Terra Kaffe - Demi (TK Demi)

Max volume on drip setting reads 15.4 oz. My wife has used French press forever and I was looking for a step up from Keurig and Nespresso. We are only a week into the Demi, but so far we are both impressed.

The promotional price of the Demi dropped to $545 for Black Friday. Unfortunately for me they would not offer me any credit an all against my $695 purchase price two weeks ago. Very disappointing. I am within my 30 day trial and considering a return.

Piece of junk. Horrible customer service. Way under staffed company. Took forever to get a return label on a defective machine. Still awaiting refund. Absolutely zero printed machine trouble shooting. I went with Delonghi. Far better product than Demi.

I got my Demi a few weeks ago. It's my first bean to cup espresso machine and I must say it's been a real pleasure to use, definitely an upgrade from my old (but reliable) drip maker. I normally just make Americanos and Drip so it really fits my needs. The drinks are really hot, I have tried to make them cooler to some extent, but still working through all the controls. I got the black (slate) machine and must say it's easy to keep clean and looks great in real life.

Thank you for this got mine yesterday and can’t get JT espresso quite right - too acidic. I’m going to try lungo now

Ordered mine from Amazon because they had the same $200 coupon (and I had some gift cards there) and I can return or replace it through Jan 31, 2026. So far it's been great, with good espressos! We also wanted a machine that could do beans to drip, and this has done it - but we have been using the Americano option more often. I was a bit frustrated/concerned with the lack of instructions, written or online. You have to play with it and find your way through experimentation.

For other people that are looking and may want some guidance or experiences (I don't know why no one here is going into detail on grind sizes, strength, etc). I've tried two different beans with the machine (a medium espresso roast and TK's light roast option, I guess dark roasts are more traditional for espresso but I like light roasts). IME it definitely needs the max setting for espresso. I don't know why this is (maybe to do with the coffee to water ratio - I kept it at default 1.6 oz), but the "high" (and I assume lower strengths) taste overly acidic with both roasts I tried. I've tried grind sizes from 1-4 on high and didn't notice much of a difference at 3 or below. Greater than 3 was definitely too coarse for espresso. Only thing to really dial in now is grind size, on max. I've tried size 1 on max so far and it was significantly better than 1-3 grind size on high. 2 or 3 on max might be better than 1, it may be very coffee dependent, IDK. Main takeaway for me is I wouldn't go for anything less than max for espresso / lungo options. High just tastes bad. It tastes similar to some bad espresso I've had in the past. The machine is beautiful (definitely the most elegant at this price point, and probably more beautiful than even much more expensive espresso makers), and the UI is excellent / cool. Not super impressed with the espresso so far even at the "deal" for $500, there may be better makers at this price point especially if you want to go into less automated options. I really want to love the machine because it is gorgeous and has a great UI (and TK has had great customer service so far), hopefully it can deliver. I could tell smart people spent time designing it, but the coffee is just ehh so far. I don't know why the default settings on this thing were so bad. Not sure why there is a low, medium, high when only the max tastes any good (though maybe I should try below high at least once...). Also the hot water is only 150 F which is too low for the tea I like, unfortunate. Maybe needs more experimentation. I don't like experimenting with coffee that much, beyond trying different methods (have done a lot of pour over, cold brew, and moka pot - mainly preferred moka pot). I'm not really a coffee snob, I just like decent actual coffee. I wanted a beautiful, simple (no wifi enabled junk or apps), milk-less automatic that doesn't require much fiddling or experimentation. IDK if I'll keep this. The ninja luxe is semi automatic (maybe not the right term for it) that guides you to quickly find "good enough" settings. That might be more my speed. I don't mind doing more physically, I just don't want to spend time fiddling with settings, manually grinding, or learning fine motor movements to make a decent espresso.

Yeah from what I gather, the brew ratio (ratio of coffee to water) is an important variable. I've found max strength (which uses the max amount of coffee) to be a must. I did try lowering and increasing the shot volume to also affect the ratio that way at max strength, but it didn't do much so I kept it at 1.6 oz. I kept grind size at 1 because even at this highest grind size the straight espresso shots taste somewhat acidic (I'm guessing under extracted but I'm a noob to espresso). New thing I found is that using a medium roast makes a big difference compared to light. Light roast espresso on this thing tastes like biting into a lemon, horrible (keep in mind I was using the light roast espresso sold by TK in the deal). Unfortunate for me as light roasts are my favorite. I think to do light roast espressos you need a much better grinder setup or something, IDK. I guess you need to stick with medium or dark roasts to get better tasting coffee out this machine.

