Coffee/Espresso hipsters

[Austinvines 309]

Do you guys ever use beans that aren't explicitly labeled as espresso beans for espressos? 

Do you mean the super dark espresso roast? I almost never use those beans. CM Westgate roasts in-house and I try to buy a medium roast, low acidity coffee that was roasted 3-7 days prior. A pound lasts me about 3 weeks since I usually pull 18 gram shots from my 55mm portafilter.

My Breville Smart Grinder Pro has a lot of range and I will typically never get below a “10” on the dial. Much lower than that and my entry level Breville Duo Temp won’t push out any espresso or it will just dribble out and take a minute to pull a shot.

Brazilian Gerezim is my favorite. I’ve got a sweet tooth and like the chocolate and caramel that it has. Any higher acid coffees end up being too sour for me. I’m doing something wrong or the machine isn’t putting out hot enough water so that I get a well extracted shot.

I also weigh my beans and leave the grinder empty since it has to reside in the garage because I get up before my wife and don’t want to wake her up and don’t want to have the beans get heat damaged.

What do you all make mostly? I typically pull 34-38 grams of coffee from the 18 gram shot. I use a small biscuit cutter as a funnel to keep the ground coffee from spilling out and making a mess. I usually have that same amount of water in my heated cup for an Americano and then add 30-40 gr of steamed half and half for a very rich and tasty small cup.

I love those prosumers but spending more than a grand on a machine would wind me up in Dutch with the wife. She already thinks I’m super fancy pants for not drinking drip.

[markstanco 12546]

Because I was warned against using any sort of dark roasted beans in my super automatic, I use Lavazza Super Crema.  They aren't explicitly labeled as espresso roast, but close.

Super crema is great.

[markstanco 12546]

Also OP, check in to bluebottlecoffe.com. out of Oakland. Order on the weekend, arrives Wednesday freshly roasted.

[sidis 9778]

21 hours ago, Austinvines said:

What do you all make mostly? I typically pull 34-38 grams of coffee from the 18 gram shot. I use a small biscuit cutter as a funnel to keep the ground coffee from spilling out and making a mess. I usually have that same amount of water in my heated cup for an Americano and then add 30-40 gr of steamed half and half for a very rich and tasty small cup.

I love those prosumers but spending more than a grand on a machine would wind me up in Dutch with the wife. She already thinks I’m super fancy pants for not drinking drip.

Cappuccinos in the morning and macchiatos in the afternoon almost exclusively for me.  I generally dose 10 grams for a single and 19 or so for a double.  Looking for a about a 2.3x - 2.5x yield in as close to 30 seconds of extraction time as possible.  That is usually perfect. 

prosumer machines are mostly overkill and half of it is confirmation bias in your head.  that said, i had three years of the breville (which i really liked) and extracting on the rocket over the last couple of months is simply not the same in terms of smoothness and flavor.  before unloading the breville, i did blind taste tests for about 10 or so people with no foreknowledge whatsoever with precisely the same beans at the same time.  every single person did not hesitate even for a second in expressing preference for both straight shots, as well as cappuccinos extracted from the mozzafiato over the breville.  that said, the difference is not necessarily worth the cost to everyone.  but for me, the flexibility is without question.

when axiom of choice was still roasting beans, he sent me quite a few to try and they were outstanding but he's stopped unfortunately.  now i am getting them from either levercraft in east austin or from Trianon in westlake.

[Dutch 4465]

22 hours ago, Austinvines said:

What do you all make mostly? I typically pull 34-38 grams of coffee from the 18 gram shot. I use a small biscuit cutter as a funnel to keep the ground coffee from spilling out and making a mess. I usually have that same amount of water in my heated cup for an Americano and then add 30-40 gr of steamed half and half for a very rich and tasty small cup.

I love those prosumers but spending more than a grand on a machine would wind me up in Dutch with the wife. She already thinks I’m super fancy pants for not drinking drip.

The wife (no pics) prefers milk drinks, usually a latte. We like them strong but not too strong: two double shots in ~ 12 oz milk (or whatever "add milk up to the base of the spout of the milk pitcher" comes out to in oz; I've never bothered to measure it.)  As for myself...I like 'em all.  A latte most evenings after dinner or weekend mornings.  A cortado when I'm in the mood for something different? Yes, please. An affogato (an espresso pulled directly over ice cream) makes a nice dessert.  And a straight espresso, nice in its own way, needs no explanation.   

If what you're making tastes great, you're doing it right.  I've found on my machine, with the beans I usually brew, a 36g yield of an 18g dose in around 30-32 seconds produces a very good shot. Experimenting with different coffees, dialing in everything (dose, grind, time, and yield) to get a tasty espresso, is pretty rewarding. 

