Good milk frothers are interesting! We wanted to know: is the DREO BaristaMaker Milk Frother any good? Because if so, it opens up countless possibilities for preparing cappuccino with latte art.
Perhaps you have a manual espresso brewer at home, like the Flair, the 9Bar, or a Picopresso? Who hasn't been frustrated trying to make a cappuccino for their best friend? Perhaps you also have a single-boiler machine like the Quick Mill Carola because you don't drink milk yourself? The DREO could provide a solution. And even next to a Moka pot, the DREO milk frother could make a good impression, if… well, if the milk foam works.
Microfoam with various creaminess levels
The DREO essentially has two main areas of application, although only one is of interest to us. It can froth milk and milk alternatives, and it can heat and mix milk. Mixing and heating, for example, is intended for preparing hot cocoa. The practical thing about DREO is that the milk doesn't burn because it's constantly stirred.
However, for us, the milk frothing function is particularly interesting, which can be set on the left side of the BaristaMaker. There are four foam levels:
- Thick
- Cold
- Cappuccino
- Latte
- Flat-White
While Thick, Cappuccino, Latte, and Flat White produce progressively thinner foam in descending order, "cold" allows you to froth cold foam, which has an airy, non-latte-art-suitable texture.
There is no magic formula for using the foam thickness. In general, we can say that all levels produce excellent microfoam. This is very silky and creamy and shines with a closed surface when poured as a cappuccino or flat white. The quality of the milk foam is excellent.
Frothing Tips and Recipes
Depending on your choice and quantity of milk, we recommend different frothing levels. You absolutely must experiment with your own milk or milk alternative.
In general, we can say that for larger milk quantities over 200ml, firmer milk frothing (Cappuccino or Thick) worked better for us. We also opted for thicker frothing levels with oat milk.
For a quantity of 150ml cow's milk frothed at the Cappuccino setting, the foam was almost too thick, and we would advise frothing less intensely.
You can find a list of good oat milk here.
According to the manufacturer, the following milk alternatives can generally be frothed:
- Milk
- Almond
- Oat
- Coconut
- Soy
- "Half and Half"
Milk Temperature
After extensive testing, we concluded that the milk is consistently heated to 64 to 67 degrees Celsius. In our opinion, this is at the upper limit of what we recommend. Such a temperature is not too hot; however, sometimes frothed milk at temperatures above 65 degrees can taste slightly dry and lose some sweetness.
It is important to emphasize that we probably tested the first DREO device with a Schuko plug and a voltage of 220/230 volts for the European market. It is not unlikely that the device can still be slightly recalibrated here.
Our YouTube testing colleague Aramse tested the DREO BaristaMaker with 120 volts for the American market and found the temperatures to be slightly too low. We are curious how the DREO will perform when it is rolled out in Europe.
At the moment, we would advise not to close the included lid, as the DREO then heats up another two to three degrees higher. The milk jug should also be removed directly from the hot plate after heating.
The DREO is not yet available in Europe, but can be pre-ordered via Amazon*.
The big "but": frothing time
The DREO largely impressed us. The only drawback is the slow frothing time compared to a classic espresso machine. 3:30 to 3:45 minutes are required for heating and frothing.
- The slowest espresso machine we have tested so far has a frothing time of around 1 minute and 45 seconds.
- Many classic machines take between 45 and 75 seconds.
- Faster machines froth in 20 to 40 seconds.
- The DREO takes three minutes for this.
However, this is offset by the fact that espresso machines themselves first need to heat up. So, if we start the DREO BaristaMaker parallel to the preparation process for brewing with the Flair or after 4 minutes of brewing time with the 9Bar, our milk foam is probably ready when the espresso is in the cup.
If you want to learn how to pour and froth milk for latte art and cappuccino, our Latte Art courses are the right place for you!
Wish list for the future
Nevertheless, we'd add a slightly faster frothing time to our wish list. But that goes to the very bottom of the list. At the top of the list, we'd like to be able to set the temperature for milk frothing. That shouldn't be too difficult anymore. The function is already implemented in the DREO for the mix mode. If this could now also be applied to the frothing capability, that would be a dream.
💡Want to learn how to pour latte art on a cappuccino? Here's how to do it.
Cleaning is a big plus
Cleaning the DREO BaristaMaker is easy and practical. The removable jug, which theoretically could also be used for pouring latte art, can be removed and washed in the dishwasher. That's very practical. The same applies to the other parts like the impeller attachment for microfoam and the disc attachment for "construction foam."
Since the handle of the integrated jug is relatively bulky and the spout provides insufficient guidance, we used our own jugs for pouring latte art. Our barista trainer Michel Indelicato developed his own jug, which he used in our tests.
Energy measurement
The DREO's power consumption is 0.0239 kWh for heating 240 ml of milk. This is generally higher than the measured value for frothing milk with a portafilter machine (San Remo YOU: 0.0213kWh, Ascaso Steel Duo PID: 0.0118 kWh). However, if you consider the heating time, the power consumption of espresso machines is far higher than the DREO. (San Remo YOU: 0.2431kWh, Ascaso Steel Duo PID: 0.06612 kWh). But of course, we don't just want hot milk, but cappuccino. The most economical combination here would be: switch off the machine's steam boiler and froth milk with the DREO.
Comparing dual boilers, heat exchangers, or thermoblocks with the DREO, heating milk with a milk frother is more efficient than heating the steam boiler.
Conclusion DREO BaristaMaker Milk Frother
We have a very positive impression of the DREO milk frother. Above all, the result, the milk foam, is truly excellent and sets no limits to your latte art!
Yes, the frothing process takes time. But if the espresso is being prepared or the espresso machine is warming up during that time, it doesn't seem like a real obstacle to us.
A desirable feature would be an adjustable temperature setting for milk frothing. Froth frothed a little colder is often sweeter and goes well with many coffees!
We really like the dishwasher cleaning option. However, the removable jug is a bit clunky, and the entire frother, with dimensions of 13.5 cm in width and 24.5 cm in height, is rather large.
The name is similarly cumbersome; in its English original, it's called DREO BaristaMaker Milk Frother. But the short form works well. We'll simply affectionately call our milk frother DREO.
Where to order and affiliate link
As always, we bought this test device ourselves, directly from the USA. Meanwhile, the DREO can be pre-ordered via Amazon. According to the manufacturer, delivery in Europe is planned for this year.
Caution, make sure to order a variant for Europe with 230 V and AC.
* This is an affiliate link. If you order the DREO via this link, it won't cost you more. However, we receive a small commission, which we reinvest in test materials. 
