Babette Update and Sage is Back

Babette update

I'm very pleased to say that as I write, sitting on our sofa at home with Babette lying in her "super hospital bed" less than 2 feet away from me, she is still alive and arguably in a far better mental state then she has been for a week or so.

And this courtesy of the love and support that we (Jonathan, Jeanne, Josie and I) are lavishing on her, but also the quite incredible care and love (not a word I use often or lightly) that NHS nurses, doctors, Marie Curie nurses and our local surgery have shown her and us. Not to mention our neighbours, who have kept us fed and watered with freshly made bread, whole meals and even an extremely passable bottle of claret (much better than the stuff I usually drink) in there somewhere.

What we are going through is extremely difficult and challenging (British understatement), but at least this week there are four of us at home to care for her and that certainly makes a huge difference. But of course I am, I've had remind myself, in full time, gainful employment, or least I think I am! But for the last two weeks they have managed completely without me and Jeanne, and in small teams such as ours, that is quite a feat. So a very big thank you to all of them who have worked extra hours or made special arrangements of one kind or another to enable Jeanne and I to stay at home with Babette.

Sage is back

After a hiatus lasting 18 months-ish, the Australian Brand, Sage, has returned to our shelves, I am very pleased to say. The reasons for this gap are not entirely clear even now, but certainly one of them is a timing issue. They, unfortunately, chose to start distributing their ranges themselves in the UK (rather than through Beam, the original distributer) right at the start of the pandemic and I believe that this, along with unexpected warehousing problems, lead to a dearth of product availability.

What I can say, briefly, about Sage products is that they have two characteristics which are the reasons I chose the brand in the first place. One, the quality is very high, which their guarantees tend to bear out. And secondly, nearly all of them are not only well or cleverly designed, but also have unique features that other manufacturers haven't thought of, that are designed to make your life easier or more satisfactory in some way.

However, as with last week's email, I've very little time to write to you again so I'm going to let the chart below do the talking. I think it's true to say our teams in Reigate and Cobham will be able to dredge up enough from their memory banks to be able to answer most questions you may have, or they'll find out if they don't know the answer (if, and when, the memory banks fail!).

Our pricing will, for the most part, be the same or similar to, or better than, all the big discount retailers, but do let us know if we've missed something and we'll price match, in all likelihood.

	Sage Barista Touch Coffee Machine	Sage The Bambino Plus	Sage The Barista Pro	Sage The Barista Express	Sage Creatista Plus
	View product ›	View product ›	View product ›	View product ›	View product ›
	Automatic Espresso		Manual Espresso		Nespresso
Dimensions (W x D x H)	32.2 x 39.4 x 40.7 cm	19.5 x 32 x 31 cm	35.4 x 41 x 40.6 cm	32.5 x 31 x 40 cm	16.8 x 41.4 x 31 cm
Capacity	Bean Hopper capacity: 250 g Water Tank capacity: 2 L	Water tank 1.9 L (64 fl.oz)	Bean Hopper capacity: 227 g Water Tank capacity: 2 L	Bean Hopper capacity: 250 g Water Tank capacity: 2 L	Water Tank cpacity: 1.5 L Removeable Tank Capsule capacity: 12 used capsules
Materials	Brushed Stainless Steel BPA Free Water Tank	Stainless Steel	Brushed Stainless Steel	Brushed Stainless Steel	Stainless Steel
Settings	Touch screen operation 5 pre-programmed Café favourites Create, save and name 6 customisable coffee settings Adjustable Grind Control Programmable Milk Temperature and Texture One/Two Shots Hot Water	Control Panel: 1 Cup, 2 Cup and Steam button Adjustable milk temperature and texture level	Adjustable Grind Control Intuitive LCD Interface 1 & 2 Cup Volumetric Control	Single or Double Shots Adjustable Grind Amount & Manual over-ride	3 programmable cup sizes (25, 40, 110 ml) 8 texture levels & 11 milk temps Programmable water hardness
Warranty	2 Year Repair, Replace or Refund Guarantee	2 Year Repair, Replace or Refund Guarantee	2 Year Limited Product Warranty	2 Year Repair, Replace or Refund Guarantee	2 Year Repair or Replacement Warranty

	Sage The Nutri Juicer Cold Plus	Sage The Big Squeeze	Sage Boss To Go	Sage The Kitchen Wizz 15 Pro Food Processor
	View product ›	View product ›	View product ›	View product ›
Dimensions (W x D x H)	21.9 x 33.4 x 44.8 cm	22.7 x 20.7 x 44.5 cm	14.5 x 14.5 x 40 cm	22.6 x 27.7 x 44.5 cm
Capacity	2 L jug	N/A	2 x Smooth Edge 500 mL Tritan® cups with Travel Lids	3.7 L (large bowl) & 1 L (small bowl)
Materials	Brushed Stainless Steel	Tritan Juice Jug Stainless steel mesh filter ABS housing	Heavy Duty Die-cast Metal Base Stainless Steel Blades 2 x BPA-Free Smooth Edge Tritan Cups Tight Fitting Sage Assist Lid	Die-cast Metal Base Stainless Steel Blades High Impact BPA-Free Bowl
Settings	2 speed settings	Off/On–Forward/Reverse	1 Speed	On and Pulse
Warranty	2 year guarantee and 5 year motor guarantee	2 Year Repair, Replace or Refund Guarantee with 5 Year Limited Motor Guarantee	2 Year Repair, Replace or Refund Guarantee	3 Year Repair, Replace or Refund Guarantee with 30 Year Limited Motor Guarantee

	Sage The Fast Slow Pro	Sage The Smart Toast 2-Slice Toaster	Sage The Compact Kettle Pure	Sage The Smoking Gun
	View product ›	View product ›	View product ›	View product ›
Dimensions (W x D x H)	35 x 35 x 32 cm	29.5 x 21.8 x 19.1 cm	20 x 15 x 19 cm	27 x 61 x 16.1 cm
Capacity	6L MAX / 1L MIN	2 Slice Extra Wide capacity to suit all bread types	1 L	N/A
Materials	Brushed Stainless Steel	Brushed Die-cast Metal Body	Stainless Steel & Duraglass™	Die-cast Stainless Steel burn chamber and Silicon Smoke Tube
Settings	11 Pressure cook settings plus a custom setting to suit your favorite recipes High or Low Slow cook settings from 2 -12 hours	5 Settings including; 'A Bit More', 'Lift & Look' , Defrost & Bagel	On and Off	Dual Speed Fan
Warranty	2 Year Repair, Replace or Refund Guarantee	2 Year Repair, Replace or Refund Guarantee	2 Year Repair, Replace or Refund Guarantee	2 Year Repair, Replace or Refund Guarantee

Thanks

Lastly I'd like to thank you if you were one of the many people who left a message on the blog about Babette. We were all very touched by them as family and personally, a number brought tears to my eyes or a lump in my throat, as I read of memories and feelings that Babette has generated in others, who she has touched in her life.

Thank you.

Kind regards

Andrew