Edited April 1, 2021 by Dutch

[Dutch 4465]

58 minutes ago, sidis said:

Cappuccinos in the morning and macchiatos in the afternoon almost exclusively for me.  I generally dose 10 grams for a single and 19 or so for a double.  Looking for a about a 2.3x - 2.5x yield in as close to 30 seconds of extraction time as possible.  That is usually perfect. 

prosumer machines are mostly overkill and half of it is confirmation bias in your head.  that said, i had three years of the breville (which i really liked) and extracting on the rocket over the last couple of months is simply not the same in terms of smoothness and flavor.  before unloading the breville, i did blind taste tests for about 10 or so people with no foreknowledge whatsoever with precisely the same beans at the same time.  every single person did not hesitate even for a second in expressing preference for both straight shots, as well as cappuccinos extracted from the mozzafiato over the breville.  that said, the difference is not necessarily worth the cost to everyone.  but for me, the flexibility is without question.

when axiom of choice was still roasting beans, he sent me quite a few to try and they were outstanding but he's stopped unfortunately.  now i am getting them from either levercraft in east austin or from Trianon in westlake.

Axiom dropped off the face of the Surl; bet those beans were good  

 

[sidis 9778]

28 minutes ago, Dutch said:

Axiom dropped off the face of the Surl; bet those beans were good  

 

Lots of life transitions/changes for the guy.  still email with him regularly.  

beans were super good...and he sent a lot that had subtle nuances in them for learning the differences between roasts that helped me refine the palate.  

[Chopper 17196]

7 hours ago, sidis said:

prosumer machines are mostly overkill and half of it is confirmation bias in your head. 

In terms of added convenience, speed, and ability to make it really easy for the wife to make her own espresso without my having to suffer through a super automatic machine instead, I haven't regretted my purchase for a moment. Plus if the wife really cares about how the small appliances permitted to sit on the kitchen counters look...

[sidis 9778]

latte art is progressing.  tulip achieved.  not just hearts anymore.

[Chopper 17196]

1 hour ago, sidis said:

latte art is progressing.  tulip achieved.  not just hearts anymore.

From watching videos on youtube? What was the best one?

[sidis 9778]

17 minutes ago, Chopper said:

From watching videos on youtube? What was the best one?

haven't watched any vids...a while back, axiom emailed me the process he taught his baristas and i just followed it.  one key for me was not adding too much air to the milk...otherwise it just blobs on top at the end (which still totally tastes great but is not great for art).  another key is starting the pour relatively high so that the steamed milk would sink and then, once you start getting to the microfoam milk vs. the steamed milk at about 85% full on the cup, lower the pour way down and start the wrist wiggle and just quickly go up the cup.  i was doing it way too slowly for a long time which was also causing blobs.  then just make a fast pour back down the middle to get the split.  tilting the cup a bit as you pour in seems to make a bit of a difference too.

[RiverwalkMiner 244]

On 6/27/2020 at 7:49 PM, RichUT said:

We replaced our Bonavita with a Technovorm Moccamaster and we are loving it. It has a physical on/off switch, which lends itself to connecting to a smart plug. I ask Alexa to turn off the coffee pot as soon as I wake up and the pot is ready by the time I make it to the kitchen.

Like the Bonavita, it’s certified by the SCAA and makes a pour over like pot of coffee in a thermal carafe that stays hot for hours.

Just got the pistachio green model and the smart plug hack is great. The classic design, color and flavors just make the mornings better. It really is a beautiful machine. 

[Chopper 17196]

What happened to the $5 technovorms (?) some of you were courageous enough to order a while back?

[Napoleon 8634]

On 5/11/2021 at 10:06 AM, sidis said:

latte art is progressing.  tulip achieved.  not just hearts anymore.

 

I thought that the vag was good...

 

Butt fuck that...

[Austinvines 309]

I believe I am going to upgrade my into level Breville Duo-Temp to the Dual Boiler. While I am not a modder at this point, being able to eventually "upgrade" the machine to do profiled shots sounds cool for a machine at its price point. I like it because it will turn on by a timer and be up to temp when I get up, and it has a hot water function for my wife's teas that she likes which will get rid of the kettle that is on the counter. It is around $1,500 so does anyone have a machine in that range that they like a lot?

With a new machine should come a new grinder to replace the Breville Smart Grinder Pro. I typically will only grind the dose I am making that shot instead of keeping beans in the hopper so a single dose machine is fine. The most important aspect is that it needs to be quiet. I have to grind in the garage right now because the Smart Grinder Pro is so damn loud that it will wake everyone up if done in the kitchen.

