Connoisseurs of espresso risked home to craft high-tech machine

Stainless steel units gleam on a dozen benches, in various stages of hand assembly. Their intricate tubing and meticulous welds are evidence of precise design and manufacturing.


		Dan DeLong / P-I
	Mark Barnett and wife Sandy Schneiter, owners of Seattle-based Synesso Inc., are reflected in one of their hand-built espresso machines at their South Park factory. The machines, which sell for $6,400 to $9,400, are unique for stabilizing the temperature at which espresso is made.

Mark Barnett and Sandy Schneiter describe their features using terms such as PID controller ("proportional, integral and derivative"), top-mounted actuator and pre-infusion cycles.

But the husband and wife team isn't talking about space shuttle components.

The co-owners of Synesso Inc., a company they started 14 months ago with a $140,000 mortgage, are turning out what some think are the best espresso machines on the market.

"Machines cannot get any better than this, in my opinion," said David Schomer, owner of Seattle's Espresso Vivace and an espresso expert who has used Synesso's Cyncra machine for nearly two years.

"Mark risked his house to get this machine into the world, and I think that's rather commendable, too."

The company's biggest achievement has been to reliably stabilize the temperature of the hot water forced through the coffee grounds to within 0.75 of a degree, said Barnett, 42, who started the three-person company and handles design and engineering.

In many machines, the temperature can vary by 8 degrees or more.

"Water that's too cold makes a real sour taste," he said. "When it's too hot, it's got this 'I'm chewing charcoal' taste."

PID technology, which uses sophisticated physics, ensures that ground espresso beans can be brewed at precisely the temperature for which they've been roasted.

By providing water in as many as three precise temperatures to separate outlets, the Cyncra lets roasters test which heat level brings out the best flavors in their beans.

Unlike most competitors, Synesso uses stainless steel everywhere except in the cold-water tubing, because the material doesn't impart flavors, build up scale, corrode or conduct away heat.

The results cause reviewers to gush.

"I am finally tasting the subtle notes that other writers describe in their reviews. ... Liquor, cinnamon, caramel, chocolate, and other flavors jump out," said Fred Mushkat, a Charlotte, Vt., physician who's one of about 10 individuals in the United States to buy a Cyncra for home use.

But do most people, whether at home or at a cafe, really appreciate the difference between ordinary coffee drinks and a truly outstanding espresso (straight coffee), macchiato (1 part coffee to between 1 and 2.5 parts milk), cappuccino (1:4 or 5) or latte (1:6)?

"The market for high-end machines is big -- somewhere around 2,000 per year, and western Canada, Japan, and Australia are really adapting to Seattle-style coffee," said Schneiter, 48, Synesso's controller.

The company, which is profitable, has sold 70 machines to date. Now that it's selling about five machines per month, the new sales target is eight per month. In Seattle, Victrola Coffee & Art and Cafe Vivace use Cyncras. [Note: the list of places in Seattle that use the machine has been corrected since this article was originally published]

Machines from Synesso -- one of only two U.S.-based makers of espresso machines -- range in price from $6,400 to $9,400.

That's very high for private use and high even for a premium-quality, semi-automatic machine, though far cheaper than the $16,000, largely automated machines that Starbucks uses, the couple said.

"The performance, longevity, reliability and serviceability mean cafe owners can get back the premium in a couple of years," Schneiter said.

Barnett, a Seattle native with a degree in drafting, got his start making stainless steel machinery for the fishing industry. Then he spent nine years in the research and development department of coffee-machine giant La Marzocco. The company ended its Seattle operations after Starbucks chose another supplier.

"The whole time I was there, people were asking, 'Can't we be a little more temperature-stable? Isn't there a way to refine?' " Barnett said.

"Well, yes, there is, and when I was laid off, it seemed like the best option was to build something the market had been asking for."

Schneiter, an art history major who sold consumer electronics, came out of semi-retirement to start Synesso. The couple live in West Seattle.

The couple's daughter, high school student Mandy Barnett, spends a few hours each week working in the 3,000-square- foot assembly area. Assembler and tester Caleb Heinselman, 32, was so anxious to join the company that he volunteered at first.

Synesso subcontracts all cutting, welding and bending to TJ Consultants in Bothell. Each machine takes about 20 hours to assemble by hand.

As business increases, Synesso is considering bringing out a high-end coffee grinder -- another critically important component for fine espresso. But it's most concerned about making Cyncra reliable for customers.

"People took a calculated risk: Do they buy a high-end machine from a new company?" Schneiter said. "If Japan calls and it's 3 a.m., Mark has to wake up. So we're clearly motivated to have a reliable machine."

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