Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread

chaparral said:
Guys am thinking of buying my first bean to coffee machine

What do you guys think of these beans ?

STARBUCKS Pike Place Roast, Medium Roast, Whole Bean Coffee​


I have no idea what beans to order or try :confused: :o Looking for beans on amazon or what beans waitrose sell due to my location
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For £25/kg I would definitely look elsewhere. For example:

ravecoffee.co.uk

Indian Monsoon Malabar Coffee Nº 53

Buy Monsoon Malabar Coffee Beans This Indian dark roast coffee is perfect for espresso and flat whites with chocolate and smokey flavours as a result of the monsoon process removing natural acidity. Buy monsooned coffee in small or large bags, available as ground coffee or whole bean.
ravecoffee.co.uk ravecoffee.co.uk

ravecoffee.co.uk

Brazil Fazenda Campestre Nº 109

Brazilian Zona de Varginha Fresh Roasted Coffee Beans
ravecoffee.co.uk ravecoffee.co.uk

hormozi.co.uk

Jamaica Blue Mountain Mix Premium Coffee Blend

Hormozi Coffee presents our Jamaica Blue Mountain blend which is an incredibly smooth, fruity and vibrant. A very creamy mouth feel with a cocoa finish.
hormozi.co.uk hormozi.co.uk

whiterosecoffeeroasters.co.uk

Ethiopian Natural Yirgacheffe Rocko Mountain Arabica Roasted Coffee

Location/Origin Ethiopia Tariku Mengesha Rocko Mountain Collection Altitude 2000m - 2200m Variety 74112 Ethiopian Landrace Preperation Natural Harvest October to February Owner / Farm Teriku Mengesha SCA Cup score and notes 88.5 Strawberry Milkshake, blueberry, black tea, star fruit, round...
whiterosecoffeeroasters.co.uk
 
A while back I said I'd switch back to Rave from White Rose Coffee, so I ordered a 1kg back of my favourite Monsoon Malabar from Rave, which I expect to be delivered today. Can't wait to see how it compares to the white rose version, which seems to give me a ton of crema and not much volume of coffee.
 
Kainz said:
A while back I said I'd switch back to Rave from White Rose Coffee, so I ordered a 1kg back of my favourite Monsoon Malabar from Rave, which I expect to be delivered today. Can't wait to see how it compares to the white rose version, which seems to give me a ton of crema and not much volume of coffee.
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Rave's is better, but not by a huge margin. I think there'll always be that thick seafoam crema on Monsoon Malabar regardless of vendor.
 
Scam said:
@Grimley double the caffeine eh!
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TBH I don't remember if it had any effect on me. Probably less than a small can of Red Bull, which I drank in order to stay awake for a 2am start and a 500 mile round trip in one day a few weeks ago. Needless to say I did not enjoy drinking said can of Red Bull but it did keep me awake.

EDIT: Out of what @Cadder suggested I'd buy the Brazilian Coffee from Rave. I bought a kilo of it at the beginning of the Year & it went down well as a milky coffee.
 
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crema - no cheating with pressurized filters that come with some machines - bottomless portafilter for complete honesty(haven't ever invested in one)
ie https://craftcoffeespot.com/espresso/pressurized-vs-non-pressurized-baskets/
Pressurized portafilter produces a bigger crema but watery espresso taste. The crema looks wonderful but it’s due to the extra aeration as the coffee flows through the holding area between the two walls.

However, the pressurized filter uses coarser grounds, which limits extraction and leads to a weaker taste. The coarser grind also reduces the TDS in espresso for less body.
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Anyone find Hasbean to be crazy expensive? I used to have a tea with breakfast, and a nice single origin coffee mid-morning. So I could stomach the £8-9 per 250g bag from Hasbean. I subscribed and pay £8.50 every two weeks, but I've now started having coffee with breakfast and find it a bit of a waste to have such expensive coffee when I'm downing it with my oats in a rush to get out of the house. So I've added some of their blends before.. But looking now two of their three blends are £12 for a 250g which is more than I pay for the InMyMug single origin sub :confused: I just can't stomach that.

I tried the Doppio (as mentioned above) Purple blend which is lovely actually. Perfect for a morning. Only £18 for 1kg which is much more agreeable. I'l keep the Hasbean sub as I do like trying the dingle origins. What do you guys spend for your morning cup?
 
I buy most of my stuff through the LSOL community subscription thing, works out around the £9 mark for 250g but you get some fantastic and unusual coffees, I then top up with random coffees anywhere up to around £15 for 250g (although have spend more on some of the more interesting fermentation processes which are amazing as a treat)

The way I see it is its about £0.75 a cup (20g per cup + a filter or espresso machine heatup) but for that i'm getting a better cup than i'd pay 3-4x more for in a generic coffee chain (or machine)
 
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I try to avoid paying more than 40-45 a kilo these days. While I feasted on the 20-25kg type beans in my earlier days evidence has lead me to quality in being paramount to good cups out.

Drink coffee black without sugar so I tend to avoid the classic stuff which skews the cost higher. If I was a milk drinker I'm sure I could find some cheaper than the more interesting medium roasts out there.

