I am no David Beckham on the field, but I did get an autograph from him outside Old Trafford somewhere in the mists of time. However, now I can make coffee like him – I’ve taken delivery of this fine-looking product, the David Beckham special edition of Ninja’s $750/£700 Luxe Café Pro, It’s essentially a black and gold respin of Ninja’s top-end coffee machine, complete with some added ebony wood on the milk jug and portafilter handles.
The Luxe Café lineup has certainly put the cat among the pigeons for a lot of loftily-priced bean-to-cup machines since it debuted around 18 months ago. Even this $900/£850 machine seems cheap compared to many rivals (and yes, you are paying a not inconsiderable $150 premium for the limited edition version).
When celebrities team up with brands it’s not always our cup of coffee – often the results are rather underwhelming yet somehow the same celebrities keep getting endorsements despite somewhat questionable work. Although you have to say Nespresso’s signing of Dua Lipa is pretty inspired.
Thankfully, underwhelming certainly isn’t a word you can use with Ninja’s Beckham glow-up. Former Manchester United and Real Madrid hero Beckham is a long-term Ninja paid-up endorsee (to add to his partnership with Bowers & Wilkins and many others) and Ninja says that Sir Beckham chose the finishes used on the machine.
Whether you think this machine looks the part depends on how keen you are on gold; while some of the touches are subtle, there are huge slabs of gold finish around the grinder and on top. That won’t be for everybody, even if it is David’s preference.
But even if was the case that Beckham’s input into this limited edition of the Luxe Cafe Pro is very light, this is an excellent limited edition design; one that I think should stick around.
As with the original, the Luxe Café Pro is a great coffee machine. It’s Ninja’s high-end coffee machine that improved on the original 2024 Luxe Café and Luxe Café Premier thanks to an integrated tamper and more tactile controls. There’s no touchscreen here, everything is beautifully physical. It does everything you’d want from drip coffee to cold brew to excellent flat whites. This machine can prepare some pretty impressive foam and froth. Overall, 25 drink types are supported.
These machines include something called Barista Assist Technology. This auto-calibrates settings with a suggested grind size which you can then adjust the grinder to. You don’t have to use it, but it generally is best for your beans. The machine does a lot for you, but it’s semi-automatic because you have to move the portafilter full of coffee grounds and screw it onto the group head.
Now, full disclosure, I’ve had an original Luxe Café Pro for six months or so now and while I have had a few issues with an overfilled basket (meaning that it was hard to screw the portafilter onto the machine) and resulting mess, it’s generally produced excellent coffee.
I didn’t have this issue with the David Beckham machine; everything worked perfectly in terms of the grinding and I was able to easily produce my preferred flat white. The foam settings are great, because you can get the result you want.
Clearing up isn’t too bad either; obviously you need to empty the grounds from the portafilter (you will eventually find you need to buy a knock box) and clean the milk jug and frother with a cloth. A pop-up float will tell you when the drip tray is full. Ninja has installed a thoughtful ‘cupboard’ on the side of the machine where you can store extra accessories such as baskets you’re not currently using.
You do get a load of accessories with the machine, including cleaning gear plus a filter and the usual water hardness test kit. There’s also a rather surprising label about the wooden handles on the portafilter and milk jug, and, well, it’s not great news. You’re advised to wipe them clean with a damp cloth but not submerge them with water or in contact with hot water.
That’s maybe doable for the portafilter handle, but it is not doable for the milk jug – you need to be able to wash it up! Presumably, the wood will degrade after (quite a few) washes but you’re probably not going to be able to do anything about that. This is surely a problem that could have been avoided.
If you’re concerned about how a machine like this works, don’t be; Ninja provides maybe too much information about how to use everything, including a quick start guide, full manual, inspiration guide (aka how to make the coffee you want) and numerous stickers on the unit itself.
One thing Ninja doesn’t do is push app-connected use, which is a good thing – this is a machine for (much of) the physical process of making a coffee. It’s not a machine for those who want no involvement, and it’s not a machine for connoisseurs who want to do it all manually.
Additionally, if you’re after espresso primarily, or you want a coffee pot on a regular basis, then this probably isn’t the machine for you. Instead, it’s for those who want to make a range of drinks regularly – perhaps if you have friends over, your partner likes a completely different style – or you just like trying different coffees on a regular basis.
The look of this David Beckham limited edition is impressive though and if you like gold, you’ll love this finish – it does look even more premium than the already smart ‘normal’ version and that’s some achievement. Well done, David.
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