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Thread: Coffee People. Talk to me.

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Great thread, Tim. Thanks. Speaking to a baristo the other day and he said that he had a really simple set-up at home as well. If he wanted espresso or anything like that, he drove two miles to work to use the beautiful machine in the shop. Rough life. :P

    Coffee freaks! Yay! For Christmas, Hubby bought me a Via Venezia espresso machine. I enhanced with a non-pressurized filter (whew! what a relief) and I really can't imagine making coffee any other way now. Maybe I'll get sick of it someday. Still have my Mr. Coffee (gold filter) for when people visit. And a Melitta for the occasional pour over but I found I miss the taste that the paper filter removes. Would love to try a Turkish coffee pot (and a samovar for tea). The more intense the taste, the better.

    ILMP, I love your HX. I'm afraid unless we win the lottery or I write a bestseller, (both highly unlikely) I won't ever have a machine like that. I considered eventually moving up the Silvia but heard it is picky. Could you tell me in what way? I've already got trouble getting my tamp even and I've been doing that for a month now. (bangs head on desk) It's a fun addiction (the process as much as the coffee) so I don't mind but I don't need to add a "temperamental" machine to the mix.

    I use Redbird espresso and a local roaster now and then as well. The local is very good but not well known as yet. I hope they survive because they're very small and well outside the downtown area. I'm trying to tell my local friends to get by there when ever they can (Pearland Coffee Roasters). Had a fantastic latte there the other day.

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    Senior Member reprieve's Avatar
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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    I have a French Press pot and a Bialetti Moka stovetop pot that see occasional use. My five year-old Cuisinart drip machine still gets used every day.

    But my true love is a Gaggia Classic espresso machine. I've had it for just over two years now, and I can't imagine living without it. I have learned to pull a decent shot with nice crema, and am now experimenting with a naked portafilter. I use a Gaggia MDF burr grinder, but I'm thinking of switching to a doserless grinder as the Gaggia MDF's doser drives me batty (but the actual grinder itself has been consistently excellent).

    I try to buy fresh-roasted beans from a local coffee shop, but when I can't get them, I use Filicori Zecchini or Lavazza beans. I have read a lot of good things about Klatch's roasts and am about to order a bag of their Belle Espresso.


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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Quote Originally Posted by KCat View Post
    ILMP, I love your HX. I'm afraid unless we win the lottery or I write a bestseller, (both highly unlikely) I won't ever have a machine like that. I considered eventually moving up the Silvia but heard it is picky. Could you tell me in what way? I've already got trouble getting my tamp even and I've been doing that for a month now. (bangs head on desk) It's a fun addiction (the process as much as the coffee) so I don't mind but I don't need to add a "temperamental" machine to the mix.
    The Sylvia is very tempermental without a PID. I was temperature surfing all the time with mine till I got the PID on it. It worked for the most part, most of the time, but there were times it was a miss fire and I had some throw outs. It started to leak at the group head one time so I had to fix that. Then a hose gasket started to give out and had that replaced. The PID started to give temps way off the mark sometimes. You need either a click tamper like the Espro, or be pretty damn good at being consistent with 30 lbs of force. I just gave up and sold it with problems and all. So far no problems with the Giotto.

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    Senior Member TMac's Avatar
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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Tim, is the coffee business you are working with a local company? Let me know if they have retail sales,I'd love to try them out.
    Terry

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    Senior Member ardgedee's Avatar
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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Quote Originally Posted by manoeuver View Post
    I love the idea of the valve on a pourover brewer. on the other hand I like the challenge of dialing in brew time by adjusting the grind of the coffee.
    This. I've also figured out how to regulate flow by positioning the paper in the cone I use, so it's not too difficult to get a good brew without much hardware.

    One of our local cafes (Cocoa & Cinnamon) uses the Clever for their herbal drinks, which is a good idea. If we didn't already have a couple single-serving press pots in the house for tea, I'd probably get a Clever for the job.

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    I use a ninety year old hand crank box grinder, a ceramic pour over brewer, two mugs, and Trader Joe's "Plain Old Joe" coffee. I brew two cups, leaving the brewer on the second mug until I've finished drinking the first. That second mug of coffee remains nice and hot.
    Fred

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    Senior Member Tony Rex's Avatar
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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    In Soviet Russia (well, Indonesia really) Starbucks come to you!

