# La Pavoni Europiccola vs Professional



## jwripple

I'm a long-term LP Europiccola user. I've offered to buy one for my son, and I am thinking that the larger boiler size of the Professional would be good for him. Any members with experience of both who can suggest advantages and disadvantages of one over the other?


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## jtldurnall

I currently have both. I would say that having a bigger boiler on the professional definitely is an advantage, however it does take longer to heat up and get up to temperature. The speed of the smaller model definitely helps me in the morning, and I find it gets more use, but I'm only usually making coffee for me and maybe my wife.


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## bluebeardmcf

I have both. I definitely prefer the professional, especially if I'm making some for guests too and want more than one cup. If he drinks milky coffee though, the Euro is better because the steam wand is in the right place, while on the Pro it's set at a ridiculous angle, absolutely impractical. The Pro has an attachment for steaming but I consider it to be a messy disaster.


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## jwripple

That's very helpful - I appreciate it.


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## lotuseater

Once you master the steam wand on pro its fine


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## Kahweol

I'm still thinking about getting one of these... as it would normally just be making coffee for myself, I would probably go for the piccola. I would want to fit a pressure gauge though, to have some idea about temperature and when to pull shots.


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## jimbojohn55

Kahweol said:


> I'm still thinking about getting one of these... as it would normally just be making coffee for myself, I would probably go for the piccola. I would want to fit a pressure gauge though, to have some idea about temperature and when to pull shots.


I have to say that the piccolo makes for a very involved, interesting and ultimately rewarding way to make coffee. The gauge is good for knowing where the temps up to but its only a few minutes from cold to ready, if anything it lets you know your pressurestat is cutting the power at the right pressure.


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## h1udd

I have had both ..... much prefer the europiccola ..... I only ever make 2 coffees at a time max, mostly 1 coffee ..... for that it excels, heat up time is FAR quicker being that much smaller.

Never saw the point of the pro the way I was using it ... it look longer to heat up, but still overheated in the same time ... so no point having the bigger tank ... having the pressure gauge as standard saves you having one, but thats it


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## jwripple

Thanks for your comment. I am attracted increasingly to the Professional so I don't have to fill it up during the day to get 3 cups in the morning, 3 cups at lunchtime. Time to heat up isn't an issue for me - would you say there was any difference in the quality of the coffee produced between the two?


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## fatboyslim

jwripple said:


> Thanks for your comment. I am attracted increasingly to the Professional so I don't have to fill it up during the day to get 3 cups in the morning, 3 cups at lunchtime. Time to heat up isn't an issue for me - would you say there was any difference in the quality of the coffee produced between the two?


Yes they seem identical in terms of the espressos they produce. The bits that do the brewing are the exact same I think.

I also prefer the bigger boiler that can handle making more than 2 shots at once. I use a cold wet cloth to cool group down between shots and it works perfectly well.


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## jimbojohn55

the groupheads are identical so i would imagine that the coffee is as well - the only other consideration is that a quliy grinder and scales are essential o get grind and extraction spot on.


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## Nopapercup

jwripple said:


> Thanks for your comment. I am attracted increasingly to the Professional so I don't have to fill it up during the day to get 3 cups in the morning, 3 cups at lunchtime. Time to heat up isn't an issue for me - would you say there was any difference in the quality of the coffee produced between the two?


You won't get 6 cups out of one tank and I probably wouldn't try to. Even if you are doing 3 in one go the Pro may be the better option. The Picco for me is only good for 2 cups. If you are regularly doing 3 cups at a time I'm not sure this is the best machine as they do overheat really quickly.


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## jimbojohn55

You may want to add cooling fins heatsink if its pre millennium model with a 49mm basket - I have such a kit spare


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## fatboyslim

jimbojohn55 said:


> You may want to add cooling fins heatsink if its pre millennium model with a 49mm basket - I have such a kit spare


I've seen the heatsinks but they spoil the aesthetic too much for me. Cheers thought


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## Nopapercup

I just had another espresso (4th today) these machines once you get the hang of them make great espressos. Not sure you can get a machine to produce a better shot for the money but I only make one at a time. Although you can I just don't think the Pavoni's are suited to making multiple drinks.


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## jwripple

Nopapercup said:


> You won't get 6 cups out of one tank and I probably wouldn't try to. Even if you are doing 3 in one go the Pro may be the better option. The Picco for me is only good for 2 cups. If you are regularly doing 3 cups at a time I'm not sure this is the best machine as they do overheat really quickly.


I find I can get that number of small cups without problems, with careful filling once a day.


