The new Duvall Espresso FC1 machine at the 2025 Specialty Coffee Expo in Houston. Daily Coffee News photo by Howard Bryman.
Seven years after revealing a prototype FC-1 espresso machine at the SCA Expo in Seattle, Duvall Espresso is now taking orders for its signature single-, dual- and three-group machines.
The machines are priced at $17,000 for the single-group version, $25,000 for two groups and $32,000 for three groups.
One of the major highlights at the recent SCA Expo in Houston, the Duvall machines take a fundamentally new approach to achieving pinpoint real-time mechanical control over the flow rate of hot water delivered to ground coffee. (Read all of DCN’s 2025 Expo coverage.)
Daily Coffee News photo by Howard Bryman.
Rather than relying on the combination of pumps, flow meters and needle valves to control flow, each group on an FC-1 is attached to what is essentially its own heated, horizontal 2.8-liter syringe with water pushed by a digitally controlled servo-motor-driven piston.
“If you tried to accomplish this with a conventional rotary pump, a needle valve, and a pressure sensor, the problem is you have a feedback loop,” Duvall Espresso Inventor and Founder Gideon Duvall told Daily Coffee News at the SCA Expo in Houston last month. “The flow has to happen, and then the flow meter has to sense it, and then you have to use your needle valve to adjust the resistance to try and get a flow rate in the future. It’s a backwards-looking system, but then to complicate it even further, the resistance of your puck is constantly changing. You don’t know how that resistance is actually going to change, so you’re kind of guessing, right? You’re constantly trying to chase something. You’re never going to be anywhere near as accurate and consistent as you could be if you are controlling it with this digital piston.”
Daily Coffee News photo by Howard Bryman.
The FC-1 also requires fewer small parts and electronics that may be prone to failure, according to Duvall. Many of its solenoids, and other valves and tubing, come from the same Italian factories that supply makers of conventional espresso machines. Servo motors designed and built by New York-based Teknic, ball screws made in Taiwan, bearings from NSK and other parts are assembled into FC-1s by the Duvall team in Atlanta.
Changes to the machine over its years in development have included subtle refinements in hardware and software, as well as parts and materials suppliers, while its fundamental design and features remain the same.
Daily Coffee News photo by Howard Bryman.
“It’s now a polished product,” said Duvall. “We’ve done some revisions on the pumps, different tanks, and work on rounding out the supply network, so we have a very robust, durable, finished product.”
While brewing, the FC-1’s motors drive water at a consistent flow rate, regardless of feedback from the coffee, ranging up to a maximum pressure of 15 bars. The barista-facing screen displays live pressure data, including the target profile for comparison. Duvall said that feature is used largely to help baristas determine the grind, rather than basing grind settings on the weight of the shot.
Daily Coffee News photo by Howard Bryman.
“Because we control the flow independent of the pressure, you would see a consistent flow out on your scale. You’ll have the same mass out, in the same amount of time. It wouldn’t tell you what’s going on with your grind size if you just weighed the shot,” said Duvall. “By fixing the flow rate, your pressure is a function of the resistance of your grind. Assuming you have an accurate dose, it helps you keep your grinder dialed and ensure your shot prep is the most accurate it can be.”
With built-in automation capabilities, the FC-1 can be appropriate for high-volume settings, such as drive-throughs or foodservice places, where users may lack advanced barista training, Duvall said.
At the same time, the machine offers the potential to dial in unique and unconventional recipes — like drip-style brews using an espresso group or single-cup cold brews with an unheated group — in craft-oriented specialty coffee bars.
Daily Coffee News photo by Howard Bryman.
“Using the exact same grind we use for our espresso, the exact same portafilters, same basket, we’re doing a 1:12 ratio in 320 seconds, so five minutes and 20 seconds,” said Duvall. “You can easily dial that in and then just push go to make a really yummy cold pourover for your customers.”
Duvall machines are now up and running in Atlanta, as well as in South Korea, where Duvall Espresso has established distribution. Three-group machines are ready to ship now, with one- and two-group machines set to follow early this summer.
Gideon Duvall. Daily Coffee News photo by Howard Bryman.
“There’s a lot of different applications in different markets for this technology. Once we get some time to breathe, I’ll be able to start looking at additional products we can come out with,” said Duvall. “Right now, we’re head-down focused on getting the FC1 through production, sold, and making it a successful machine.”
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Howard Bryman
Howard Bryman is the associate editor of Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine. He is based in Portland, Oregon.
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