| About Ascaso Espresso
Machines and Coffee Grinders
 For
more than 40 years in the espresso world, Ascaso has transformed
to build not only a reputation on quality, which is unheard of
with espresso machine manufacturers in Spain, but also a reputation
in building world-class leadership in espresso machine manufacturing.
Jesús Ascaso, the founding father of
today's Ascaso, was born in a humble mountain town in the north
section of Spain. He was a man with an entrepreneurial spirit
which included integrity and good old fashion hard work. Since
his small town offered him very little opportunity, Jesús
left for Barcelona with the equivalent of $30 in his pocket and
a head full ideas.
In the 50's, espresso started to become popular
in Spain, and in Barcelona, espresso popularity led to a flourishing
industry. In 1950, Jesús Ascaso began to work for a espresso
machine spare parts supplier. His main task was chrome-plating
parts. Between 1952-1962, Jesús worked on the production
line at Gaggia making espresso parts for consumer espresso machines
throughout the world. In 1962, Jesús opened his own espresso
machine spare parts supply company in Barcelona, Spain. Today,
Ascaso sells it spare parts in more than 50 countries in the world.
José Luis Ascaso, son of Jesús,
has been the current leader in the diversification of Ascaso in
the last 10 years. He created an espresso machine factory to unify
his knowledge of espresso components and design and espresso culture.
"For coffee lovers" was born. 1st-line Equipment had
the opportunity to evaluate sample models circa 2003. To make
an interesting story short, 1st-line Equipment did not like the
sample machines in terms of internal design and performance for
the United States. Our voice fell on deaf ears as another potential
importer did not make the demands, and the other importer seemed
to Ascaso as an easier company to deal with. Approximately four
importers and four years later, Ascaso came back to 1st-line and
inquired again about import ship. Our first question was is the
changes we requested were made. We received an astounding yes!
1st-line Equipment, LLC and Ascaso work hand-in-hand to bring
about high quality home and office espresso machines.
Today, Jesús Ascaso works
in his factory about 18 hours per day for six months of the year.
For the remainder of the year, he lives in the town he left over
50 years ago - taking care of his tomatoes and honey.
Steel Series Espresso
Machines
Please note that the term 'Professional' used by Ascaso does not
mean commercial use. It only signifies that the grouphead and
portafilter accommodate 58mm diameter sized filter baskets like
that found on commercial machines. This does not include pod baskets.
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Dream,
Arc and Basic Espresso Machines
The term 'Versatile' indicates a 57mm diameter sized filter baskets
- one for single cup ground coffee, one for double cup ground
coffee, and one for single-dose easy-serving-espresso (E.S.E.)
pods. Double dose and coffee pods (i.e. Melitta) will not work
on these machines.
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Ascaso Dream Versatile Espresso Machines
$549.00-$649.00
The boldest outline. A wink to the past and a bet to the
future. Available in 13 colors.
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DREAM
UP!
Dream UP features newly redesiged internals. The
new 3-Way Solenoid ensures dry doses, no leaks, and no overperssure.
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Ascaso Dream Pod-Only Espresso Machines
$779.00-$899.00
Easy to use. No mess. Available in 2 colors.
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Grinders
All of the Ascaso grinders below offer a very important
feature: stepless adjustment. Meaning... there are no stepped settings
for the fineness of the coffee grinders used for espresso machines.
This is a great feature as sometimes to get a great espresso on
an espresso machine, you need setting 8.5 which can not be achieved
on a stepped grinder that has settings 8 and 9. Stepless adjustment
allows the user to get to the achieved setting. The down side to
stepless adjustment is that it is not a practical grinder for use
in multiple coffee brewing methods (i.e. drip, french press, espresso).
In other words, these need to be dedicated grinders for one grind
fineness - no switching.
The I-Mini grinder is a very small grinder for very
low-volume home applications that do not require a very, very
fine grind. In other words, it is a great grinder for the Ascaso
espresso machines that are listed as 'versatile', but do not work
as well for the Ascaso 'professional' machines which require the
I-1 series or I-2 series of espresso coffee grinders. |
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Ascaso 1-2/I-2D Conical Burr Espresso Grinders
$299.00-$339.00
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Ascaso I-Steel I-2 Doserless Conical Burr Espresso Grinders
$306.00
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Accessories |
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Ascaso "For Coffee Lovers"
Ceramic Espresso and Cappuccino Cups
$45.00-$50.00
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