Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread

molinari said:
I have one!! I looked around for a milk steaming solution when my Gaggia Baby Twin steamer packed up (it wasn't very good anyway), and eventually found the Bellman. I like it, and it works really well for a stove top steamer. It takes at least 5 minutes to get enough pressure to steam milk to a decent quality, and the actual steaming takes slightly longer than a decent coffee machine, but it does a really good job.

How I use it:
- Fill with water up to line inside, screw the top on tight, and place on gas stove on a high heat
- After about 4 minutes I open the valve to release the pressure inside. I find this gets rid of the hot air, so that more steam is produced. (Not sure if that makes sense but before I did that, when I came to use it, only hot air came out for a while before any steam did, and it didn't last that long. This way, steam comes out straight away).
- A couple of minutes later, I turn down the heat slightly and start steaming the milk. I keep it on the heat the whole time so that more steam is being made whilst it's in use.

There is a pressure release for safety in case you leave in on the stove without using it. When this starts to hiss, you know it's at its maximum pressure and will produce a couple of minutes worth of great steaming.

It is a bit more work than a built in steamer on an espresso machine, but it steams milk a lot better than any cheap espresso machine (sub £400) I've used. I'm glad I've got it even with the extra effort needed.
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Please don't laugh at my stupid question, but the Bellman is only useful if you have a machine that makes espresso, right?

I have a french press at the moment because I don't like espresso, but I do like cappucinos and lattes. I was looking at getting a Porlex hand grinder and Brita filter because the water in my area is extremely hard.

However, the thought of being able to make lattes at home does sound quite appealing. Do I need to buy something like a Gaggia to achieve this?
 
You'd need some way of making espresso because a latte or cappuccino etc is made up of a shot of espresso, plus steamed milk. You can't make a shot of espresso with a french press. Why not get an aeropress or stove top espresso thing?
 
Scam said:
You'd need some way of making espresso because a latte or cappuccino etc is made up of a shot of espresso, plus steamed milk. You can't make a shot of espresso with a french press. Why not get an aeropress or stove top espresso thing?
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That's what I suspected, thanks :)

I looked at aeropresses a while back, but there was something about them that put me off. I assume by stove-top you mean a mocha pot? I haven't done any research on those yet.

I wonder if the Porlex will grind fine enough for good espresso. It's either that or spend a fortune on an electric grinder, as the cheap ones apparently don't do a good enough job.
 
Yep. Mocha pot. The Aeropress looks weird I'll admit, but it makes a lovely smooth coffee. So much so that a lot of the trendy independent cafes now offer it as a brew method. That said I mostly use mine with the 'inverted' method which means you get somewhere between an espresso and a filter (you do 1/3rd coffee to 2/3rds water). For a 'pure' espresso shot I don't know how it compares to a mocha pot; others here can advise. Obviously neither will be as good as a machine, but then again they both cost a heck of a lot less than a good machine!

Hand grinders will be fine for an aeropress or mocha pot too, it's just more work :)
 
Spur of the moment wanting to grab myself a machine and grinder.
Last I checked the Gaggia Classic was the best machine this side of £200...is this still the case?
Looking to spend around that amount on the machine, unless spending more will provide much better results. Of course, I'd also be needing a non-pressurized basket.

How about grinders that will grind finely enough for espresso without costing the earth? :) Surely there are some bargains to be had?!

Cheers
 
from what i understand the gaggia classic is still the best option, and the porlex hand grinder is the best rated low cost grinder, ibertal MC2 is the cheapest people reccomend if you must go electric and its around £150
 
Do I have much to worry about when it comes to making a Latte? I had a Dilonghi Icona £150~ and it'd run out of steam while heating the milk.
Does the Gaggia Classic have a big enough boiler to keep heating milk until I am finished heating it :cool:

Last I looked I'd been thinking about getting a model with a heat exchanger, as these were a lot cheaper than models with double boilers, but I've misplaced my bookmarks so I'm none the wiser now! :(
 
LadFromWales said:
Do I have much to worry about when it comes to making a Latte? I had a Dilonghi Icona £150~ and it'd run out of steam while heating the milk.
Does the Gaggia Classic have a big enough boiler to keep heating milk until I am finished heating it(
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The boiler on the classic is small at around 100ml so steaming time is limited. You can just about steam enough milk for a 12oz drink at a time to around 65c. If you want to steam more than that, you will need to divide the milk up, steam, refill the boiler then steam your second lot.
 
I believe the manual says not to steam for more than 45seconds or so but my boiler heated up uber fast anyway about 30seconds from turning the machine on and pressing the steam button until the light came on
more than enough time to make milk for a couple of americanos though
 
Hamster said:
The boiler on the classic is small at around 100ml so steaming time is limited. You can just about steam enough milk for a 12oz drink at a time to around 65c. If you want to steam more than that, you will need to divide the milk up, steam, refill the boiler then steam your second lot.
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Light off = boiler on | Light on = boiler off

Just start steaming just before the light comes on, and the boiler won't turn off
 
Anyone ventured out west recentlyy? London that is :p Finally left myself enough time before my train to pop into Electric Coffee Co (formerly Freddos). Awesome cappuccino and the food looked gorgeous. Must take the time to sit in and try it all!

Their coffee is from Volcano Works which I'd never heard of before?
 
Scam said:
Anyone ventured out west recentlyy? London that is :p Finally left myself enough time before my train to pop into Electric Coffee Co (formerly Freddos). Awesome cappuccino and the food looked gorgeous. Must take the time to sit in and try it all!

Their coffee is from Volcano Works which I'd never heard of before?
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I've not been in since they changed the name but I believe that they have their own blend made up by Volcano which they also sell, albeit quite expensively. Good to hear that their food still looks great; it looked really good and fresh last time I went in!! :) They do V60 pourovers using a different bean which is worth a try if you've not had one before.
 
Anyone watched the UKBC? Or been to it? I didn't even realize it was on this weekend, only found out this evening. Is it normally this early in the year? Vaguely remember it being in March other years...
 
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