I’ve had the Sanremo YOU for about a year and a half now. Before this, I spent ten years with a Rocket Espresso Appartamento. Moving from a very traditional, all-steel Italian machine with zero electronics to something this bold was a massive change for me.
The buying process was honestly a bit of a rabbit hole. I watched every YouTube video out there* and went back and forth on what I was actually looking for. I looked at the Decent, the Profitec, the La Marzocco Micra/Mini, and the Rocket R Nine. *Here are all the video reviews I watched.
At first, I was actually pretty skeptic about the Sanremo YOU design. It is very modern, bold and the lines were unlike anything I had seen before. Coming from the Rocket Espresso brand, I thought I just wanted that classic stainless steel vibe. But the other options didn’t quite hit the mark for me.
For example, the Decent was a no-go. I’m a tech enthusiast, but slapping a big tablet on a metal cube just feels like it has no heart. I wanted that heritage feel of an espresso machine. On the other hand, the Rocket R Nine One felt like it was stuck in the 90s. The digital screen wasn’t well integrated and it just didn’t look right. Then there was La Marzocco. The build quality is amazing, but I felt like I was paying a huge premium for a machine where I couldn’t really control or tinker much. I wanted a machine where I’d be able to experiment with pressure profiles, temperature & flow rate for the next ten years.
I finally saw the Sanremo YOU in person and that is when it all clicked. The design is bold, but coherent. The screen is beautifully integrated and makes way for the traditional look and feel of the Sanremo brand. It has a screen, but also a manual paddle. To me, it felt like the perfect middle ground between the traditional Rocket Espresso vibe and the high-tech nerdy Decent Espresso. I picked the Sanremo YOU in the end.
Why the upgrade mattered
The biggest thing I noticed immediately was the consistency.
I’m a learning enthusiast, not an expert. Even after seven-eight with my Rocket Appartamento, probably 25 percent of my shots while dialing in were just bad. I kept a traditional Italian darker roasts in my rotation because they were more forgiving.
With the Sanremo YOU, the consistency went through the roof. I think it comes down to the water temperature control and the heated group head. On a single boiler machine like the Appartamento, you are always fighting to keep the temperature stable with long flushes etc… With the YOU, it is just stable right out of the box. Even my “worst” shots now are much better than the bad shots I used to pull.
This consistency gave me the confidence to start buying more expensive, high-quality beans. I have been experimenting with lighter roasts and fruity beans because I can finally play with pressure profiles. I can do a gentle pull or a long pre-infusion to let the flavors reveal themselves. It has completely leveled up my coffee game.
The ultimate validation happened during a recent trip to Berlin. After following me on a journey to test every hip coffee place the city had to offer, my partner said out of the blue “you know, I think I prefer the flat whites you make at home” 🖤.
Daily life with the machine
One thing I really appreciate on a daily basis is how it works for my partner too. I can spend my time tinkering and manual-shotting a weird light roast, but I can also save that recipe. My partner can just walk up, press one button, and get the exact same result I planned for those beans.
The screen shows the flow rate, temperature, and a shot timer, which is just very useful for everyday use. It was definitely above the budget I originally had in mind, but as we all know, nothing is rational when it comes to coffee. I haven’t looked back once.
It is a mix of traditional Italian design language with a really well-integrated touch of technology. If you want a machine that lets you geek out on data but still feels like a real espresso machine, this is it.
The breakdown: Pros and cons
To be transparent, here is a quick look at what I have loved and what has been a challenge after living with this machine for a year and a half.
The Pros
- Consistency is king: The biggest win is that my “bad” shots have mostly disappeared. The heated group head and temperature stability mean I don’t have to guess or flush the group for ages like I did with my old Rocket.
- The manual paddle: This is my favorite part of the interface. I get the tactile feel of a traditional machine but with the precision of a digital one. It is the best of both worlds.
- Visibility: Having the flow rate and shot timer right there as soon as I start a shot on a well-integrated screen makes it so much easier to understand what is happening inside the basket.
- Bean versatility: I can finally buy those expensive, light roast beans and actually get the fruity notes out of them because I can control the pre-infusion and pressure so precisely.
- Connectivity I actually never used the app or connected my machine to the wifi. You really don’t need it, and I find this a big plus actually.
The Cons
- Firmware updates: This is probably my biggest annoyance. A Firmware update with fancy new features like flow control and brew by weight with connected scale have been teased for years, and still nothing. It’s a hardware company at the end of the day, not software. EDIT: I’ve reviewed the Sanremo YOU new firmware update introducing blooming shots.
- The price tag: Let’s be real, it was above my original budget. It is a lot of money for a coffee setup.
- Polarizing design: It took a long time for the look to grow on me. If you are a die-hard fan of the classic chrome E61 look, the bold lines of the Sanremo might feel a bit jarring at first.
- Phantom shots: I’ve experienced, maybe once a month or so, the so-called phantom shots where the machine starts brewing out of the blue. It’s presumably the touch screen receiving a “phantom” input like a touch and can be fixed by a screen replacement. It’s not that annoying to be honest.
Here are the videos I watched to make my decision:
Leave a Reply