Video Overview | La Marzocco Strada AV Auto-Volumetric Espresso Machines

Transcript

- Hey guys. It's Steve with Prima Coffee here. Today, we're going to take a look at the Strada AV by La Marzocco. So, this is a full on commercial espresso machine. I have the two group model in front of me here, and this is the newest in the Strada line. So, AV means automatic volumetric, which means that we have volumetric programming built into the machine. This machine is actually also available in an AVR version, which means that it has drip tray scales can brew by weight or brew ratio. That's a model that we don't have here, but that would be an additional, kind of add on, if you like. So, the Strada platform is La Marzocco's higher end of their line. It's intended for specialty cafes, people who have perhaps, different coffees that they're using. So, it's a dual boiler machine or a multi-boiler machine actually, because each brew group has its own independent boiler.

La Marzocco Strada AV Auto-Volumetric Espresso Machines

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Available in 2 or 3 groups

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We have an 8.2 liter steam boiler in this machine for the two group, and then each brew boiler is 1.3 liters. So, each of those brew boilers can be set to a different temperature, if you like, which means that if you have multiple coffees or multiple ways that you want to prepare your coffees, you can tailor the brewing water temperature to your needs, and in this case, you can also dial in different volumetric recipes, or again, brew by weight if you have the ABR version. So, taking a look at some of the features that we have here, on the Strada we have vacuum-sealed cool touch steam wands, which means that they don't produce as much condensation as the previous cool touch wand did. And they also, of course, stay cool to the touch, even, through high use. On the steam wands themselves, we also have a variable flow rate. Just kind of moving this toggle to different positions can give you different flow rates.

So, if you're steaming a small volume of milk, you can use a small or low flow setting in order to keep that milk controlled and still get the texture that you need. And the toggle itself will stay pretty well in position where you set it, so you don't have to kind of hang onto it. It's not spring loaded or anything like that. We also have a hot water wand with a mixing valve, so you can program how much water is actually dispensed as well as control the temperature coming out. So, if you're doing, like, an Americano or tea or something like that, you can program that wand to whatever specifications you need. Now, looking at the group heads. You'll see we have three main buttons on top of each group. The top one is a continuous flow button, and then we have these two buttons that represent, sort of, short or single and double. Now, each button actually has a short press and a long press, which means that you have four programmable dispensing options per group head. They do not have to be single and double. They do not have to be short and long. You can program them as needed. You could even program them to be fully continuous, if you like, which means that you are just pulling semi-automatically.

So, a short press is just a quick short press. You can tap it again to stop. A long press is a couple of seconds. And again, just tap it again to stop. So, we have four programmable options per group head, which gives you a lot of options if you're running multiple different coffees, or again, if you have just different ways that you want to prepare your coffees, like short shots and long shots, or shots for cappuccinos versus straight shots. So, we also have a really easy to access back flush setting. You just hold down the left and top button for a few seconds, and it'll start an automated back flush cycle, and you can just tap any button again to stop it. So really, very barista-friendly, especially if you work in a cafe that focuses on bringing out the most in a wide variety of coffees or certain blends, and even if you're using a blend that kind of rotates seasonally with whatever seems to be the freshest crop of the season, very easy to program as well, which means that you can kind of adapt as your coffees change day to day, or kind of as the coffees that you're using change throughout the year.

Just a very versatile machine. Again, it's kind of the higher end of the line for La Marzocco. Those independent brew boilers give you a lot of functionality and of course, with a La Marzocco espresso machine, you have very high build quality, high-end commercial parts, as well as things like stainless steel portafilters with a tamping surface, a quick release spout for taking off to clean, high-quality stainless steel baskets, just really a lot going on here. Really great quality machine and a whole lot to love. And especially with the AV version, you're getting a little bit of a simplified workflow for the Strada platform. So, that is the La Marzocco Strada AV. Thanks for watching.