3-4 coffees a day at 70-90p a cup is about where I'm at.

www.abeandco.co.uk

Karimikui

Shop our Kenyan speciality coffee: Karimikui. Taste notes: Blackcurrant, Caramel, Hazelnut. Irresistibly indulgent. Free UK delivery over £25.
www.abeandco.co.uk www.abeandco.co.uk

That's been very nice as an espresso ^^
 
Scam said:
Anyone find Hasbean to be crazy expensive? I used to have a tea with breakfast, and a nice single origin coffee mid-morning. So I could stomach the £8-9 per 250g bag from Hasbean. I subscribed and pay £8.50 every two weeks, but I've now started having coffee with breakfast and find it a bit of a waste to have such expensive coffee when I'm downing it with my oats in a rush to get out of the house. So I've added some of their blends before.. But looking now two of their three blends are £12 for a 250g which is more than I pay for the InMyMug single origin sub :confused: I just can't stomach that.

I tried the Doppio (as mentioned above) Purple blend which is lovely actually. Perfect for a morning. Only £18 for 1kg which is much more agreeable. I'l keep the Hasbean sub as I do like trying the dingle origins. What do you guys spend for your morning cup?
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If you haven't ever used Rave's subscription, sign up, get max 6 bags worth, 50% discount and then cancel.

It works out to like £6 a 250g bag.
 
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Scam said:
Anyone find Hasbean to be crazy expensive? I used to have a tea with breakfast, and a nice single origin coffee mid-morning. So I could stomach the £8-9 per 250g bag from Hasbean. I subscribed and pay £8.50 every two weeks, but I've now started having coffee with breakfast and find it a bit of a waste to have such expensive coffee when I'm downing it with my oats in a rush to get out of the house. So I've added some of their blends before.. But looking now two of their three blends are £12 for a 250g which is more than I pay for the InMyMug single origin sub :confused: I just can't stomach that.
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When I started out on the Artisan Coffee road way back in 2012 & this thread was one of the reasons that put me on that road, Hasbean was my go to Roaster. Looking at prices on there now they have doubled or in one or two cases tripled compared to back then. TBH they are just above the average. Since Steven Leighton sold Hasbean to Ozone a few years back its not been the same. The range of Coffees has shrunk a lot. My last purchase from them was at #LCF last year and it was nothing special.

I like to try different Coffee roasters when I can & if the price is right. I tend to buy a bag if I'm out for the day & I don't plan on going back for a while. Last time I did that was Hot Numbers Roastery, just off the M11 Near Cambridge last month when I was driving back from York. I've been buying a lot from ButterWorth & Son as they have 4 South American coffees at just over £20 for a KG each. Drinking the Guatemalan right now & its very nice for the price.

gazref said:
I try to avoid paying more than 40-45 a kilo these days. While I feasted on the 20-25kg type beans in my earlier days evidence has lead me to quality in being paramount to good cups out.

Drink coffee black without sugar so I tend to avoid the classic stuff which skews the cost higher. If I was a milk drinker I'm sure I could find some cheaper than the more interesting medium roasts out there.

3-4 coffees a day at 70-90p a cup is about where I'm at.

www.abeandco.co.uk

Karimikui

Shop our Kenyan speciality coffee: Karimikui. Taste notes: Blackcurrant, Caramel, Hazelnut. Irresistibly indulgent. Free UK delivery over £25.
www.abeandco.co.uk www.abeandco.co.uk

That's been very nice as an espresso ^^
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That's a very good price for a Kenyan Coffee, though I tend to drink that as Filter Coffee.
 
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What are the go to machines at the moment around a grand or under?

My Sage Barista express broke again a few months ago for the second time (pump), it's out of warranty and I can't be arsed with the hassle of fixing it again as it won't last long.

I've been using an aeropress in the meantime but would like to go back to a machine at some point. I don't need a milk frother or any fancy touch screen functions etc.
 
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How long have you had the machine for @Ayahuasca? Has it lasted long enough to justify buying another to replace it?

Alternative machines seem to jump in price and/or don't have a built-in grinder. Lelit Mara X and Gaggia Classic for example.
 
Profitec GO seems like a pretty good option from the reviews, single boiler with same footprint as a gaggia classic but with a built in PID and shot timer + pressure gauge (no adjustment but thats not surprising sub £1.5k) & about £770 so a little budget for a cheap stop gap grinder.
 
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Ayahuasca said:
What are the go to machines at the moment around a grand or under?

My Sage Barista express broke again a few months ago for the second time (pump), it's out of warranty and I can't be arsed with the hassle of fixing it again as it won't last long.

I've been using an aeropress in the meantime but would like to go back to a machine at some point. I don't need a milk frother or any fancy touch screen functions etc.
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https://www.gaggia.com/automatic-machines/brera/ had mine 2 yrs ?? never had a problem ..
 
I wouldn't rebuy a machine that failed twice. Go used ? The small lelit (Bianca or Elizabeth irrc)was on my short list at one point at sub 1000. Wouldn't be afraid of used though
 
Siliconslave said:
Profitec GO seems like a pretty good option from the reviews, single boiler with same footprint as a gaggia classic but with a built in PID and shot timer + pressure gauge (no adjustment but thats not surprising sub £1.5k) & about £770 so a little budget for a cheap stop gap grinder.
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I thought the Profitec GO does have adjustable pressure.
 
Can anyone make any good recommendations for good quality decaf beans? I'm currently having some heatlh problems and been told to try and minimise my caffeine intake for the time being.

Any recommendations would be appreciated, so far I've only had the Swiss water decaf Columbian from Rave and it was quite nice.
 
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