I reluctantly tried  the demi on the owner's word (reddit posts) that the grinder can grind finer if needed with "extra calibration".  I wanted it for the small footprint.  It's not so much the failure rate of TK machines which any machine could have, but it was the coffee quality which is terribly weak in the highest settings.  For context I have had a traditional espresso machine for the better part of my adult life. I am not expecting that level of quality espresso but was expecting something that resembled espresso. I agree with another poster that it's similar to a k cup, maybe a tad better.  The demi doesn't brew espresso and it wasn't necessary good coffee either.  I don't understand the people who are enjoying 6 ounces of coffee from the Demi because 6 ounces of coffee would taste like water.  Any coffee larger than 2 ounces became weak quick.  Speaking with customer service to fine tune the grinder was a gigantic waste of time.  I was not able to get a noticeable stronger drink with added fine tuning. It seemed like TK already knew this but was leading me on a wild goose chase.  I paid the $50 restocking fee and returned it based on brew quality.  The overall look and feel to the Demi did not give me a feeling of anything particularly well made however that can be subjective, I am not a expert.  The only other experience I have with a super automatic is with a neighbors Delonghi which is generally fine. I would be wary of positive reviews or reviewers defending this machine. Ask yourself is the $50 restocking fee really worth trying it?  

Just got my Demi: Fast review with more later if I remember: Cool machine - just the one dial which, when you push and turn allows for adjustments to the drinks. It does not come with a water filter - gotta buy one. Fairly quite hoper- decent size but small. Same for water- but sufficient. A few minor adjustments to grind and it produces beautiful thick creama. I like it strong so went to MAX setting Machine works great - has a clock and timer but haven’t played with it yet

Not in front of the machine but can provide later. You can turn the dial to increase the dose and/or intensity. I think it’s set at 1.5 oz, but I always use Lungo. I used the Drip setting this morning for my 3rd cup ( not ashamed at my addiction) and that was also terrific. I automatically changed the grind settings to a small grind but realize now that I’ve made the drinks a bit too strong / if that’s possible. So far it’s been terrific - just saw that they lowered th price another $50 and added a bag of coffee to the deal. I’m a bit bummed but oh well. So far so good. Can’t complain about the aesthetics - it’s very nice looking on the counter with the digital clock ( old school big yellow dots!)

Sure - I’ve owned the Delonghi machines in the past. Had two, both super automatic. Presently own a Philips super auto - that I thought stopped working … almost pulled the trigger on a Jura after a demo but the representative said that the machine never needs to be cleaned- I kind of doubted that and for $1200 - I don’t want to take the chance. Saw the Terra Kaffe online and read about the startup — I’m a sucker for new products and the Demi hit all the marks: smaller footprint, no frother - that I never use, and a simple dial that my wife can easily operate without remembering the combo of buttons to press to get her favorite cup…

https://preview.redd.it/lv48x4xceq1g1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=12fd638af39e37d250f84f8d16a96b0fae9e7328 Range it .8 to 4.8 OZ for an espresso shot

I’m going to go out on a limb - now that I’ve made about 15 cups of various kinds, and state that- even with the bean hopper set to the largest setting ( a first for me) the Demi makes as good a cup of espresso or Lungo as any that I’ve had before- and that includes all of my previous machine both super auto- and manual machines. I’ll include my three visits to Italy where I visited incredible coffee shops and various espresso bars ( Milan’s train station being one of the best places !) The Demi - if it lasts and doesn’t break - is a fine fine machine and any coffee snob would be happy to own one

Probably made 40-50 various cups now. Makes a very hot cup of joe. Excellent crema even when selecting “drip” mode or Americano. Spent pucks look great. Solid and well soaked without disintegrating in the waste bin- which I like to see.

I’ve turned the grind knob to the largest setting and it’s helped a lot - really happy

Dude it’s a steal - get one before they raise the price. I’m pleased with mine - I’ve probably owned 10 machines over 30 years - all mid to high end … Demi rocks

Just happen to be on Reddit rn…/ Yeah, so far it’s been pretty damn good. Shot count over 350. Descaled twice Removed the “guts” twice to rinse Doesn’t get nearly as dirty as my old Philips semi auto Like any machine; coffee bean and grind setting matter… I’ve played around with it and unless the coffee is shit, it’s hard to make a bad cup no matter what style you pick and how you mess with the settings ( more or less water and coffee) it makes a tasteful cup every time. So yeah still happy with purchase -

I have the machine - delivered this afternoon. I’m very been making and drink quality espresso drinks for decades. It’s the real deal… full stop.

Hi, just wanted to check in- I got mine too and the first couple of days the drinks were really hot! But now they’re cooler than usual. I’m trying to guess if it’s my cold tap water or my cold mugs etc. Any help would be appreciated!

It’s a bummer they force the coffee subscription for a better discount…..

Oh well that’s helpful, considering I actually bought a machine! Hahahaa