Review: Casabrews' Neutron Pro Espresso Machine Is A Good Buy For Budding Coffee Enthusiasts

Whether you're an aspiring barista or you've been a player in the coffee game for a while now, there's a decent chance you've at least scoured the market of home espresso machines. They can be a hit or miss, and given their often hefty costs, you'll want to do your due diligence before deciding which one to invest in. I tested the Casabrews Neutron Pro, a semi-automatic home espresso machine with a steam wand attachment, to see whether it's worth the price tag. Having been in the coffee industry for over a decade, I'm no newbie to brewing espresso, and I was curious to see whether this machine would match up to renowned home espresso machine brands.

No matter which type of machine you're after, there are a few specs you should look for when you're shopping around. First, you should make sure your machine pulls shots with at least nine bars of pressure. It should also brew at a temperature of about 200 degrees Fahrenheit. And if you're looking for a machine with an attached steam wand, you'll want it to have a double boiler system. Buying a machine that comes with a coffee grinder will save you from having to buy a grinder separately. 

Ultimately, with these key features in mind, Casabrews' Neutron Pro may fill the needs of some consumers while potentially falling short for others. It all depends on what you want in a home espresso machine. 

Some recommendations are based on first-hand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer/distributor/etc.

The Casabrews Neutron Pro comes with all the accessories you'll need to brew espresso, as well as a couple cleaning and assembly tools, a hot water nozzle, and a milk steaming wand. You'll get a coffee scoop, milk pitcher, 58-millimeter portafilter, tamper, and four filters — two double wall filters that can pull a single or double shot, and two single wall filters that do the same. It has a removable water reservoir on the back that can hold 91 ounces of water, and the drip tray and its screen are removable for easy cleaning. Its buttons are pre-programmed to brew an americano, single espresso, or double espresso. 

As far as the machine itself, its specs are pretty decent even for a seasoned espresso enthusiast. It's built with a double boiler (which makes it easier to pull shots and steam milk at the same time) and has a 20-bar pressure system. It doesn't get as hot as some would like; the company only guarantees a hot water temperature of 185 degrees Fahrenheit. 

However, the machine doesn't come with an attached grinder, so it won't be a solo investment — you'll have to buy a quality espresso grinder to go along with it. This may be a great choice for someone with a mid-range budget who already has a home espresso grinder. But if you're looking for an all-in-one machine, it could be worth spending the extra couple hundred on one that comes with a built-in espresso grinder.

Casabrews' Neutron Pro is currently priced at $499.99 on both Amazon and Casabrews' website. That's about what you should expect to pay for a starter home espresso setup (not including a grinder), and given the customization options of this machine, the price doesn't seem outlandish. If you happen to have a big budget, I would without hesitation recommend opting for a more expensive, higher-quality machine from a reputable brand with proven longevity (Casabrews has only been in operation since 2020). If you find this on a Black Friday sale, Prime Day sale, or can get it with a coupon, it will be more worth spending your hard-earned dollar on.

If you're still on the fence after reading this article, it might help to know that the machine comes with a one-year warranty, as well as a 30-day money back guarantee. If you buy it, use it, and don't like it, it wouldn't be a total loss. However, returning this bad boy could be a pain, so if you're choosing between this and an espresso machine from a brand like Breville with more bells and whistles, it may pay off to go with the more expensive one.

Setting up the Casabrews Neutron Pro espresso machine was incredibly simple. After removing the plastic covering on the components, you'll have to give them a quick wash and fully dry them, fill the water tank, and power the machine on. Before the first use, it will prompt you to "flush" it — put a cup underneath the group head and press the "single" button. Water will flush through the machine for 30 seconds, after which you can start brewing espresso. 

You don't need to do any setup beyond this — the machine comes preprogrammed and ready to go. But if you want to dive deeper, this is a good time to familiarize yourself with the machine's settings. It's decently customizable, which I appreciate, as it will allow you to dial in the machine differently depending on what beans you're brewing. You can program the size of a single espresso to be between 30-60 milliliters, and double shot espresso can range between 70-105 milliliters. You can also choose between three preset temperatures for brewing espresso, steaming milk, and dispensing hot water. 

Feel free to mess around with these settings as much as you'd like. The "reset defaults" option makes it easy to revert to the preprogrammed settings should you accidentally mess something up.

First things first — choose which basket to use in your portafilter. I ended up using the larger double wall basket after trying a few times, because it pulled my shots at a higher pressure than the single wall basket. Change the basket depending on what size shot you're pulling. Single shots will utilize the smaller baskets, while double shots will require the larger ones. Then, weigh and grind your espresso, put it in the portafilter, and tamp it. The tamper that comes with the Casabrews Neutron Pro machine is spring-loaded, but it's not one of the better spring-loaded tampers I've used; since both it and the portafilter are the standard 58-millimeter size, feel free to shop around for one of the best tampers on the market if you'd like. 