 

[Dutch 4465]

4 hours ago, Austinvines said:

I believe I am going to upgrade my into level Breville Duo-Temp to the Dual Boiler. While I am not a modder at this point, being able to eventually "upgrade" the machine to do profiled shots sounds cool for a machine at its price point. I like it because it will turn on by a timer and be up to temp when I get up, and it has a hot water function for my wife's teas that she likes which will get rid of the kettle that is on the counter. It is around $1,500 so does anyone have a machine in that range that they like a lot?

With a new machine should come a new grinder to replace the Breville Smart Grinder Pro. I typically will only grind the dose I am making that shot instead of keeping beans in the hopper so a single dose machine is fine. The most important aspect is that it needs to be quiet. I have to grind in the garage right now because the Smart Grinder Pro is so damn loud that it will wake everyone up if done in the kitchen.

 

The Dual Boiler was 1-1A on Hoffman's list here.  Impressive feature set, with a dual boiler, at a good price point.  

Report back with some coffee pron and let us know how you like it.

Edited August 4, 2021 by Dutch

[Austinvines 309]

I had not viewed that video, Dutch. Thanks. I like that guy’s YT channel and he thinks the BDB or the Profitec are the best of not perfect choices. Since the Profitec is $500, I think I’ll put that toward the grinder. (Goes to check out that YT’s “Best grinder under $500 pounds” vid.)

[Chopper 17196]

One of these appliance timers will turn any espresso machine on and off according to schedule for less than $15. It may add some flexibility to your search.

My $2500 (4 years ago) Quick Mill doesn't have a timer function though I wish it did, just because of the bulk the timer adds at the outlet. It does have a spout for hot water for americanos or tea. It has a counting function for timing your shots that's extremely useful. After using it I wouldn't buy a machine without it just like I wouldn't buy a car without a back-up camera. Also I can see and adjust the temp of either boiler by hitting a button.

Unless your h20 reservoir is nice and big, or you have it hooked up to a water line, you might become annoyed with how fast your water tank drains, esp if your wife is using it for a couple of teas...you'll have to train her to add water. If you're planning to use a pitcher to add water I recommend a zero water brand, not brita - it deals with hardness.

[Austinvines 309]

Thanks Chopper. I’m totally geeking out and just made rpavlis water after descaling and cleaning my duotemp and looking forward to my shot tomorrow.

If it was available, I’d get the Niche Zero grinder but I’m thinking the Eureka Mignon Specialita since right now is better than waiting.

[Chopper 17196]

2 minutes ago, Austinvines said:

If it was available, I’d get the Niche Zero grinder but I’m thinking the Eureka Mignon Specialita since right now is better than waiting.

Niche Zero. That's my next grinder! I asked a q about it upthread trying to figure out the name after reading about it someplace random. Awesome!

[52-80 19128]

so while i still rate my nespresso machine as possibly $ for $ the best device i've bought for my kitchen...ever....  i just got into the obsession of hand-made-everything espresso.

 

my lotto winning setup would be having the ridiculously looney Weber lineup of products

 

 

 

but more likely im gonna hit a combo of Kinu M-47 hand grinder & Flair manual press ... and some scale not yet determined.  wife will be in for a surprise

 

 

 

[dcbc 14443]

The fanciest I ever got was the tamper where the handle clicked when you hit the "optimum" pressure.  And I don't even have a semi auto anymore.  That looks like, if you held your mouth right, it might make the perfect shot of espresso.  But at what cost?  AT WHAT COST!!!???

[52-80 19128]

OK after obsessing youtubing and internet sleuthing, ive settled on my manual espresso kit.
 

I didnt anticipate having to pay for fucking water kettles and kitchen scales amounts that I would hide from my wife — not because of the cost, but because of the absurdity of the cost. At least im not throwing 3 figures on goddamn tampers; who does that? and why??

 

grinder: kinu m47 (47mm cone burr)

extractor: flair 58 (electric preheat)

scale: acaia lunar

kettle: stagg ekg 

and then some generic accessories like funnels and dosers and mats and 

and then ill see how far down the rabbithole it goes

 

[Fud 9547]

The biggest thing I've learned from trial and error is that I like medium roast beans much more than dark roast for espressos 

[Dutch 4465]

1 hour ago, Fud said:

The biggest thing I've learned from trial and error is that I like medium roast beans much more than dark roast for espressos 

This.  Light and medium roasts produce much better espresso in my experience.

