If you haven't heard already, Gaggia has released some brand new espresso machines onto the market and they're nothing less than intriguing. If you're a curious coffee lover that likes to keep in the know, or if you're on the prowl for a new, better automatic coffee espresso machine for your home, here's a quick comparison of the Gaggia Cadorna Milk and the JURA D6. We'll break down the different drink options, features, sizes, capacities, and expenses so you have a better understanding of what a new machine like the Cadorna Milk can offer.
$899.00
$999.00
Drink Options
Drink options are comparable between the Gaggia Cadorna Milk and the JURA D6, with the Cadorna Milk edging ahead. Here's a quick list of what each machine offers.
Gaggia Cadorna Milk
- Ristretto
- Espresso
- Espresso Lungo
- Coffee
- Americano
- Cappuccino
- Latte Macchiato
- Cafe au Lait
- Frothed Milk
- Hot Water
JURA D6
- Espresso
- Coffee
- Cappuccino
- Portion of milk foam
- Hot water
Right away, the disparity between the two machines is clear. The Cadorna Milk races ahead with a much wider selection of coffee drinks, notably ristretto, americano, latte macchiato, and cafe au lait.
The Complete Guide to Coffee and Espresso
Features
Here, "Features" describe any extra bells and whistles that aren't immediately obvious at a glance. These are little nuances and innovations that help you make better drinks or makes it easier to use the machine.
To start, programmability and customization. The Cadorna Milk and D6 offer similar programmability in terms of strength, temperature, and volume. The Cadorna Milk offers 5 strength settings with a dose range of 6.5 g - 11.5 g compared to the D6's 4 strength settings and dose range of 5 - 16 g. For temperature, the Cadorna Milk has 3 temp settings, compared to the D6's 2 (but bonus points to the D6 for having 2 Hot Water temperature levels as well). For maximum cup height, the Cadorna Milk can use larger cups up to 6.1" compared to the D6's max cup height of 4.3".
Both machines offer similar automatic milk frothing options, but the Cadorna Milk has a strong advantage in the form of the tube attached carafe included with the machine. The JURA D6 uses similar technology, but doesn't include a carafe or milk supply, so you'll either need to get yourself a Cool Control or be comfortable with using a separate container for your milk. The Cadorna Milk uses Gaggia's new Cappincup system, which gently cascades textured milk over the cup, for a nice finishing touch.
The Cadorna series are the first from Gaggia to feature full color TFT displays.
Size and Appearance
When it comes to size, the Cadorna Milk stands taller than the D6, but it's just a bit slimmer, coming in at 15" tall and 10.2" wide compared to the D6 at 13.6" tall and 11" wide. Both machines have plastic housings, which is very common for super automatic machines.
However, both differ hugely in the way they display information. In following with the rest of the Cadorna series, the Cadorna Milk uses a full color TFT display with individual drink customization options and user profiles, whereas the D6 uses a stripped down text display, navigated with a rotary switch.
For capacities, the D6 has a larger water tank at 63.6 oz compared to the Cadorna Milk's 50.7 oz. The Cadorna Milk wins with a larger bean hopper at 10.6 oz compared to the D6's 7.1 oz hopper. When it comes to spent coffee pucks, the D6 pulls ahead with a capacity of 16 used coffee pucks versus the Cadorna Milk's 10.
Expense
In terms of expense, the Cadorna Milk certainly has a higher up-front cost at $1499 at the time of this writing compared to the D6 at $999. However, with the Cadorna Milk, you get quite a few more features and drink options, and the cost difference is quickly made up in what you'll save by not needing to buy a container for milk and using Gaggia cleaning products. Plus, with the D6, you would need to pick up a Smart Connect to unlock the machine's full potential. Here's a quick comparison of costs of Gaggia and JURA cleaning products at the time of this writing.
$60.00
$50.00
Water Filter
- Mavea Intenza - $12.99
- CLEARYL Smart - $25.00
Cleaning Tablets
- Gaggia Coffee Clean Tablets (x10 per box) - $12.99
- JURA 2-Phase Cleaning Tablets (x6 per box) - $21.00
Decalcifier
- Gaggia Decalcifier (x1 use) - $9.99
- JURA Descaling Tablets (x3 uses per box) - $20.00
Wrapping Up
The quick and simple judgement is this: if you don't really care too much about milk based drinks, and there's only one or two people in your home making drinks, the D6 is a good, less expensive option. But if you like variety, easily customizable drinks, and the ability to save different profiles, you'll need the Gaggia Cadorna Milk.
