JURA S8 REVIEW: AN EXPERT LOOK AT THIS AUTOMATIC COFFEE MACHINE

The mid-premium Jura S8 strikes a nice balance between affordability and technology.

Swiss brand Jura is never one to rest on its laurels, always improving its technology and expanding its product line. The Jura S8 is a relatively recent addition to the roster, introduced in 2018 to bridge the gap between the expensive premium machines and the more affordable basic models.

I picked up an S8 curious to see if it would hit the mark. Is it the best of both worlds or less than the sum of its parts? How does it compare to the best-selling Jura E8? This review has my verdict.

The Full Jura S8 Espresso Machine Review

The Jura S8 super-automatic coffee machine was designed to fill the space (both in price and performance) between the popular mid-level Jura E8 and the upper-end Jura Giga and Z lines – a market Jura calls mid-premium (1). Let’s see how it performs.

How I Rated It

• Design
• Brewing System
• Coffee Quality and Versatility
• Cleaning and Maintenance
• Value for Money

4.2

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Timeless (And Award-Winning) Swiss Design

Swiss-made Jura machines are among the top fully automatic espresso machines, known for their sleek designs and above-average build quality. 

The S8 delivers on this reputation. It’s a beautiful machine with the brand’s signature clean lines and modern look. The Jura S8 is available in three finishes: standard Piano Black, premium Chrome, and (my favorite) a lovely dark taupe called Dark Inox.

There are a few high-quality accents that I overlooked in photos but that struck me once I had the machine up and running. The chrome-plated cup grill on the drip tray and subtle grooved lines on the water tank are stylish additions. 

I appreciated the details that added to the quality even more. The handle of the water reservoir is metal, not plastic – a common breaking point in cheaper machines. The lid of the bean hopper is made from heavy die-cast zinc. This makes it durable, and the added weight ensures an excellent seal for keeping your beans fresh while muffling the volume of the grinder.

Nicely Compact

The concept of the S line is to offer the key features of the larger models but in the smaller footprint of the E line. This compact machine measures 11″ wide by 13.7″ high by 17.5″ deep, making it easy to keep under upper cupboards. 

I appreciate that the 64-ounce water reservoir is removable via the front or the side. So if you are keeping this machine under your upper cupboards, there’s no need to slide it out to remove the water tank from the top.

Full Color Touchscreen Display

The display is the first obvious “premium” feature you’ll notice on this machine. The 4.3″ full-color touchscreen display makes this model a joy to use – a notable upgrade from the smaller T.F.T. display on the E8.

Swipe through to see color images of available coffee drinks, and customize each using sliders. Fun graphics and animations guide you through brewing and maintenance tasks. 

It also features Jura Smart Connect, so you can connect to it with Bluetooth and run it via Jura’s J.O.E. app on your phone. Preparing a great-tasting coffee or milky drink can be as simple as saying, “Siri, make me a flat white.”

These design features made the Jura S8 a Red Dot Design Award winner in 2018, with the jury stating that it “gains merit with a contrasting, high-value design and a very self-explanatory user interface (2).”

Brewing With The Jura S8

Every drink prepared by the Jura S8 starts with freshly ground coffee beans, thanks to the integrated burr grinder. This feature distinguishes fully automatic coffee machines from capsule brewers like Nespresso, and it makes a huge difference in flavor (3).

The new edition of the Jura S8 uses the Professional Aroma (P.A.G.2) grinder, the brand’s latest generation coffee grinder. It’s fast, quiet, and allows easy user adjustment of grind settings. I noticed it also switches into a standby mode when not in use, which is sure to help with longevity. 

The bean hopper can hold up to 10 ounces, and there is a bypass chute that skips the grinder if you want to use pre-ground coffee beans. This is nice if you like to brew an occasional cup of decaf, sample a different roast, or enjoy a flavored coffee.

The New 3D Brewing System

The original Jura S8 was touted as having the patented Pulse Extraction Process coffee brewing system (P.E.P.). It uses pulses of hot water rather than a steady stream, which optimizes extraction in shorter drinks like espresso particularly (4). Seven years later, the P.E.P. system is available in every Jura, and the S8 has added the more advanced 3D Brewing System. 

The details of the 3D Brewing System are, of course, closely guarded. But as far as I can gather, it pulses water through the grounds at multiple levels, ensuring a more evenly extracted and full-bodied brew. Whatever they’re doing, it works. The black coffee drinks I sampled from this model were incredibly rich and flavorful.

The S8 model has some excellent environmentally friendly features. The auto-off is programmable from 30 minutes to 9 hours, and a Zero-Energy Switch means that the machine draws no power when not in use.

Drink Options: Highly Customizable To Your Taste

When I reviewed the first-generation S8 a few years ago, it offered an impressive 15 pre-programmed specialty coffees. The new Jura S8 can make 27 delicious coffee drinks!

• The black drinks, each of which can be made in duplicate, are espresso, coffee, lungo, and Americano. Interestingly, the ristretto option has been removed. Perhaps it wasn’t popular. 

• The milk-based espresso drink options are the cortado, espresso macchiato, cappuccino, flat white, and latte macchiato – either with or without an extra shot. 
• There are also a few non-coffee drinks: milk, milk foam, and hot water.

Just as exciting as the pre-programmed options is the degree to which each is customizable. You can change the coffee volume for every drink, choose between ten coffee strength settings, and adjust between 3 brewing temperatures. You can also control the milk volume and texture. You can create, name, and save up to 15 custom coffee recipes using these options. 

