Rocket Espresso Appartamento TCA Review

Rocket Espresso is a company that’s all about new beginnings. Founded by entrepreneurs Jeff Kennedy and Andrew Meo as a reimagining of the historic ECM brand (that’s the Italian ECM by the way, not the German company), Rocket has always been bold and style centric. Following the rebranding from ECM that maintained the historic Cellini and Giotto lines, and the release of their first ever home dual boiler in the R58, Rocket’s next project birthed one of the most iconic heat exchanger machines ever made, the Appartamento.

With striking cutout panels and a low profile the machine has become a modern classic, which of course begs the question; how exactly does one modernize a modern classic? As the face of a new era for Rocket Espresso, the Appartamento TCA is a step forward in both aesthetics and functionality. The TCA in the name alludes to the machine’s most significant feature upgrade and is an abbreviation for “Temperature Control Adjustment,” which as you might have guessed refers to the ability to adjust the temperature inside the boiler.

What is Temperature Control Adjustment

The namesake of the model, the TCA’s Temperature Control Adjustment uses an NTC (Negative Temperature Coefficient) probe to regulate the temperature inside the boiler. Unlike a traditional digital PID controller, this method of temperature control permits a smaller number of settings. In the case of the TCA there are four in total and because the machine lacks any kind of screen or display, Rocket positions the feature more as a means of regulating boiler pressure rather than temperature. In official materials the adjustment range is listed as 0.9 - 1.2 bar with each adjustment being equal to 0.1 bar.

In our testing we found the minimum pressure was actually closer to 1 bar at the lowest setting with a ceiling of about 1.35 bar. We certainly aren’t complaining about higher pressure, though our average brew temperature testing for each setting found that “Medium” gets you the closest to a standard 200° extraction temperature and is where I personally recommend leaving it if you find the adjustment to be difficult.

Because there are no screens or displays on the TCA, all programming is accomplished via a combination of the power switch and the E61 lever. Raising the lever all the way on the E61 before powering the machine on causes it to boot up in programming mode and your current settings selections are communicated via the LED through a sequence of flashes and various colors. If that seems a bit scary, it’s really not, but I’ve linked our initial setup video for the TCA below which covers the programming process.

A Foundation for the Future

What’s really interesting about the Appartamento TCA is that it’s the first Rocket home espresso machine to feature their new E61 group which was designed to house the heating element and temperature probe used in the Giotto and Mozzafiato FAST models. It also shares the same boiler, NTC probe, valves, steam, and hot water wand, so the TCA differentiates itself primarily through its inimitable style and unique and albeit more limited mode of temperature adjustment.

If Looks Could Kill

In the looks department, Rocket was careful not to change too much of the Appartamento’s design. The circular accent cutouts were untouched and the wide and round feet make a return as well. Aside from the core update to the group, knobs, portafilter and brew lever, the biggest change made to the Appartamento TCA from a style perspective is the housing and how the body panels now curve together in the back and are joined at the center in the back of the machine by a “ROCKET” logo stripe.

Depending on which TCA style you wind up choosing, the stripe comes in black, copper or white with a total of six combinations of black, steel, and Whole Latte Love exclusive white housing. We also have panel inserts and wood accents to further customize the look of your TCA. Available wood options include Blackened Oak, Oak, Olive Wood and Walnut accents from Wiedemann as well as 11 different color panel inserts.

What’s really great about the TCA’s styling is that if you want to go all-in with a Rocket grinder, both the Giannino and the Faustino have matching design elements that synergize nicely with both the cutouts on the TCA as well as the back stripe. I also want to mention an unseen but much appreciated improvement to the TCA is that the machine is now built on a one-piece frame that runs the full length of the machine as opposed to the design of the original Appartamento where the drip tray is welded onto the frame.

Brewing with the TCA

Without a digital display to guide you, you’ll want to instead look to the steam pressure gauge in order to gauge how hot the boiler is. Like any E61 group machine, if you give the Appartamento TCA adequate time to heat up and stabilize temperatures in the boiler, group, and portafilter (around 20 - 30 minutes) you'll just need to perform a quick flush before pulling your first shot. Going back to our chart from earlier, the TCA’s first three temperature settings can roughly be correlated to Dark/196°/1 bar, Medium/200°/1.1 bar, and Light/202°/1.2 bar roasted coffees. The fourth and final setting averages temps around 208° and is too hot to be used without negatively impacting the flavor of your coffee, but will increase the steam pressure in the boiler. If you are regularly making multiple milk drinks and you want to use the hottest setting, you should flush the boiler to cool down the heat exchanger before brewing.

Flow Rate Graph

The TCA’s E61 group design and vibration pump allow for a gradual ramp to brew pressure and the machine can be equipped with a flow control device if desired. Overall the machine behaves much like any vibration pump heat exchanger machine when it comes to brewing so you should be mindful of flash boiling of brew water when the machine has been left to idle for extended periods.

Steaming with the TCA

Rocket’s heat exchanger machines have always been impressive when it comes to steaming performance. Even at the second lowest setting, the TCA can froth 5oz of refrigerator temp milk to 140° in just 19 seconds. Similar to Bezzera’s LUCE and SOLE machines, the Appartamento TCA uses a horizontal copper boiler which seems to be the Italian secret when it comes to producing heat exchanger machines with high steam power.

Even at the lowest setting with 1 bar of pressure, the TCA is still capable of producing a vigorous roll in the pitcher, but unless you regularly drink particularly dark coffees, you’ll likely always be steaming at at least the medium setting of 1.1.

Final Thoughts

In my opinion, the Appartamento TCA improves in all the right ways on the original, though the price of admission is admittedly a little steep. Rocket knew not to change too much, and in doing so, they've made a beautiful machine that will ideally be used by coffee lovers with a passion for milk drinks who are eager to join the ranks of Rocket owners. Perhaps happiest of all, Rocket is still producing the original Appartamento, so it's really up to you to decide if you're ready to embrace their new design or keep things old school.

Photography by Grace Walker

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