    1326179748825769803.jpg

    I'm not attacking anyone or coffee culture.. But since Tim mentioned a Mandailing Coffee, that reminds me of the plight of poor coffee farmers who, ironically, could barely afford instant coffee packets like the above.. While their products fuel multi billion industry elsewhere. Especially Aceh farmers, who couldn't use their own Gayo name because it's trademarked by a foreign company. They sold their stuff marked as Mandailing etc.. And farmers from the Eastern parts: Toraja (near my ancestral home), Timor Leste, NTT Flores growers are even poorer than the Sumatran! Although, IMO they got better beans. Overall, I'd rate the unfairness of the industry exceeded of the sweatshops because of the uncertainty of crops and commodity prices. I must say though, in some mysterious way, a 'kopi tubruk' with cheap rock sugar and a clove ciggy (I quit smoking a long time ago, but still very vivid) were better than any fancy coffee of the West. I don't know, perhaps it's just sentiments out of solidarity. It's just better.

    Tony

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Quote Originally Posted by I like mango pudding View Post

    The Sylvia is very tempermental without a PID. I was temperature surfing all the time with mine till I got the PID on it. It worked for the most part, most of the time, but there were times it was a miss fire and I had some throw outs. It started to leak at the group head one time so I had to fix that. Then a hose gasket started to give out and had that replaced. The PID started to give temps way off the mark sometimes. You need either a click tamper like the Espro, or be pretty damn good at being consistent with 30 lbs of force. I just gave up and sold it with problems and all. So far no problems with the Giotto.
    Ah, okay. Given I have a Via Venezia, I don't think I'd be too concerned with PID or no PID. :P I'm just happy when I can get my shots to come out even. I do have an Espro because my ability to judge my tamp is horrid. I have a very light hand with writing (have trouble getting flex out of flex nibs) so knowing what the heck 30lbs is... But balancing it is my problem. Inevitably when I try to make up for my tendency to not put enough pressure on the right side of the PF, I over tamp and get a too-long shot.

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Quote Originally Posted by KCat View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by I like mango pudding View Post

    The Sylvia is very tempermental without a PID. I was temperature surfing all the time with mine till I got the PID on it. It worked for the most part, most of the time, but there were times it was a miss fire and I had some throw outs. It started to leak at the group head one time so I had to fix that. Then a hose gasket started to give out and had that replaced. The PID started to give temps way off the mark sometimes. You need either a click tamper like the Espro, or be pretty damn good at being consistent with 30 lbs of force. I just gave up and sold it with problems and all. So far no problems with the Giotto.
    Ah, okay. Given I have a Via Venezia, I don't think I'd be too concerned with PID or no PID. :P I'm just happy when I can get my shots to come out even. I do have an Espro because my ability to judge my tamp is horrid. I have a very light hand with writing (have trouble getting flex out of flex nibs) so knowing what the heck 30lbs is... But balancing it is my problem. Inevitably when I try to make up for my tendency to not put enough pressure on the right side of the PF, I over tamp and get a too-long shot.
    The Via Venezia has a pressurized portafilter so you don't have to be so critical with tamping or grind. But if you want to be sure about the force, use a bathroom scale to measure 30 pounds to judge how hard to tamp. You can remove the pressurized portion of the portafilter to make it a regular one. But without a pressurized PF, you need to be more critical with pressure, grind and dosage as well. You should be able to extract the brew till just before the machine starts to choke and extract up to 2 ounces in about 24 to 30 seconds.

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Quote Originally Posted by I like mango pudding View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by KCat View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by I like mango pudding View Post

    The Sylvia is very tempermental without a PID. I was temperature surfing all the time with mine till I got the PID on it. It worked for the most part, most of the time, but there were times it was a miss fire and I had some throw outs. It started to leak at the group head one time so I had to fix that. Then a hose gasket started to give out and had that replaced. The PID started to give temps way off the mark sometimes. You need either a click tamper like the Espro, or be pretty damn good at being consistent with 30 lbs of force. I just gave up and sold it with problems and all. So far no problems with the Giotto.
    Ah, okay. Given I have a Via Venezia, I don't think I'd be too concerned with PID or no PID. :P I'm just happy when I can get my shots to come out even. I do have an Espro because my ability to judge my tamp is horrid. I have a very light hand with writing (have trouble getting flex out of flex nibs) so knowing what the heck 30lbs is... But balancing it is my problem. Inevitably when I try to make up for my tendency to not put enough pressure on the right side of the PF, I over tamp and get a too-long shot.
    The Via Venezia has a pressurized portafilter so you don't have to be so critical with tamping or grind. But if you want to be sure about the force, use a bathroom scale to measure 30 pounds to judge how hard to tamp. You can remove the pressurized portion of the portafilter to make it a regular one. But without a pressurized PF, you need to be more critical with pressure, grind and dosage as well. You should be able to extract the brew till just before the machine starts to choke and extract up to 2 ounces in about 24 to 30 seconds.
    Right. I don't use the pressurized filter. I did for a good while but after about three months I started tasting and smelling what I can best describe as something rancid. Now, having gone through a few short shots, I can relate this to the "sour" taste of which others speak. (shudder). I get pretty consistently 30-34 seconds most days but they are not level. That is, my right shot is always faster than my left. The machine has been leveled. My tamp has not. :P This is why I wanted to get on Coffeegeek and try to pick brains to figure out what, if anything, I could do besides practice to get it right. If I go a shade lower on the grinder, it chokes completely. A shade higher and the water runs through too fast. So the tamp pressure and grind seems right, just uneven. I use "WDT" btb 'cause my Baratza does make for some clumpy grounds.

