moment selling in the UK, that are cheaper, but which don’t have these key features.
OK, this machine is usually available for not much more than a quarter of the price, so we’ve got to give it that – and if I were going to buy any low cost (sub £150) machine, it would probably be this one. It doesn’t have an over pressure valve, it doesn’t come with standard baskets & it doesn’t have a PID or low pressure pre-infusion. It’s fairly easy to use standard baskets with this machine, but the lack of a PID and an OPV will make it a bit of a challenge. Still, the Dedica isn’t a bad machine to start with, it’s certainly not the worst.
Practically everything I just said for the DeLonghi Dedica but it’s not a quarter of the price of the Bambino Plus. It’s not even quite a hundred quid cheaper. This machine is about as similar as you can possibly get to the Dedica, in terms of features, but externally it’s that Smeg retro design that some people are willing to pay a premium for.
This machine is available for even less than a quarter of the price of the Bambino plus at the moment, so I may have to revise my statement above about which machine I’d buy if I were going to buy a cheaper machine, it might be this one actually – but, again, it doesn’t quite come up to the Bambino plus standard, due to the unrestricted 15 bar pressure into the group & the temperature instability inherent in these kinds of thermoblock powered machines without PID control.
This machine does offer pre-infusion, though, which is impressive for the price, and it comes with a proper steam wand. OK, I give in, I will get one of these and review it.
Hmm.
What, in the name of all that is coffee, is a “Professional 20 bar pressure system”? It’s an oxymoron, that’s what it is. 20 bars and professional do not fit in the same sentence unless it’s a professional drinker managing to do a crawl of 20 bars and remains standing – now that would be impressive.
At least they got the name right, Sincreative, as they have been sinful with their creativity when it comes to the marketing blurb.
I wonder if I created a professional 30 wheeled car, anyone would buy it? If 20 bars of pressure is better than 9, why can’t I sell a car on the basis that although it looks like my first car (Lada Riva Estate, I had to break three miles in advance of stopping, great car) it has more wheels so must be good?
From what I can gather this machine has been made to “emulate” the Bambino plus in terms of looks, and it has a decent looking steam wand actually, I’ll give them that. That’s where the praise stops.
It has a “pressure gauge” with no units on it, so you don’t actually know what you’re looking at, what’s the point of that? I’d assume 9 bars is at 12:00, but “to assume is to make an ass of u and me” as they say – although I’m not sure who “they” are.
Why not put numbers on it? Also, what does “espresso range” refer to? Why are there 26 markers on the inside of the gauge, and 54 markers on the outer ring of markings? Weird!
If you watch my Swan Retro video review, you’ll see that for such a low priced machine, under a hundred quid, I was quite impressed with this machine. But, again, it’s a 15 bar machine (at least it doesn’t have the “Professional 20 bar pressure system”) with no overpressure valve, and its a thermoblock heated machine without a PID so there’s some overheating.
The Swan Retro doesn’t have a pressure gauge with weird markings, what it does have though, is a thermometre – which is actually a feature worth having, because although as I’ve said there is some overheating, you can see it, and you can pull cooling flushes to temperature surf – and see roughly where you’re at temperature-wise thanks to the thermometre.
For more on the 15 bars of pressure thing see:
So – the fact that the Bambino Plus has a PID and an overpressure valve set to 9 bars, is what sets the Sage Bambino plus and the other Sage machines apart from most cheaper domestic espresso machines which in some cases may look very similar.
Standard Baskets Vs. Dual Wall Baskets
The Sage Bambino plus (and the Bambino, and most other Sage espresso machines) comes with both single and double shot baskets as single walled standard baskets, and dual walled pressurised baskets – in the UK.
Well, the newer stock does. If you’ve already bought one of these and yours only came with pressured baskets, you can get them directly from Sage Appliances, when they’re in stock, for a fiver.
But Sage has told me that the latest stock of the Bambino comes with both standard and pressured baskets.
Standard filter baskets have a load of holes at the bottom, to allow the extracted coffee to filter through while preventing the coffee grinds from ending up in your espresso.
Pressured baskets (or dual walled baskets as Sage call them) on the other hand direct all of the extracted coffee through a very small hole, thus creating pressure in the basket itself, which is supposedly a way to produce espresso without a capable espresso grinder.
