Jura Z5

44th_bean

Hello all,

Im hoping you guys can help me.

I am wanting to put in an auto machine at work for staff and customers and i recently had a demo of the Z5. We are happy with the machine as far as ease of use and the one touch one posi function we need but we were dissapointed in its actual coffee making abitliy.

The rep used his own beans which i thought should be ok but the coffee just seemed weak and a bit flavourless not unlike a vending mahine coffee.

For $3700.00 we were just expecting a better quality coffee. I understand we are paying for the technology that the Z5 offers but we still want a good coffee.

We arent expecting cafe quality of course but it needs to be better than a vending machine.

The reason we are looking at this type of machine is because it grinds on demand and uses fresh milk and were hoping this would give us a good result whilst having the one posi function for customers.

Could it be the beans that was being used or is this machine incapable of making a really good coffee ? I dont know the exact type of coffee but it was a 100% arabica done by a local roaster apparently.

I noticed it pours the milk for a cap or flat white before it pours the shot. Is that right ? Seemed a bit odd.

Are there better options out their than the Z5 ?

BTW the Z5 is the right size machine for us as it will likely be doing about 30 cups a day.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

DoubleRistretto

To be honest, you're never going to get the same quality of shot from an automatic, as you would with a top quality manual unit. They have to compromise something and even with all the bells and whistles, the Z5 can't manage a truly fine espresso grind, which means you're never going to get everything out of an espresso shot from it. So as far as taste goes, if you want an automatic for an office situation (which makes sense) you're probaby going to do just as well with a $2000 machine (eg Saeco or De Longhi Magnifica) as you are paying another $1700 for the Jura. it's hard to comment on the beans without knowing them, or how fresh they were, but bottom line is, most autos taste the same, with the same 'automatic' flavour. dR

FreshCoffee2

I am wanting to put in an auto machine at work for staff and customers.......... Great idea. ............and i recently had a demo of the Z5. We are happy with the machine as far as ease of use and the one touch one posi function we need.... The ONE BUTTON auto cappuccino function of the Z5 is a good idea. But dont forget it only works for the one programmed function, and you can use the machine as a 2 button operaTOR to make any other type of coffee you want. .......but we were dissapointed in its actual coffee making abitliy. The rep used his own beans which i thought should be ok but the coffee just seemed weak and a bit flavourless not unlike a vending mahine coffee...... Depends on how capable the rep is at setting up the machine. Many people (mistakenly) expect auto machines to just work...because they are automatic, and they dont realise that you can adjust the grind / dose / temperature of the brew as with regular coffee machines, to suit a particular blend of coffee best. The choice of coffee ofcourse is the other important variable. For $3700.00 we were just expecting a better quality coffee. I understand we are paying for the technology that the Z5 offers but we still want a good coffee...... You will get a very good coffee when all the above are taken into account but it will never taste like coffee made well with a commercial "manual" machine. Auto machines produce a more mellow brew with much less strength than a regular manual machine. That's the nature of the beast. .......We arent expecting cafe quality of course but it needs to be better than a vending machine..... My first reaction when you mention it tastes like vending machine coffee is its not set up properly but of course I wasnt there for the demo! ........The reason we are looking at this type of machine is because it grinds on demand and uses fresh milk and were hoping this would give us a good result whilst having the one posi function for customers..... See above, you should get a perfectly acceptable if not very good coffee out of it, just not the same as commercial. However, I would be hesitant to allow clients to get their own...these are not venders and should be operated by people that understand them as in an office situation where the employees became fully familiar. You would be better served making the coffee for the clients and not letting strangers touch the machine. So I am therefore not so sure that you "need" to go the one button operation model as in Z5...see below. ...I noticed it pours the milk for a cap or flat white before it pours the shot. Is that right ? Seemed a bit odd..... This presents no problem at all and is actually the best way for an auto machine to function. If it were to pour the coffee first then stream out the milk, it would shoot the coffee out of the bottom of the cup and make a mess (the milk comes out under steam pressure). ....Are there better options out their than the Z5 ?.... If you are looking for the ONE BUTTON operation, as far as I know its the only one in that price bracket. If it were not for your intention to have a machine that has the one button function and you were prepared to take one of the models that has a 2 button function instead, I would recommend the X90 or X95 over the Z5. It's a far simpler machine (than the Z5), & has a very long history of good service & reliability (been around for years) in use in the office situation. Hope this helps, FC.  

44th_bean

Thank you very much for the detailed reply FC. I read your post carefully and took your advice. I went to another supplier of this machine where it was set up on the shelf. It poured what was a very acceptable coffee and to a level that you described. Much better than the first demo. This rep too suggested that we look at the x90 due to its increased capacity and higher output. It was also a more robust looking unit.Its also cheaper. We decided that the two posi machine will be fine but it still will be used by customers at times which we will have to sort out. Nevertheless i think the x90 is the machine for us and when set up correctly with good coffee beans we were very happy. Thanks once again for providing me with quality unbiased information.