Press the button that corresponds with the shot you want to pull. The screen will show you how long it takes to pull the shot, as well as how many bars of pressure are being used, both of which will help you dial in your shot for a better espresso. If your espresso pulls too fast and below five bars, you may either need to grind it finer, tamp it harder, or raise the volume of grounds in your brew basket. 

Ideally, your espresso should start flowing a few seconds after you press the button to brew. And it should flow from the portafilter into the cup in a thick, steady stream that produces a nice layer of crema on top. 

Admittedly, the biggest headache I encountered when using this Neutron Pro machine was figuring out which basket to use in the portafilter. Though Casabrews' manual says to use single wall filters for freshly ground coffee and double wall filters for pre-ground coffee, the single wall filter consistently pulled my shots at under two bars of pressure. I fiddled around with the grind size, tamp pressure, and coffee volume to no avail. Finally, I switched to the double wall filter and that seemed to do the trick; my shots were now consistently pulling between seven and nine bars.

Once I worked out that kink, brewing was a no-brainer. I actually didn't have to change any of the settings of the espresso machine's brew group to pull a great shot. The shot flowed evenly from each spout in the portafilter with a thick, honey-like consistency. A double shot pulled at about 28 seconds with a gorgeous, layered texture (see the above photo), and it tasted creamy and well-balanced, neither too sour nor too bitter. 

My one complaint is that this won't be hot enough for some consumers. The espresso brewed at about 140 degrees Fahrenheit, which is perfect if you want to sip right away but not so great if you prefer your espresso to be piping hot.

To be frank, I wasn't expecting much from this steam wand. I often find that steam wands on home machines aren't pressurized enough to steam milk efficiently and produce quality microfoam, even for seasoned baristas. The steam wand on Casabrews' Neutron Pro espresso machine pleasantly surprised me by being super beginner friendly. Don't expect it to steam as powerfully as a commercial machine; but for a home machine, it does a very decent job at steaming milk with very little room for user error.

Steaming is as simple as filling the pitcher with milk, placing it under the steam wand, sitting back, and letting the steam wand do its thing. If you're accustomed to working with other machines, the first thing you'll notice is that it doesn't boast a high pressure, and it took about a minute to steam the milk in my pitcher to 140 degrees Fahrenheit. I do appreciate that the machine's screen shows you the temperature of the milk as you're steaming — I think it's a bit of an unnecessary feature (as is the timer that displays when you're steaming), but cool nonetheless and useful for beginners. 

Best of all, even though the machine was doing all the work for me, it still produced a decent microfoam. It came out a bit thicker than I'd like, and I imagine with some trial and error I could hone in the steaming technique more, but it's promising that the first pass at steaming with this machine did this good of a job.

Fortunately, a quick glance at the Neutron Pro's manual will take the guesswork out of how to clean this espresso machine. All in all, this machine doesn't need more maintenance than other home espresso machines would, and most of the cleaning functions are already pre-set in the machine's system. You'll only really need to use some elbow grease when washing various elements of the machine, like the drip tray, portafilter, and baskets — all of which should be washed by hand with a sponge and soapy water. 

As for how often to clean your espresso machine, Casabrews recommends flushing the machine on a weekly basis. All this takes is inserting an empty portafilter into the group head and navigating to the "flush" cycle on the machine's menu — it will do the rest. You'll want to descale your machine monthly to reduce buildup of limescale and keep your espresso machine in tip-top shape. The descaling function is also preprogrammed as one of the machine's menu options; all you need to do is fill the water tank with water and a descaler made for coffee machines, and the machine's manual will guide you through the rest. 

The other elements clean as expected. The group head is easily maintained by wiping it with a wet cloth after each use, while the steam wand should be purged and wiped after each use, and the drip tray needs to be emptied and washed regularly.

If you have the cash on hand and you're in the market for a good, easy-to-use, mid-range home espresso machine, I'd say Casabrews' Neutron Pro is a good buy. It's just customizable enough to grow with the budding coffee enthusiast — its default settings will produce a good espresso and steam milk at the push of a button, and as you learn more about adjusting your brew volume and temperature preferences, you can fiddle with the machine accordingly. The information the screen shows while you're brewing and steaming (how long a shot takes to pull, the pressure being used, and the steam temperature) provides useful bits of information that, though ultimately unnecessary, can come in handy as you're learning about and honing in on brewing the perfect shot.

As for who shouldn't buy this espresso machine, experienced baristas with a bigger budget may not be the most impressed by it; if you can spend more money, there's no reason not to opt for a machine with a built-in grinder that has proven longevity. And as I mentioned before, this isn't just a $500 investment — it will cost more as you'll also have to invest in a good espresso grinder. 

So, who's the ideal customer for this espresso machine? Someone who is serious about getting into the coffee scene and willing to make an investment into some starting equipment, with the goal of graduating to more advanced machines when the time is right.