So the idea is that you can use pre-ground coffee beans (which are generally speaking quite a bit more coarse) or use a grinder not capable of grinding fine enough to get good results via a standard baskets, for more accessible home espresso.
To be fair the pressured or dual-walled baskets do have their place as far as I’m concerned, even though they’re not highly regarded by most home baristas, but then again they’re not really aimed at home baristas, they’re made for the more “normal” coffee drinker who wants to use a traditional espresso machine without the faff associated with being a home barista.
Dialing in (meaning to adjust the grind in order to nail the extraction) is a pain, it takes time and money in the terms of wasted coffee beans, and of course, having a capable espresso grinder means investment too – and it takes time (and inclination) to develop the home barista skills required to use standard baskets with traditional espresso machines, so I do understand why pressured baskets were developed.
Actually, as I discovered when making the videos I’ve shared below, as long as you’re using decent coffee beans in the first place, with the Bambino the espresso via the dual walled baskets is OK. It might never be amazing – but then again, we don’t all have the same palate, do we?
What I think is not quite properly extracted, you might think is stonking. Especially if you smoke 20 fags before breakfast and eat Ghost Chillis for a snack.
I found from taste testing with the same coffee freshly ground and pre-ground, that it tastes better freshly ground via the standard baskets, but still, the pre-ground via the pressured baskets was OK, I found it drinkable. The espresso via the standard basket & freshly ground espresso tasted better, but it wasn’t chalk and cheese.
You’re getting a 9 bar machine that comes with both standard and pressured (dual walled) baskets. My videos below explain the differences.
Low Pressure Pre-Infusion
This clever little espresso machine has low pressure pre-infusion, which is something I wouldn’t expect to find on an espresso machine at this price point.
As well as having factory pre-set pre-infusion, if you pull your shots manually, you can manually control the pre-infusion length too.
To do this, you simply press and hold the shot button, and pre-infusion will begin at this point. When you’re done with pre-infusion, just let go of the button and the pressure will start to increase. When you want to stop the shot, press the flashing shot button again.
By the way, re pre-infusion time, I’d recommend just sticking to the factory pre-set to begin with, and playing around with the preinfusion a bit later down the line. If you’re just getting into the home barista hobby, trying to do too many things at once can cause frustration, and it can be frustrating enough as it is.
Another point about pre-infusion, a common question is whether the pre-infusion time should be added to, or included in the total shot time, and it’s the latter.
If you’re looking for around 30 seconds, for instance, to extract the desired amount of liquid espresso from the ground coffee at the brew ratio you’re using, for example, 1:2 (19g dry ground coffee:38g liquid espresso), then this 30 seconds is the total shot time including the pre-infusion time.
For a brilliant guide on all this technical stuff, I’d highly recommend James Hoffman’s YouTube series on dialing in, starting with: How I Dial-In Espresso – Part #1
Milk Steaming Capability – Automatic.
So let me get this straight – this little espresso machine, available for a few hundred quid, will automatically texture milk for me? Yup.
Not only that, but I can select from three milk temps, and three texture settings? Yup.
I’ll stop talking to myself now – but this was basically the internal conversation I had when I first heard about the auto milk texturing features of the Sage Bambino plus. Wasn’t it? Yup.
But I had a bit of an issue with it.
I like steaming milk manually, it’s taken me ages to (just about) master the art of properly texturing milk, and I don’t really want to press a button. I soon discovered that the Bambino’s steam wand can also be used manually!
So if someone like me wants to steam milk manually, then I can fill my boots – and if someone else in the house just wants textured milk at the touch of a button, I don’t have to get up off my arse and go texture the milk for them.
But the milk this machine can texture automatically is probably pretty rubbish, right? Wrong!
This flipping smug little machine can almost do as good a job of texturing milk at the touch of a button as I can manage manually after five or six years of trying to master the art of manually texturing milk!
I did say in the first review video that there was something wrong with the temp setting on the Bambino when steaming automatically, but I later updated my YouTube channel to confirm that there is in fact something wrong with me, I’m an idiot.
I didn’t have the milk jug on the temp sensor properly.
