The Lavazza espresso machine within the dugout isn’t the explanation Team Italy dominated on the World Baseball Classic (a minimum of I don’t suppose it’s). But after the Italians toppled a stacked U.S. roster and superior additional within the event than they ever had in its 20-year historical past, the budget espresso machine they used to rejoice house runs turned an emblem of the caffeinated power with which the workforce performed. Whenever a participant hit one over the fence, he rounded the bases and was greeted again on the bench with a smattering of excessive fives — and one steamy shot of Joe.
I’m at the moment a product review author who exams coffee makers, however I used to cowl baseball. So this viral sensation on the intersection of these two matters made me marvel: Is that espresso machine on the Italians’ bench truly any good? I acquired my fingers on the precise mannequin that has grow to be a sports activities star — plus its barely fancier sibling — and have some ideas on how the Lavazza Classy Mini and Lavazza Classy Plus evaluate to different single-serve coffee makers I’ve tested previously. (Spoiler alert: Neither has gifted me any athletic abilities but.)
If you need wealthy, daring espresso at house however don’t really feel like coping with the hassle and price it often calls for, the Lavazza Classy Mini delivers surprisingly good outcomes at this value. It works with the model’s proprietary pods and requires not one of the ability wanted to tug pictures from a fancier machine.
The Lavazza Classy Plus is the upgraded model of the viral Classy Mini. Increasing the machine’s footprint permits simpler manufacturing of higher-volume Americanos and milk-based drinks, akin to cappuccinos. If you’ll be able to land one on sale, it’s a flexible possibility that I’d advocate for anybody eyeing a single-serve espresso maker.
You can roll your eyes at me, however I’m often a hater of pod-based espresso machines. I’ve lived in a home that relied on a Keurig, and my spouse owned a Nespresso machine earlier than she met me. Neither big within the single-serve espresso area does it for me. Until I tested the Bruvi BV-01 Brewer, NCS Underscored’s choose for the best single-serve coffee maker, I believed the class as an entire was a waste of area, solely good for a fast caffeine repair in case you don’t have sufficient time for one thing higher.
Lavazza’s “Expert” coffee capsules made me rethink but once more. Along with the Lavazza “Blue” pods from the model’s food-service line, they’re the one single servings suitable with the Classy machines. You can’t go off-brand.
I tested an Expert selection pack that was superb. Was it pretty much as good as going to a legit espresso store and having a educated skilled pull me a recent shot from a $10,000 machine? No. I used to be nonetheless mighty impressed by the depth of the flavour I acquired on the press of a button. In my testing, the Espresso Intenso selection stood out as particularly robust. It’s topped with actual crema, not faux-presso bubbly foam.
Make no mistake, the roasts listed here are darkish. Most of my espresso consumption is light-roast pour-overs, and the distinction was an adjustment. If you want your espresso on the bitter finish of the spectrum — earthy diner espresso involves thoughts — you’ll get that have with Lavazza’s pods, simply concentrated in low-volume pictures. There are additionally pods designed for double pictures and 8-ounce servings.
Convenience is the promoting level of any single-serve espresso maker, proper? The Classy Mini can’t get a lot less complicated. It takes 40 seconds to warmth up. There’s no pointless app to go along with it. It has simply two buttons: one for espresso and one for lungo (an extended espresso pull with extra water, for the uninitiated). If that’s ok for you, the previous dispenses a 40-milliliter/1.35-ounce shot and the latter ups that to 120 milliliters/4 ounces.
If you need just a little extra management — one thing that’s at all times a part of the method on commonplace espresso machines — you’ll be able to maintain these buttons right down to program completely different sizes for every setting. You need espresso pictures to be 2 ounces and your lungos to be extra like 8-ounce Americanos? Go proper forward. The machine will save these preferences so that you get constant outcomes each time, and you’ll be able to at all times reprogram it if you wish to make changes; it’s not locked in perpetually.
My most well-liked espresso consuming equipment is a ceramic Yeti Rambler 4-Ounce Stackable Espresso Cup, so I reprogrammed the Lungo setting to be only a smidge lower than the default 120 milliliters: That approach, I didn’t spill each time I picked the cup up from the machine. Beyond that elective tinkering, no thought has to enter brewing legitimately good espresso, and that’s a win.
You don’t have to check countertop appliances for a dwelling to know that the battle for kitchen counter area is unending. The Classy Mini does a superb job of aiding you in that struggle. This compact espresso machine is a bit more than 5 inches large, 13 inches deep and 10 inches tall. I moved one other espresso machine off my counter to check it, and the Classy Mini and Classy Plus took up the identical quantity of area mixed. The small footprint is sensible, contemplating a baseball workforce travels with the Mini.
Just be sure to have sufficient clearance above the machine in case you’re putting it beneath cupboards. Both the Classy Mini and Classy Plus have handles that flip as much as insert pods. You’ll want a minimum of 4 1/2 inches of clearance for the Classy Mini.
