Melitta Avanza

The Avanza is a compact bean-to-cup machine with a single 250 g bean hopper and a 1.5 l water tank. The grinder is a premium conical steel unit; there is no chute for pre-ground coffee, so every cup goes through the burrs. The only one-touch drink is café crème, with grind adjustable across 5 levels, strength across 3, and brewing temperature across three thresholds (85/90/95 °C).

Milk is frothed with the Cappuccinatore: a nozzle that connects to the steam pipe and draws milk through a small tube, dipped into a container or straight into a standard milk carton; the same nozzle also dispenses hot water. The brew group slides out by its handle and needs cleaning once a week; the drip tray and dregs container are dishwasher safe, while the cappuccinatore and its tube are taken apart and hand-washed regularly.

Roughly every two months the Avanza asks for a cleaning cycle to remove coffee residue, and every three months for descaling — which drops to once a year if you regularly use a Pro Aqua filter cartridge. It can also be managed from Melitta's Companion app, which tracks cleaning and descaling. It suits someone who drinks the same beverage every time and does not need to switch blends or brew decaf on the fly, in exchange for a smaller kitchen footprint.