I’ve used the Bambino a number of times since using the auto steaming feature, and it really is very good. I can get better results manually using the Bambino, but there’s no doubt that the texture via the auto steaming feature is better than I could manage for at least a year or two, or maybe more, into learning to texture milk manually.
Quick Auto Milk Steaming Tips
Feel free to try other jugs.
The Sage blurb & instructions tell you that you need to use the jug that comes with the machine in order to use the auto milk texturing feature. I have a thing for jugs, though, and I’ve got quite a few of them.
I’m a fan of the 500ml Motta jugs that latte art star “Il Barista” Dritan Alsela uses, I also like the no-handle jugs, I have one by Barista space (I have a few of their jugs actually) and various other jugs.
I’ve tried various jugs with the auto steaming on the Bambino plus, and they worked fine. I think as long as they’re stainless steel and have a similar capacity, you’re probably going to find that they’re OK.
Keep the jug on the sensor.
As I mentioned earlier, I didn’t do this during my first video review, and as a result, it didn’t work properly because the machine didn’t know what temp the milk was at.
The position of the jug is towards the back of the drip tray, so you have to remember to push the jug towards the back so it’s sitting on top of the sensor.
Keep the sensor dry. I’ve found in some cases the foam and the temp to be slightly inconsistent, but someone told me via a YouTube comment that this happens when you don’t keep the sensor dry.
So I experimented with wiping the temp sensor before steaming to ensure it’s dry, and this does seem to be the case – so just check the temp sensor is dry before steaming milk on auto.
Experiment with temp and foam settings. We’re all different, you may like your coffee hotter or cooler than me, you may like a more dry foam than me, etc., so just experiment and see what temp and foam combination works best for you.
for more info on jugs and milk frothers :
Milk Steaming Capability – Manual
This is an area where the Bambino plus has really impressed me. The capability of this little machine when it comes to milk texture is really impressive when done manually.
I’ve steamed milk with quite a number of espresso machines, including domestic espresso machines, prosumer machines, all the way through to multi-group commercial machines, and I can honestly say that I think the Bambino plus is among the easiest espresso machines to learn to steam milk with.
It’s not “The” easiest, I actually believe the easiest I’ve ever used is the Sage Dual Boiler, but among the lower-priced machines, I’ve not come across a machine as easy to steam milk with, and as consistent.
I love the Gaggia Classic, for example – and I’ve learned to produce good texture with the steam wand on this machine, but it’s not easy, there’s a real knack to it, it’s not the most forgiving when it comes to technique, and until you master its quirks it’s not the most consistent. It is consistent once you tame it, but this did take me quite a while.
The main knack to it, as you’ll see from my video below, is to ignore the steam ready light and start steaming about 7/8 seconds after clicking on the steam wand.
Pouring latte art takes a long time to master, but in my opinion, that’s because of how long it takes to master getting the milk texture right.
What all of the entry-level Sage machines have in common, is how easy they are to learn to properly texture milk.
They all have proper steam wands, and they all deliver the steam in a way that is easy for the beginner to control. The Duo temp pro and Barista express have the original thermocoil, so they take just slightly longer to be steam ready and then to steam the milk.
The Bambino and Bambino plus, and the Barista Pro & Barista Touch both have the newer “thermojet” so the steaming is a bit quicker, and the steam is ready quicker, almost instantly.
The steam wands make a bit of a difference, too. For example, using the Bambino Plus and the Bambino side by side, the 4 hole tip gives you a bit more power, the steaming process is slightly quicker, and personally, I find 4 hole tips just a bit easier to use.
If you’re a seasoned barista, and you’re used to the entire process taking 15-30 seconds, then you’ll probably find steaming milk a bit slow on the bambino plus, because thermoblock or thermocoil machines are never going to have the same kind of power as commercial machines, but the Bambino plus is faster at steaming milk than most of the other lower priced thermoblock machines I’ve tried.
Quick Milk Steaming Tips
Don’t skimp on the milk.
A common comment I get from readers who’re having problems steaming milk manually is that they’re trying to steam the exact amount of milk they’re going to use for their coffee. You can do this up to a point, but if you’re making very small milkies you’ll probably struggle. I’ve heard from people who’re making very small milkies such as espresso macchiato, trying to steam tiny volumes of milk, and this is very difficult to do, especially if you’re trying to do it in a 500ml jug, for example.