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## MediumRoastSteam

Sorry for the thread resurrection here, but this is something that for sure many people come across and try to find the everlasting dilemma of getting into lever machines. Usually the entry point is the La Pavoni, and then the dilemma becomes whether one should get an Europiccola or a Professional.

Well, I am now ready to give my own experience on this, after having both side by side. I'm afraid that, someone looking for a straight forward answer will struggle as, in my experience, owning one or the other is very much subjective to usage patterns.

I have compared two machines of very much the same age. Both are 2012 and are a a few months apart from each other.

Heating up: The Europiccola heats up much faster than the Professional most likely due to the boiler size and storing less water, so less to heat up. The Heating element are the same as far as I know. In my opinion, a moot point. On both cases, they take less than 10 minutes to heat up from cold.

Pressure gauge: A re-assuring instrument to make sure the pressure stat is cycling correctly, and whether one wants to adjust the pressure stat to a desired pressure without having to mount it on the sight glass or elsewhere. Certainly not essential in my opinion.

Tank capacity: If you make more than a couple of coffees at a time, the Professional is a winner. At 1.6L, it is double the size of its little sister's. In practice, without any pre and post flushes, the Europiccola allows you to do 3 pulls in a row before having to refill the boiler (don't forget it's under pressure so you need to wait for that too). You can risk a 4th, but the water will be very low on the sight glass, risking leaving the heating element exposed. With the Professional, you can comfortably pull 6 times before a refill. Steam capacity is optional with the sight glass 3/4 full.

Brewing quality: In my opinion, they are both exactly the same.

Size: The area and height are the same. The Pro is wider and, in terms of looks, IMO, looks better. Because of the wider diameter of the boiler, the overpressure pipe does not go forward enough to reach the drip tray and is very close to the boiler tank. This, however, should not be an issue unless you fill up with water above the sight glass upper limit and therefore water will escape through the safety valve and through the pipe. Any residual condensation will evaporate before entering the pipe. And, because of that, the Pro has more restrictive space for steaming. Some people will bend one or both pipes to make it more suitable. Personally, it is not an issue for me.

Steaming: To me, the biggest difference, once you get the hang of the restrictive space you have for steaming. On both, I used a single hole steam tip. Whist the Europiccola you have to really pay attention to what you are doing in surf the milk carefully, the Professional is much more forgiving. The steam on the Professional seems to be stronger and dryer, maybe a combination of more volume of water to hold heat and headspace and wider diameter of the boiler tank, whereas on the Europiccola I found that it tends to splutter a bit with the sight glass 3/4 filled.


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## ashcroc

MediumRoastSteam said:


> Steam capacity is optional with the sight glass 3/4 full.


To steam, or not to steam, that is the question. 

Great write up. Which are you gonna keep after all this?


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## MediumRoastSteam

ashcroc said:


> To steam, or not to steam, that is the question.
> Great write up. Which are you gonna keep after all this?


Good question. And the answer is... I'm still unsure. I'm convinced the Piccola is more than enough for me (given my usage), but the Pro looks nicer, and steams so much better. Decisions, decisions.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Hasi

to make it short... the Europiccola is for small Europeans whereas the Professional is for - who would've thought? PhD level to university professors. That's right.

Nobody asked me, but my very limited knowledge (stemming from an elderly LaDiva) enables me to tell you that there's many a good spro pulled on an old fiddle.
What I mean by that... well, it doesn't necessarily need technological advancement of a 2019 Professional to enjoy lever action to the fullest.


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## MediumRoastSteam

Hasi said:


> to make it short... the Europiccola is for small Europeans whereas the Professional is for - who would've thought? PhD level to university professors. That's right.
> 
> Nobody asked me, but my very limited knowledge (stemming from an elderly LaDiva) enables me to tell you that there's many a good spro pulled on an old fiddle.
> What I mean by that... well, it doesn't necessarily need technological advancement of a 2019 Professional to enjoy lever action to the fullest.


Wait... I thought.... A fiddle.... what? For that you won't need a Professional. You'll need a LP Stradivari. 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## ashcroc

MediumRoastSteam said:


> Good question. And the answer is... I'm still unsure. I'm convinced the Piccola is more than enough for me (given my usage), but the Pro looks nicer, and steams so much better. Decisions, decisions.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Give me a heads up when you decide to sell the loser in the coin flip please.


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## HelloFrank

jimbojohn55 said:


> You may want to add cooling fins heatsink if its pre millennium model with a 49mm basket - I have such a kit spare


 I second that suggestion , I have pre millennium Pro and the heat sink is worth the small cost.


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