What’s on your coffee bench?

[jh_on_the_cape]

Totally inspired by this thread. I bought the gaggia and another local paceliner upgraded his grinder so I ended up with the rancilio. IMG_20181127_181555.jpeg

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[echappist]

Originally Posted by pritchet74

Does anyone else have a thing for tampers?

I have always loved my Chris King, but I use the Tune one more often.

show off

Originally Posted by Tim Porter

I posted earlier in the thread about our Olympia Cremina. In yet another step down yet another rabbit hole, I added the matchy-matchy espresso grinder. I had been finding it tough to get pre-ground espresso to work consistently but this thing is amazing. After a few tries, I had it working pretty much just right. Makes it extremely easy to crank out a couple of cappuccinos.

very nice; that color would go well with my new kitchenaid mixer

btw, how's the consistency with your machine, as it appears you literally need to pull the lever to get a shot of espresso?

Originally Posted by jh_on_the_cape

Totally inspired by this thread. I bought the gaggia and another local paceliner upgraded his grinder so I ended up with the rancilio. Attachment 1697970611

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very nice, enjoy

-----------------------------------------------

as for me, finally poured another semi-decent heart latté art (last one was from almost a month ago), and I think i've finally begin to get the hang of it. also made a panettone with my mixer (too bad the two weren't in the same picture)

[jpritchet74]

Originally Posted by echappist

as for me, finally poured another semi-decent heart latté art (last one was from almost a month ago), and I think i've finally begin to get the hang of it.

That heart looks great! I found a local barista that has agreed to teach me how to do art better because I can't get it right. This morning he had a swan in the top of my latte. I should have taken a photo because it was REALLY impressive.

[Tim Porter]

echappist asked:

"btw, how's the consistency with your machine, as it appears you literally need to pull the lever to get a shot of espresso?"

You do indeed need to raise and then pull down the lever for each espresso. Once you get the ground rules (so to speak) figured out, it's incredibly easy and consistent, but it takes some experimentation to arrive at the right density of the espresso "powder" (as their manual calls it). Now I raise the lever, wait until a drip or two of espresso come out and then slowly lower the handle.

I actually read the manual, can you believe it? For a single, the manual says you want 7-9.5 grams of espresso--I weighed it. And you need to tamp it in a broad range of 5-15 kg, depending on the density of the espresso. With my new grinder, a very light tamp works best. Your goal is for each downward pull of the handle to take 20-30 seconds, which I achieved with the new grinder in 4 tries. (I started way too fine--took more than a couple of minutes to get that sucker all the way down!)

It's very satisfying to get it right and have a consistent way to do it--kind of like Campy mechanical (maybe even DT shifters?) vs. Di2. These are Swiss-built, very robust machines--very old school. I suspect the old style lever machine is where that "pulling" lingo came from. (In Starbuckian: Pull shots, etc.)

I've spent three weeks in Italy this year and studied every barista in action that I could. They work fast--boom, boom, done. Just firewall that steam wand all the way down in the pitcher and barely move it around; just wait for the froth to fill up the pitcher. This machine makes all that ez.

[philhan89]

V60 pour over. Only coffee drinker in house. Aeropress as backup when im outta v60 filters. One addition, maybe a ceramic handgrinder? Anyone know if it makes a taste difference from that of a burr?

[climbgdh]

I’m certainly not worthy of this machine but I have to say I do love it. Profitec dual boiler Pro 700 and T64 grinder.

[jpritchet74]

Originally Posted by climbgdh

I’m certainly not worthy of this machine but I have to say I do love it. Profitec dual boiler Pro 700 and T64 grinder.

Ooohhhh that's a nice combo - how do you like the grinder?

[climbgdh]

Originally Posted by pritchet74

Ooohhhh that's a nice combo - how do you like the grinder?

The grinder is fantastic. Fully programmable dosing timer, literally infinite grind capabilities, relatively quiet and looks great. I got it and the espresso machine as demo units with quite a nice discount. They called them demo but they both looked totally brand new to me when I received them.

