The dual-boiler espresso machine test series concludes with a review of the Xenia. The Xenia has a reputation as a special espresso machine.
It is developed in a small manufactory in Germany. The machine can be freely configured and ordered via the Xenia website. The machine is then assembled by hand and delivered. At the time of our test (Sept 20), however, there is a six-month wait until your "own" machine is ready.
You choose a Xenia! It's not an off-the-shelf purchase. The manufacturer communicates openly with its community, the website is very transparent and provides information about new developments and describes the technical equipment of the espresso machine in detail.
The Xenia is still underrepresented in Switzerland. We were all the more curious to extensively test the Xenia espresso machine. And what can we say: our conclusion ranges from enthusiastic to disillusioned. But read and see for yourself.
You can find more about the comparison with 11 other dual-boiler espresso machines here.
The company Xenia has since been acquired by Hemro-Mahlkönig. You can find an analysis of this in a current video and article.
Custom ordering your Xenia
Stainless steel "mirror-polished" or "satin-finished"? Or would you prefer the "anthracite-blue metallic" panel? We're not at a car painter's, but in the Xenia configurator. That's fun!
We click through a multi-page menu and create our machine.
We want to be able to pull out the water tank from the side. The boiler should be insulated, please. The button color – we'll ask the team. We'll skip a tamper, there are enough of them lying around here.
Xenia sets standards for all other espresso machine manufacturers here and brutally exploits a strength. Because if every machine is built individually locally and delivered directly by the manufacturer, then almost every customer request can be fulfilled.
All Lelits, Rockets, and Bezzeras, on the other hand, are mass-produced, off-the-shelf items that wait in the importer's warehouse in the respective country for buyers. The Xenia is different. The manufacturing process begins with the decision to buy a machine and placing the order.
We think that's fantastic.
Side view of the Xenia
This individuality, however, also comes at a price. And that price lies more in the waiting time than in the cost. In its cheapest configuration, the Xenia costs only around €1300, although interesting and useful components quickly push the price to +€1600.
Currently, there's a six-month wait until your machine leaves production. You won't read anything about this on the Xenia homepage. In the configurator, the waiting time is hidden behind the wording: "The progress and the estimated production date for one's machine can be viewed daily in the production list."
We overlooked that and immediately started with the configurator. Our mistake. Only later did we realize the waiting time. We are all the more pleased that we now have a new Xenia on our test bench – which we bought like all test machines – and can tell you how this machine performed for us.
Procuring the Xenia
A waiting period of five to six months was out of the question for us, as we wanted to complete our dual-boiler test series in September 2020. Therefore, we posted an inquiry in the Xenia Community on Kaffee-Netz, asking if a Xenia owner would provide us with their machine for testing purposes. Xenia Community inquiry
The feedback from the community itself was very positive, and we received numerous emails and messages from Xenia owners offering to provide their machines for testing or stating that their Xenia was for sale.
To our surprise, the manufacturer himself then called on his customers not to provide us with a machine. On the one hand, due to possible transport damage, and on the other hand, due to the risk of Corona infection. At the same time, it was pointed out that we had to queue up like everyone else. We find the last point perfectly good and correct. However, we find an assessment of other people's preventive Covid protection measures strange.
We then simply ordered the Xenia from Coffee Circle. It arrived after three weeks. It came without the joy of the configurator, but with a good configuration and in a really stylish version.
Our Xenia espresso machine setup
Like all current Xenias, ours is a dual-boiler. An insulated boiler with a capacity of 1.3 liters was installed. A heat exchanger tube snakes vertically in a spiral through the boiler. The brewing water is routed through this tube and absorbs the ambient temperature. A heat exchanger, in short.
Special to the Xenia: after each brewing process, this tube is emptied and thus does not overheat during the standby phase until the next use. This is a phenomenon found in many other dual-boiler machines. Since the surrounding temperature of the boiler is +120 degrees, the water in the heat exchanger becomes too hot and must be reduced by a cooling flush (brief rinsing before espresso extraction). Emptying the tube saves this procedure with the Xenia.
Incidentally, this also leads to a very constant brewing temperature, because it really always undergoes the "same" heat exchange with the surroundings. We measured very constant temperatures, which showed hardly any deviation of more than 0.2 degrees from the start of brewing over 30 seconds to the end of brewing. This means the Xenia performs on par with the best dual-boilers in terms of consistency.
