Video Overview | Astoria Perla AEP Semi-Automatic Espresso Machines
Transcript
Hey, I'm Ryan from Prima Coffee Equipment here. Today, we're going to be taking a look at the Astoria Perla. The Perla is a low to mid volume machine with some really useful features. It is available in one, two, and three groups. Let's take a look at some of the features. When choosing this machine, you can either get a volumetric or a semi-automatic operation. This particular machine does have the volumetric layout here, so you get four programmable volume presets per group. Now, when I program that, I'm essentially telling the machine, "Every time I press this button, this is how much water you're going to dispense into the group." That means that everytime I use that button, I'm going to get a consistent amount of water, a consistent shot, and it allows the barista to, kind of, back up and do other things like a fill a pitcher of milk, maybe wipe the counter.
Astoria Perla AEP Semi-Automatic Espresso Machines
Available in 1, 2, or 3 Groups
Featured Product
Another thing that this machine has is pre-infusion. It's automatic, so every time you do press that button, it's going to launch into a very brief cycle of prewetting before it goes into that full infusion cycle. So I'm going to go ahead and pull a shot. I'd like to show you a bit how those volumetrics work. And I'm pulling 18 1/2 grams. And my output is going to be just over double that, about 40. All right. So once I've locked it in, I'm going to grab my cups and hit that button one time and the machine is going to do the rest. As soon as the preprogrammed liquid is done dispensing, it's going to turn itself right off. The Perla is about 4000 watts in the heating element which is a good amount of heat, but it's really not sufficient for high-volume cafes. Really, this machine should be used in a setting like a bakery where coffee is secondary or where, you know, you're only maybe doing 30 beverages an hour or so. And especially the 1 group.
The 1 group gives you the steam capability of about one-to-one recovery to steam time. So if you spend 20 seconds steaming, then you need to wait at least another 20 seconds for it to recover. So if you're going to use it for a high-volume setting, say you really want that semiautomatic function, just a very simple layout, no, you know variable features, then yeah, get a 3 group because you're going to need that water capacity. So that's the Perla. This is a great machine for people who aren't interested in variable control, any of the complicated bells and whistles that come along with some of the other espresso machines in Astoria's line. Check it out at prima-coffee.com.
