Finally managed to take some pictures - shocking quality, but they give the right views.
Having played with ths Barista Express for a couple of weeks now I can honestly say it is an incredible machine. The control you have over the grind and the quality of the build is exceptional. It looks and feels professional and yet is quite forgiving. It comes with 4 filter sizes: Single and Double both in standard and pressurised forms. You can control both the grind size and the grind amount which has come in very useful. It is only single boiler so you do need to wait a little if you are heating milk or wanting hot water however this is no more than 30 seconds.
Finally got onto the Jabberwocky blend and I wanted to take you through the process with the Barista Express:
First of all grinding the beans, this has been dialled in for the new beans and I used the automatic setting, however as you can see you can manually control it.
Once ground its time to tamp, and here the Barista Express again provides so much support to the novice, a nicely shaped and weighted tamp goes along with the Razor which helps you ensure you are at the right level within the filter:
You can see on the top of the tamp a small metal disc - this slots into a holder within the Barista and attaches magnetically.
Once tamped its time to pour. A simple push of the button and the Barista Express goes through a low pressure pre infusion phase and then a more high pressure pouring phase:
Pressure was a little high, so will increase the grind size a little for the next pour, but it didnt overly affect the final product:
Delicious. Will do a proper review of the various blends, but the Jabberwocky is certainly one of the nicer 4 that I have tried.
And for those that like that kind of thing - the puck comes out perfectly everytime and never seems to be too wet or too dry:
