Reddit reviews 12 Oz Stainless Steel Frothing Pitcher

AeroPress, for sure. Here is probably the cheapest setup you can do, and still get the best flavour/experience.

Aerobie AeroPress + Able DISK Fine - $40 (I strongly suggest the DISK Fine over paper filters, but the AeroPress does come with a bunch of filters.)

Pocket Scale - $7

Carafe - $7 (so you press straight into this, and measure yield, as most mugs will not fit on the scale; also great for serving two)

Hario Slim burr grinder - $34 (if you'd rather go electric, the Bodum Bistro burr is a great buy and can be had for $120 new or under $100 used/refurbished)

Bonavita Gooseneck kettle - $50 (You do not need a gooseneck for the AeroPress, but you do for any type of pour over, so why not?)

Good luck, and have fun! Give my video a gander to see how to prepare with the AeroPress. It is fun! Almost as fun as an espresso machine. Ha! Yeah, right! But definitely worth the small coin.

okay from what you said, it seems she's not big on straight espresso, and she prefers milk drinks. This is good for you, since if you're making sugary milky drinks, the espresso doesn't have to be quite as good.

Now I may get flamed for this, but I picked up a Mr. Coffee steam espresso maker at Target for $20 on black friday. This is the one

The espresso that comes out of this is not very good by itself, but it comes with a small milk steamer on the side so you can make lattes/cappuccinos. Again, if you're not flavoring them, it's not great, but with the flavor syrups they actually come out pretty decent. I would suggest getting the following:

Mr. Coffee Steam Espresso Maker - this can also be found at target/walmart/etc

A small milk frothing pitcher - I picked mine up cheap at TJ Maxx

Some vanilla coffee syrup for her lattes - This can be found at some grocery stores and such

and if you really wanna go the extra mile, buy some espresso, whole milk, and caramel syrup (the kind you put on ice cream) and make her a caramel macchiato yourself. It's not too hard, here's a recipe: http://recipecircus.com/recipes/Joy/BEVERAGES/Topsecret_Starbucks_Carmel_Macchiato.html Just make some espresso, add vanilla syrup, top with the frothed milk, and drizzle with the caramel sauce

This is the one i bought. The price has since changed but still cheap.
Its to steam the milk for your coffee
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000MR6I9I/

this because we have a espresso machine we use almost everyday and this would be very helpful with making drinks that require frothing. My fave colors are red and black equally thanks for the contest

Broke college student here, I'm also a barista that's use to having amazing, freshly roasted coffee. So far, no one has lied. AMAZING espresso IS expensive. But can you make a latte as well as your local cafe? With a little practice, time and money, yes.

My current home setup consists of a Delonghi EC155, this is a true espresso machine, it's not steam powered and with a little modification and practice makes good espresso. Modification wise the only thing I'd recommend is depressurizing the portafilter basket, which is easy. If you ever want a better machine but don't want to spend the money you can modify it even more. They're vary popular machines and can be modified to pull amazing shots. They go anywhere from 70-130, however, occasionally things get repacked or the packaging gets damaged in the warehouse. They'll offer them at a hefty discount, I just got mine "reboxed" from amazon for 47 dollars, wait a few days and one will come up. If you use your student email you can get Amazon Prime for free, take advantage of that.

http://www.amazon.com/DeLonghi-EC155-Espresso-Cappuccino-Maker/dp/B000F49XXG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1396498476&sr=8-1&keywords=delonghi+ec155

I also got this tamper, works well, it's a little light for my tastes but for home use it's fine. The EC155 has a 52mm basket, if having a 50mm tamper bothers you then pay the extra few bucks for a 52mm tamper. Personally doesn't bother me, and it was only 7 bucks.

http://www.amazon.com/Espresso-Tamper-Sizes-Alloy-Coffee/dp/B0001XRNEM/ref=pd_bxgy_k_text_z

Here's a milk frothing cup, you'll need it to properly froth milk. You can poorly froth milk in a microwave but why do that when you can spend an extra 8 dollars and do it properly? I personally got mine for a dollar from a thrift store.

http://www.amazon.com/Update-International-EP-12-Stainless-Frothing/dp/B000MR6I9I/ref=pd_bxgy_hg_text_y

I got one of these grinders years ago for around 20 dollars. I've seen them used, repackaged, and refurbished for about that much. Wait around and a deal will come up. You can also get a Hario Mini and a number of other hand grinders. But this one does just fine. Now out of the box it won't grind fine enough for espresso, however, with about 20 minutes worth of work you can shim it and it'll grind perfectly for espresso. It's not hard and anyone can do it with a screw driver and some tin foil.

http://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-DBM-8-Supreme-Grind-Automatic/dp/B00018RRRK/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1396498766&sr=1-1&keywords=cuisinart+grinder

At this point if you're willing to wait for a deal on the EC155 you've only spent 107 dollars. Even less if you're willing to wait on a deal for the burr grinder as well. If you want AMAZING coffee you can spend another 27 dollars and get an Aeropress, or wait for a deal and get it for 20 dollars. It will make a coffee concentrate which will taste "okay" for a latte.

At this point, I cannot recommend going to your local coffee houses and asking if you can buy green beans. They typically sell green coffee for 5-8 dollars a pound. You can roast your own coffee with a skillet and a whisk, or a popcorn popper, there are hundreds of ways to do it cheaply and it easy. You'll save money and you'll be drinking tastier coffee.

Don't let these people get you down, good espresso doesn't have to be expensive. Feel free to message me if you have any questions!

Here's a shopping list for your budget:

• Subscription to Perfect Coffee ($15/mo) - These guys are pre-grinding beans for you and sending them to your door at the specification you request. So you could order pre-ground beans from Four Barrel, Blue Bottle, etc. and they will grind and ship to you. I beta tested them and found them passable if you don't want to hand grind or spend the money on a grinder.
  
• Pump action espresso machine ($82) - I have this machine and it does a great job provided you clean it regularly. Use the reground coffee you got and make some quality espresso for the price.
  
• Frothing pitcher ($8) - You'll need this for your milk needs.
  
• A thermometer (~$3-5) - any that can be placed in the carafe for optimal temperature of the milk.
  
• Cups to serve your drinks!
  
  Total: $110

Any tips on making cappuccinos? I tried one once and rather enjoyed it, so I'd like to try my hand at making my own. I know I'd need foamed milk so I was looking at this handheld foamer and this frothing pitcher; would they work well? Would an aeropress work well for making the espresso, and any tips for doing so?

Edit: Also meant to ask, what kind of milk do you use, and what's the best ratio of milk to espresso?

What exactly are you looking for? The 12oz and 20oz stainless steel pitchers you see at every coffee shop are cheap and easy to find online (e.g. I have a few of these generic 12oz pitchers and they work just fine).