As much as I love my De’Longhi ECP3630 it’s definitely more of an entry level machine. It’s getting a little older now, and I wanted to start looking at a more high end espresso machine for my home. I started looking at some models and my eye was drawn to the Jura Z8.
It’s got a very hefty price tag so I decided to write up a Jura Z8 review so you know what you’re getting in an espresso machine that costs over $4,000. Afterall, what make’s an espresso machine for your home cost this much money? Well, let’s find out.
Jura Z8 Pros and Cons
- It’s a one touch espresso machine to quickly give you your favorite coffee.
- Operate it from your phone with Jura Smart Connect.
- Large and precise touch screen display.
- 21 different coffee types which are easily ready to brew.
- Programmable for the perfect coffee strength.
- Jura Aroma G3 grinder built in with 6 different grind settings.
- Produces an excellent crema with Pulse Extraction Process (PEP).
- Accessary bag comes with what you need to clean the machine.
- There’s an automatic self cleaning cycle after every use.
- Gives you reminders to do things like empty the drip tray and empty the grounds container.
- You can brew a full 70 ounce jug of coffee.
- Programmable switch off time for automatic shutoff.
- The cost. Man, at over $4,000 it is expensive! Or is it an investment?
- Milk froth volumes measured in seconds and not ounces.
- Using the ground coffee option can create a bit of a mess.
- Some of the inner workings of the machine can be near impossible to clean.
- When you froth milk Jura wants you to go through the automatic flush system every time.
- Additional accessories are needed (mostly having to do with frothing) to really use all of the features.
- If you’re using pre-ground coffee the chamber is not easily accessible if the Z8 is under kitchen cabinets.
Let’s Talk About that Price Tag and if the Cost is Worth it
OK, so the price. This is the big elephant in the room. At over $4,000 this espresso machine is quite the commitment. But is it really that outrageous? If you order a Venti Latte from Starbucks that costs you $4.15 without tax. If you go 5 times a week that’ll run you $1,079 a year without tax. And that’s the cost for you.
But there’s more than just coffee to get at Starbucks. Many of you will also walk out with some food. This author of this articles Starbucks habit was $2,300 a year.
You should do some math on your spending habits for coffee because the Jura Z8 couple be paying for itself in one to two years. Personally, before I got an espresso machine I used to go four or five times a week with my wife. The tab seemed to generally run $10-$15 by the time you added in two drinks and some food.
Of course, the cost of the Z8 here is not including the coffee, milk, or any flavors you add yet. But when I did the math for myself any espresso machine was well worth the investment.
The Brew Process
As I reviewed the Jura Z8 features I found that the brew process is very simple. As it should be for a high end espresso machine. As long as you make sure that there’s water in the reservoir, beans in the hopper, and milk in the cooler if you need it. Other than that this one touch espresso machine is ready to go!
Before you can brew anything and the machine is on the Z8 will automatically go into a quick self-cleaning cycle. Place a cup under the dual spouts, and once that is done the machine is ready to use and you can hit the button for your favorite coffee. It’s pretty straight forward if you’re brewing something that doesn’t need milk like an espresso or ristretto.
You have two options when it comes to coffee beans. You can load whole coffee beans into the hopper for the machine to grind and brew. Or you can use the chamber that will take pre-ground coffee beans. No matter which beans you choose the Jura Z8 will eject the used coffee beans into a dispenser to be properly disposed of.
The Jura Cool Control Cooler and Frothing Milk
To me this is one of the negatives of the Jura Z8. Yes, the machine can froth milk and it does a great job. But the milk cooler is an additional unit you need to buy and it will also take up more counter space. The one liter cooler for the Z8 costs as much as my entry level espresso machine.
The cool thing about the cooler is that you can load up the cooler with milk and it’ll stay cold and you don’t need to worry about putting milk away. Once plugged in the cooler will keep the milk stored inside at a perfect 39 degrees Fahrenheit.
The cooler will connect to the Z8 with a hose, and as long as you follow Jura’s instructions for purging the hose after use you won’t have to worry about milk staying in the hose and sanitation issues.
As far as frothing milk goes the Jura Z8 definitely knows what to do. The machine heats the milk to the perfect temperature and knows how much milk and froth to add for each coffee type. It knows for a latte the milk and coffee goes in at the same time, a cappuccino is coffee and then the milk, and a latte macchiato has a pause between dispensing the coffee and milk to allow the coffee to settle. The engineers have done their research!
And don’t worry if you don’t want to shell out the money for the cooler right away. You can still connect the Jura Z8 to a standard stainless steel frother or container with a hose that connects near the spouts.
