The espresso thread

[NASH]

Good stuff

On another bright note, I finally found and repaired the weak steam issue on my Bezzera. Now it'll blow the milk right out of the pitcher

That's right.

Nice. What was the issue?

Scale cloggage. After tearing the steam wand goodies out right back to the boiler with no signs of any build-up it had me baffled. Actual water never goes through it, nor does it fill the boiler all the way so scale buildup didn't seem to make sense. The headspace in there is where the steam comes from. Descaled regularly, always used filtered water etc. but it still seemed like cloggage. It'd give an initial burst of steam then die off to hardly any and stay there, boiler pressure wouldn't drop at all while "trying" to steam either. Instead of the major operation it'd be to remove the boiler to soak it all in an acid bath I thought about how I could pump acid wash through the entire steam route. The fix was to fill the boiler (as much as possible) with acid wash, bring it up to temp @ full pressure, lay the machine flat on its side and open the steam valve to fill the entire channel with acid. I left it on its side to soak for 4 hours. Stood it back up, flushed the acid out and bingo! The steaming monster has returned!

[benwedge]

Good stuff

On another bright note, I finally found and repaired the weak steam issue on my Bezzera. Now it'll blow the milk right out of the pitcher

That's right.

Nice. What was the issue?

Scale cloggage. After tearing the steam wand goodies out right back to the boiler with no signs of any build-up it had me baffled. Actual water never goes through it, nor does it fill the boiler all the way so scale buildup didn't seem to make sense. The headspace in there is where the steam comes from. Descaled regularly, always used filtered water etc. but it still seemed like cloggage. It'd give an initial burst of steam then die off to hardly any and stay there, boiler pressure wouldn't drop at all while "trying" to steam either. Instead of the major operation it'd be to remove the boiler to soak it all in an acid bath I thought about how I could pump acid wash through the entire steam route. The fix was to fill the boiler (as much as possible) with acid wash, bring it up to temp @ full pressure, lay the machine flat on its side and open the steam valve to fill the entire channel with acid. I left it on its side to soak for 4 hours. Stood it back up, flushed the acid out and bingo! The steaming monster has returned!

It seems the problem is that you put stuff in your coffee.

[NASH]

It seems the problem is that you put stuff in your coffee.

Stuff. I do. Water. And I drink what I extract from the bean with said water. That, is definitely a problem. Imma try using beer instead

[NASH]

Mmmm, hops.

hops coffee.JPG

[TimG]

Ok, looking to get an electric conical burr grinder (have manual one, works good just takes too long to make more than one cup with my Aeropress, PITA). Found a used Starbucks Barista which I thought I had read previously was a well recommended 'cheap' grinder.. but can't seem to find much info on it now.

My other options would be something like the Breville BCG450XL or Cuisinart CBM-18C (both ~$100).

Would I be better off with the old Starbucks (Solis 166??) Barista or one of the above new guys?

PS: I know these are all shit for proper/good espresso but I'm just using my Aeropress, so I don't need a megafine grind.

Tim

[Jimmy]

Ok, looking to get an electric conical burr grinder (have manual one, works good just takes too long to make more than one cup with my Aeropress, PITA). Found a used Starbucks Barista which I thought I had read previously was a well recommended 'cheap' grinder.. but can't seem to find much info on it now.

My other options would be something like the Breville BCG450XL or Cuisinart CBM-18C (both ~$100).

Would I be better off with the old Starbucks (Solis 166??) Barista or one of the above new guys?

PS: I know these are all shit for proper/good espresso but I'm just using my Aeropress, so I don't need a megafine grind.

Tim

I'm not much help, but the Starbucks Barista grinder does have the best reviews:

Starbucks Barista (7.9 out of 10)
http://coffeegeek.com/reviews/grinders/ ... ta_grinder" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Breville BCG450XL (7.5 out of 10)
http://coffeegeek.com/reviews/grinders/ ... kongrinder" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Cusinart CBM-18 (Only 1 review) (1.8 out of 10)
http://coffeegeek.com/reviews/grinders/ ... cie50/5926" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[CorneliusAlphonse]

Got the breville as a present two year ago. Works well for inverted aeropress, can't grind quite fine enough for regular aeropress (unless maybe there are modifications you can do). I use it to grind for my French press, and use my hand grinder for aeropress.

[TimG]

Interesting comment about the 'regular' aeropress needing a finer grind. Didn't know that, always thought aeropress liked a 'slightly finer than drip' grind?

The Starbucks grinder I'm looking at is $100 and it comes with a Breville Cafe Roma espresso machine. From reading the machine is sorta shit, but it might be fun to play around with and if I don't like the coffee that comes out of it, I'll just resell it for $60-70 and keep the grinder.

[CorneliusAlphonse]

I guess my experience has been - if the grind isn't fine enough enough, and you do a regular (non-inverted) brew, the coffee will drip out through the paper filter. If you have it fine enough, it doesn't drip through until you apply some pressure.

[jeffsmith]

Interesting comment about the 'regular' aeropress needing a finer grind. Didn't know that, always thought aeropress liked a 'slightly finer than drip' grind?