[oldguy00]

Originally Posted by climbgdh

The grinder is fantastic. Fully programmable dosing timer, literally infinite grind capabilities, relatively quiet and looks great. I got it and the espresso machine as demo units with quite a nice discount. They called them demo but they both looked totally brand new to me when I received them.

Nice! Was that from 'Idrinkcoffee'? I've been looking at the Profitec 500 from them.

[climbgdh]

Originally Posted by oldguy00

Nice! Was that from 'Idrinkcoffee'? I've been looking at the Profitec 500 from them.

I do buy a lot of supplies etc from IDRINKCOFFEE.com but the espresso machine & grinder I picked up about 1-1/2 years ago from ZCAFE. Advertised as demo or open box.....

[echappist]

Originally Posted by pritchet74

That heart looks great! I found a local barista that has agreed to teach me how to do art better because I can't get it right. This morning he had a swan in the top of my latte. I should have taken a photo because it was REALLY impressive.

thanks; good luck with your own latte art

Originally Posted by Tim Porter

echappist asked:

"btw, how's the consistency with your machine, as it appears you literally need to pull the lever to get a shot of espresso?"

You do indeed need to raise and then pull down the lever for each espresso. Once you get the ground rules (so to speak) figured out, it's incredibly easy and consistent, but it takes some experimentation to arrive at the right density of the espresso "powder" (as their manual calls it). Now I raise the lever, wait until a drip or two of espresso come out and then slowly lower the handle.

I actually read the manual, can you believe it? For a single, the manual says you want 7-9.5 grams of espresso--I weighed it. And you need to tamp it in a broad range of 5-15 kg, depending on the density of the espresso. With my new grinder, a very light tamp works best. Your goal is for each downward pull of the handle to take 20-30 seconds, which I achieved with the new grinder in 4 tries. (I started way too fine--took more than a couple of minutes to get that sucker all the way down!)

It's very satisfying to get it right and have a consistent way to do it--kind of like Campy mechanical (maybe even DT shifters?) vs. Di2. These are Swiss-built, very robust machines--very old school. I suspect the old style lever machine is where that "pulling" lingo came from. (In Starbuckian: Pull shots, etc.)

I've spent three weeks in Italy this year and studied every barista in action that I could. They work fast--boom, boom, done. Just firewall that steam wand all the way down in the pitcher and barely move it around; just wait for the froth to fill up the pitcher. This machine makes all that ez.

ah, very interesting. thanks for sharing

[andrew+]

Beautiful Cremina - and nice to see that the latest production models haven't changed much. The owners of Orphan Espresso and other coffee forums nerds hold them in high regard.

[andrew+]

Originally Posted by jh_on_the_cape

Totally inspired by this thread. I bought the gaggia and another local paceliner upgraded his grinder so I ended up with the rancilio. Attachment 1697970611

Sent from my ZTE A2017U using Tapatalk

The Classic is capable of making fantastic espresso. If you get upgrade-itis, go for a better grinder or a PID that holds its boiler temp steady.

[jh_on_the_cape]

Originally Posted by andrew+

The Classic is capable of making fantastic espresso. If you get upgrade-itis, go for a better grinder or a PID that holds its boiler temp steady.

I looked at the pid and I will wait to see what I can do with this first. It's more than half the cost of the entire machine

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[Ozz]

OK - I am looking to get back into grinding my own beans...been eyeing the Breville Smart Grinder Pro...seems to be idiot-proof, lots of features and such without breaking the bank at $200

The Rancilio Rocky seems to be popular as well....what does it do that the Breville would not?

Any other (sub $500) grinders at which I should be looking?

Most coffee I drink is a pour over filter...but started using my machine a little more recently (thanks a lot, Paceline) and will probably upgrade that is the next year or so. Current machine is a Starbucks Barista (Saeco Via Venezia) and is about 15-20 yrs old.

Thanks all....

Cheers.