My Go-To Cappuccino Game Changer: A Review of the IKEA PRODUKT Capuccinatore

I spent the holidays with my parents, and we had a big family gathering. Everyone had eaten, and we were all chatting, so it was time for coffee and tea. Most of us opted for coffee, and my mom brought out two cappuccino makers so we could froth our own milk. I'd never used a cappuccino maker before, and it seemed like a luxury item, so I wasn't really paying attention. But when I saw it, I was intrigued. I used it to froth milk for my coffee, and it was a fun little gadget!

04.01.26 г. впервые делаю пенку ))) Мой первый кофе с пенкой от капучинатораMy mom was watching me get excited, and she handed me the other cappuccino maker, saying, 'Go ahead, kiddo, have fun!' So, I brought it home with me, and it's been my trusty sidekick ever since. It's the IKEA PRODUKT cappuccino maker.

My mom's had this cappuccino maker for three years now, and it's never let her down. I've been using it since January 4th, and it's been a daily companion. I use it whenever we have instant coffee, which is pretty much every day, sometimes three or four times a week. My parents used it too, but they have another one, so the workload was split between the two.The cappuccino maker is compact and easy to store in a kitchen cabinet. I place it on a flat, stable base with the whisk facing up. The body is black plastic, and it has the product name and a button that makes the whisk move. The button works smoothly, moving up and down (to turn off).

IKEA PRODUKT Milk Frother / IKEA PRODUKT Capuccinatore IKEA PRODUKT Milk Frother / IKEA PRODUKT CapuccinatoreI have to admit, when I'm using the capuccinatore, it makes a slightly annoying noise that reminds me of a dentist's drill. The plastic body also vibrates quite a bit in my hand when I'm whipping the milk, which can be a bit uncomfortable. But I'm not using it for hours on end - just a few minutes, and the foam is ready. So, I can live with those minor annoyances.

The base that came with the capuccinatore is long gone, but the plastic body is pretty obvious, and the metal whisk is a nice touch. I measured the dimensions using a ruler, and here's what I got: the capuccinatore is almost 20 cm tall, with a black body that's 3 cm wide and 2 cm deep. The whisk itself is 9.5 cm long, with a 2 cm diameter. It's a pretty small whisk, but the spring is nice and bouncy, and it stays securely in place.

whiskOne thing I noticed about the capuccinatore's design is the little compartment on the bottom, covered by a lid. That's where the tiny batteries that power the device live. The lid comes off easily enough, but getting the batteries out is a different story. It takes a bit of fiddling to get the first one out, and the second one's even trickier. But when you want to put them back in, it's a bit of a struggle to get the first one to sit right, so you've got to wrestle with the second one to get it to fit. Thankfully, the batteries last a long time - I've still got the ones my parents put in when they bought this thing. And yeah, batteries aren't included, you've got to buy them separately.

batteries☕️ I was trying to think of a way to show just how frothy the milk gets when you're making a cappuccino. Then I remembered my mom's old transparent cups, but I don't have any like that. So, here's what the froth looks like on a cappuccino without any plant-based milk added (let's just say I haven't had cow's milk in a long time, and my husband stopped drinking it too when he saw me eyeing it).

Here's the dissolved coffee without adding plant-based milk I also showed the results of the cappuccinator's work in my review of MONARCH CREMA coffee Velvet Foam and Jacobs Monarch Intense coffee. But in all this, you can't see the foam on the side of the cup. I thought for a moment and took transparent glasses (review of one of them, green here, and the other one is the same color, but blue, it broke in December last year....

I whipped up the resulting drink with the cappuccinator. I added a bit of water, because when the whisk is working, the liquid rises up the sides of the glass (it's the same in the cup) and if you're not careful, it splashes everywhere. So, to make a coffee with foam, it's better not to fill the glass/cup completely. I tried doing it that way, and as expected, most of the drink ended up on the table. A bigger part of the drink splashed due to the interaction between the cappuccinator and it.

And here's how beautiful the foam looks on the coffee, and I'll show what happens if you add plant-based milk to the glass/cup.

I work as a barista, and I have to say that the foam from my capuccinatore always ends up looking pretty meh. I've tried adding milk to the coffee before frothing it, and I've even tried adding a splash of non-dairy milk to the coffee after frothing it, but the result is always the same.

When I add non-dairy milk to the drink after frothing it, the foam from the capuccinatore ends up sinking to the bottom

I've tried frothing coffee with my capuccinatore using not just instant coffee, but also freshly ground coffee from my chestnut coffee and recently purchased coffee beans. I grind the coffee beans in my coffee grinder before brewing it in a French press.

☕ I've included photos of the foam from different types of coffee. I used four different types: coffee beans, two instant coffees, and chestnut coffee.

I also added one teaspoon of coffee to each cup and brewed it. I used hot water for the instant coffee, and brewed the coffee beans and chestnut coffee in a French press.

Drinks are ready Next, I turned on the espresso machine. This is how foam forms for each type of coffee. "Dubrey" and grainy foam won't work. I'm frothing the espresso machine for "Dubrey" coffee (without milk) Jacobs Monarch Intense coffee MONARCH CREMA coffee - velvety foam Natural roasted coffee beans "Black Card" Everything's ready, the espresso machine did a great job.

Foam made with an espresso machine. I was frothing just coffee without adding milk Now I'm adding plant-based milk and frothing the coffee again. I'm doing it step by step, from one cup to the next. The foam is sad, shrinking in size, settling.

I added plant-based milk to my coffee The foam settled, and my coffee with milk after using the capuccinatore✍️ I'm wrapping things up

I've really been enjoying using the IKEA PRODUKT capuccinatore to get foam on my coffee. It's quick and easy to use, and the result is a smooth, velvety texture that makes the drink feel more premium and delicious. The principle behind it is simple, even a kid could understand it. I've been using it without any issues - the only minor drawbacks are the sound and vibration, but that's not a big deal.

Thanks for reading!