There's something amazingly satisfying the one time you get it perfect, then incredibly annoying trying to replicate it...
Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread
- Thread starter Siliconslave
- Start date
Soldato
- Joined
- 27 Mar 2003
- Posts
- 2,710
Well after a couple of failed attempts I managed to get a fairly good shot out of the new portafilter. There was an initial squirt of coffee everywhere but no where near as bad as it has been (i.e. all over the place) and the stream came out of the middle at a slower but more consistent state.
One thing I have noticed with changing these settings my shots taste a lot more intense (similar to when I go to a proper coffee shop i.e. Notes, Milkbar, Coffee Aroma etc.) So I guess I have been under extracting my shots (first thing I have noticed is that the shots are a lot darker and rich in colour compared to using the supplied portafilter with the gaggia classic.
Looking at the puck it seems to be getting an even amount of water over it and even when emptying I am not seeing the dry bits I would occasionally see previously.
I still think I have a smidge of micro adjustments to make with the grind setting to try and stop that initial spurt of coffee but other than that I am pretty pleased with the results so far.
One thing I have noticed with changing these settings my shots taste a lot more intense (similar to when I go to a proper coffee shop i.e. Notes, Milkbar, Coffee Aroma etc.) So I guess I have been under extracting my shots (first thing I have noticed is that the shots are a lot darker and rich in colour compared to using the supplied portafilter with the gaggia classic.
Looking at the puck it seems to be getting an even amount of water over it and even when emptying I am not seeing the dry bits I would occasionally see previously.
I still think I have a smidge of micro adjustments to make with the grind setting to try and stop that initial spurt of coffee but other than that I am pretty pleased with the results so far.
Associate
The problem is that (compared to an espresso only grinder), the rocky does not really do micro adjustments. For a given bean, you are typically experimenting between 2 settings at most and tweaking your tamping accordingly. Good results are however definitely possible and I'm very happy with the rocky, silvia and BPF.
I'm currently on subscription to Square Mile Coffee (500gm/month) interspersed with Monmouth beans which my local cafe happen to sell.
I'm currently on subscription to Square Mile Coffee (500gm/month) interspersed with Monmouth beans which my local cafe happen to sell.
Caporegime
Square Mile Coffee subscription. Did you get that with a mortgage? :E
Associate
no, for christmas so I have never looked at the price!
let's take a look.
6 month subscription from Square Mile: £95 for 6 x 500g = 3.2p/gram x 15grams/serving = 48p/cup, call it 50p if you use a tad more.
Certainly it's more than Monmouth (which is £26 /kilo locally) and more than many of the coffees from Hasbean (who I don't believe do an espresso-only subscription).
I actually think that 50p is pretty good value for money for a fantastic tasting coffee.
oh and it comes in a really nice box....
Caporegime
Don't get me wrong, they do my favourite coffee. Sweet shop for espresso and Santa Ana for filter, but they are nearly twice the price of hasbean stock!
Caporegime
I can't say price play any particular bearings on taste in coffee for me.
£95 for 6 bags? I normally pay around £5 per bag on average. One time I thought it would be interesting to see what "expensive" coffee taste like, tried some Blue Mountain, tried some other ones that was £14 for 500g.
It tasted different to the £5 for sure, but so was another £5 bag taste different to another estate/region.
£95 for 6 bags? I normally pay around £5 per bag on average. One time I thought it would be interesting to see what "expensive" coffee taste like, tried some Blue Mountain, tried some other ones that was £14 for 500g.
It tasted different to the £5 for sure, but so was another £5 bag taste different to another estate/region.
Associate
note that the bags are 500g, not the typical 250g bags that you get.
expensive coffee does not guarantee good taste (esp if it has been sitting on shelves and not freshly roasted). Blue Mountain is famous for charging silly money just because...
but freshly roasted coffee (i.e. within 1-2 days of posting) is never going to be cheap.
Caporegime
Ah yes, 500g, I should correct myself to say that the £14 bag was 125g...
Anyway, I can't really tell.
Caporegime
When choosing between suppliers the biggest difference you are choosing is the skill of the roaster, not the bean. Unless you are buying unroasted, of course. All of the "good" suppliers are buying similar quality beans - it's what they do with those beans that makes the difference. Square Mile are the best roasters, IMO, just expensive.
end of the day it's like wine, whiskey, tea etc etc - buy what you like, if you like the cheaper stuff that's brilliant 
Price != quality / taste
I've bought £15 bags square mile and it's been no better than their £9.50 red brick, but then i do love their redbrick.
RE beans vs roasters etc I'd say the beans are actually most of what your paying for... sure the roasters are very very important, but CICO. A good roaster won't fix bad beans (nor would they buy them)
Beans wise different plants have different requirements on how they are grown, some are very very difficult to get a good crop for and require rather extreme conditions to thrive. Some (ie. robusta) are much easier to grow but generally aren't as good. Some (ie blue mountain / civit) have either a reputation or silly (and cruel) processing that bumps up the price without really increasing the quality. All this goes into the base price then the quality, as rated by the SCAA and other orgs. Essentially this is the number and severity of 'bad' beans per 350g green bean sample.