The Starbucks grinder I'm looking at is $100 and it comes with a Breville Cafe Roma espresso machine. From reading the machine is sorta shit, but it might be fun to play around with and if I don't like the coffee that comes out of it, I'll just resell it for $60-70 and keep the grinder.

I have a similar Breville espresso machine that I got as a gift a while back. Out of the box they are shit machines, but if you hack the portafilter so it's no longer pressurized, you can pull a half decent shot. I still prefer my Aeropress though.

[BobbyOK]

Dwayne dropped my tamper off today. It's great quality and this thing is a beast - it weighs 1lb!

Check him out
https://twitter.com/CremaTampers" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

IMG_0918 (Medium).JPG

Late to the game here but just picking up on the fact I used to work with Dwayne. Do you know if he's still doing these? That Twitter account seems to have died off.

[Jimmy]

Dwayne dropped my tamper off today. It's great quality and this thing is a beast - it weighs 1lb!

Check him out
https://twitter.com/CremaTampers" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

IMG_0918 (Medium).JPG

Late to the game here but just picking up on the fact I used to work with Dwayne. Do you know if he's still doing these? That Twitter account seems to have died off.

As far as I know, he is. His twitter feed hadn't been updated in quite some time even when I ordered from him. If you want his number just let me know and I'll PM it to you.

[BobbyOK]

Dwayne dropped my tamper off today. It's great quality and this thing is a beast - it weighs 1lb!

Check him out
https://twitter.com/CremaTampers" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

IMG_0918 (Medium).JPG

Late to the game here but just picking up on the fact I used to work with Dwayne. Do you know if he's still doing these? That Twitter account seems to have died off.

As far as I know, he is. His twitter feed hadn't been updated in quite some time even when I ordered from him. If you want his number just let me know and I'll PM it to you.

No need, I can get him via Facebook, just curious if you knew if he was still making them.

[Jimmy]

A good starter machine:

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-coffee-maker-esp ... nFlag=true" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[BobbyOK]

Assuming I'd rather spend $300-$1000 on beer than an espresso machine - Aeropress, Moka Pot, French Press, or something else as a non-espresso but better coffee alternative?

[Jimmy]

Aeropress can make a pretty good coffee. I've never used the other options.

[NASH]

Just grab a pourover:

prima-coffee.com/brew/coffee/pour-over

Stop by TIBS and ask Zane about them if you're unsure.

But you really should bite the bullet and buy a sweet espresso setup



Transmitted from the Hop-phone.

[CorneliusAlphonse]

I like my aeropress with hand grinder. I also use a press pot. Ive used moka pots and pour over, not as big a fan of them. I'd rather have an aeropress America no than a pour over but that is just me.

[NASH]

I like my aeropress with hand grinder. I also use a press pot. Ive used moka pots and pour over, not as big a fan of them. I'd rather have an aeropress America no than a pour over but that is just me.

Poor fucker

Transmitted from the Hop-phone.

[dean2k]

I like the aeropress for the quality you get along with the ease and portability. Just don't follow the manufacturer's instructions.

[benwedge]

I have a few moka pots, a few french presses, a couple of pour-over setups, and used to have a cheap espresso machine. These days most of my coffee is made with my Aeropress. I love it. It's fairly simple and makes a great shot. Here's a guide with four Aeropress brew methods. I used to use the Stumptown inverted method, but I recently switched to the Verellen method.

[mumblecrunch]

Every type of maker is different and there's also technique variations to account for.

This article from The Atlantic does as good a job as any of articulating all of the components that go into a cup of coffee (note: does not address espresso or espresso makers). Of particular interest to me is the diagram labelled "Spectrum of Body and Flavor Clarity" (right below the heading "Classic Methods and Fine Tuning" if you want to CTRL-F). I am of the opinion that different coffees express themselves differently through different brewing methods, but that chart is a pretty good guideline. I'm currently an Aeropress (+ hand grinder + kettle with temperature presets) user because I find for my daily coffee it's the best mix of flexibility and convenience. I'd love to have a vacpot (siphon) again, but it's just not conducive to my terribly inefficient mornings or two little boys running around knocking shit over. Neither is a pour-over. Technivorms are nice but too slow. Cold brew gives me bad jitters when I drink it regularly. I haven't developed the control with Moka Pot and French Press to articulate a lot of the lighter roasts I buy.

I will buy a good espresso machine when I retire in 30 years. And I will spend months and maybe years chasing the dragon with it.

[jeffsmith]

Aeropress here as well. Like Aaron, I have two little boys tearing around the house so neither have the time, nor high enough shelving for anything more expensive than the Aeropress.

[John G]

Although I like my Aeropress, I cannot get the same quality as I do with my modded Starbucks Barista machine. I can't replicate the sweet aroma and full, rich flavours with the Aeropress, but it's very consistent and forgiving. The Aeropress just doesn't wow me.

[jeffsmith]

The Aeropress definitely doesn't produce espresso, but it's a decent fill-in. I'm sure I'll get back to pulling shots when my kids have moved out of the house and I'm staring down retirement.