Siliconslave's how to make espresso thread

jpaul · 27 May 2020 at 10:15

re: swapping beans
even a non-automatic machine with a grinder, you rarely have zero grind retention, I weigh the beans for each shot, and, not having such a grinder, use a brush to extract all grinds.

Raymond Lin said:
£9.50 delivered for 500g is cheaper than Square mile!

couldn't see any threads on dorset coffee on coffeeforums, otherwise I might have tried -
even if the blue mountasin beans are from the same estate ... the roasting prowess of DC versus square mile maybe different.

Btone · 27 May 2020 at 11:25

was looking to upgrade to a acs Minima, and contracted the retailer to see when they have them back in stock, to which they replied that they were not sure they would as they have a repair room full of them. They did suggest the MaraX instead, trouble is I've a pimped out Silvia and i don't think the MaraX would be that much of a upgrade for the money. Anyone able to suggest a Duel boiler machine

the-evaluator · 27 May 2020 at 11:42

Dorset Coffee Company are a new name to me and I was delighted to see that they sell Australia Skyberry. Looking back in my email the last time I ordered some of that was in 2009 and I remember really liking it. Hopefully this stuff is as good as I remember. We shall see, I've ordered 500g.

Siliconslave · 27 May 2020 at 11:45

the-evaluator said:
Dorset Coffee Company are a new name to me and I was delighted to see that they sell Australia Skyberry. Looking back in my email the last time I ordered some of that was in 2009 and I remember really liking it. Hopefully this stuff is as good as I remember. We shall see, I've ordered 500g.

haven't had skyberry for years, weirdly its the beans i was using in the very first post in this thread

GiraffePencils · 27 May 2020 at 11:49

Hey,
So I've got my Gaggia classic, and been using a polex hand grinder so far.
While I keep looking at new steam wands, baskets etc, I think I should really get a decent grinder.

Are there any that people recommend? probably would like it to be sub 200

the-evaluator · 27 May 2020 at 11:59

Siliconslave said:
haven't had skyberry for years, weirdly its the beans i was using in the very first post in this thread

I'm rather looking forward to getting hold of some again

tlrBeta · 27 May 2020 at 16:25

Hi All,

Just an update my side, thanks for the tips and no surprise my other half has been enjoying morning coffee before she disappears to work. I have been using a separate milk heater/frother to make a latte for her. That said, she is open to the idea of buying something a little better - result!

So, that leads me onto my next questions, I'm not really keen on having a separate coffee machine and grinder, a true bean to cup machine would be ideal as I don't have a huge kitchen. Budget is around the £500-£700 mark (preferably from John Lewis as I can get some discount).

So suggestions are welcome, I'm happy to go investigate some of the earlier mentions.

Many thanks

Siliconslave · 27 May 2020 at 17:11

John lewis wise i'd look at the Sage machines, otherwise if you have to have a built in grinder the Lelit Kate is supposed to be ok for that sort of money.

Both have a manual element, in that you grind into the basket then fix the portafilter into place. This saves some of the silly mechanics that a true bean2cup uses & gives you a bit more control however even at this price point a built in grinder isn't going to be great

Also worth noting that say a gaggia classic & eureka mignon had pretty much the same footprint as the Sage, are arguably better overall and give you options to upgrade one or the other later down the line.

mid_gen · 27 May 2020 at 18:39

Cracked and got the walnut handled coffee slide filter for the Mara. It's such a nice looking machine it feels like it's worth a nice wood handle rather than plastic.

Amazon stock most Lelit parts which is dangerous. They have the walnut knob kit but it's on the upper range of their fluctuating pricing right now, will get them soon....then I just have to resist the flow profiling paddle

Raymond Lin · 27 May 2020 at 18:47

mid_gen said:
Cracked and got the walnut handled coffee slide filter for the Mara. It's such a nice looking machine it feels like it's worth a nice wood handle rather than plastic.

Amazon stock most Lelit parts which is dangerous. They have the walnut knob kit but it's on the upper range of their fluctuating pricing right now, will get them soon....then I just have to resist the flow profiling paddle

I love a bit of walnut

tlrBeta · 28 May 2020 at 12:40

Siliconslave said:
John lewis wise i'd look at the Sage machines, otherwise if you have to have a built in grinder the Lelit Kate is supposed to be ok for that sort of money.

