Australians are finding their inner barista as sales of home coffee machines climb, Aromas Tea and Coffee Merchants say.
The cafe group and trade products supplier has recorded a 30 per cent increase in domestic coffee machine sales over the past year.
According to Aromas director Stephen Skarparis, coffee machines have become the favourite kitchen accessory, with consumers increasingly investing in espresso machines to make cafe-style coffee at home.
“The nation’s growing cafe culture has led to a home espresso revolution in Australia,” Mr Skarparis said.
“Over the last decade we’ve seen an explosion in the Italian coffee culture and coffee drinking has now become such an integral part of the Australian lifestyle.
“People now expect to have good quality coffee at home as well and are keen to re-create that high quality, cafe experience from within their own kitchens.”
Brisbane-based Aromas, which also has stores in Sydney, Perth, Darwin, Townsville and the Gold and Sunshine coasts, sells Trevi Digital, Saeco and My Coffee brand machines ranging in price from $400 to $3,000. Most people spend between $1,100 and $1,200 on their machine.
“Some people might think spending more than $1,000 on a coffee machine is excessive, but the savings can be significant if you are a regular coffee drinker.”Mr Skarparis said.
Coffee consumption in Australia has doubled in the past 30 years, with around 2.4kg of coffee beans consumed per person.
A recent report found Australia is a nation of coffee drinkers, with Australians forecast to spend $773.5 million on coffee beans and instant coffee for brewing at home this year, compared to $452.6 million spent on tea.
Mr Skarparis said while coffee machines are the latest must-have household accessory, it is vital they are properly maintained.
“The most common mistake people make is not cleaning the steam wand,” he said.
“Make sure you blow out milk from the wand because it can suck its way back into the boiler and contaminate the water. Dried milk residue on a steam wand also encourages the growth of bacteria and can affect the taste of the milk.”