If you really do want to work on reducing milk wastage, then try getting hold of a much smaller milk jug.
Time Everything.
Fairly recently, I figured out this is the main key to consistent milk texture, timing the entire process.
Start out with this guide, then make changes to get the texture perfect for you, always time what you’re doing, and when you get it bang on, you can replicate it.
Just keep in mind this is specific to the Bambino plus, you’ll need different timings for different machines.
5 second rolling phase.
This is unorthodox and counter-intuitive, but it works!
Instead of trying to stretch the milk straight away, just angle the jug and focus on getting a vortex started in the first 5 seconds.
30-40 seconds of aeration.
After this first rolling phase, drop the jug slightly but keep the angle, so you’re starting to get a gentle hissing, or ripping paper sound, the sound of aeration.
This is the tricky part, you want a gentle hiss, not a roar, and the second you get into that roaring aeration you’re close to losing control of the texture.
So just very gently lower the jug, stop when you hear the hissing, and just keep that gradual gentle hissing for approx 30 – 40 seconds (depending on how much milk you’re steaming).
12-20 seconds warming time.
Now lift the jug up just slightly, but keep the same angle to keep the milk rolling. We want to stop the hissing sound now, the aeration, and we just want to distribute the microfoam while continuing to warm the milk.
Start at 12 seconds and see how the final coffee temp is once you’ve poured, and then adjust this final stage accordingly to your temp preference.
Stopping aeration when the jug is warm doesn’t work.
You’ll find really experienced baristas on YouTube telling you that you can simply stop aerating as soon as the jug reaches roughly the temperature of your hands. This works with some machines, but not all, and not with the Bambino plus, from my experience.
It depends on steam power. I find that when using the Sage Dual Boiler, for example, this advice works, usually if you stop aerating when the jug reaches the temperature of your hand, it’s about right. With the Bambino plus, though, and with most lesser-powered espresso machines, I usually find that if you stop aerating at this point, the milk is usually under stretched.
Dispensing hot water
Officially, the UK “Sage” Bambino plus doesn’t have a hot water button, while the newer Bambino does. However, readers & viewers (of my various Bambino plus videos) got in touch to tell me they’d figured out how to do it. I investigated, and they were right!
This does depend on your version (just different firmware I think), but it’s worth trying to see if you have the version which will do this.
All you do is press the one cup shot button and the milk froth level button for about half a second, then press the one cup shot button again to stop
Keeping it clean.
The sage bambino plus has two cleaning cycles it will want you to perform – the cleaning cycle, and the descale cycle.
The instructions leave a bit to be desired, so I’ve created a couple of video guides on this.
The Cleaning Cycle
This is a backflush cycle. Backflushing is where you use a blind disk, or “backflush disk” which blocks the holes on the filter basket, and you put a cleaning tablet, or a bit of backflush powder into this, and pull a series of short shots, basically.
At some point (it’s supposed to be after 200 shots) the bambino will start winking at you – alternately flashing the single shot and double shot buttons. This indicates that it wants you to do a backflush cycle.
If you’re not ready, press the steam button, and it’ll let you carry on – but next time you turn it on it will wink at you again.
So just put the single basket in (dual wall or standard, doesn’t matter) – put one of the cleaning tablets that it comes with, in the little indentation, lock the portafilter in, and press the single and double shot buttons together for at least five seconds, and then both of the shot buttons should be lit up solid – at this point, press either of the shot buttons just once, and the cycle should begin.
Ignore the stuff in the instructions about putting a bowl under the portafilter, it’s wrong. No water comes out of the portafilter, that’s the point of the backflush disk, it goes through the internals and directly into the drip tray. I think the reason for this misleading info in the instructions is that initially, the backflush disk had a hole in it and water did come directly out of the group, but they changed this and didn’t change the instructions.
It’ll go into ready mode once it’s done – at which point just put the backflush disk somewhere safe, give the portafilter a rinse and empty the drip tray.
Some backflushing tips:
The Bambino decides when. It doesn’t appear possible to go into the backflush cycle manually.
I tried this in the video below and later reported that I realised I’d made a fairly common schoolboy error, in that I’d actually simply re-programmed the single shot button to the maximum, rather than entering the backflush mode.