[52-80 19128]

the roast types can be - or are supposed to be - compensated with brew temp and extraction duration and so on. 
 

underextraction are generally acidic. 
 

we have a famous championship-winning barista guy with a shop nearby and i tried their espressos for a reference. most of it tastes more sour than i like. 
 

so im curious to customize the profiling at home with all the manual controls

[sidis 9778]

 

[52-80 19128]

13 hours ago, sidis said:

 

 

are you with the Rebel Alliance?

[Seasick Sailor 3747]

I bought my wife a Breville Barista Express for her first mother's day. We typically drink pour overs or French presses at home, but she loves ordering flat whites at our favorite coffee shop. I'm sure the learning curve will be steep at first, but I am looking forward to experimenting and getting our pulls dialed in. 

[dcbc 14443]

21 minutes ago, Seasick Sailor said:

I bought my wife a Breville Barista Express for her first mother's day. We typically drink pour overs or French presses at home, but she loves ordering flat whites at our favorite coffee shop. I'm sure the learning curve will be steep at first, but I am looking forward to experimenting and getting our pulls dialed in. 

A work friend of mine had one of these in his office.  It's not bad for the money and pulled decent shots without having to have every variable perfect.  That's all to say that it wasn't as steep a learning curve as most semi automatics. 

[ohchaucer 1443]

We have the Barista Pro and had it pretty dialed in after a dozen pulls or so. We love it.

[Seasick Sailor 3747]

1 hour ago, ohchaucer said:

We have the Barista Pro and had it pretty dialed in after a dozen pulls or so. We love it.

I looked at that one too, but there were a few reviews that mentioned the machine not heating the water enough. Sounds like you haven't had that issue. 

[ohchaucer 1443]

I looked at that one too, but there were a few reviews that mentioned the machine not heating the water enough. Sounds like you haven't had that issue. 

No it’s been great so far. I’d read some of those reviews, as well, but so far no complaints.

[Seasick Sailor 3747]

The Barista Express was pretty easy to get basically dialed in. After about 6 or 7 pulls, I was consistently getting 18g of espresso from the grinder and pulling double shots in about 27-28 seconds. I will continue to fine tune it a bit, but I am happy with the results so far. My wife prefers iced lattes and I just add a splash of half and half to my shots, so I haven't tried to texture milk with the wand yet. I'll probably try to make breves and cortados at some point. 

Edited May 9, 2022 by Seasick Sailor

[dieucla98 2942]

Been using nespresso for the past... Forever. After spending a week in Paris drinking amazing espresso, I decided to splurge on a better machine. Wife and I are both turning 40 this summer so I figured, why not buy it as a joint birthday gift?

Didn't want something super manual or the wife would never use it. Didn't want a super automatic and not have much flexibility to experiment. Ended up with the Breville Oracle Touch and it's awesome! So much better espresso and has a decent amount of flexibility. 

Currently using some local beans I bought from the Epoch around the corner. Just stunned at the huge step up this is with very little fiddling and a very small jump up in time commitment. Excited to keep experimenting!

[Dutch 4465]

On 5/6/2022 at 11:00 AM, Seasick Sailor said:

I bought my wife a Breville Barista Express for her first mother's day. We typically drink pour overs or French presses at home, but she loves ordering flat whites at our favorite coffee shop. I'm sure the learning curve will be steep at first, but I am looking forward to experimenting and getting our pulls dialed in. 

Nice!  I've had a BBE for three years now, and really like it.  The learning curve really isn't that steep if you're drinking lattes and flat whites; the milk covers up quite a bit and turns an average shot into a great tasting drink.  You'll be amazed at how quickly y'all will be making tasty drinks. A few things that really helped my tinkering:

1. Throw out that Razor tool.  It's worthless.

2. Get a digital scale that can read to 0.1g so you can measure exactly dose in/espresso out. Lighter roasts seem to do better with a 1:2.5 or 1:3; darker roasts at 1:1.5 or 1:2. At least in my experience.

3. Improving puck prep elevated my shots a lot. A dosing funnel will help keep your grounds in the basket as you WDT or distribute. Or, in my case, both.

4. The Espresso Compass helped me find the sweet spot when dialing in shots. There's also one for coffee.

Pulling "good" shots happened pretty quickly; steaming good milk and pouring latte art.... that technique took me longer to learn. James Hoffmann and Lance Hedrick have great info on their respective YT channels regarding dialing in shots, steaming milk, and coffee in general.  Nerd out.