Temperature test on the Xenia
Consistent but too hot
We test all espresso machines out of the box as they are. We take them out of the packaging and start testing. We do not make any changes to the machine that any untrained customer could not also make. The basic idea behind this: if you buy a machine, you want to get started and not have to go to the dealer for a setting.
Our Xenia was set about 3 degrees too high. After a completed heat-up time, all our extractions showed temperatures between 95.9 and 96.4 degrees. In use, this meant that the espressos tended to be unpleasantly bitter, left a dry mouthfeel, and had a harsh finish.
With the Xenia, the base temperature inside the machine can be corrected using a pressostat. This involves setting the overall boiler pressure lower, which also leads to a lower temperature of the brewing water. However, such an adjustment is difficult to make if you cannot measure the brewing temperature with a suitable portafilter thermometer.
This excessively hot basic setting of the machine contradicts our expectation of individual manufacturing, especially since the manufacturer specifies a target temperature of 92 degrees. For the final test of the machine in comparison to the other dual-boilers, we will adjust the Xenia's temperature. We recommend that all Xenia users who have difficulty brewing balanced and good espressos check their own brewing temperature.
Width, height, and nice gimmicks of the Xenia
With a width of 27 cm, a height of about 40 cm, and a depth of 43 cm, the Xenia is one of the more compact dual-boilers. But a clever trick makes it the best and most compact dual-boiler for kitchens with overhead cabinets.
With classic dual-boilers, the water tank is filled either by removing the tank or by pouring water directly into it. In both cases, space is needed above the espresso machine. However, if a deep overhead cabinet hangs over the machine, this can be difficult to manage in smaller kitchens.
The water tank on the Xenia can be removed from the side.
The Xenia does it better. The water tank can be slid out in both directions through a side slot. This function is optionally selectable via the configurator – great! They thought ahead and integrated a useful function.
Other small or larger peculiarities of this kind run through the machine. The drip tray has a good capacity. But what distinguishes it is a "half pipe" for the water. Instead of simply splashing the return water into the tray and thus causing more splashing for the surroundings, the water slides over a ramp into the tray on the Xenia. Simple, practical, good.
The machine and boiler are made of stainless steel, with our exterior having a black anodized finish. We also have two beautiful portafilters with olive wood handles.
The steam wand and hot water dispenser are cold touch, meaning non-burn. In other words, they don't get hot.
Here, the splash water glides into the drip tray without splashing.
The vibration pump hums quietly
We are not yet comparing dual-boiler machines. Nevertheless, here's a little heads-up. The Xenia is the second quietest espresso machine in our dual-boiler test series. Here, too, Xenia shows how easy it can be.
There are two things that make noise when using a vibration pump. The pump itself, which rattles somewhere on the housing. And all other parts, sheet metal, inserts. The pump in the Xenia stands on rubber feet. That's half the battle. The connecting hose itself is attached in such a way that no vibration is transmitted. And since not much else rattles in the machine, the Xenia is quite quiet!
The Xenia brew group and heating time
The Xenia uses a brew group that differs from the widely installed Faema E61 group. Instead of the circulating thermosiphon principle, the group is electrically heated by two heating cartridges and connected to the boiler by a copper heat bridge to stabilize the temperature.
In our tests and measurements over several hours and days, with repeated heating and cooling of the entire machine, the Xenia was very precise once it reached operating temperature.
Xenia states that the machine reaches operating temperature after 13 minutes. We found a heat-up time of 20 minutes or more. At least, we reached the machine's final temperature after about this time. Subsequently, the temperature did not rise further and remained constant at this temperature (96 degrees) for several hours.
Frothing milk like with a single boiler
A decisive advantage of a dual boiler is that you can froth milk and brew espresso simultaneously. This is a key reason why people who enjoy milk-based beverages are better advised to buy a dual boiler. You can insert the portafilter, start the extraction, and begin frothing – without delay.
With a single boiler, on the other hand, the boiler temperature must first be boosted from the espresso temperature to the steam pressure temperature to generate enough pressure. The milk frothing capability is the decisive difference between a dual boiler and a single boiler.
The Xenia performs more like a single boiler when frothing. After brewing the espresso, you should wait about 40 seconds before starting to froth.
If you don't wait and start frothing immediately, the steam pressure in the boiler will drop to below 0.3 bar. This makes frothing impossible. You can only produce warm milk.
Compared to other dual-boilers, the tested Xenia unfortunately falls significantly short in terms of frothing performance.
