Bialetti

In Ninety Three Percent Of Italian Homes

One shape, unchanged since 1933

The Moka Express is octagonal, made of aluminium, and has looked essentially the same for over ninety years. It sits on a hob, it makes a noise, and it produces coffee of an intensity that no capsule has ever quite managed. There is no filter to buy, no machine to descale, and nothing to go wrong that a two pound gasket will not fix.

How it actually works

Water in the bottom, coffee in the funnel, heat underneath. Steam pressure pushes the water up through the grounds and into the top chamber, which is the point at which the kitchen starts to smell like somebody else's holiday. Moka grind, coarser than espresso and finer than cafetiere, is the only thing to get right.

And the induction problem, solved

The original octagonal base will not work on induction, which caught a great many people out when they changed their hob. The Venus is the answer: circular stainless steel base, four, six or ten cup, and the six is the one most people want. Note that Italian cup sizes are tazze rather than mugs, so buy larger than instinct suggests.

Made to be repaired

Gaskets and filters are replaceable and want changing about once a year. Spare handles, funnels and knobs are all available. A moka pot bought now is a moka pot your children will argue over, which is not a claim many kitchen products can make.