Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread

Siliconslave said:
had the chance to pop into Monmouth in Covent Garden over the weekend and its thoroughly re-affirmed my love for pour over, actually i'm off to by a V60 now :D

The set-up is very impressive, they shop was totally packed but the rate they were moving people through and turning the coffee out was outstanding and the brownies were to die for!

Edit: actually I got a clever dripper so I can also do some cold brew experimentation :)
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I finally found my ass in there on Saturday as well! I have to say I'm quite impressed with their espresso blend, though she ground it a *touch* too small for my Gaggia.

Tip: buying beans seems to be a good way to jump the drinks queue and get your drink a LOT quicker :D
 
Siliconslave said:
good stuff - just caved and ordered some Phil Ter and Ethiopia Sidamo Peaberry.. still waiting for my Clever dripper from coffee hit, should have has beaned it tbh
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My order arrived this morning :eek: :) . Seems like a nifty bit of kit and even easier than an Aeropress to clean up afterwards. Wow :)

I have tried brewing with a 21g/355ml ratio and that seemed fine, but I'm not sure on the grind setting to use.

For anyone thinking of getting into Coffee, these brewers are so cheap and easy to use. And with a Porlex/Hario hand grinder, things needn't be too expensive.
 
E61 Grouphead said:
My order arrived this morning :eek: :) . Seems like a nifty bit of kit and even easier than an Aeropress to clean up afterwards. Wow :)

I have tried brewing with a 21g/355ml ratio and that seemed fine, but I'm not sure on the grind setting to use.

For anyone thinking of getting into Coffee, these brewers are so cheap and easy to use. And with a Porlex/Hario hand grinder, things needn't be too expensive.
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It does seem to be very good, just run my first trial through and pretty much nailed it doing it by eye. People think I'm bonkers enough at work when I'm there vigorously grinding away so no scales....

Even with the very out of data Hasbean La Ilusion (Roasted Last July!!!!) i have on my desk its drinkable - can't wait to get my fresh beans through!
 
Siliconslave said:
People think I'm bonkers enough at work when I'm there vigorously grinding away so no scales....
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You could always weigh up your beans at home and put them into wraps of clingfilm. I learned that from a drug dealer on tv :p

I'm taking my Skerton and Aeropress into work tomorrow for the first time and I'm think I'm prepared for the **** taking! They all know I've turned into a bit of a coffee snob though. At Christmas one of them bought me a jar of Tesco value instant coffee. They love me really :p
 
Bought some Happy Donkey beans today, from an espresso bar near me that buys their beans from them. Don't know when they started roasting and selling their own beans and at what scale they're doing it in, but these don;t look liuke the stuff they have on their website - came in a flashy new redesigned package that looks like it could sit on supermarket shelves rather than the typical monochrome resealable bag with an adhesive label that we see from the other small roasteries, so they're obviously trying to rebrand themselves. Couldn't get an exact date from the barista there on when the beans were roasted, but he assures me that their filter beans are roasted on demand whenever they order them and their espresso beans get roasted just before they're sent to them once a week, so my guess is these can't be more than 8 days old or so. However, some of the other bags he had on there weren't bean at all, they were ground, so I assume he didn't order those to use there and they might've been well older...

It was the Colombian Finca las Cochas, and I can't really tell you for sure about the quality yet as I've only had time to try them in a French press today, but it was very good in there, dark and spicy, smelled of cinmmon and chocolate, and definitely not stale like supermarket beans tend to be. I'll try them as espresso and vac pot tomorrow though, that's the real measure I think, less forgiving brewing methods.

Been looking for alternative ways to source my coffee, occasionally I still order from Hasbean but my postman never delivers them and I have to trek all the way to the depot. Some of my local places stock Hasbean, Square Mile and others, but at outrageous markups (as in more than it would've cost me with the postage if I'd ordered online!). If this Happy Donkey stuff turns out to be good I might well switch to buying most of my coffee this way.


EDIT: Bah, ignore, don't know what was wrong with me but this isn't Happy Donkey at all: it's Grumpy Mule! Been staring at the package all day but the difference still didn't register - mild cognitive impairment at an early age I reckon... :p
 
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I've been thinking about away from home (ie camping/backpacking) coffee brewing - I'll have a gas stove/meths burner for heat - what would be best - moka pot or aeropress? The coffee will have to be pre-ground. If moka pot - then a Bialetti or a non-branded one? Can you brew smaller amounts in bigger 'cup' versions or will a 6 cup only really brew 6 cups (300 odd ml)?

Many thanks :)

/edit - I should add I really only drink espresso shots at home - maybe very occasionally diluted with some hot water :)
 
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Youstolemyname said:
Anyone else finding the Machacamarca not as good this time round?

That was coffee nirvana, this time it just isn't as good :(
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I found it a bit flat this year, and very fussy about grind, needing to be particularly fine to not get gushing shots. The crema was also very lacking and overall it was a very thin espresso to me. It almost seemed stale, but my bag was roasted late january, so not sure it can be that.

Enjoying the santa ana decaf though, means my evening consumption has gone up significantly though!
 
Quink said:
I've been thinking about away from home (ie camping/backpacking) coffee brewing - I'll have a gas stove/meths burner for heat - what would be best - moka pot or aeropress? The coffee will have to be pre-ground. If moka pot - then a Bialetti or a non-branded one? Can you brew smaller amounts in bigger 'cup' versions or will a 6 cup only really brew 6 cups (300 odd ml)?

Many thanks :)

/edit - I should add I really only drink espresso shots at home - maybe very occasionally diluted with some hot water :)
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Seen the Handpresso Wild or Mypressi Twist?
Pretty good espresso out on the go. Sadly, both are expensive.

Personally, I'd stick with an aeropress tbh.


