Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread

[Siliconslave]

'smart' might be over doing it, but it does look pretty cool

my issue : how can you easily support the pf (double or single spout) on a set of scales ? it is dripping as well so typically I have a cloth under it moving from grinder
(sufficiently banal topic so maybe need to send an email to the Gadget show?)

Clean (or at least empty) the PF after using it then its dry for the next cycle? put a cloth on the scales and tare before weighing?

Single spout could be a challenge and if your double is in line then i guess it could tip over - solution is to always use a double spout and turn the spout at 90deg from the handle...

Note to self - Cold brew uses almost double the amount of coffee than regular espresso or filtered for similar strength.

it does always seem a little wasteful - maybe you could let half the coffee stand for twice the time?

 

[Siliconslave]

Is anyone following a strict wait until n days after roasting rule, to avoid having to dial in and waste coffee, during what often seems to be, to me, an un-tameable infancy, where I end up with a blond gusher, as it is never ground fine enough ?
[Rave tell me when it was roasted, however Stewarts did not]

Not ever really bothered waiting personally, I tend to tweak the grind immediately after every pour so the grinder is ready for the next time. Generally accept that the first couple of days are going to be spent getting the grind perfect & part of that is just down to the beans settling.

[snob mode]if it ain't got a roasted date i ain't buying it[/snob mode] - not tried Stewards but i'd be wary if they aren't labeling their beans...

 

[Siliconslave]

Give the algerian coffee store a go www.algcoffee.co.uk/ - coffees only so-so, but they have a good range of parifanalia (although i can't see any one their website..)

Otherwise Purfrock have a good selection of equipment, as do some of the Taylor Streets stores.

 

[Siliconslave]

Wow, you said it. They're a 20min walk from my work but I thought I'd call them to check they have them. They're £6! I could order them from HasBean and pay for delivery to get them cheaper. That said, I'm just adding random things to my Amazon now to get Prime delivery

eep, that is a little overpriced! Does the amazon pre-order trick still work?

 

[Siliconslave]

I don't know that, what is it? I just chucked a couple of Stephen King books on there

something about adding a pre-order item to the basket to get the prime delivery, then canceling it later, not a prime customer but have seen it around as a 'hack'

 

[Siliconslave]

Macho - Yum! Might have to treat myself to some of that... (and try not to look at the price too much!)

Puck ejection - i just hit the corner of basket on the edge of the bin, been doing it for at least a decade and its not hurt either the bit, basket of pf so far

Coffee & milk i (personally) can't stand, but i guess it brings different things out in both, no reason not to have good coffee in a late, infact in a coffee shop somewhere that does good coffee will probably use decent milk as well.

and that tampa seems pretty cheap, but i've not bought one for a good while...

 

[Siliconslave]

Square mile also have a 20% off at the moment, pop on the site gives you the code (coffee!)

 

[Siliconslave]

this shows how many places there are in the UK now
http://thecoffeeroasters.co.uk/pages/a-big-list-of-coffee-roasters-in-uk

Its funny, i keep trying rave and not really getting along with them, personally squaremile and workshop (although expensive to buy online) are probably my top two...

That map is pretty cool though, will have to start trying some more of my local roasteries I think:

http://www.greysealcoffee.co.uk/
http://thelittleredroaster.co.uk/
http://www.smokeybarn.co.uk/
http://www.tropiccoffee.co.uk/
for starters - should see me well into the new year

 

[Siliconslave]

If you're near workshop et al you should try black sheep - they were very nice when I worked in the area. They were a nice option for a variety if I got bored of Workshop or Prufrock.

I have meetings all over London pretty frequently so I try and vary where i go, but looks like there's one just by my office, will give it a go next week

scratch that, its not open yet will have to go on the pending list!

 

[Siliconslave]

if your only going to do espresso and don't need to jump back to filter grind you'd be hard pushed to beat the Iberital MC2 for £140ish from happy donkey.

positives are its got a very fine refinement on the non-stepped adjuster, good burrs and a very good resultant grind, serious value for money.

negative it takes about 5min of turning the dial to get between espresso and cafetiere grind, its a bit noisy, it's not the best thing to look at, i've never got the timer to work properly.

 

[Siliconslave]

...that explained typo...

did you have to mark the grind adjustment knob in some way, as it suggests you might do for repeatability/counting turns.

oops - sorry!

In terms of counting turns a new bag is usually about 3-4 turns off an old bag of coffee (unless you get a very different bean/roast). I've never bothered marking the dial, just do it on feel

 

[Siliconslave]

is that with a code - at checkout it wanted full price £24/Kg for rocko ?

see on the homepage, you need to put blackfriday2016 in the checkout voucher code - just ordered 350g of the Rocko to try.

 

[Siliconslave]

its a bit more expensive, but tends to be larger bags... Nude is very good actually, might have to get some soon

 

[Siliconslave]

So is that if the coffee is opened? What about if the coffee is unopened? Just trying to get my head around this...

Thanks

the roasted coffee in a sealed packet has a longer shelf life.

First 24hrs to 3 days the beans are degassing - losing the co2 that was trapped inside them during roasting. Once this is done the beans are considered at peak.
One - four weeks sealed in an airtight package its considered in good condition.
Beyond this its beginning to go a little stale.

It'll vary depending on the beans, the roast and environment etc, but thats rough guide

 

[Siliconslave]

Thanks!

So I could probably get away with buying 2 or 3 packets. Once opened is there a 'best' approach to storage?

two options in my opinion are you either use the resealable bags the (majority) of roasteries supply, keep them in that in a cupboard - Not in the fridge or you get a vacuvin coffee saver which does most of the same thing, with a little more vacuum.

 

[Siliconslave]

This question is aimed at the likes of Frenchtart/Siliconslave/Flibster or other coffee experts on here.

I want to know if installing a PID on something like a Gaggia Classic or Rancilio Silvia (currently in possession of both) would be worth my while in the long run? Thinking about buying one for the Silvia.

kind of difficult to answer tbh, I put one on my gaggia a couple of years back (it's somewhere in the thread...) and it's been great, but was such a long time ago it's hard to know how much of a difference the PID bit really makes.

That being said the one I got has a temp readout, automatic pre-soak and timed shots which are definitely worth it. Having used a friends gaggia recently it's so much easier with these little luxuries:
Turn the machine on, wait for the readout to stabilize at 102 (to account for head loss on the way to the grouphead) and hit a button.

It totally stabilizes the time and temperature variables

 

[Siliconslave]

yer, forgot quite how much I spent on it! Just searched my emails and was slightly surprised at how much it was (although i think the USD exchange rate was better at the time...)

But - I did buy it nearly 5 years ago and its still going strong, so its only cost me ~9p a coffee - ffs thats no better

 

[Siliconslave]

they sent an email after their 15% sale saying they'd had more orders than ever before and were struggling a little - shame they aren't responding though & failing their nextday orders

 

[Siliconslave]

This may be of interest to you - £105

Interesting, but it won't do espresso, just doesn't go fine enough nor have accurate enough control.

Re: the MC2 vs Encore - the MC2 is useless *if* you want to do both espresso and filter, don't even bother, but its 100x better for accurate espresso (imho)

 

[Siliconslave]

Yeah, I'd read that about the MC2. I can use espresso grind in the aeropress so that should be OK I guess.
What about the difference between the doser and auto models, I guess the doser accurately dispenses the correct weight as per a setting? i.e. 14g

I wouldn't bother with the doser tbh, it lets you grind a batch then store it in the doser until your ready to use it - for home use that makes no sense & is just another area to clean. For a shop you can afford to bulk grind as you'd use it up over a period.