9Barista Mk2 Pro Stovetop Espresso Machine

Jet Engineering. Zero Electronics. Pure Espresso.

Some problems demand a completely different way of thinking. When Cambridge University jet engineer William Playford set out to make a stovetop capable of brewing genuine espresso — not moka-pot coffee, not a close approximation, but true 9-bar, 93°C, crema-bearing espresso — he turned to aerospace engineering principles to solve it. The result is the 9Barista: a patented, award-winning stovetop espresso machine with no pumps, no electronics, and just one moving part. The Mk.2 Pro is its most refined expression yet — rebuilt with superior materials, exceptional finish, and upgraded durability, without changing a single thing about what makes it extraordinary.

The Engineering — How It Actually Works

The 9Barista Mk.2 Pro operates on a patented twin-boiler, two-stage heat exchanger system — a design philosophy borrowed directly from jet engine thermal management. The lower pressure boiler heats water to approximately 179°C, building pressure to precisely 9 bar. At that threshold, a spring-loaded valve opens and drives the superheated water upward into the heat exchanger, where the machine's distinctive cooling fins drop the temperature progressively — first to around 100°C, then to 93°C — before it reaches the coffee puck. The result is stable, regulated brew pressure and temperature, achieved entirely through mechanical engineering, with no electricity, no pump, and no preheating required. This is not how a moka pot works. It is how a professional espresso machine works — on your stove.

What the Mk.2 Pro Delivers in the Cup

The numbers speak for themselves: 9 bar of brew pressure, 93°C at the puck, 17–20g of ground coffee in, 40–45g of espresso out, in a recommended extraction time of 25–30 seconds. The shot that emerges is SCA-grade espresso — full-bodied, richly complex, and topped with genuine crema complete with tiger striping when dialled in correctly. It rivals the output of the best commercial semi-automatic machines, from a device that fits in a kitchen drawer.

What's New in the Mk.2 Pro — A Generational Upgrade

The Mk.2 Pro is not an incremental update. Every major material and component has been rethought for durability, heat resilience, and finish quality.

The body is now constructed from fully machined ECOBrass alloy and stainless steel castings — 30% harder wearing than the Mk.1, with a frosted, scratch-resistant surface finish that is as refined to the touch as it looks. The steatite ceramic thermal break replaces the previous silicone version and delivers 500% greater heat resistance, while the anodised 6061 aluminium chimney is 250% more heat resilient than the plastic chimney it replaces and sits with a narrower, cleaner profile. The boiler O-ring is now 3mm thick — 50% larger than the Mk.1 — for a significantly extended service lifespan. Every change has been made with longevity in mind, and every machine undergoes more than 150 individual quality inspections at the Cambridge facility before it ships.

Standard vs. Pro

Both variants share the same patented twin-boiler architecture and all Mk.2 material upgrades. The Pro adds a naked (bottomless) portafilter for shot visibility and diagnostics, an IMS precision 53mm laser-drilled basket delivering up to 75% more uniform extractions, a stainless steel basket cap, and anodised aluminium handles. For those who want to push extraction quality and diagnose puck preparation with full visual feedback, the Pro is the natural choice.

No Electricity. No Limits on Location.

The 9Barista Mk.2 works on gas, electric halogen, electric ring, ceramic, traditional range cookers, and — with the included adaptor plate — induction hobs. It also works on camping gas stoves, making it the only stovetop espresso machine that travels as well as it brews. From cold, a shot takes 3–6 minutes depending on the heat source. No preheating routines, no waiting for a boiler to stabilise — just place it on the heat and let the engineering do its work.

Built to Last. Backed to Last.

With fully serviceable seals, every spare part available directly from 9Barista, and a design of exceptional mechanical simplicity, the Mk.2 is built for decades of use. It is backed by a 5-year warranty — a reflection of the confidence that comes from building something properly.

Stove Type

When you choose your stove type, we’ll supply the heat plate that’s optimised for it. The 9Barista Mk.2 itself doesn’t change between stove types – only the heat plate does.

Induction stoves will receive an induction adaptor plate.

Non-induction stoves will receive the heat transfer plate which can be used on gas, electric, and ceramic stoves.

The 9Barista Mk.2 exists because the best engineering solutions are always elegant ones, the fewest possible parts, doing exactly what they need to do, with absolute precision. There is no simpler way to make genuinely great espresso.