Intermediaries, coops or importers then sell these onto roasters, generally via auction.
Some roasters also build relationships directly with the growers or processors to get a better price and the pick of beans.
Price != quality / taste
I've bought £15 bags square mile and it's been no better than their £9.50 red brick, but then i do love their redbrick.
RE beans vs roasters etc I'd say the beans are actually most of what your paying for... sure the roasters are very very important, but CICO. A good roaster won't fix bad beans (nor would they buy them)
Beans wise different plants have different requirements on how they are grown, some are very very difficult to get a good crop for and require rather extreme conditions to thrive. Some (ie. robusta) are much easier to grow but generally aren't as good. Some (ie blue mountain / civit) have either a reputation or silly (and cruel) processing that bumps up the price without really increasing the quality. All this goes into the base price then the quality, as rated by the SCAA and other orgs. Essentially this is the number and severity of 'bad' beans per 350g green bean sample.
Intermediaries, coops or importers then sell these onto roasters, generally via auction.
Some roasters also build relationships directly with the growers or processors to get a better price and the pick of beans.
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Associate
I've been using an Aeropress, normally with beans from Hasbean for about a year now and have been happy with the taste.
Last week I was given a free Illy pod machine and the coffee taste is so much richer and fuller, similar to a flat white I had from Taylor Street in London.
Am I not getting the best out of my beans with the Aeropress, should I look to get a espresso machine?
Last week I was given a free Illy pod machine and the coffee taste is so much richer and fuller, similar to a flat white I had from Taylor Street in London.
Am I not getting the best out of my beans with the Aeropress, should I look to get a espresso machine?
Associate
What grinder are you using?
What beans do you get? How old are they, how are they stored?
What flavours do you prefer, "fuller and richer" doesn't really say much
What's your AP method?
It's a slippery slope to espresso, but I doubt that you'd get better drinks from an illy machine than you are with the AP. If it's milky drinks that you're after (latte, flat white, etc.) then an espresso machine is the way forward - I myself prefer brewed beverages (long drinks, dab of milk) so will be selling my 'spro kit soon in favour of more brew devices and a better grinder
What beans do you get? How old are they, how are they stored?
What flavours do you prefer, "fuller and richer" doesn't really say much
What's your AP method?
It's a slippery slope to espresso, but I doubt that you'd get better drinks from an illy machine than you are with the AP. If it's milky drinks that you're after (latte, flat white, etc.) then an espresso machine is the way forward - I myself prefer brewed beverages (long drinks, dab of milk) so will be selling my 'spro kit soon in favour of more brew devices and a better grinder
Associate
Porlex burr grinder
Hasbean beans, oldest I keep them is about 14 days, stored in the Hasbean bag inside a sealed tupperware box, in a cupboard
I tend to like chocolaty flavours, judging by the Hasbean descriptions.
Inverted method, approx 18g of beans, brew for about a minute, heat milk in the microwave, then froth with a handheld electric whisk.
It's a slippery slope to espresso, but I doubt that you'd get better drinks from an illy machine than you are with the AP. If it's milky drinks that you're after (latte, flat white, etc.) then an espresso machine is the way forward - I myself prefer brewed beverages (long drinks, dab of milk) so will be selling my 'spro kit soon in favour of more brew devices and a better grinder
I prefer milky drinks.
Don't know if it's because the machines extract under pressure that more of the flavour is coming through.
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Associate
I've received some Square Mile Red Brick today, will see what it's like tomorrow morning
You will get a different flavour profile from an espresso machine to an AP to pour over, but the AP shouldn't be so bad a illy pod beats it...
The three things to adjust for flavour are the amount of coffee, the brew time and the grind of the coffee - more coffee, longer steeping or finer grind will give you more flavour.
Try upping your brew time to 2 min or making the grind a notch finer.
& enjoy the redbrick
If you're getting coffee you prefer out of the pod machine, why not just use that?
Soldato
I've had a bottomless porta filter for a while, but gave up using it due to it spraying coffee all over the place 
Any ideas as to what I'm doing wrong? Machine is a Sylvia grinder is a doserless Rocky. I stir the grinds after grinding them into the filter.
Many thanks
Any ideas as to what I'm doing wrong? Machine is a Sylvia grinder is a doserless Rocky. I stir the grinds after grinding them into the filter.
Many thanks
Soldato
Which basket are you using? When I first tried my bottomless I had spray everywhere - but more care with the dose and tamping made it better. I also had to fine the grind some more to get a consistent shot speed.
Soldato
I'm using the standard double filter that came with the machine. The speed is the same if using the standard portafilter 14g ground coffee = 50g finished product ~25 seconds, more or less.