Covet: A $15,740 Cimbali Dosatron espresso machine

Julian Kuerti follows his passions. The 31-year-old Boston Symphony Orchestra assistant conductor ditched his physics degree to study music in Europe, where he found another obsession: espresso. Intrigued by Berlin’s coffee culture, Kuerti vowed to brew the perfect shot, one with rounded smoothness and a bittersweet aftertaste. Four espresso machines and a decade later, he remained decidedly unsated.

But since moving to Boston last August, Kuerti has been eyeing the Dosatron M39, the king of espresso makers. The 230-pound behemoth, sold by Espresso Plus in Medford, boasts a motorized pump that creates enough pressure to extract a pitch-perfect cup.

While the commercial appliance requires a 220-volt, 30-amp outlet and its own drain—oh, and costs as much as a small car—Espresso Plus has sold a few for domestic use. If he could, Kuerti would be a customer, too. “The satisfaction of a superb shot renders cost irrelevant,” he says.