From the makers of the original Niche Killer, the DF64, comes their first entry into the espresso machine market - the Turin Legato. A $500 single boiler espresso machine with a built-in PID for temperature control, shot timer, manual and automated brew settings, an easily adjustable flow output, and a thermoblock for quick milk steaming.
On paper, this machine packs a punch in featureset for just $500. In fact, it’s actually very similar to the Quick Mill Silvano, with most of the same features for a nearly $1300 machine.
But this machine, much like the original DF64, definitely leaves some room for improvement.
So in this video I’m going to go over my thoughts on having used this over the last 2 weeks and whether or not it reigns as the new go-to option at the $500 or under category.
This unit was sent to me for review by Espresso Outlet although no money exchanged hands, I have no affiliate relationship with them for this machine, and all thoughts and opinions remain my own.
And much like the DF line itself, the Turin name is just one of a few brand names that the manufacturer markets the machine under depending on your region. In fact, this machine has already been sold in other countries under different names and brands for a few years now.
BUILD
Starting off with the build quality, I immediately felt like this had taken a few steps back from the current line of DF grinders. While there was a huge quality improvement seen from the DF64 Gen to Gen 2, I was hoping to see this same level of quality translated into this machine, however, this was not the case.
The Legato is made up primarily of bent steel parts all around. The seams and joints are fairly visible, and it’s certainly nothing to be wow’d by. The drip tray is primarily plastic with a steel frame to more or less obscure the plastic tray from view. The metal lid on top is also quite thin with some sharp edges that could use a little more refinement.
The general build seems to lack tighter tolerances and you can feel edges where one side is more pronounced than the other.
I would have liked to see the more premium finish used on something like the DF64 Gen 2 carried over onto this machine, although it’s understandable that to achieve this low price point, some corners had to be cut - or in this case, bent.
The back of the machine features a fairly large water reservoir which is easy to see and refill unlike something like the Gaggia Classic’s reservoir which is sort of hidden under the group.
This machine does use a standard 58mm portafilter which is great to see unlike the proprietary one found on the Gaggia Classic, and I can confirm it works just fine with my Pesado portafilter that I typically use on the Linea Mini. That also means I can use my nice 58mm IMS baskets, puck screens, WDT tools, and tamper.
The machine’s front face has 3 buttons, a PID interface, and a steam knob. This is where the little details irk me, but the icons on said buttons are not pointing completely straight up as they should, and the icon on the steam knob also isn’t pointing parallel in a resting position.
The buttons on the PID interface are fairly difficult to locate and don’t quite align with the + and - icons themselves. I found they need some serious pressing for them to actuate correctly. But the screen itself is bright and clear and it’s super easy to see your brewing temp, shot timer, and control things like pre-infusion time and set your automated brew mode.
You can also see a pressure gauge under that front panel and you have access to this exposed screw which will control the flow output from the machine.
On the portafilter handle, they’ve cleverly integrated this vertical line design around the portafilter which sort of helps the actual plastic seam blend in. The metal end cap is also a nice touch for making it feel a touch more premium. There is also a light under the group area which stays lit as long as the machine is on, which I actually like.
The machine did also come with some accessories that, honestly, shouldn’t see the light of day. They’re weird, bulky, awkward to use, and should just be kept in the box.
And while there’s not a lot to love about the quality of this machine, it’s hard to fault it too much for being just $500 and packing in a decent amount of tech. But I do hope that the Legato takes the route of the DF line of grinders, and improves some of these smaller traits over time with a gen 2 revision.
PERFORMANCE
When it comes to pulling shots I was instantly reminded of what it was like when I first started out with the Gaggia Classic Pro about 4 years ago, minus the headache of temperature surfing.
To actually brew you can either go full manual and press the button to start the water flow and again to stop it. Pretty straightforward.
Or you can hit the automatic mode which will dispense water for a set period of time that is adjustable by holding down the button.
You can also set a pre-infusion time however all it does is essentially dispense water for a second and spend the rest of that set time as a waiting period before starting the brew again.
I would suggest if you want to do that to just use the manual button so you can also control how long the pre-infusion lasts for, with the caveat of losing the shot timer functionality.
During the brew, the machine does tend to aim for a 9-bar shot, sometimes ramping up to 10-11 bars before reducing to a more standard 9-bar.
Shots have been good here, really nothing to complain about. It pulls a standard traditional shot just fine, as long as you WDT and prepare your puck properly, you won’t have too many complaints.
But one thing I am very interested in is this.
You can adjust the flow rate with this little exposed screw. So that got me thinking, could I essentially use this screw as a flow controller?
So I held a large flat head bit in place that I can then twist as it brews to control the flow rate. And doing this has allowed me to unlock some degree of flow profiling capability.
I did find that the range is fairly limited, you essentially have about a rotation and a half to work with, and you have to be extra precise with the bit which isn’t the easiest to do in this position. But I was able to successfully pull a shot, watching it ramp up to 9-bars, then quickly ramp it down to 6-bars and hold it there with this method.
And the resulting shots were more akin to the profile I enjoy a lot with lower pressure. Shots were sweeter, more distinct flavor notes pulled through, and much less astringency than what I was getting with a straight 9-bar shot, at least with the beans I was using.
So - does this machine have flow control? Kind of! I think there’s definitely room here to experiment with 3D printing some kind of knob or other device that maybe protrudes from the side to better adjust this screw. Although I will also mention the screw itself is hot to the touch.
In my own testing I hadn’t noticed this screw to mess with the OPV and water would still come out into the drip tray just fine, which is great, but as always do exercise caution if you want to test this.
STEAM
Steam power here is… acceptable. There is an advertised capability of brewing and steaming at the same time which I found to not work because whenever the brewer or the steam power was engaged, the other function simply wouldn’t.
Steam is controlled with this knob here and you’ll basically just want to immediately open it up all the way, purge out a bit of water before getting to the drier steam, then switch it off, position your pitcher, and start to steam.
It takes about 30 seconds for a small pitcher and I found you can get silky milk just fine with some practice. One other thing to note is the steam wand itself is a little stiff at least on my unit, but nothing some grease or maybe loosening up a screw wouldn’t fix.
Like many smaller machines, clearance for large pitchers will be a challenge, but with the relatively weak steam power, I probably wouldn’t go for a massive amount of milk anyway.
CONCLUSION
Overall I have to say for $500, it’s a solid entry level machine with some quirks that I’m hoping can be improved on in a gen 2 model. In this price range you’re comparing it to machines like the Gaggia Classic Pro and Breville Bambino Plus and from my experience this is a strong competitor.
With more capabilities than the Gaggia for the same price, this new Turin Legato has come out on top. Between this and the Bambino, I will say that the Bambino still packs a punch for its size and price, with the insane quick heat up time and stronger steam power, albeit less control over the brewing aspects compared to the Legato.
But I can’t end this review without quickly mentioning the KAFMASINO ONE which appears to be what is essentially the gaggiuino mod to the Gaggia Classic Pro but done for this exact machine housing.
It takes this same espresso machine housing and adds flow, pressure, and temperature profiling with gravimetric and volumetric control. So with the introduction of this machine in the US market, I am excited to see if the gaggiunio community or similar will be able to open up modding capabilities for it.
So, those are my thoughts on the new Turin Legato espresso machine. A solid option at the $500 and below price point.
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