Soldato
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Sage Precision Brewer might be more your thing?
Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread
- Thread starter Siliconslave
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Caporegime
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I use a single sprout PF, in order to fit scales under the cup, I would have to either remove the drip tray completely or use a naked PF. The bottom of the single sprout PF actually goes into the cup by about 2mm. I need to tilt the cup to get it under.
spout* 
I bought the MHW-3Bomber scales about a month ago. Not the mini though, as I use them for weighing food stuffs when cooking, too. I like them, they were (relatively) cheap and perform better than the Brewista Mk2 scales I had been using before.
I bought the MHW-3Bomber scales about a month ago. Not the mini though, as I use them for weighing food stuffs when cooking, too. I like them, they were (relatively) cheap and perform better than the Brewista Mk2 scales I had been using before.
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Caporegime
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lol I just realise....I thought it was wrong but didn't click and since its a real word spellcheck never flagged it up!
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We're about 4 weeks into our new upgraded setup from a Sage Bambino Plus + Sage smart grinder to a Profitec Pro 700 + Niche Zero.
I'm blown away by the difference in well just about everything (unsurprisingly!)... the consistency of the espresso we're getting is fantastic. Our espresso generally seems to be a tad richer with a much more balanced amount of crema which we're definitely both enjoying. We used to really struggle getting 'good' shots from light/medium roasts on our previous setup but after some dialling in even my wife was enjoying some of the lighter roast shots! Manually steaming milk (we just used the auto function on the Bambino) has taken some getting used to but the Profitec has such a high volume of steam pressure it feels very easy to make changes 'on the fly' to the way the milk is currently steaming. Using both machines is an absolute joy and definitely made our daily morning coffee more of an experience.
A few quick questions about e61 group maintenance (as there seems to be quite a bit of conflicting bits online and there's no specific guidance provided by Profitec). Short of regularly backflushing and provided we use decent quality water is there any other maintenance we should be looking to do? I gather cleaning the shower screen + replacing the gasket should be done about every year or so?
I'm blown away by the difference in well just about everything (unsurprisingly!)... the consistency of the espresso we're getting is fantastic. Our espresso generally seems to be a tad richer with a much more balanced amount of crema which we're definitely both enjoying. We used to really struggle getting 'good' shots from light/medium roasts on our previous setup but after some dialling in even my wife was enjoying some of the lighter roast shots! Manually steaming milk (we just used the auto function on the Bambino) has taken some getting used to but the Profitec has such a high volume of steam pressure it feels very easy to make changes 'on the fly' to the way the milk is currently steaming. Using both machines is an absolute joy and definitely made our daily morning coffee more of an experience.
A few quick questions about e61 group maintenance (as there seems to be quite a bit of conflicting bits online and there's no specific guidance provided by Profitec). Short of regularly backflushing and provided we use decent quality water is there any other maintenance we should be looking to do? I gather cleaning the shower screen + replacing the gasket should be done about every year or so?
If youre using boiler safe water no need to do the big descales. Just backflush/cafiza once a week or w/e.
I never had a set maintenance on Gasket changes just did it when they started leaking. I found the standard black ones wear quicker and go hard due to heat cycles but the cafelet (bright coloured silicone ones) I found stay more flexible over time and maintain a good seal. Won't impact what's in the cup but something to consider when looking at the price differences.
I never had a set maintenance on Gasket changes just did it when they started leaking. I found the standard black ones wear quicker and go hard due to heat cycles but the cafelet (bright coloured silicone ones) I found stay more flexible over time and maintain a good seal. Won't impact what's in the cup but something to consider when looking at the price differences.
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The manual says 15 minutes which is about right for the boiler to be up to temp but the group head doesn't get up to a suitable temperature until around 40 minutes or so. Nothing a wifi smart plug can't solve!
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Its good practice to take out the shower screen every month (assuming average home use) and give it a clean with soapy water - a decent cafe will be soaking it nightly.dropping the shower screen out should be super simple - may need a tea spoon handle to leaver it out.
you don't find significant debris on the shower screen to justify removing it once a week ? I'll snap mine tomorrow
equally when I wipe the seal too, to ensure a good seal, the residue there significantly stains a white cotton dishcloth.
Adding some food safe lubricant (molykote) to the outside of the gasket makes it easier to drop an e61 screen.
If back flushing an e61 with detergent then remember to disaasemble the lever and cam and lubricate it afterwards. Loads of videos on how to do it.
Also - If you steam a lot of milk then periodically drain the steam boiler (bring up to temp, turn off then open the water tap until it empties) to make sure you’re refreshing the water in it.
If back flushing an e61 with detergent then remember to disaasemble the lever and cam and lubricate it afterwards. Loads of videos on how to do it.
Also - If you steam a lot of milk then periodically drain the steam boiler (bring up to temp, turn off then open the water tap until it empties) to make sure you’re refreshing the water in it.
residue on top of mesh screen - about a week post full pulycaf soak
Plating inside pf and dispersion screen is dillapidated and those tarnish easily - citric soaks may have contributed,
I suspect inside of pf's always has a thinner plating and coffee is acidic too.
Plating inside pf and dispersion screen is dillapidated and those tarnish easily - citric soaks may have contributed,
I suspect inside of pf's always has a thinner plating and coffee is acidic too.
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not really much on a weekly clean, but i'd rather do that than let it build up too much
Any recommendations for a new bean to cup coffee machine please? I've had my current De’Longhi Magnifica S ECAM 22.360.S for a good few years, and it's starting to show its age.
I'd like something simple to use, less than £500, a built in milk option would be nice too, anything to look out for? Thanks.
I'd like something simple to use, less than £500, a built in milk option would be nice too, anything to look out for? Thanks.
I've been a bad espresso machine owner and took my screen off for the first time in.....too long. Bit grim, Cafiza wouldn't shift all the gunk. No wonder I've been getting a fair bit of channeling recently.
Anyone tried one of the those fancy Weber filter baskets?
Anyone tried one of the those fancy Weber filter baskets?
Caporegime
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To be brutally honest, £500 at this level is meh, I wouldn't touch a £500 bean to cup machine basically. I wouldn't upgrade from what you have because it's not going to get much better if at all. Hoffmann did one comparison 2 years ago for machine starting from £1,000, even that wasn't all roses.
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The shared office space the company I use in London sometimes has some very good bean to cup machines that retail around the £5k mark, they are regularly maintained and use decent beans (from https://caravanandco.com/). They universally make pretty horrible coffee, although weirdly if you get a jug for a meeting they'll brew you some and thats 1000x better.
Bean to cup machines are trying to automate too many complex and messy things, grinding beans, compacting the grounds, pushing boiling water through it at pressure, steaming milk etc. As such they compromise massively and totally ignore all the variables (ie the beans age and roast).
If you want a super simple coffee i'd probably suggest either a pour over machine with a grinder, or a nespresso style machine with specialty pods...
although purely for the craziness of its advertising get the delongi one
Bean to cup machines are trying to automate too many complex and messy things, grinding beans, compacting the grounds, pushing boiling water through it at pressure, steaming milk etc. As such they compromise massively and totally ignore all the variables (ie the beans age and roast).
If you want a super simple coffee i'd probably suggest either a pour over machine with a grinder, or a nespresso style machine with specialty pods...
although purely for the craziness of its advertising get the delongi one
Have a Weber unibasket and a Pesado one. I like both. I think they enhance the flavour but I haven’t done blind tastings so no doubt some confirmation bias. I personally find them more forgiving than a VST basket - I still used to periodically get spritzing on the VST but the smaller holes definitely stop that.
You need a decent grinder as they do need a fine grind to get the most from.