So if you want to backflush before the Bambino winks at you, just do it manually, by doing putting the cleaning tablet on the backflush disk and then pulling five or six 10 second shots, or until the tablet or powder dissolves.
Bambino won’t stop winking. This is quite common, and it could be that your machine fancies you, or more than likely it’s that it doesn’t think you’ve completed the backflush cycle.
So just do it again, without a cleaning tablet in there if you’re sure you did actually put it through a proper backflush the first time, and just make sure you’re definitely starting the cleaning cycle by keeping both shot buttons pressed together for at least 5 seconds.
Make sure you keep them pressed until both lights go solid, and then a single press of either button – and make sure you’re also allowing it to complete the cycle, don’t touch it until it goes back into standard ready mode.
Cleaning tablets are pricey. The little cleaning disks from Sage are not cheap, but you can get cleaning powder which is way more cost effective. I use Puly Caff which is about a tenner for 900g, so this works out far cheaper.
Not only that, but you can also use this to clean your portafilter & steam wand tip. Also, I find this stuff is amazing for keeping the stainless steel surface clean.
Just mix a little bit of the powder in hot water and give the bambino a wipe with it, followed by drying it with another cloth, does a great job! I tried this because I worked at Mcdonald’s as a kid, and we used to use a very similar powder for cleaning down metal machines, I can’t remember the name of that stuff but this powder looks and smells very similar, so I tried it to see if it would do the same job, and it does.
The Descaling Cycle
The Bambino will tell you it wants you to descale it by alternately flashing the shot button lights and the steam button light for 15 seconds each. You can cancel it by pressing any of the flashing buttons, but it’ll prompt you again the next time you turn on the Bambino. So here’s what to do.
Turn the machine off, so it starts to cool down while you’re getting ready to descale.
Remove the filter from the water tank. The big white thing with the numbers on the top, this is your water filter, take that out, and then fill the water tank to the “DESCALE” line – which is at the 1L mark. Open the descale sachet, pour the contents into the water tank and give it a stir with a stirry type implement such as a spoon.
Remove the portafilter, you don’t want this in while it’s descaling.
Put a Jug or bowl under the group and steam wand, you’ll need 2L capacity. You only need 1L capacity for the first part of the descale cycle, but for the second part, the rinsing cycle, you need 2l. If you don’t have a big enough bowl then just use two bowls and replace one with the other half way through the rinsing cycle.
Press the single shot button and steam button together for 5 seconds, to enter the descale mode.
You’ll know it’s starting the descale when the single shot button light and steam button light both go solid – at this point, press either the single shot button or the steam button to start the descale cycle. Both buttons will continuously flash while it’s descaling.
Once the 1L of water has been used up, the descaling will pause while you refill the water tank, this time fill it to the max line – empty the jug or bowl, then put it back in place and the single shot button and steam button will go solid again, press the steam button or single shot button again to resume the cycle.
Once the cycle is complete, the single shot button light and steam button light will start blinking again, and the bambino will go into standby mode. At this point, empty the bowl, rinse both the drip tray and the water tank – put the water filter back in, and you’re all sorted.
For more on cleaning the Bambino, check these out:
Backflush the Bambino Plus Unblock Bambino & Bambino Plus Steam Wand
The Negative Stuff
There’s no smooth without rough, no light without dark & all that – and there are some negatives with all espresso machines, regardless of the price, and there are a few with the Bambino Plus, although not many.
Teeny weeny drip tray
There’s no getting away from the fact that the Bambino plus drip tray is small. In fact, I’ve come to decide that it’s not the size, it’s how much it’s relied upon vs the size.
What I mean by this is that the Bambino has the same size drip tray, but water doesn’t enter the drip tray after each shot via the solenoid valve (because there isn’t one) and there’s no auto-purge with the Bambino steam wand, either. So the drip tray on the Bambino is more than big enough, it’s not needed much at all.
I do think the drip tray on the Bambino Plus, on the other hand, is just a bit too small given how much it’s required. Every time a shot is pulled, water is flushed into the drip tray via the solenoid, and every time milk is steamed, quite a bit of water is purged into the drip tray. You can put a jug under the wand when auto purging, that helps, but still, just from pulling shots you’ll find you have to empty the drip tray fairly regularly.