Milk Frothing And Sweet Foam

The Jura S8 coffee maker uses the HP3 professional fine foam frother for milk texturing. It produces impressively silky frothed milk and includes a manual adjustment lever that lets you control the hot milk texture from creamy milk foam to airy froth (5).

You can add a syrup of your choosing, which is automatically incorporated into the milk foam of any drink. This is the only brand – to my knowledge – that can make you a pumpkin spice latte at the touch of a button. Impressive!

The S8 has two coffee spout systems depending on what drink you’re making. The middle of the machine sports a double spout for preparing straight espresso and coffee drinks – allowing you to prepare one or two at a time. Drinks with coffee and milk are made on the machine’s right using a single spout, so you can only make one at a time. But the same spout produces coffee and frothed milk, so there is no need to move your cup. 

You can quickly move the milk spouts up and down to accommodate different mug sizes in both cases. The milk spout can go higher, up to 6 inches, to fit taller latte glasses.

Does The Jura S8 Make Good Coffee?

Super-automatic coffee machines aren’t generally known for the quality of the coffee. Coffee geeks will be quick to point out that they can’t match the skills of a trained professional barista, and that is undeniably true. But thanks to many patented technologies, the best Jura coffee makers perform well above average (6). That’s why they’re so expensive – and often worth it.

The shots of espresso are sweet, smooth, and full-bodied. They have a thin but noticeable layer of crema accompanying the rich mouthfeel that defines a properly extracted espresso.

You can brew with up to 16 grams of coffee at a time, while many machines max out at 10 grams. (A Nespresso pod only holds 5 to 7 grams!) This is especially valuable if you enjoy milky drinks, as lower-dose espresso shots can get lost in the dairy.

The Jura Cleaning Protocol

There are pros and cons to owning and maintaining a Jura coffee machine. On the pro side, these coffee makers are virtually foolproof. The color display alerts you to all necessary upkeep. It tells you when the water tank is empty, when the coffee grounds bin is full, when the hopper is out of beans, and when cleaning cycles are required.

The Jura S8 coffee maker also uses the Jura CLEARYL Smart Filters, an intelligent water system that monitors the status of the filters and the brew water. It lets you know when the water filter needs replacement. And provided you perform this upkeep as required, you should never need to descale – a big win.

The downside is the cost. Jura coffee machines don’t come apart for easy cleaning. To clean the brew group, you need to purchase Jura cleaning tablets and run a cleaning cycle. Likewise, you are supposed to perform a nightly rinse with a Jura cleaning solution to sterilize the milk system. These tasks aren’t complex because they’re automated, but they can become tiresome and add product costs.

Is The Jura S8 Worth Its Price?

The latest edition of the S8 is surprisingly great value, perhaps because it is often on sale. At many retailers I checked, it wasn’t priced much higher than the Jura E8 (if at all), despite offering significant upgrades like a touch screen, sweet milk froth, and an additional 12 one-touch drinks.

You also may want to budget for some add-ons. The Jura S8 uses a milk siphon system, which draws milk for frothing from a separate vessel. I like the practicality of this design, which minimizes milk waste and makes it easy to switch milks between drinks. Jura makes a popular but pricey refrigerated milk container to accompany this system or a more basic carafe designed to be stored in the fridge between uses.

A nice thing about Jura automatic coffee machines, which I would say is true of very few other super automatic machines, is that they are so well made you can often find refurbished models at deeply discounted prices. The renewed machines might have some scuffs or scratches, but they’re certified to be in perfect working order, and Juras can easily last upward of a decade when cared for properly.

Don’t Buy the Jura S8 Coffee Machine If…

• You’re on a tight budget: The Jura S8 automatic coffee machine is a high-tech marvel, but that comes at a cost. For something a little simpler that still makes great coffee, check out the more budget-friendly Jura E6. Alternatively, the Italian brand Gaggia has a storied reputation and a few impressive super-automatic models. Read my Gaggia Brera review and Gaggia Anima Prestige reviews for two great options well under half the cost of the S8.
• You need a larger capacity: If you’re looking for an office coffee machine, the compact footprint of the S8 might not appeal. It’s probably worth shelling out the big bucks for one of Jura’s higher-end models, like the Jura Giga W3. It’s not cheap, but this monster has 43 pre-programmed drinks and a 169-ounce water reservoir – guaranteed to boost office morale!
• You don’t want a fully automatic coffee machine: If reading this review has left you considering an automatic or semi-automatic espresso machine that lets you showcase your barista skills, there are many great options around the same price as the Jura S8.
  
  Check out the popular Profitec Pro 600 for a high-end double boiler option. Or consider a more basic double boiler like the Lelit Elizabeth, which will leave enough money in your pocket to invest in a quality grinder.

The Verdict

The Jura S8 is an undeniably excellent super-automatic espresso machine. After extensive testing, I feel like it fulfills its promise to outperform the lower-end models without totally draining your bank account like the top-of-the-line options. It’s practical and easy to use, and I was suitably impressed with the extractions achieved by the new 3D Brewing System.

That said, one of the major perks of this model is the Sweet Foam addition. If you’re a coffee lover who never craves a sweetened cortado or a vanilla latte, you could probably find better value from something like the E8, E6, or ENA8.

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