Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread

jpaul · 21 Sep 2017 at 22:32

nice setup.
sounds under-extracted and need a finer grind see here for example
I had emailed Momentum, in June, since unfortuantely I do not think they really cater for espresso (Waitrose coffe mentioned back down thread was better)

Hi Paul
We roast our coffees on the light - medium side, which might not be to your taste.
Our Momentum Espresso might be worth a try, this is roasted darker. If it's too light for you, I'll be happy to refund.
Thanks for the email
Ly***

nantucket66 · 21 Sep 2017 at 22:44

I’ll give it a go in the morning with a slightly finer grind, it’s already pretty fine as it stands but I’ll see what happens, will report back.

Not sold on it so far, I hope I can dial it for the rest of the bag. My normal bean is back in the cupboard now (pumphreys espresso crema - very dark and oily, love it to be bits), so normal service will resume soon enough!

ramdrive · 21 Sep 2017 at 22:50

Youstolemyname said:
Cheers for that. May find the extra 75 quid and get the Rocky.

As an aside, for the same sort of budget, what espresso machine would folks recommend?

Sorry more money, but anything below this is a waste of time IMHO:-

https://www.bellabarista.co.uk/rancilio-silvia-2016-edition-espresso-machine.html

Grimley · 24 Sep 2017 at 20:08

Begbie said:
Anyone managed to find any good decafs?

I've tried RAVEs, and it's OK. Its perfectly drinkable, but just wondering if theres anything better?

Not unless you are prepared to spend a bit more money. I'd read the tasting notes on the description before buying. I've tried 6 different Decaf beans from different roasters (& 2 more to start) this year, all have been different, priced between £7-10 for 250g each. They are all a dark roast though due to the way the beans end up after the decaf process, which is better now than it was in the past.

HEADS UP FOLKS = Speaking of Rave, Rave are doing 15% off their Single Origins on the 25th only, the Code = WINTERISCOMING

jpaul · 24 Sep 2017 at 20:45

- what are Rave up to with these new, exclusively single origin, offers ?,
do the singles have a bigger margin, they seem to have a bigger price tag, will they now perpetually alternate with blended offers

Raymond Lin · 24 Sep 2017 at 21:21

jpaul said:
- what are Rave up to with these new, exclusively single origin, offers ?,
do the singles have a bigger margin, they seem to have a bigger price tag, will they now perpetually alternate with blended offers

I find these single origin too pricey now, for my blend I just get M&S Italian Roast and actually they also have Columbian single origin for about £2.60. I even blended that with the M&S classic roast myself and it's perfectly nice coffee considering it is 1/3rd of the price of Rave or Hasbean etc.

Siliconslave · 25 Sep 2017 at 07:24

That also reminds me, use welcome17 for free shipping at workshop coffee - https://workshopcoffee.com they've changed their range but used to do great stuff so trying a few out

Scam · 26 Sep 2017 at 17:26

Any recommendations from Rave? Thanks for the Workshop code but they are hella expensive..

Grimley · 26 Sep 2017 at 18:06

/\/\/\/\/\ Not that much more expensive than other London Roasters, £9 is about the average in town these days. I paid £8.50 for a 250g bag Dark Arts on Saturday & the 2 bags of Decaf from Climpson & Sons and Allpress was 25p cheaper for the same size bag, that was 3 days ago. The most expensive in london (I think) is Caravan by the time you add shipping charges, but like Dept of coffee & square mile (Free delivery from them) bit bigger bags (350 or 360g).

Rave? Columbian Suarez.

jpaul · 26 Sep 2017 at 21:08

I'm mean £8.50 is expensive
The coffeecompass 3*500g sampler for ~£25 shipped was good (Brighton Lanes, Hill & Valley, Mahogany Roast Jampit Hit) with beginners/coffeeforums reduction.

I keep meaning to try Bellabarista too, I had specced out their gaslight espresso
... just waiting for another break in the rave offers, until then I'm theirs - mostly signature.

Edit - I lie - I will try out Raymonds suggestion when I next pass M&S
M&S Italian Roast and actually they also have Columbian single origin for about £2.60

Dj_Jestar · 26 Sep 2017 at 21:14

I wasn't keen on Bellabarista - ordered a starter pack along with my kit (250g of Milk Buster and 250g of Gaslight), but I see they've won the 2016 great taste awards on both blends so I might give them another whirl.

Grimley · 27 Sep 2017 at 08:00

/\/\/\ If the Gaslight is anything like it was a couple of years ago then go for it, I can vouch for how good it is. I've a subscription with Bella Barista on hold right now, I got a voucher to spend with them when I bought my grinder back in April. £6.50 inc shipping for said blend I don't think is too bad. Extract Coffee in Bristol I think is the best value out there right now, their regular blend is under £6- a bag & includes shipping.