Edited May 13, 2022 by Dutch

[Fud 9547]

I’ve noticed that a lot of the local beans I buy from grocery stores that are listed as light or medium roast end up tasting like a dark roast, and the one company that consistently has light and medium roasts that actually taste like light or medium roasts is Katz’s. Anyone else run into this issue?

[Texzilla58 4721]

An unpopular opinion. If you are a person that drinks coffee with tons of sugar, dairy, Coffeemate whatever, save your time and money and just buy Folgers Chrystals instant coffee.

My wife likes her coffee with eagle brand sweetened condensed milk, hersheys syrup, cayenne. More sugar if needed. I keep instant coffee for various recipes. Made her her drink. Her new favorite. Saves me big money.

[tigol 2386]

1 hour ago, Texzilla58 said:

An unpopular opinion. If you are a person that drinks coffee with tons of sugar, dairy, Coffeemate whatever, save your time and money and just buy Folgers Chrystals instant coffee.

My wife likes her coffee with eagle brand sweetened condensed milk, hersheys syrup, cayenne. More sugar if needed. I keep instant coffee for various recipes. Made her her drink. Her new favorite. Saves me big money.

Why don't you just buy Yoohoo?

[Austinvines 309]

I’ve got a Breville Dual Boiler from Covid. Naked PF with a 20gr dose and an Amazon funnel. I typically buy whatever is the most recently roasted from Central Market that has ”chocolate” in the tasting note.

I typically make an Americano with some steamed half and half for the morning bc I like coffee. Espresso for the evening if I need a pick me up.

[dcbc 14443]

6 hours ago, Texzilla58 said:

An unpopular opinion. If you are a person that drinks coffee with tons of sugar, dairy, Coffeemate whatever, save your time and money and just buy Folgers Chrystals instant coffee.

My wife likes her coffee with eagle brand sweetened condensed milk, hersheys syrup, cayenne. More sugar if needed. I keep instant coffee for various recipes. Made her her drink. Her new favorite. Saves me big money.

There are limits, but a little milk/cream just makes good coffee better.

 

Also, obligatory

 

 

Edited May 16, 2022 by dcbc

[tigol 2386]

5 minutes ago, Austinvines said:

I’ve got a Breville Dual Boiler from Covid. Naked PF with a 20gr dose and an Amazon funnel. I typically buy whatever is the most recently roasted from Central Market that has ”chocolate” in the tasting note.

I typically make an Americano with some steamed half and half for the morning bc I like coffee. Espresso for the evening if I need a pick me up.

If you like chocolate notes, Stumptown's Hair Bender is really good.  The subscriptions are reasonable and freshly roasted.

[HornOnTheBayou 8882]

5 hours ago, tigol said:

Why don't you just buy Yoohoo?

"I love Yoo-hoo."
"Yes, it's a fine product."

Edited May 16, 2022 by HornOnTheBayou

[closetohumping 17414]

Went to Starbucks Roastery in Chicago.  They seem to have a shit ton of coffee martini options.  

[sidis 9778]

15 hours ago, Austinvines said:

I’ve got a Breville Dual Boiler from Covid. Naked PF with a 20gr dose and an Amazon funnel. I typically buy whatever is the most recently roasted from Central Market that has ”chocolate” in the tasting note.

I typically make an Americano with some steamed half and half for the morning bc I like coffee. Espresso for the evening if I need a pick me up.

 

15 hours ago, tigol said:

If you like chocolate notes, Stumptown's Hair Bender is really good.  The subscriptions are reasonable and freshly roasted.

Check out the congress avenue roast from little city roasters as well. 

some recent latte art…all cappuccino. 

 

[Chopper 17196]

London

[jimmyjazz 45646]

Need some advice:  my burr grinder has gone tits up.  I never much liked it, it didn't adjust grind size very well, but it's gone now.

I guess I'll make this my Father's Day gift.  What are the high value burr grinders?  Think Honda Accord or Toyota Camry.  It needs to do multiple grind sizes and get them pretty uniform, but beyond that, no bells, no whistles, no USB ports.

[52-80 19128]

40 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Need some advice:  my burr grinder has gone tits up.  I never much liked it, it didn't adjust grind size very well, but it's gone now.

I guess I'll make this my Father's Day gift.  What are the high value burr grinders?  Think Honda Accord or Toyota Camry.  It needs to do multiple grind sizes and get them pretty uniform, but beyond that, no bells, no whistles, no USB ports.

medium balling

 

big ballin

 

[Dutch 4465]

46 minutes ago, 52-80 said:

big ballin

 

Surly 0.1%

Edited June 14, 2022 by Dutch

[Johnny Chimpo 478]

Who honestly needs that grinder? For French press / Aeropress / drip.