De'Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic Review: The Coffee Machine That Aims for Excellence in Every Cup

Designed for the most demanding coffee lovers, the PrimaDonna Aromatic concentrates all of De'Longhi's premium expertise. With its 5-inch touchscreen, over 35 hot and cold beverages, and integrated Bean Adapt technology, this coffee machine delivers excellence in every cup.

With its PrimaDonna Aromatic launched at €1,599, De'Longhi renews its high-end automatic machine range. Designed for espresso lovers as well as those who like to vary their pleasures, it stands out for its wide range of beverages — over 35 hot and cold recipes — and its LatteCrema Hot & Cool and Cold Extraction technologies, which ensure perfect texture for milk-based drinks and controlled extraction of cold coffees.

All preparation possibilities are made possible by the 5-inch color screen that facilitates preparation and memorization of preferences, while giving the possibility to assign them to a user profile.

This machine of all superlatives embodies all the technologies dear to De'Longhi, including the Bean Adapt system that automatically adjusts grinding, temperature, and pressure according to the type of bean used, to best reveal their aromas.

The PrimaDonna Aromatic imposes itself by its size: with its 11.2 kg on the scale, it is clearly destined for stable installation on a work surface, and not on a shelf. Deeper and taller than it is wide, this automatic coffee machine requires dedicated space. Before any purchase, therefore ensure you have the necessary space to accommodate it.

Design and Build Quality

Design-wise, the PrimaDonna Aromatic displays a finish mixing brushed steel and robust plastic. Although less luxurious than the full stainless steel alloy of the sublime De'Longhi Maestosa, its matte shell has the advantage of not retaining fingerprints and maintaining a neat appearance through use. As is always the case with De'Longhi, the finishes are robust and the choice of materials inspires confidence.

Fluid and Intuitive Touchscreen

The PrimaDonna Aromatic integrates a 5-inch color touchscreen, identical to that of the Maestosa, except that it is fixed and slightly tilted for better readability. It allows access to 35 integrated recipes, ranging from classics (espresso, cappuccino, café crème) to more original preparations like Flat White, cold brew, and hot or cold milk foams.

For the preparation of hot and cold milk-based beverages, De'Longhi provides two distinct carafes, each adapted to the type of recipe. The system allows adjusting foam density on two levels, whether you use animal or plant-based milk. Additionally, a cold water rinse is provided between the preparation of a hot then cold beverage, to interrupt the thermal inertia of the circuit.

Extreme Customization

All recipes are fully customizable via the touch interface: coffee intensity, temperature, water quantity, milk proportion, etc. It is possible to configure up to 4 user profiles allowing each household member to record their preferences.

The coffee machine also embodies "Bean Adapt" technology that we've already seen on the PrimaDonna Soul, which automatically adjusts preparation parameters (grinding, temperature, pressure, water quantity) according to the type of coffee bean used. This functionality is no longer only available on the manufacturer's Coffee Link application as was the case but directly on the machine via the touchscreen.

The user enters the characteristics of their coffee: bean type (pure arabica, arabica/robusta blend), roast degree on 4 levels, and bean color. The machine then automatically adjusts settings to optimize extraction. On average, five extractions are enough to calibrate the grinder according to this data.

Practical Design and Easier Maintenance

The bean hopper, with a very generous capacity of 500 g, is accessible from the top. A secondary hatch allows use of ground coffee, perfect for decaffeinated coffees. As for grind adjustment, it can be done manually on 13 levels for precise adjustment of grind fineness.

The 2.2-liter water tank, placed on the right side, extracts easily. The grounds collector as well as the drip tray are accessible from the front, facilitating their cleaning.

As with all De'Longhi models, the Primadonna Aromatic automatically performs a spout rinse at each startup and shutdown. During our tests, we observed consumption of approximately 32.20 ml of water at startup, and 21.8 ml at shutdown — very substantial volumes, much more than those of the Rivelia and Magnifica Evo Next models and ultimately very close to those of the KitchenAid KF6 during each cycle.

The Primadonna Aromatic screen particularly helps the user on maintenance questions. Notifications display unambiguously, in full text: filling the water tank, emptying the grounds container or drip tray, nothing is left to chance.

As often with De'Longhi, dishwasher cleaning is discouraged, to preserve the durability of plastic components. Finally, the extraction chamber is easily accessible: simply remove the water tank, open the hatch and operate the two side buttons to extract the block. This design facilitates deep cleaning, significantly reducing the risk of malfunctions encountered on some competing machines, notably Jura brand models.

Reactive and performant from power-on, the Primadonna Aromatic is ready to serve its first coffee in only 43 seconds, a delay that includes both preheating and automatic spout rinsing. Appreciable efficiency for rushed mornings.

Coffee Quantity

For espresso, precision is present. In intermediate mode (default setting), the machine uses 8.9 g of ground coffee for a single espresso, a quantity perfectly conforming to standards. It also allows modulating the coffee dose: from 4.1 g in light mode to 11 g in intense mode, to adapt to all preferences.

Temperature

The extraction temperature is distributed over 3 adjustable levels. During our tests, the intermediate level delivered coffee around 86°C, which is perfectly in line with the ideal temperature for enjoying an espresso (85°C). The highest level reached up to 96°C, which could have an impact on the taste of coffee. The higher the extraction temperature, the more the coffee will tend toward bitterness and harder, drier, burned notes. Conversely, the more coffee is extracted with lower temperatures, the more pronounced the acidity.

Extraction Duration

Regarding extraction time, the Primadonna Aromatic delivers a 43 ml espresso in 23 seconds, a flow perfectly within regulatory time duration (between 20 and 25 seconds).

Finally, the crema — obtained with default settings — is creamy, homogeneous, pleasant in the mouth, although a bit more density would have reinforced the sensation of richness in cup.

The PrimaDonna Aromatic emits 59 dB(A) during the bean grinding phase, and 47 dB(A) during coffee extraction. These noise levels remain moderate compared to some competing models, such as the Melitta Caffeo Barista T whose grinder can reach up to 73 dB(A).

Ultra-complete, versatile, and designed for demanding coffee lovers, the De'Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic stands as one of the most advanced automatic machines of the moment. Its 5-inch screen, fine customization management, LatteCrema Hot & Cool technologies, and Bean Adapt integrated directly into the interface allow it to stand out from the crowd — and truly make the most of each coffee bean.

For those seeking comfort, variety, mastered extraction, and impeccable milk-based drinks, the PrimaDonna Aromatic checks almost all the boxes of premium use.

Versus the Competition

The De'Longhi PrimaDonna Aromatic positions itself as one of the most complete automatic machines on the market. Few competitors offer such a rich panel of hot and cold recipes — and even fewer with such an advanced level of customization, directly accessible from a touchscreen this fluid and readable.

Equivalent models at Jura, Melitta, or Siemens don't necessarily go as far on user customization or automatic bean calibration, even if some rival on design or compactness.