    Anyway - didn't mean to turn this into - "Fix my tamp!" thread. I'll shut up now. I've enjoyed seeing everyone's set-up. I love the old grinders. Somewhere on the tube I saw a huge vintage hopper. A thing of beauty. Stuff like that, like vintage pens, is what makes hobbies like this so cool.

    Best,
    KCat

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Disclaimer: I'm not a coffee drinker. However, I do occasionally I like a cappucino and while I was in Greece I fell in love with their coffee (metrios pls). I do have in a storage unit: an old style manual (burr) grinder (can be used for coffee beans, spices etc), a bodum coffee press and milk frother and an inexpensive espresso machine.

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    I'm as fanatical about coffee as fountain pens. I usually drink about two Chemex pour overs a day from a Burr grinder and digital scale. In some ways, I think the digital scale is probably the most important part of coffee making. Otherwise, I admire the espresso folks, but I don't need another obsessive hobby, so I let good shops make it for me.

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Now that its warm out (and my AC is broken) I've been pretty much exclusively drinking cold brewed iced coffee. I still wake up with a cup from my Keurig, situated next to my alarm so I can hit "brew" first thing in the morning. But after that it's iced coffee all day long. It's just about the most refreshing thing in the entire world and so easy to brew.

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Quote Originally Posted by Sailor Kenshin View Post
    Yeah, I'm iggorant, but What's an Aeropress?
    Aeropress is an inexpensive (< USD$30) easy to use, fast, easy to clean "press" coffee maker that makes a great cup approaching an espresso. It makes a consistently very good cup quickly and with crema. It's available at many places including Amazon.

    See http://aerobie.com/products/aeropres...ress-story.htm

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    yes, Aeropress is very good. In order to get the maximum benefit out of it, do the upside down method, therefore you get the crema/oils in your coffee all included.

    I have this myself.

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    Senior Member manoeuver's Avatar
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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Quote Originally Posted by ink mixer View Post
    I'm as fanatical about coffee as fountain pens. I usually drink about two Chemex pour overs a day from a Burr grinder and digital scale. In some ways, I think the digital scale is probably the most important part of coffee making. Otherwise, I admire the espresso folks, but I don't need another obsessive hobby, so I let good shops make it for me.
    A scale is good to have. I don't use mine much though. I really like having a grinder with a timer on it, it makes brewing so easy.

    When I'm doing coffee instruction I always use a scale though.

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    It's getting close to 100 degrees F now and I still drink coffee.
    Fountain Pen Sith Lord | Daakusaido | Everything in one spot

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Quote Originally Posted by tenney View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by Sailor Kenshin View Post
    Yeah, I'm iggorant, but What's an Aeropress?
    Aeropress is an inexpensive (< USD$30) easy to use, fast, easy to clean "press" coffee maker that makes a great cup approaching an espresso. It makes a consistently very good cup quickly and with crema. It's available at many places including Amazon.

    See http://aerobie.com/products/aeropres...ress-story.htm
    Thanks! I might put that in my Wish List. Is it easy to clean?
    My other pen is a Montblanc.

    And my other blog is a tumblr!


    And my latest ebook, for spooky wintery reading:

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CM2NGSSD

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Quote Originally Posted by Sailor Kenshin View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by tenney View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by Sailor Kenshin View Post
    Yeah, I'm iggorant, but What's an Aeropress?
    Aeropress is an inexpensive (< USD$30) easy to use, fast, easy to clean "press" coffee maker that makes a great cup approaching an espresso. It makes a consistently very good cup quickly and with crema. It's available at many places including Amazon.

    See http://aerobie.com/products/aeropres...ress-story.htm
    Thanks! I might put that in my Wish List. Is it easy to clean?
    for the most part, yes.

    You do need to buy little round filter papers but those are really cheap. It would be no different than cleaning a drip coffee filter holder. YOu need to rinse the excess cling on grinds under a stream of water, and that's it

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    Default Re: Coffee People. Talk to me.

    Hi all,
    I got hooked onto coffee brewing and coffee appreciation about 18 months ago through another forum (about travel bags, mind you) and was first introduced to the Aeropress. I bought an Aeropress and a Porlex grinder soon after and starting grinding fresh beans and brewing my own coffee. Since then, I have also bought a Bialetti Brikka (my favorite brew method), a Frieling French press, and recently a Breville Smart Grinder. Coffee drinking is now as much an obsession for me as using fountain pens. 😀


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