The value is honest, up entrance and in the long term
Perhaps probably the most interesting side of the Classy Mini isn’t having to shell out tons of cash for espresso. The machine itself is one thing of a steal, and the maths on the pods comes out favorably as nicely. A 36-pack on Amazon involves $0.83 per pod. Subscribe through Lavazza, and you’ll save a number of extra bucks. That approach, you make an inexpensive funding in the beginning, and you don’t lock your self into an unsustainable long-term funds both.
You might take affordability a step additional and nonetheless get a wealthy Italian espresso from one thing like a moka pot, which wouldn’t run you far more than $40. That gained’t get you true espresso, although, and it gained’t brew as instantaneously because the Classy Mini.
I choose the Classy Mini to the Lavazza Classy Plus as a result of it stays true to its strengths — simplicity, compact kind and budget-friendliness. However, if espresso is just one element of a latte to you, you’ll should improve to the Classy Plus.
The Classy Plus has a bigger water tank and, crucially, comes with a milk frothing mug that it brews espresso straight into. When you place the frothing mug onto the drip tray, it clicks into the machine and prompts the choice to pick latte, cappuccino or macchiato. Like the Classy Mini, all you must do then is push the button. It froths and steams for you, no method required. During my testing, it couldn’t replicate café-quality microfoam, however nothing at this value level can. I’ve undoubtedly made worse lattes with stand-alone milk frothers.
Whether the added price of the Classy Plus is price it’s solely as much as you. It’s not an enormous value distinction when the Plus is on sale, but when I have been selecting, I’d keep on with the Classy Mini. While I absolutely admit I choose my espresso black, this line of machines is at its finest while you ask it to make a easy espresso and nothing extra.
As a lot because the Lavazza Expert capsules impressed my style buds, there are solely so many sorts to attempt. Hopefully, you discover a number of choices that fulfill your preferences and suit your espresso routine.
But I’d be holding again if I uncared for to say that different espresso makers supply extra potentialities. NCS Underscored testing author Michelle Rae Uy has tested a bunch of espresso machines underneath $350, and her picks, such because the Breville Bambino and Casabrews 3700 Essential, allow you to use your personal beans. Even the single-serve Bruvi B-Pods grant you entry to specialty roasters. That machine additionally gives the choice to fill a reusable pod.
With Lavazza, you get this particular Italian espresso, and that’s it. My native grocery retailer doesn’t promote the Expert capsules, solely Lavazza-branded Nespresso pods. That means if I ever discover myself abruptly out of pods, I’ll should brew my espresso one other approach till my subsequent order’s delivered.
I can see why the Lavazza Classy Mini appealed to the Italian baseball workforce on the World Baseball Classic. The espresso is fittingly Italian. The high quality is shockingly robust. The brewing course of is as fast as Dante Nori on the basepaths (main kudos if you recognize who that’s).
But not like Italian slugger Vinnie Pasquantino, you and I aren’t downing pictures of espresso after hammering homers. We simply need espresso that’s simple to make and pleasurable to drink. As lengthy as you’ll be able to settle for its limits, the Lavazza Classy Mini is an reasonably priced ticket to simply that. While the choice to improve exists within the Classy Plus, the Mini is the superior selection in my thoughts as a result of it unlocks accessible espresso with out overcomplicating your choices or watering down a traditional.
No. While Lavazza does make pods for Nespresso machines, the Classy Mini is suitable solely with Lavazza Expert and Lavazza Blue capsules.
It’s fairly simple. Insert a Lavazza Expert capsule into the opening on prime of the machine. As lengthy because the machine has been on for a minimum of 40 seconds and has correctly heated, the lights on the management panel will cease blinking and stay strong. Press your choice and let the espresso dispense into your vessel. Saluti!
Though Lavazza’s Expert pods are more durable to seek out in shops than Lavazza-branded Okay-Cups or Nespresso pods, they’re broadly obtainable on-line. We’ve seen them at Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy and the Lavazza site.
No. Lavazza Expert espresso pods are made from plastic and not marked with any recycling codes.
The Lavazza Classy Mini doesn’t make lattes. It makes espresso and lungos, and it may be programmed to dispense as a lot as an 8-ounce serving. To make lattes with Lavazza’s Expert capsules, you’ll want the Lavazza Classy Plus, which incorporates milk frothing and steaming.
At the 2026 World Baseball Classic, Team Italy had a Lavazza Classic Mini in its dugout. Players who hit house runs celebrated with a shot of espresso and had their quantity hooked up to the facet of the machine as a sticker.
NCS Underscored has a workforce of expert writers and editors with a few years of expertise testing, researching and recommending merchandise who guarantee every article is fastidiously edited and merchandise are correctly vetted. We speak to prime consultants when relevant to make sure we’re testing every product precisely, recommending solely the very best merchandise and contemplating the professionals and cons of every merchandise.
For this text, affiliate testing author Joe Bloss jumped on the World Baseball Classic bandwagon and tried the espresso machine that made headlines as a part of workforce Italy’s viral post-home run celebrations. (Bloss is obsessive about each baseball and espresso, so it solely made sense he’d take this on.) He has written a number of best-of guides about espresso makers for NCS Underscored, together with the very best pour-over coffee makers and the best French presses. He refuses to drink hotel coffee, although he’d rethink if his room had a Lavazza Classy Mini.