Scam · 27 Sep 2017 at 12:46

Grimley said:
/\/\/\/\/\ Not that much more expensive than other London Roasters, £9 is about the average in town these days.

I generally buy online from Has Bean or Rave etc. On the odd occasions I want to buy in town yes it's more expensive but even at Monmouth I can't remember often paying over £8ish for £250g. I might be wrong though; Monmouth have a lot of difference in their price per/kg. I don't think £9/250g is the norm. That is expensive for in-store, let alone an online shop. But like I say, beyond Monmouth and possibly Nude -- I don't tend to buy instore for that very reason.

XeNoN89 · 27 Sep 2017 at 12:54

Grimley said:
/\/\/\/\/\ Not that much more expensive than other London Roasters, £9 is about the average in town these days. I paid £8.50 for a 250g bag Dark Arts on Saturday & the 2 bags of Decaf from Climpson & Sons and Allpress was 25p cheaper for the same size bag, that was 3 days ago. The most expensive in london (I think) is Caravan by the time you add shipping charges, but like Dept of coffee & square mile (Free delivery from them) bit bigger bags (350 or 360g).

Rave? Columbian Suarez.

Yep Colombian Suarez is my favourite from Rave.

I've tried

Colombian Suarez
Colombia La Bonanza
Indonesia Weninggalih
Fudge Blend
Signature Blend

Grimley · 27 Sep 2017 at 14:56

Scam said:
but even at Monmouth I can't remember often paying over £8ish for £250g. I might be wrong though; Monmouth have a lot of difference in their price per/kg. I don't think £9/250g is the norm. That is expensive for in-store, let alone an online shop. But like I say, beyond Monmouth and possibly Nude -- I don't tend to buy instore for that very reason.

I've only bought from Monmouth a couple of times, 1st time was from their Covent Garden place in July 2014. I cant remember what I paid for their blend back then, but off the top of my head the 2nd time was back in March, Borough Market for some decaf, £5.50 for 200 grams. That's about the £7 mark which is cheap for London but they don't sell online. What I liked was the bins of beans with scales in both places & you could buy as little or as much as you wanted. If I lived in Town I would buy there more often. The Roaster I've bought most Coffee from this year is Garage coffee down in Canterbury, Kent, The reason being my folks have a Caravan nearby & when I've gone down there to use it, I've stocked up. £12 for 2 x 250g Bags from their coffee shop (More expensive online though) to me is good value.

Dj_Jestar · 27 Sep 2017 at 15:13

I've never had anything from Monmouth, I pass by (as in walk past it on the road) their shop several times a year but the queue is always around the block so I haven't dabbled yet. I suppose the queue is a good sign.

Grimley · 27 Sep 2017 at 15:22

It is. That & the fact that its been there longer than a lot of the Speciality Coffee places in all of London (16 Years) Being close to London bridge station helps too.

Scam · 27 Sep 2017 at 16:52

Dj_Jestar said:
I've never had anything from Monmouth, I pass by (as in walk past it on the road) their shop several times a year but the queue is always around the block so I haven't dabbled yet. I suppose the queue is a good sign.

I walk past Monmouth in Covent Garden twice a day (to/from work) and the queues are almost always horrendous. That coupled with the fact the shop is smaller than my kitchen doesn't generally make for a nice experience. I generally order online for that reason, and of course price!

Egon · 30 Sep 2017 at 09:57

EGON said:
Anyone ordered from https://www.coffee.uk.com/ (Coffee Plant) before?

A guy at work wants to do a 'bulk' order as you get 20% discount if you spend over £100, so there are a few of us chipping in to try. I've ordered 4 varieties of their 250g bags to try out. Hope they're good!

They weren't, don't order from here!

Gone back to rave to try their single origin offer, ordered the following:
* Guatemala all socorro
* Brazil sitio tres marias
* Burundi kibingo

Opened the brazilian yesterday, beautiful... it's got a lovely sweet, nutty taste as an espresso and just as good in a flat white too.

Grimley · 30 Sep 2017 at 15:14

Egon said:
They weren't, don't order from here!
Gone back to rave to try their single origin offer, ordered the following:
* Brazil sitio tres maria
Opened the brazilian yesterday, beautiful... it's got a lovely sweet, nutty taste as an espresso and just as good in a flat white too.

I've got my eye on that one, I'll probably order it soon when I'm running low on my supply, that wont be for at least a month. It's got a similar name to one I bought earlier in the year at #LCF17 from Taylor st & that has been the best coffee I've drunk so far this year.