Home espresso machines never worked for me. The miserable drinks I produced tasted nothing like the intoxicating brew served in the coffee house. I was ready to give up entirely when the Rancilio Silvia caught my eye. For some reason, the boxy, over-built lines reminded me of my old Saab 900, and the industrial, no-nonsense body was just ugly enough to seem kind of cute.

Still, before taking the plunge, I considered a few alternatives. The popular Francis! Francis! machines had a nice retro feel, so for a while I favored them over the Silvia. But after spending hours on the CoffeeGeek site, I decided to give the Silvia a try, along with Rancilio's Rocky grinder.

The set pictured at right also includes the stainless steel base, which includes two nifty drawers: one for storing supplies and the other to use as a knock box for espresso grounds.

The Silvia is praised for its steaming power and the great shots it's capable of producing (for a home espresso machine, that is), but it draws a fair amount of criticism for its thermostat. True afficionados learn to "temperature surf," and some install aftermark kits that deliver more control over Silvia's ups and downs. All of this is quite beyond me, though. I'm still working to master the basics.

As the picture at left illustrates, the Rocky is equipped with a "doser," a set of arms that hold the portafilter in place while a lever is drawn to release ground espresso from the reservoir above. Once the filter is full, it is tamped down and then locked into the Silvia for brewing. It can be a very messy process, with a fine powder of espresso grounds covering everything in sight!

Good shots should be crowned with crema, a foamy hazelnut head that varies in thickness (but ought to be thicker than in the picture to your right). During the pour, the coveted "Guiness effect" can be observed. Even in my photo at right, a bit of it can be discerned: note the swirling effect beneath the surface and the barely visible dark line at the bottom of the shot glasses. Also notice the color of the liquid streaming from the portafilter: it isn't black! Instead, it's a rich, nutty color not far from caramel.

There was a time when I would drive out of my way to find the nearest Starbucks. Now, whenever I crave an espresso or a caffe latte, I just walk to the kitchen and make one. In fact, I think I'm going to have one right now.