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Jura ENA Micro 90 Review

Updated Nov 12th, 2018 11:26AM EST

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As a Jura coffee machine owner on and off over the last 10 years or so, I was eager to give the company’s new ENA Micro 90 a go. While I used to use larger super-automatic models like the C9, I have gravitated to the ENA line out of footprint size. I don’t drink more than one to two cups a day, I don’t have to make coffee for more than myself and my wife, and I’m fine with not having manual control over something like the milk frother. The ENA Micro 90 improves many things about the ENA models that came before it. It’s a full-featured machine that includes new features such as Jura’s P.E.P. — pulse extraction process. This dramatically affects the espresso’s final product by utilizing 15 bars of pressure, higher than the minimum of around 10 bars, and pulsing the water into the coffee grounds lending a much more robust and rich flavor.

The key thing about automatic coffee machines is that they perform bean-to-cup preparation automatically, which includes grinding the coffee beans, tamping and finally extracting the coffee. Because such machines grind whole coffee beans fresh for each cup, they’re regarded as a step up from capsule machines in terms of quality of taste. Grinding right before a cup is brewed is the ideal to ensure the highest quality flavor and aromas, and you certainly get that with Jura’s machines that also give you choice in terms of things like coffee strength.

The ENA Micro 90 prepares specialty coffees which can range from 0.5 oz to up to 2.7 oz., and its pulse extraction process among other things guarantees the highest quality aroma and best extraction time even for drinks like espressos. The machine’s “One-Touch” technology also means you can create specialty drinks like latte macchiatos at the touch of a button, and you also get the benefit of advanced fine foam technology that ensures fine, light milk foam for every brew. The machine is also compact, so you can fit it into a small space. It’s a little more than a foot tall, 9.1 inches wide and weighs just under 21 pounds. It also comes with one 4.4-oz. bean container with an aroma preservation cover as well as a nearly 37-oz. water tank.

Among its other features, there’s a height-adjustable dual spout, hot water spout, height-adjustable hot water spout and a Cappuccino frother. You’re given 10 programmable levels of coffee strength, which can be adjusted for each preparation. And with the touch of a button, you can do anything from an integrated rinsing, cleaning and descaling to an automatic milk rinse or an integrated milk system cleaning.

I myself like making cappuccinos while my wife likes lattes, and making them both is a real treat. You first put your coffee cup below the adjustable spigot, connect your milk frothing pipe, press whichever coffee style you would like, and wait around a minute.

Looking at the hardware of the machine, it’s not too big at 9.1” x 17.5” x 12.7 and around 20 pounds.

I do find that the water reservoir size is a bit on the smaller side but that’s obviously due to the small amount of space the machine takes up on your counter and is one of the necessary tradeoffs. The same goes for the coffee bean hopper on top, but with my use, I don’t have to reload it more than once every week or so. I use the Jura water filter and find that replacing it at the suggested two month intervals works nicely for me.

Jura, which is based in Switzerland, actually sold 366,000 automatic speciality coffee machines last year, which was up 14 percent from the previous year. The company positions itself as the leader in cutting-edge automatic coffee machines in the US, with machines that can grind, tamp, brew and self-clean in under one minute. It was founded in 1931 and operates today in more than 50 markets and has been especially focused on brewing growth since the 1990s by making more java fans around the world familiar with products like the ENA Micro 90, which features a ceramic burr grinder with five adjustable settings.

The Jura ENA Micro 90 features a ceramic burr grinder with five adjustable settings.

I asked David Shull, Sr. Vice President of Sales & Marketing what were the recommended settings:

Because people have different tastes, JURA machines offer a variety of settings, all of which can be used with any type of coffee bean. Our preprogrammed
settings represent the most popular choices for brew strength and the number of ounces of coffee and milk for each specialty coffee beverage. For anyone who
wants a customized brew – stronger or milder, bigger or smaller, with a different ratio of coffee to milk – the machines make it easy to program your specialty just the way you want.

What is the market positioning of the ENA Micro 90, and what are its target demographics?

The ENA Micro 90 fits into JURA’s Entry Level range, because of its simplicity, compact design and easy, self-explanatory operation. This modern one-cup
machine has wide appeal, preparing a full range of specialties, from latte macchiato, cappuccino and milk foam to coffee, espresso or hot water – at the touch of a button.

The JURA ENA Micro 90 targets coffee lovers who want to experience barista-style quality at home. It targets Millennials with its trend-forward design,
unsurpassed coffee quality and outstanding energy efficiency. Because of its simplicity and compact size, it also appeals to downsizing Boomers and those
with smaller kitchens and less counter space.

Is there a general number on how many cups of coffee customers can make on Jura machines a day?

JURA’s recommended daily usage for the ENA Micro 90 is up to 30 cups per day. For the GIGA 5, a super-premium model, this is up to 75 cups per day. JURA machines are designed to operate 24/7 with proper maintenance. The user will need to refill water, add beans and empty the coffee grounds when prompted.

We are choosing to highlight the Jura ENA Micro 90 with a BGR seal of approval.

Jonathan S. Geller
Jonathan Geller Founder, President & Editor-in-chief

Jonathan S. Geller founded Boy Genius Report, now known as BGR, in 2006. It became the biggest mobile news destination in the world by the end of 2009, and BGR was acquired by leading digital media company PMC in April 2010.

Jonathan is President of BGR Media, LLC., and Editor-in-chief of the BGR website.

What started as a side project at the age of 16, quickly transpired into 24-hour days and nights of sharing exclusive and breaking news about the mobile communications industry. BGR now reaches up to 100 million readers a month through the website, syndication partners, and additional channels.