Here’s what we thought after testing the De’Longhi EC9255M

Making espresso is a difficult skill to learn. That’s why a machine as helpful as the De’Longhi La Specialista Arte Evo EC9255M is so praiseworthy. With other machines, we struggled to find the right combination of settings to pull even decent espresso. With this one, thanks to a helpful included starter guide and automated grinding with its built-in grinder, we were drinking high-quality espresso in about 15 minutes.

It’s not just for beginners though. Expert espresso makers can still enjoy finely tuning their shots with many detailed settings, including grind size, grind amount and temperature. Without a doubt, the BestReviews Testing Lab found this to be among the best espresso machines anyone can buy.

What is the De’Longhi La Specialista Arte Evo?

After testing several machines from top brands, the testing team found the De’Longhi La Specialista Arte Evo made the best-tasting espresso of them all.

Product specifications: Dimensions: 11.22” W x 14.37” D x 15.87” H | Brewing Size Options: Single and double espresso shots | Pod Compatibility: No | Water Reservoir Capacity: 56 oz | Brew Time: Roughly 30 seconds for a properly extracted single espresso shot

The De’Longhi La Specialista Arte Evo is a high-end espresso machine that’s able to make a variety of drinks. It’s well-designed for beginners with a suite of helpful features and accessories that we loved, and which helped us make delicious espresso in record time.

It all starts with a top-notch built-in grinder. It offers eight grind settings and 40 dosage levels, plus the instructions offer starting points for different kinds and ages of beans. This helped us dial in our chosen beans in 15 minutes, compared to some machines that took us over an hour of experimentation. A tamping guide helped keep the beans from spilling while grinding or using the tamper.

Another helpful aspect we didn’t find on other machines we tested is a superb pressure dial in the center of the controls with “optimal zone” markings. This helped us tweak the grind settings until our extraction was perfect, rather than having to guess based on the resulting shot.

Pros

• It made some of the best espresso of all the tested machines, including the best crema.
• The steam wand similarly made some of the best textured and properly foamed milk.
• Much of the espresso-making process is either guided or fully automated, so it’s easy for beginners.

Cons

• The bean hopper doesn’t come off, making it a chore to clean.
• The three temperature settings don’t make much of an impact on the drinks.
• The power button is tiny and located to the side, making it awkward to switch on and off.

Features

The De’Longhi La Specialista Arte Evo has several quality features worth taking a closer look at.

Built-in grinder

A major reason we love this De’Longhi so much is the built-in grinder. Let’s break it down.

• Eight grind settings: Some built-in grinders offer many times more settings. This can be overwhelming and, frankly, most of those settings will never be used. In contrast, the Arte Evo keeps it simple with eight settings. We used most of them when experimenting and never felt the need for more.
• 40 dosage settings: To help get just the right amount of beans, whether you’re making a single or double shot, the Arte Evo offers 40 settings. This is the best way to tweak your extraction pressure.
• Starting points: In the instructions for the Arte Evo is a page that gives suggestions for grind and dosage settings for different kinds of beans. For example, there’s a starting point for older and newer beans. This takes out much of the guesswork when you’re trying a new kind of bean, so you can get it right the first time.

Four drink settings

The De’Longhi La Specialista Arte Evo makes four kinds of drinks.

• Espresso: This is the base setting that lets you make single and double shots of espresso.
• Americano: The Americano is a classic drink made from a shot of espresso and some hot water. This setting lets you brew your shot with enough extra water that it comes out as an Americano with no extra work involved.
• Cold brew: The “Evo” part of this De’Longhi’s name refers to the addition of a cold brew setting. It’s not made traditionally — that takes up to 24 hours. Instead, it takes a little under five minutes using a cold-extraction technology proprietary to De’Longhi.
• Hot water: This stretches the definition of a drink, but the feature is still useful. For example, you can quickly get a full cup of hot water for brewing tea.

How we tested

The pressure dial alerts you if you’re not extracting espresso as well as you could be.

When testing the De’Longhi La Specialista Arte Evo, we focused on four aspects.
 

• Espresso quality: Testing this was a matter of making several shots of espresso, tasting and smelling them along the way. We found it made some of the best espresso of everything we tested as well as consistently excellent crema.
• Grinder quality: While making our shots of espresso, we took notes on how well the built-in grinder worked. We found its automated grind quantity was perfect and easy to adjust based on bean requirements. Adjusting the size of the grind between its eight settings was also a breeze.
• Frothing wand quality: We made several cappuccinos and lattes with the frothing wand and never had any issues getting the texture or foam quantity that we wanted. We also liked the swivel it's on since that helped us get a good angle on the milk inside the jug.
• Ease of use: We considered many aspects for this category, including how quickly we could use it without instructions and whether the controls were clear and easy to use. We did need to spend some time with the instructions to make sure we were using everything correctly, but it’s otherwise one of the simplest machines we tested. The instructions are particularly helpful because they give grinding settings for several kinds of beans to cut down on how long it takes to find the best one.

We also compared the cleaning and maintenance requirements against the other espresso machines we tested or had personally used in the past.

Price and where to buy

The De’Longhi La Specialista Arte Evo retails for $749.95. You can find it on Amazon, De’Longhi and Wayfair.

How to use the De’Longhi La Specialista Arte Evo

The controls are well-labeled and easy to use.

Making espresso with this De’Longhi is about the same as any other espresso machine, except in a few small areas.

1. Prepare the machine and all your parts. This means turning it on, adding beans to the hopper, water to the reservoir and completing any other prep steps for a specific drink.
2. Prepare the portafilter and grind your beans. For the Arte Evo, this starts with clicking in the appropriate filter for the type of beans you’re using and the amount of espresso you’re about to make. Then, you attach a tamping guide to the portafilter. This is a large cylinder that clicks on and prevents beans from falling over the side. It also helps you tamp the beans. You must use it, even if you’re experienced, because the guide attaches to the grinder to make it start grinding.
3. With your beans prepared, remove the tamping guide and attach the portafilter to the group head. Slide your cup underneath, hit start, wait and enjoy.

How does it compare to other espresso machines we tested?

This De’Longhi compares the closest to the Breville Barista Touch Impress. Both machines are heavily designed in favor of those with minimal to no experience making espresso. The Touch Impress is a little better than the De’Longhi thanks to an illustrated guided experience on its touch screen. However, the De’Longhi’s guided experience is better for actually teaching you instead of holding your hand forever.

Otherwise, the La Specialista Arte Evo is better than everything else we tested. It costs about the same as some and more than others, but no machine made better espresso than this one. That’s in part to it helping you with things such as the automatic grinder, but also because of the pressure dial, which helps you ensure your extraction is perfect.

Should you get one?

The De’Longhi La Specialista Arte Evo is one of our favorites, but it isn’t the most affordable espresso machine you can get. If you have the budget for it, you’d be genuinely hard-pressed to find something better. It’s also worth repeating that it’s an incredible machine for those still learning about the art of espresso, though it’s equally excellent for those who already know what they’re doing.