Anyway - a report of the UKBC Heat in London has been stuck online by Union Hand Roasted Coffee. I tweeted a lot *while supposedly looking after the audio side of the event. ;)*

http://storify.com/unionroasted/ukbc-2012-south-east-heat-ukbcht1
 
Flibster said:
Seen the Handpresso Wild or Mypressi Twist?
Pretty good espresso out on the go. Sadly, both are expensive.

Personally, I'd stick with an aeropress tbh.


Anyway - a report of the UKBC Heat in London has been stuck online by Union Hand Roasted Coffee. I tweeted a lot *while supposedly looking after the audio side of the event. ;)*

http://storify.com/unionroasted/ukbc-2012-south-east-heat-ukbcht1
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The handpresso & Twist look great but for the price i'd rather stick with an aeropress tbh.

Just found your twitter :)

Total disaster with the Hasbean Ethiopia Sidamo Peaberry this morning, my grinder was totally wrong after grinding redbrick perfectly. Stalled on first attempt, less than a ristretto on the second and had to bail for work so ended up with a slightly weird cup that was drinkable but didn't really show off the coffee properly - need more time dialling it in but it seems promising (if a little citrusy for my tastes)


Hamster said:
You could always weigh up your beans at home and put them into wraps of clingfilm. I learned that from a drug dealer on tv :p
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I have been known to play around with doing this to get my eye in :)
 
Not sure if this may have been posted in here already but I spotted this link floating around on FB. I haven't looked into it in detail but I'm sure some of those on here would like to!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/zpmespresso/pid-controlled-espresso-machine

Looks interesting although it's still $400 which is £255 anyway... I know nothing about machines so I don't really understand what they are competing with.

Oh, what's good from Has Bean or Square Mile at the moment? I'm soon-to-be back on nightshifts so I need to stock up soon :p
 
Scam said:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/zpmespresso/pid-controlled-espresso-machine

Looks interesting although it's still $400 which is £255 anyway... I know nothing about machines so I don't really understand what they are competing with.
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it was floating around a few pages back, if it does what it claims it'll be amazing, no real competitors to mention, but its a very big IF for now... Damn it - getting tempted to order one again :D

edit: no 240v support for another 18months apparently so stuff that idea, damn self centred Americans :( :mad:

Scam said:
Oh, what's good from Has Bean or Square Mile at the moment? I'm soon-to-be back on nightshifts so I need to stock up soon :p
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you really can't go wrong with the Square Mile Redbrick to be honest
 
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Youstolemyname said:
Anyone else finding the Machacamarca not as good this time round?

That was coffee nirvana, this time it just isn't as good :(
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And I thought it was just me! It's certainly still a good coffee but I agree that it's not quite the same. I don't know a whole lot about the coffee making process; i switch off a little when Steve's talking about it on his In My Mug videos but could it possibly have been rushed out this time round?
 
If anyone's interested...

The 2012 UKBC Northern Heat – hosted by Pumphrey’s Coffee – kicks off at 1015 on Friday 17th February at Life Science Centre, Times Square, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear, NE1 4EP

If you cannot make it to the event please follow #ukbcht3 for updates
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And Union have posted a summary of the South West heat.

http://storify.com/unionroasted/ukbc-2012-heats-south-west-ukbcht2
 
Youstolemyname said:
Anyone else finding the Machacamarca not as good this time round?

That was coffee nirvana, this time it just isn't as good :(
Click to expand...

BUSH said:
I found it a bit flat this year, and very fussy about grind, needing to be particularly fine to not get gushing shots. The crema was also very lacking and overall it was a very thin espresso to me. It almost seemed stale, but my bag was roasted late january, so not sure it can be that.
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Hamster said:
And I thought it was just me! It's certainly still a good coffee but I agree that it's not quite the same. I don't know a whole lot about the coffee making process; i switch off a little when Steve's talking about it on his In My Mug videos but could it possibly have been rushed out this time round?
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It's not as sweet this year. Finding it a bit more like dry white wine rather than chocolaty smooth and sweet. Still a fantastic coffee though.


Scam said:
Not sure if this may have been posted in here already but I spotted this link floating around on FB. I haven't looked into it in detail but I'm sure some of those on here would like to!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/zpmespresso/pid-controlled-espresso-machine

Looks interesting although it's still $400 which is £255 anyway... I know nothing about machines so I don't really understand what they are competing with.
Click to expand...

Siliconslave said:
it was floating around a few pages back, if it does what it claims it'll be amazing, no real competitors to mention, but its a very big IF for now... Damn it - getting tempted to order one again :D

edit: no 240v support for another 18months apparently so stuff that idea, damn self centred Americans :( :mad:
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I've ordered one, when it was at it's $250 price point. Not incredibly impressed with their lack of a decent solution for anyone not on 110V. I know of several other people who have ordered and are outside the US, none are particularly happy with the final outcome. Having to buy a 1500w transformer isn't a cheap or trivial thing really - plus, they're pretty huge.

Did think about cancelling my backing, but it's still an interesting toy, and if it's pretty terrible - I can still reuse all the PID kit in another project. ;)
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Can anyone recommend a good latte coffee, i havent got a grinder atm so has to be pre ground, using Marks and Spencer Expresso atm and while its nice, it leaves a bitter aftertaste, i'm looking for something smooth but strong, maybe with vinilla tones to it... thanks in advance.

whilst i'm here can anyone recommend a cheap hand grinder, i'm not a coffee snob and it can't break the bank, probably have £20 maybe a bit more to spend on one, but i'm presuming there all going to be crap for that price, right?
 
At that price try to source an old Zassenhaus hand grinder off the bay, I love them! Great grind and look great! Others on here have different favourites of course, but they don't get the awesome 1930s stylings... :p
 
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