The Kit
HESTON’S TIP
Meet the Oracle
“CHECK THE ‘ROASTED
ON’ DATE ON THE BAG.
IF IT DOESN’T HAVE ONE,
IT’S ALMOST CERTAINLY
NOT FRESH (YOUR BEST
CHANCE IS AT YOUR
LOCAL CAFÉ). YOU WON’T
BELIEVE HOW MUCH
DIFFERENCE FRESHLY
ROASTED BEANS MAKE.”
For café quality coffee at home, give your
order to Heston Blumenthal and his state
of the art espresso machine
Sage By Heston Blumenthal The Oracle
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Harts Price: £1440
t’s well named this, the world’s first
automatic manual espresso
machine. In ancient times, you
visited the oracle to get guidance
from the gods. These days, you
visit the mystical barista, often
several times a day, seeking
fulfilment in the form of a flat white
and maybe a flapjack. The question
this Oracle answers is which coffee
machine to get if you love the
superior barista-delivered coffee
from a manual machine but lack the
well-trained skills to deliver it.
The Oracle instead brings you
café quality coffee so good, it’s like
there’s a barista inside and the vital
but arcane art of grinding, dosing,
tamping and milk texturing are being
performed automatically.
When you get it home, you can
even call for Sage’s white glove
in-home installation and they’ll send
a coffee engineer to ensure your
machine is set up for optimal
performance and to teach you how
to use it. You will have to make him
a coffee though.
When you start extracting, you’ll
be surprised at the speed – which
could teach your local Costa a thing
or two. At the heart of The Oracle is a
dual stainless steel boiler triple heat
system. This gives you full control
over water temperature and
pressure, vital for great coffee. It has
a dedicated espresso boiler with PID
technology to extract the espresso
shot to within +/- 1°C of the selected
temperature, the degree of stability
that top baristas always demand. A
dedicated steam boiler delivers
Sage Advice
1 1. Built-in Grinder
For beans to espresso in under
a minute, mess free.
Here’s how it all works…
2. Triple Heat System
Separate espresso and steam boilers
deliver precise water temperature for
optimum extraction and simultaneous
espresso and steam. Two cappuccinos
in 90 seconds.
instant and continuous steam when
it’s required, and you can extract
espresso and texture milk
simultaneously. You won’t ever get
bored waiting as it will deliver two
coffees in 90 seconds.
The Oracle also features an Over
Pressure Valve. This commercial
feature limits the maximum pressure
throughout the extraction, helping to
prevent bitter flavours in the shot.
It also has low pressure pre-infusion,
which gradually increases the
pressure to gently expand the grinds
for an even extraction.
By automating the difficult parts
of making an espresso, The Oracle
frees you from barista dependence
while giving you the satisfaction and,
let’s be honest, the kudos, of making
simply great coffee at home.
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3. Milk Texturing
Creates café quality micro-foam, texturing
milk to the selected style and temperature
at the touch of a lever, from silky latte to
creamy cappuccino.
6. Automatically
Grinds, Doses
and Tamps
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4.Heated Group Head
Prepares for
extraction at a
consistent and
precise amount
every time.
7. Adjustable
Grind Size
Aids thermal stability throughout extraction.
5. Auto Purge
Enjoy 45 grind
settings for optimal
espresso extraction.
Automatically purges steam through the
steam wand to minimise cleaning.
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