Really improves the quality of the coffee, and it looks good.
Positive Product Points
Lovely. It really does make a difference to the coffee. Very easy to use, and good to look at.
Negative Product Points
Slightly expensive. It's aluminium rather than stainless, so if I manage to drop it on something hard it won't like it.
Detailed Commentary
I bought this tamper from the Vivace Roasteria whilst on holiday in the area. I originally bought it just as a replacement for the pathetic thing Gaggia ship with the Classic, thinking I may as well get something that looked cool, even though it really wouldn't be any better than the bottom of a suitably sized bottle... I was wrong about the bottle - the Ergo Packer is superb, and really does make a difference to the consistency of the coffee. It makes cleaning up easier as well, since the puck just drops out in one piece. The lines on the side are useful for checking dosing as well. This product does seem expensive for a tamper, but I believe it's well worth the money. A stainless steel (as opposed to Aluminium) version would be good, since it would be more hardwearing, although it would probably be rather more expensive as well. Hopefully I'll manage to avoid denting it.
Buying Experience
Slightly marred by the fact I was in Seattle with the intention of catching a plane to the UK on the 13th September 2001. The only reason I have this tamper is that my plane was cancelled for a few days. Anyway, not only did I manage to buy a tamper, the coffee I had was incredible.