Both have a manual element, in that you grind into the basket then fix the portafilter into place. This saves some of the silly mechanics that a true bean2cup uses & gives you a bit more control however even at this price point a built in grinder isn't going to be great

Also worth noting that say a gaggia classic & eureka mignon had pretty much the same footprint as the Sage, are arguably better overall and give you options to upgrade one or the other later down the line.

Thanks, happy to use the portafilter - I should have made that clear.

Ignorance question, are we talking substantial difference between say Giggia & Mignon combination vs a Sage Barista Pro? I know the answer I imagine

Raymond Lin · 28 May 2020 at 13:19

tlrBeta said:
Thanks, happy to use the portafilter - I should have made that clear.

Ignorance question, are we talking substantial difference between say Giggia & Mignon combination vs a Sage Barista Pro? I know the answer I imagine

The main thing is the separation so if one breaks, you can just change that one. Same applies to upgrade.

Also, you have more choices of getting a different grinder should you choose, there are just a lot more options really, and arguably, the quality is better because you are getting a dedicated unit.

GiraffePencils · 28 May 2020 at 13:28

Just to jump on this, It's above budget, but would I be best getting a mignon then?
seeing as I have the gaggia haha

Siliconslave · 28 May 2020 at 15:54

Raymond Lin said:
The main thing is the separation so if one breaks, you can just change that one. Same applies to upgrade.
Also, you have more choices of getting a different grinder should you choose, there are just a lot more options really, and arguably, the quality is better because you are getting a dedicated unit.

the grinder will be significantly better i'd say, the Gaggia probably about the same, maybe a little worse when it comes to features and steaming however the grinder is the thing that makes the biggest difference.

GiraffePencils said:
Just to jump on this, It's above budget, but would I be best getting a mignon then?
seeing as I have the gaggia haha

They do seem to be well reviewed

if your just doing espresso (not filter as well) the Iberital MC2 is pretty good

Skeptic · 31 May 2020 at 22:10

Folks: can the filtropa #4 papers be used with a chemex? I mean, of course I could, but would it be any good?!

Raymond Lin · 31 May 2020 at 22:22

Skeptic said:
Folks: can the filtropa #4 papers be used with a chemex? I mean, of course I could, but would it be any good?!

I just use Chemex paper in the Chemex, I've also used Chemex paper in the V60 too, honestly, it's just paper...and it's just coffee, I don't notice the difference in taste between them.

Skeptic · 31 May 2020 at 22:50

Have run out of the normal chemix filters and only have the ones I use for my clever dripper. A little bored of clever drippers at the moment so wanted to mix it up!

InvaderGIR · 1 Jun 2020 at 22:47

Raymond Lin said:
I just use Chemex paper in the Chemex, I've also used Chemex paper in the V60 too, honestly, it's just paper...and it's just coffee, I don't notice the difference in taste between them.

lol

The filters are different in terms of filtering capabilities etc. and if "it's just coffee" why have you spend heaps of money on making coffee? :rolleyes:

@Skeptic It'll work alright but might need to tweak the grind size, brew time etc. depending on the pace of the filter compared to a Chemex one.

Raymond Lin · 1 Jun 2020 at 22:50

InvaderGIR said:
lol

The filters are different in terms of filtering capabilities etc. and if "it's just coffee" why have you spend heaps of money on making coffee?

I am sure they filter different, but I've never bothered to do side by side comparisons, the difference is whatever it is, smaller than between filter and espresso.

Coffee through a Chemex - Nice
Coffee through a V60 - Nice
Coffee through a Chemex filter in a V60 - Nice

I spend money on making nice coffee, I am not particular enough to not drink any because I am out of filter for the V60 but have an 100's of the chemex filters left to use.

Siliconslave · 2 Jun 2020 at 09:22

I've got some very rubbish filters (from a supermarket in Turkey i think) that i'm still getting through slowly on my clever dripper & V60 - they work ok for that but you need to fold them to fit them in, which effects the throughput so you have to grind a little courser as they don't seem to flow through as quickly. Once washed theres no paper taste and the coffee is as good as proper papers, just needs a bit of adjustment to suit.

That being said once i've used them i'll be getting some proper papers