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Espresso Enthusiasts

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The first post of this thread is a WikiPost and can be edited by anyone with the appropiate permissions. Your edits will be public.
Shrink said:
I seem to remember the old rule about dosing coffee for drip brewing..."one per cup, one for the pot". So it makes sense that 3 scoops for 2 cups tastes better.

I'm interested to hear from others who know about drip coffee...but 150-160 degrees F seems kind of cool. The ideal temp for espresso is 201 F (no kidding...201, not 202, or 200...201!).

As far as talking about drip on an Espresso thread...what the heck, you're a good guy...I guess I won't PM all the regulars to attack you!:eek:

;) :D
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My temperature comparison came from video's and articles on latte making. For a latte the ideal temperature for the milk is between 140F and 160F. Regardless of latte or regular espresso, my De'Longhi only gets up to 160F.

After I finished my cup a few minutes ago I re-thought my "perfect" temperature statements and recalled another video on drip coffee I saw the other day where they were measuring between 200F and 220F and thought that this Hamilton Beach brews the coffee a tad bit cool. It doesn't take long for it to cool down after being in my cup. So in that respect I think I am a little disappointed in this machine.
 
Shrink said:
Perhaps someone could give more accurate information than me...my guess is you should be looking for "Drip" or "Medium" grind. "Coarse" would be, I'm guessing, for press, and "Fine" would be for espresso.

Anybody out there with better information for SandboxGeneral, please jump in and correct me if I have it wrong.:D
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Yes. 'Coarse' (or coarsely ground) coffee would be for a press, or a filter, or the very old style pot where one used a filter when pouring. These days, even for a French press, (or for filter coffee, i.e. 'drip' coffee) I tend to use medium ground coffee, as it gives a better flavour.

"Fine" is for espresso, as is 'espresso' which is, of course, self-explanatory (and is probably regarded as 'extra fine'; sometimes, one is also offered the option of 'Turkish' where the coffee has gone well beyond extra-fine into what I suspect could be called 'pulverised'.

SandboxGeneral said:
I received the Hamilton Beach coffee maker the other day and got around to using it today. I bought some Tim Horton's coffee beans and used their grinder (self-service) also.

Just following the "how to make coffee" directions this morning, I placed two scoops into the filter for a 2-cup brew. It tasted good, but was weaker than what I prefer.

This afternoon I brewed a second 2-cup pot (though it doesn't actually have a pot) and this time added 3 scoops to the filter. This brew tastes much better as far as strength goes and it goes down oh so smoothly.

I used my latte bistro cup and even pre-heated it with hot water from the espresso machine (that's how I can justify talking about drip coffee in our espresso thread ;) ) and I put the thermometer in it and it makes a 160F water temperature. After I poured the coffee in I measured that at a perfect 150F temperature.

This particular bean from Tim Horton's tastes much better than the Starbucks beans. I've tried the three different brews Starbucks sells, blonde, medium and dark roasts. With my brews today I did not get any burnt taste at all, which is what Hamilton Beach promotes about this particular model I bought. When I got a medium Starbucks coffee earlier this week it was burnt and I had to pour it out - it was that bad.

Overall, I prefer a medium roast over the dark and light roasts. Once I go through this Tim Horton's coffee I'll be looking for a different brand to try. Since there are a lot of choices, I want to try a lot of them until I find a really good one that I can settle on.
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Yes, in addition to using 'one spoonful/ladle per cup' adding 'one [spoon or ladle] for the pot' is a very good rule of thumb when making coffee. Well, it is a rule I have always followed when thus happily occupied......
 
SandboxGeneral said:
My temperature comparison came from video's and articles on latte making. For a latte the ideal temperature for the milk is between 140F and 160F. Regardless of latte or regular espresso, my De'Longhi only gets up to 160F.

After I finished my cup a few minutes ago I re-thought my "perfect" temperature statements and recalled another video on drip coffee I saw the other day where they were measuring between 200F and 220F and thought that this Hamilton Beach brews the coffee a tad bit cool. It doesn't take long for it to cool down after being in my cup. So in that respect I think I am a little disappointed in this machine.
Click to expand...

