What’s on your coffee bench?

[Matt92037]

I have had the same machine going on 4 years now. Its been very reliable.

Originally Posted by rockdude

Because of the post, I went from this to that. Loving my coffee every morning.

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[fmradio516]

Originally Posted by jkbrwn

I agree - and if James had ten ad-rolls in the middle of his videos, I'd agree with you about him as well, but he doesn't. He has one short ad at the beginning and a sponsor that he has to shout out. Sometimes in 30 minute long videos. He's doing it right.

Well theres that, too. I was more talking about like for example, some of the people of the internet decide that its much better to do pour overs with 100g increments, waiting 36 seconds in between each pour. (not true at all) But Hoffman gets wind of it and thinks, hm.. i can make a 30 minute video on this going over the reasons why its scientifically better. And yada yada yada...

Im just overly paranoid that people are putting a lot of this content out there just to make a few extra bucks. Probably not happening as much as i think, but im crazy

[froze]

Originally Posted by fmradio516

Im just overly paranoid that people are putting a lot of this content out there just to make a few extra bucks. Probably not happening as much as i think, but im crazy

I think it's happening A LOT, I've even caught errors in bicycle tire flat repairs that people did and I'm thinking...really? But people watching that stuff probably don't know what they're doing so they watch a video and the guy who made the video makes money. All sorts of that stuff going on, it's extremely wide spread. Even Quora who pays people to ask questions get about 90% STUPID questions that the asker desperate to make money ask that they could have googled it and found the answer quicker, or was such a lame question that you know they had to know the answer before they asked it, and some are so so stupid they literally make no sense. These sort of places is all about the money.

[benb]

Originally Posted by fmradio516

Yeah thats what I hate about people who are making money on youtube. They tack on extra stuff that may be completely unnecessary just to add minutes to their video. So while I dont mind long videos, i suspect a lot of info that youtube stars brush on, may be garbage.

That's not necessarily what I meant.. James was in all those Barista competitions and such.

He has probably internalized the "show" of the competition when he does some of this stuff. It likely matters so much in those competitions that he just automatically gravitates to adding stuff to a method/routine/recipe.

I don't necessarily think it's to pad the videos and make more money on Youtube, etc..

[NHAero]

Not a coffee connoisseur here. I was intrigued by a biking friend's exposition on his awesome computerized espresso machine so went over there today to sample the wares. It was remarkably delicious. I'm relating only what I think I saw and experienced here, FWIW.

He started by grinding (in a Monolith single dose grinder) the Yukro medium roast beans (from George Howell), and putting 17.93g in the bottomless portafilter that holds the coffee. On top is a filter disc (why not rim instead of disc?), then he tamps it. Then it goes into the Decent espresso machine (not sure which model). He pushes the button and it operates according to a pre-programmed routine that has inputs for temperature, pressure, and time. The screen shows a printout chart of the variables.

He steamed some 2% milk, mixed it in, and handed it to me in a small Rapha cup. It was, as I said above, remarkably delicious.

I'm not rushing out to purchase several thousand dollars of coffee equipment (I suspect I was looking at the equivalent $$$ of my new custom Strong) but I have a better appreciation of people's obsession!

[Louis]

Originally Posted by NHAero

putting 17.93g in the bottomless portafilter that holds the coffee

Let me guess, your cycling buddy is a triathlete and hangs out on the WeightWeenies forum...

[NHAero]

He's actually a very fit and healthy 75 year old!

I'm always intrigued by smart people who get deeply into a topic or endeavor. For most of us on the PL Forum, it's bikes, though there are car and moto enthusiasts, photographers, etc. etc. My two focus areas for >40 years have been bikes and buildings, and I don't really want to have any more obsessions! As Thoreau wrote, a man is rich according to what he can afford to let alone.

Originally Posted by Louis

Let me guess, your cycling buddy is a triathlete and hangs out on the WeightWeenies forum...

[MarinRider]

Originally Posted by Louis

Let me guess, your cycling buddy is a triathlete and hangs out on the WeightWeenies forum...

Each coffee bean weights between .1 and .2 g, and a standard receipt is 18g in and 36g out. So 17.93g makes perfect sense!

[tellyho]

Pretty simple here: Baratza virtuoso, Silvia, Moccamaster, french press. Have been through an espresso progression: La Pavoni project machine, Gaggia espresso (pid project), then the Silvia.

Most recent addition is roasting my own beans: rotisserie on the Weber.

[echappist]

Originally Posted by Louis

Let me guess, your cycling buddy is a triathlete and hangs out on the WeightWeenies forum...

There's a reason why two significant figures are needed, and that's because on a digital scale having one significant figure after the decimal (e.g. 17.9), that really could be anywhere from 17.8 to 18.0 g of coffee (and often, the scale is actually less precises than that).

A 0.2 g difference in coffee ground loaded is enough to significantly alter the shot, thus the need for a scale that reads two digits after the decimal. For instance, on my machine, 16.75-16.80 g gives a restricted shot, while 16.55-16.60 g gives a normal shot, all else equal.

[jh_on_the_cape]

Originally Posted by echappist

There's a reason why two significant figures are needed, and that's because on a digital scale having one significant figure after the decimal (e.g. 17.9), that really could be anywhere from 17.8 to 18.0 g of coffee (and often, the scale is actually less precises than that).



A 0.2 g difference in coffee ground loaded is enough to significantly alter the shot, thus the need for a scale that reads two digits after the decimal. For instance, on my machine, 16.75-16.80 g gives a restricted shot, while 16.55-16.60 g gives a normal shot, all else equal.

Then why don't they use a scale at an espresso bar in Italy? Or any high quality coffee shop? Just clack the doser and go.

[fmradio516]

Originally Posted by jh_on_the_cape

Then why don't they use a scale at an espresso bar in Italy? Or any high quality coffee shop? Just clack the doser and go.

Im no expert on the matter, but the "bars" are pretty casual spots where im sure precision is not on their mind. They probably buy the machines, dial it in for a day or two until they decide "Ok do three clacks for a single; five clacks for a doppio"

It sure tastes good though! And im sure theyre importing the bagel water from NY to get the perfect shot!

[jkbrwn]

Because Italian espresso and modern espresso are very, very different indeed. Italian espresso isn't precise in most casual walk up bars and it costs 1 EUR for a shot...

The reason you see an Italian add two sachets of sugar to an espresso but probably not someone in a third wave cafe in other parts of the world is because Italian espresso is inherently dark and bitter versus more modern styles of espresso.

Lots of specialist coffee shops use scales. I can't think of one that doesn't.

[MikeD]

Interesting video on the puck rake/WDT tool. I bought a similar one off of Amazon that uses acupuncture needles. I don't need to use my coffee distributor/leveler anymore, when combined with my tamper that gives a straight (level) tamp. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIexlhxP0Ig

[AJosiahK]

just got myself a new scale, the 2021 Acaia Lunar. huge upgrade.