If you’re using it in a kitchen, relatively close to a sink, then this really isn’t a problem – as it’s really no hardship to pick up the drip tray and empty it. When it would become an issue, though, is if you’re using it in an office, or in a coffee corner in a room with no sink – although it’s a good thing if the sink is quite a trek away and if you need to get a few more steps in ;-).
Sour shots
Lots of beginner home baristas are picking up the Bambino plus because of the great features vs the low cost, and it really is a stonking machine for the dosh, but there’s a recurring theme among bambino plus users, and that is sour shots.
This is just an issue with lighter roasted beans.
If you’re using a more traditional darker roasted espresso blend with the Bambino plus, its factory pre-set brew temp (which you can’t change) should be about right, and you should be able to pull some great shots for enjoying neat or as the base for milkies, or Americano.
If you’re using lighter roasted beans, though, you’re probably going to need to up the brew temperature to pull out more of the sweetness, and the inability to do this with the Bambino plus is likely to lead to sour shots.
My personal opinion is that if you’re planning on using lighter roasted coffee beans rather than the more traditional darker roasted espresso blends, the Bambino plus probably isn’t the best machine for you.
Learn more about sour shots:
If these are the kinds of beans you’re wanting to use, they’re a bit of a challenge for most entry-level machines. Keep in mind that you can’t change the brew temp with the Gaggia Classic, or the Rancilio Silvia either, without fitting a PID.
So if you’re not interested in traditional espresso blends, you want to use lighter roasted beans – I’d look at:
The Gaggia Classic – with a PID fitted.
The Rancilio Silvia – with a PID fitted.
The Sage Dual Boiler.
For more see:
Best Home Barista Espresso Machines
My strongest recommendation, when it comes to value for money, would be the Sage Dual Boiler. It’s a dual boiler machine with a PID which controls both boilers and the group (it’s a saturated group) so great temp stability, and you can adjust the shot temperature in one-degree increments from 88-96C.
It has a tonne of other features and focuses on coffee quality over all else, I think the Sage DB punches way over its weight, you’ll probably have to spend around double the price of the Sage Dual boiler to be investing in any way in potentially better shot quality.
It’s not in the same price bracket as the Bambino plus, of course, but if you’re wanting great tasting neat shots of espresso from more challenging lighter roasted speciality coffee beans, the lowest entry-level price point probably isn’t quite going to cut it for you.
So that’s the sour shots thing dealt with, if you’ve heard people talking about the Bambino and sour shots, this isn’t some kind of a fault of the machine, it’s simply that lighter roasted beans usually need a slightly higher brew temp, and you can’t adjust the brew temp with the Bambino plus, or the bambino.
You can adjust the brew temperature with the Barista Express and the Barista Pro, but not in 1C increments, and not quite as big a range – 91-95C vs 88-96C.
But if you don’t feel you’re going to need to adjust the brew temperature, then the Bambino plus is, in my opinion, one of the best choices around this price point.
Faults
There have been faults I’ve heard of with the Bambino Plus, I’ve not heard of any with the Bambino as of yet, but it’s early days, and I’m sure there will be some.
It’s unavoidable, unfortunately, and it’s usually more common with entry-level machines – and don’t forget, the Bambino and Bambino plus are entry-level espresso machines.
I’ve heard of a leaking fault where the water that should be entering the drip tray via the solenoid valve doesn’t reach and ends up on your kitchen counter instead, and I think this is something to do with the pipe which leads into the drip tray either being missing or bend in the wrong direction.
I’ve also heard of a few issues with the auto steaming function stopping working. While I do realise how annoying it is when you get a machine that doesn’t do what it’s supposed to, the important thing to note is that everyone I’ve ever heard from who has experienced a fault has told me that it was well within the warranty period and that Sage swapped it out.
Sage Bambino Plus Review – Conclusion
To conclude – I’m hugely impressed with the Sage Bambino plus.
I think it’s a really good option for anyone wanting an espresso machine who’s looking for a particularly user friendly entry to home espresso.
It’ll produce good tasting espresso (as long as you use great quality coffee of course), it’ll create great textured milk, and it’s cleverly designed to produce a great user experience even for the complete home espresso novice.