I think the 220 F is a bit high.That would "burn" the grinds With a machine like mine, which has a heat exchanger system to allow for simultaneous espresso extraction and steaming (not unlike a double boiler machine), the water can get up over 201...up to 215 or so. What one does before putting the portafilter in place is to dispense water through the brew group for 10 seconds or so, to flush out the overly hot water...it's called a cooling flush.

I don't think you would want your drip machine up at 220...not sure about the 160. But, again, I don't know enough about drip to suggest whether you would want to return it or not.
 
Shrink said:
I think the 220 F is a bit high.That would "burn" the grinds With a machine like mine, which has a heat exchanger system to allow for simultaneous espresso extraction and steaming (not unlike a double boiler machine), the water can get up over 201...up to 215 or so. What one does before putting the portafilter in place is to dispense water through the brew group for 10 seconds or so, to flush out the overly hot water...it's called a cooling flush.

I don't think you would want your drip machine up at 220...not sure about the 160. But, again, I don't know enough about drip to suggest whether you would want to return it or not.
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220F might be higher than it really was as I am going on memory, but I do know it was over 200F in the video.

Perhaps I should contact Hamilton Beach and inquire of them what they think the machine should output for temperature.
 
I just poured the last of the coffee for a second cup and measured it and it only got to 120F. :(
 
SandboxGeneral said:
No, just "poured" it from the "warming tank" and inserted the thermometer.
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Hmmm, try giving the manufacturer a call and see what they say...or just return it. It seems to me a call would be worth a try, although I'm not sure what they can say other than either "that's normal", or "return it".

If it's "that's normal", I think maybe return it and try something else.
 
Shrink said:
Hmmm, try giving the manufacturer a call and see what they say...or just return it. It seems to me a call would be worth a try, although I'm not sure what they can say other than either "that's normal", or "return it".

If it's "that's normal", I think maybe return it and try something else.
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All in all though, the temperature it's putting out is still enjoyable and I can take normal drinks rather than sips like I do when I buy from Starbucks or Tim Horton's. Usually when I get those, I have to wait a bit before I can even sip it.
 
SandboxGeneral said:
All in all though, the temperature it's putting out is still enjoyable and I can take normal drinks rather than sips like I do when I buy from Starbucks or Tim Horton's. Usually when I get those, I have to wait a bit before I can even sip it.
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Great! Then the hell with the temp. We're back to the oft repeated cliche...if you like it...it's good.

Enjoy!!!:D
 
Shrink said:
Great! Then the hell with the temp. We're back to the oft repeated cliche...if you like it...it's good.

Enjoy!!!:D
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I still want to know what they feel it should be outputting though. If it's more than what this one is I will exchange it because I can handle a few more degrees hotter. :D
 
That is the main problem with automatic drip brewers, the temperature can be all over the place. Thats why i personally prefer something like a chemex so you have full control over the water.

But if your happy with the coffee then i wouldn't worry.
 
Shrink said:
For anyone who might be interested, http://www.wholelattelove.com is having a big sale on Gaggia stuff here.

Since Gaggia makes good equipment, anyone interested in espresso stuff might want to take a look.
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Just saw that. I bought a couple of monin syrups yesterday and those bodum glasses. Once I'm done with work for the spring ill have time to practice espresso. Bought cafe ottolina coffee too. So lots of stuff coming!
 
eric/ said:
Just saw that. I bought a couple of monin syrups yesterday and those bodum glasses. Once I'm done with work for the spring ill have time to practice espresso. Bought cafe ottolina coffee too. So lots of stuff coming!
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A quick caveat: double check to make sure that you ordered the Bodum cup in the size you want. They come in 4.7 oz, 10 oz, and 15 oz.

Some have ordered them, and only discovered they ordered the wrong size after receiving them.

Make sure you're getting the ones you want!

Enjoy all your new stuff...:D
 
I ordered the 2.5 ounce ones...

:eek:


Were those the wrong ones? I swear I think we were talking about that size for a single shot of espresso...

I can still change the order.
 
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