Jura Aroma G3 and the Pulp Extraction Process (PEP)
The Jura aroma G3 grinder grinds beans before each brewed cup of coffee to give you the freshest coffee possible. The Z8 has a couple of things going for it with the Aroma G3. It’s not difficult to get the coffee aroma, but what I do care about is getting the proper grind and a good coffee to water ratio to brew the perfect cup.
You can program your grind settings and your favorite coffee type into the machine. With six different grind settings the Jura G3 will combine the beans that you need to the amount of water you need to get you started on a delicious cup of coffee. With the Jura Aroma G3 they tend to focus more on the aroma aspect of the coffee, but you should really be focusing on what it does to the taste of the coffee. It does a good job.
We can now move on to the actual brewing process, and I think this is the part that separates this high end espresso machine for your home from others. It’s the Pulp Extraction Process otherwise known as PEP. The design of the PEP is to control the flow through the coffee beans at shorter intervals to give you the correct amount of pressure for the coffee grind you’re using.
By using this PEP system you’ll not only get a good tasting coffee for each coffee type, but the Jura Z8 will also give you a great crema in your coffee. The system is all about giving the optimal coffee extraction.
Smartphone Operation with Jura Smart Connect
Well, we said this is a great one touch espresso machine. But what if you didn’t even have to be at your coffee machine at all? Enter the Jura Operating Experience (J.O.E.) app for iOS and Android. This app is packed with lots of great features.
The Jura Smart Connect is done via bluetooth and not your wireless network. So you can’t be half way around the world and brew your coffee. As long as the bluetooth is connected you can do a lot through the app and even your Apple Watch.
Let’s start with what you can do with brewing coffee. The app allows you to customize your own personal coffee menu. You can really get personal to make your coffee special. If you want a stronger coffee you can make that happen. If you want a stronger Ristretto, for example, you can use the scroll bar to make the adjustments.
You can even do some simpler things like update drink names or change the images of the coffee on the app. Other nice features of J.O.E. is that it’ll give you updates on the machine status. It’ll update you if the coffee maker is running low on water or coffee beans.
Descaling, Cleaning and Maintenance
Let’s move onto cleaning and maintenance with the Jura Z8 review starting with the brew cycle itself. This espresso machine does some of the dirty work for you after every brew. The first thing it does is discard the spent coffee grounds into it’s own discard chamber. The second thing it does is flush out the system automatically with water at 176°F. Those are great features.
The basic maintenance is easy, but to do a thorough deep clean is not so easy. Let’s face it – if you ever used a coffee grinder before it can get kind of messy. The Jura Z8 would be no different. It’s very difficult to do a deep clean on this machine to get all the coffee grinds out of the machine that the normal internal cleaning cycle would not get. But this is also one of those machines where if you take it apart you really want to make sure you can put it back together.
In general, the machine is very good at telling you what needs to be cleaned through the display or the Jura Smart Connect app. Need to clean the milk system? It tells you. Need to descale the machine? The Jura Z8 tells you Lastly, the Z8 comes with an accessory bag to help you along with some of the maintenance.
Now, in the past I’ve always said you could get away with cleaning and descaling an espresso machine with vinegar instead of following the manufacturers instructions. But in this case I would advise against that. If you’re going to spend over $4,000 for a coffee maker I’d recommend you follow the manufacturers instructions. This will ensure that you stay in the warranty. The recommended cleaning products are below.
Jura Z8 Specifications
| Jura Z8 Feature | Specification |
|---|---|
| Jura Z8 User Manual: | User Manual |
| Dimensions: | 12.6″ Length x 17.7″ Depth x 15″ High |
| Weight: | 29.5 Pounds / 13.38 KG |
| Touchscreen Display: | 4.3″ Diameter High Resolution Color Display |
| Water Reservoir Capacity: | 81 Fluid Ounces |
| Bean Hopper/Chamber Capacity: | 9.9 Ounces |
| Pump: | 15 Bars |
| Programmable Coffee Strength: | 10 Levels |
| Programmable Brewing Temperature: | 3 Levels |
| Programmable Frothing Temperature: | 10 Levels |
Final Thoughts on the Jura Z8
As I was researching and now writing the Jura Z8 review I was really weighing out the pros and cons. It’s definitely a very high end espresso machine for home, and also a one touch espresso machine that does all the work for you. The maintenance is very low.
If you’re OK with the over $4,000 price tag than I think you’d join the other satisfied customers and really enjoy having this machine. It gives off some swag and a cool-factor, but more importantly you’ll be getting some really great coffee. And if you’re like me with my first entry-level espresso machine you’d pretty much be saying goodbye to the coffee shops.