Lelit Victoria PL91T Espresso Machine

Yes, it has pre-infusion, which you switch on or off from the LCC: it wets the coffee for a few seconds before the actual extraction, compacting the puck and improving the flow. From the same menu you set the coffee and hot water temperature and the steam temperature, and you find the dose counter, partial and total: only the partial count can be reset.

To open the menu press the − button, which scrolls through the settings; press + and the setting flashes, then change it with − and +. Three seconds after your last press the LCC saves and exits. To switch between °C and °F, hold + and − together for about 3 seconds until «C-F» appears, then press +. It is all on pages 9-10 and 17 of the manual.

The Victoria has a single boiler, which has to be brought up to temperature for steam: press the steam button (4) and wait for the bar on the display to fill and the steam icon to appear. With the wand pointing at the grate, open the knob to let the first water out, close it when steam comes out, put the milk jug underneath and open it again. When you finish, close the knob and press button 4 again to go back to coffee; if you do not use steam for a while, the machine goes back by itself. After every use, let a little steam out and clean the wand with a sponge or clean cloth.

For hot water press button 5 and open the knob; when you have enough, close the knob and press 5 again. It stops by itself after a preset time: to get more, repeat. It is all on pages 15-16 of the manual.

Yes, that is standby: after 30 minutes without use, the display and heating element switch off and the coffee button (3) flashes every 3 seconds. To wake it, press button 3 again; as at switch-on, wait for the bar on the display to fill and «Ok» to appear before making coffee. Standby is on page 14 and switching on on page 15 of the manual.

Both are Lelit single boilers with a LELIT58 group, a three-way valve and one wand for steam and hot water. The Victoria3 is the new generation:

• Pressure control: the Victoria3 has the Pagaia and two pressure profiles you can programme in 5 steps; on the Victoria, pre-infusion is switched on or off from the menu.
• Coffee buttons: two on the Victoria3, each with its own programmable shot time; one on the Victoria, with a timer on the display.
• Group and boiler: a new saturated LELIT58 group with a stainless steel heating element and a 200 ml brass coffee boiler on the Victoria3; the LELIT58 commercial group and a 300 ml boiler on the Victoria.
• Also on the Victoria3: a new silent pump, LED lights on the group, a 3-hole tip and a 70 litre water softener instead of 35.

To prevent limescale, use the Lelit 35 litre resin water softener, which you find in the box: it goes in the tank and holds back the calcium and magnesium salts that form limescale and change the taste of the coffee. After a certain number of litres it loses its effect, so replace it regularly following the instructions on its packaging. The Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) guidelines point the same way: clean, odour-free water with a low but not zero mineral content. The guidance is on page 23 of the manual.

It depends on how much you use it, but as a rule:

• after every espresso run a little water through the group (flush): it clears coffee residue from the shower screen;
• every day backflush with the blind filter and water only;
• every 1-2 weeks, more often if you use it a lot, backflush with espresso machine detergent.

Do not overdo the detergent: even in small amounts, over time it strips the grease from the gaskets and O-rings and dries them out.

On the Victoria the backflush is automatic: put the blind filter in the portafilter and lock it in, then hold the coffee button (3) and within 2 seconds press the hot water button (5); a drop flashes on the display until the cycle ends. When you use detergent, 3.5 g in the blind filter is enough; when the cycle ends, remove the portafilter, rinse it with water from the group (button 3), clean the group and gasket with a brush and repeat the cycle without detergent. The procedure is on pages 23-24 of the manual.

Not this version: the Victoria PL91T is rated 220-240 V and 50 Hz, so it is for 220-240 V, 50 Hz mains. For 60 Hz mains Lelit makes versions with different model codes.

Before ordering, check the voltage and frequency at home: if your mains is 60 Hz, even at 220 V, the PL91T is not the right one. Choose the version that matches your mains from those on sale on this page; if the one you need is not there, write to us.