Re great quality coffee, by the way. I can help you there :-). As well as the blog, and the YouTube channel, I run The Coffeeworks, which supplies mega coffee beans. Well, I would say that wouldn’t I? I’m not going to tell you I sell crap ;-). But you can be the judge, here’s a discount code:
Use discount code CBNC25 for 25% off your first order at CoffeeworksCoffees that are suitable for Sage Coffee Machines
As I’ve mentioned though, you can’t adjust the brew temperature and for that reason, this isn’t the machine I’d recommend if you’re wanting to work with lighter roasts rather than more traditional espresso roasts.
I also think it’s a great option as a backup machine for home baristas with a much higher value set up for when they need coffee fast and their machine isn’t warmed up & ready.
It’s also a great machine in terms of portability. I’ve stuck the bambino plus in the boot a couple of times now to take with us on holiday to Cornwall, it takes up very little space in the car, and is so easy to stick on the worktop in a holiday cottage, apartment, or caravan, etc., as it requires so little space.
The Bambino Plus is definitely one of the best entry-level home espresso machines you’ll come across when it comes to beginner friendliness, and shot quality straight out of the box, at this price point.
Decided on the Bambino Plus?
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Final word, Bambino Plus Vs Gaggia Classsic Pro
One of the most common questions I get is Bambino plus Vs Gaggia Classic pro.
While they’re similarly priced, these two machines are very different animals. As I explain in the video below.
To put it into as small a nutshell as I can, the Bambino plus is more user friendly and is easier to get good results straight out of the box, while the Gaggia Classic Plus is capable of great results also, but really comes into its own when modded, and once modded (Pid mod & OPV mod) it’s roughly £150 more.
The Gaggia Classic is an old-school machine, built to be maintained and repaired over the years, while the Bambino plus is a more modern kitchen grade appliance that isn’t really made to be maintained & repaired outside of the warranty period.
If you have no intention of modding an espresso machine, you just want to take it out of the box & use it: Bambino Plus
If you value ease of use & beginner friendliness over anything else: Bambino Plus
If you value shot quality over ease of use, and you’re happy to invest time and money modding in order to achieve that: Gaggia Classic Pro
If you want a machine to last many years, with the ability to maintain it and repair it yourself: Gaggia Classic Pro
For an in-depth review of the Gaggia Classic Pro:
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OK, so now to talk about the newer Sage Bambino. I say “newer”, actually, I think it was released at the same time as the plus in the US and Australia, but they didn’t release it in the UK initially, not sure why.
It’s a very similar machine, it looks very similar, but it’s just very slightly smaller, has a slightly smaller water tank, and doesn’t have the auto steaming function. Well, these are the obvious differences, but I’ve uncovered more, both positive and negative, which I’ll discuss shortly.
Essentially, though, they’re very similar machines, both powered with the newer thermojet heater, both with pro steam wands, and they’ll produce the same results in terms of cup quality.
The positive differences:
It’s cheaper. It’s not cheaper to the degree I was expecting though, based on the price difference in the states. In the states, the Bambino is $299.95, and the Bambino plus is $499.95, so this is approx £220 vs £365 based on today’s exchange rate, so the Bambino is roughly £145 cheaper than the Bambino Plus, in the US.
Naturally, I was expecting a similar price difference here in the UK, as others obviously were as I’ve heard from a few people who were waiting for the Bambino who weren’t happy with the price. Anyway, for whatever reason (and I’m sure there is one) the difference in price isn’t as much here, it’s about seventy quid cheaper.
I do think it’s a shame because I was expecting (based on the US price difference) the bambino to be around £250, and I thought it would be a game-changer at that price. At around £330 ish, it’s still great value, but I can’t help but think it would have been such a bigger mover at the magic 249.95 which looks like so much less than 330. Anyway, what do I know, I’m sure there’s a reason they couldn’t achieve the same kind of price difference as they have in the states.
Hot water button. One of the gripes about the Bambino plus, for Americano/long black drinkers, is the lack of a hot water button. As I demonstrate in this video, it’s possible with a series of button presses, although I gather this isn’t the case with the latest models of Bambino plus. With the new bambino, there’s simply a hot water button, with hot water being dispensed via the steam wand.
