“Five stars, almost. I bought this ECM Mechanika V Slim as a long-awaited upgrade from an ageing Krups espresso maker after doing a fair amount of research into the best of the more compact machines.
With counter top space at a premium in our kitchen, a full-size double boiler machine was out of the question, and a more compact machine was a priority. That said, I wasn't prepared to compromise on the quality of either the machine or the coffee, so after reading some very positive reviews I eventually settled on the Mechanika V Slim from ECM.
These machines are apparently German designed and made in ECM's own factory in Italy, and the standard of manufacture seems very good. Everything about it, including the beautifully polished stainless steel casing, the portafilters, steam wand, hot water spout and valves, and of course the trusty E61 brew group, looks and feels like it should last.
It's a heat-exchanger machine and does maintain a fairly consistent brewing temperature, requiring only a short cooling flush if the machine has been standing unused for any length of time. And of course it does allow you to brew and steam simultaneously. Rinaldo even went the extra mile and upgraded the stock shower screen and seal before shipping, which was a welcome upgrade and very greatly appreciated.
However, within a matter of days of using the machine the vacuum breaker valve began leaking. I approached Rinaldos for a spare but to no avail, so I bought a few spares from elsewhere and replaced that without issue. These valves are known to be prone to leaking, but I was more surprised that the type of vacuum breaker valve used by ECM on this machine is open to the inside of the machine, hence it spatters water all over the place during the warm-up cycle until the boiler temperature/pressure rises sufficiently to close off the valve; not good when you consider that there are several electrical connections getting damp every time the machine is started up from cold, let alone the long-term risk of corrosion. I therefore chose to replace the faulty valve with a slightly different type that has a barbed 1/4" spout on the top that facilitates the connection of a silicone drain tube, which I rigged up to discharge the water emitted during startup to a larger-diameter silicone collection tube that stands end-up on its own in the free space inside the machine next to the water reservoir. Granted, the collection tube needs to be emptied after every couple of dozen startups, but it takes less than a minute to lift off the cup warmer, lift out the collection tube and empty it and then drop it back in. And the machine internals remain nice and dry. Higher-specification ECM machines route the discharged water via a silicone tube to the drip tray, but there isn't much room for that in the 'Slim'; nevertheless this is something that ECM ought to look at on this model.
Three months later another leak appeared, this time from around the fill level sensor which was only finger tight and had likely not been screwed sufficiently tightly into the top of the boiler during assembly. Very lightly nipping this up solved that issue too.
Neither of these leaks should really have been necessary this early on in a new machine, but they were easily resolved.
Most importantly, the quality of brewed coffee seems limited only by the quality of the beans (subject, of course, to dialling in the optimum grind size for whatever beans you choose to use), and I have to say that Rinaldo's Casa Espresso Blend (Great Taste Award 2020) is one ideal complement to what I would consider to be an excellent compact espresso machine in terms of my needs. Even the steam pressure and stock wand are more than adequate to produce silky smooth milk for your cappuccinos, giving much higher-specification machines a run for their money.
Having easily resolved the minor teething issues, I am hoping that this machine proves to be reliable going forward, in return for being cleaned and looked after properly as any machine deserves to be. If that transpires to be the case, I will be thrilled to bits.”
