The D-E designation signifies Electronic Dosing, so on the front you have programmable buttons for single and double shot volumes. A third button gives you manual control for starting a shot and stopping whenever you like.
In the past we've looked at the Bezzera BZ10. If you’d like to check out that video you can use the link up here.
The 07 and 10 are very similar machines. In fact, internal specs and hydraulics are nearly identical. The big difference, the 07 has electronic dosing and on this model, PID temperature control of the heat-exchange boiler.
PID
Let’s talk about the PID. In single and dual boiler machines It’s value in producing accurate brew temps is easy to understand because it directly controls brew water temp. But the BZ07 has a heat exchange boiler so that PID is really controlling temperature of the steam. With no PID control, temperature always overshoots when a boiler reheats. The beauty of PID is using logic to gently arrive precisely at a set temperature with no overshoot.
Brew Temperature
With that in mind what users report liking about this machine is the consistency of brew temps. Like any heat-exchange machine you’re going to do a flush before pulling a shot to remove overheated brew water. Now with other machines that involves some guess work because it’s difficult to know where the machine is in it’s heating and recovery cycle.
So with the PID, you always know the temperatures, when the machine has recovered, and that it didn’t overshoot. So no guessing about how long to flush. It doesn’t matter if the machine just recovered from brewing or steaming, or if it’s been sitting idle for half an hour, a 3 second flush should always give you the same brew temperature.
No guessing about your flush times. With the PID it’s a lot easier to let flavor be your guide. if your shot is a little bitter: flush longer. If it’s sour: decrease the flush time. And like you said it doesn’t matter when you brewed or steamed last.
Heated Group Head
The BZ07 has the electrically heated group head and that helps with brew temperature consistency. What many users say is there’s a greater clarity in espresso flavor with this setup as compared to HX machines with an E61 group. And with a vibration pump, which ramps up pressure at the start, you get a form of pre-infusion like you might have with an E61 group.
As we mentioned the, the BZ07 is very similar internally to the BZ10. It’s on the outside where things are a little different. You still have the joystick controls for steam and hot water, but on the 07 the hot water is grouped on the left side next to the steam.
Push up on the steam control and it locks on. Push down and it momentary. The hot water control is momentary only. Another big difference is programmable electronic dosing on the BZ07 DE model. Button for single and double and the manual button which if held down for 5 seconds enters volume programming for the other buttons.
Steaming
Steaming is through a 2 hole tip and with a 1.5 liter nickel plated copper boiler with brass end plates you have plenty of steaming power and just a 40 second recovery after 20 ounces of steam production. So no matter what you’re doing by the time you grind, tamp and load the machine is ready to crank out drinks continuously.
Up front a dual needle gauge monitors steam pressure up top and brew pressure on the bottom. The portafilter has an angled handle. When on a counter, the angle leaves the filter basket parallel for even tamping.
Up top, a cup warming surface. At the rear a panel lifts off to access a 3 liter removable water tank.
So overall the BZ07 is a powerful little machine at only 10 inches wide. As we mentioned, many users report increased clarity of flavor in espresso as compared to that from HX machines with E61 groups.
They also say the like how quickly it recovers and with the PID, it always recovers to the same temperature. That capability takes most of the guesswork out of timing a flush before brewing.
That’s the Bezzara BZ07 PID with electronic dosing. It’s available now at Whole Latte Love. Thanks for reading and we hope you’ll come back soon for more on everything coffee.