The drip tray is more usable. The drip tray is actually slightly smaller, as the Bambino is slightly thinner than the plus, but, because the steam wand doesn’t auto purge as the plus does, and because there’s no solenoid valve dumping water into the drip tray after each shot, the small drip tray is much more practical than it is with the Bambino Plus.
Steam wand on a ball joint. You have more options when it comes to steaming position, with the Bambino vs the plus, as the wand is on a ball joint so you have a full range of movement vs the Bambino Plus wand which only moves up and down.
The negative differences:
Smaller water tank. 1.4L vs 1.9L. I’m not sure if this is really a big deal, I suppose it depends on how far from the sink you’ll be using your machine. For me, the sink is a few feet away, and the tank is very easy to remove and fill, so this wouldn’t really bother me.
No auto frothing. This definitely wouldn’t bother me, as I’ve never used the auto frothing except for when recording how-to videos etc. The auto frothing feature of the bambino plus is good, but you can get better results manually, once you’ve got the knack of it.
No Solenoid valve. While on the face of it, this appears to be a negative, I think it creates a more important positive compared to the fairly unimportant negative. The Bambino plus has a 3 way solenoid valve for ridding the group of pressure after pulling shots, while the Bambino uses a brew valve.
This does seem like a negative on the face of it, as 3 way solenoids do a better job of drying the puck and expelling the pressure from the group than brew valves do. But, from experience with this machine, the brew valve does a better job than expected, and there’s a big positive I’ve already mentioned, that it means the small drip tray makes more sense, as it’s not constantly being filled via the solenoid.
The pucks are slightly wetter, true, but it’s no big deal, they’re not the super gloopy horrible pucks that I’ve had with some of the cheaper machines with no solenoid. Also, I’ve not experienced the portafilter sneeze that machines lacking a 3 way solenoid are usually known for.
Portafilter sneeze, by the way, is a sign that your espresso machine needs a covid test. Just kidding, it’s when you choke the machine by grinding too finely, and the portafilter is removed too soon, without leaving it for the pressure to release.
The result is hot coffee grounds being fired out of the basket as you remove it. Just remember to dodge the boiling coffee grounds, and to say bless you, and all will be well.
No Razor Tool. I suspect the main reason they decided to do this is that they’re probably aware that many users don’t use the Razor tool. I’ve rarely spoken to users of Sage machines who do use the razor tool because it seems like a gimmick, and I’ve seen many people giving advice not to use the razor tool, but I disagree.
I think the Razor tool is a genius little inexpensive bit of kit because it’s designed to ensure two things: 1, a level surface. 2, the correct headspace between the coffee and the shower screen above.
These two things are variables that can really run amok with your espresso-making, especially to the novice home barista, and the razor tool sorts them out in one really simple movement.
So I think it’s a bit of a shame they didn’t include it – but, it’s very cheap, so personally, I’d just buy one from Sage.
Single-hole steam tip.
The single-hole steam tip on the Bambino means that it takes a little bit longer to steam, compared to the four-hole tip on the Bambino plus, but also I just find four hole tips easier than single tips. I’ve used loads of single hole tips, I’ve used quite a few multi-holed tips, and I usually find that the more holes on the tip, the better, and I prefer four-hole tips over any other.
Again, not a big deal, the four hole tip is cheap as chips and you can buy them from the Sage appliances website.
Plastic lightweight tamper.
This is an abomination, I don’t know what they were thinking. I strongly dislike it, and I’d just buy any 54mm proper tamper, or the proper Sage tamper, again it’s not expensive. For more on tampers, see:
Whether you’d go for the Bambino Plus or the Bambino would depend, I think, largely on whether you want the auto steaming function. If I wanted that, then I’d go for the plus. I wouldn’t want that, though, as I’d never use it, so personally, if I were shopping for a new machine, I would probably go for the Bambino over the pro – and I’d buy the razor tool, the proper tamper, and the 4 hole steam tip.
If you’re thinking of buying one (or any other machine from Sage appliances) don’t forget to drop me an email to check if I have an active discount code.
Life is like a box of chocolates, so join my Brew Time list, subscribe to my YouTube Channel, try my coffee at The Coffeeworks (use discount code coffeebotherers), follow me on Twitter & Instagram, follow the coffeeblog FaceBook page, and that’s all I have to say about that.
