Espresso Enthusiasts

[Watabou]

What coffee do you use?

These days, I don't opt for coffees that are "sour". Or bitter (much though I like those notes in other facets of my food or cuisine).

I have come to realise that I prefer smoother, sweeter, brighter, "cleaner", clear tasting notes: In practice, that tends to mean African coffees, but - and it is a big but in the world of espresso - these tend to be relatively lightly roasted.

This is Four Barrel's "Brass Tacks" blend. Which is described as "crisp and courageous". When I brewed the same beans in my Aeropress before I got my espresso machine, it was bright, not sour. I would say this is on the lighter side of roasts.

Maybe I'll try a darker roast for espresso. I generally don't like the brighter tasting notes. I prefer earthy, clean, chocolatey notes.

 

[0388631]

Bought beans. Just did another test. Success. Now to figure out when to stop before the remaining water increases in temperature and over extracts the puck. Delish.

Also reading random Twitter feeds. Came across someone who'd rolled their cigarettes. From Essex, and embodied everything comical about the area. Need to get ready for a trip next week.

 

[0388631]

Made another large Cuban. Creamed light brown out of curiosity. Steamed some milk (with a bit of cream) on the side and slowly poured it into the finished cup so as not to disturb the faux crema. My, my, my. This must be what it's like to be on a hard drug. Very addicting. Lip smackingly delicious and so rich.

Even more dangerous is owning several mokas. No need to let it cool down. I can grab another one. I'm temped to make one using our large aluminum Bialetti, but I don't fancy a heart attack.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

This is Four Barrel's "Brass Tacks" blend. Which is described as "crisp and courageous". When I brewed the same beans in my Aeropress before I got my espresso machine, it was bright, not sour. I would say this is on the lighter side of roasts.

Maybe I'll try a darker roast for espresso. I generally don't like the brighter tasting notes. I prefer earthy, clean, chocolatey notes.

Our tastes are obviously different, but enjoy your coffee.

What beans comprise the blend?

 

[0388631]

Earthy and chocolate tones. Indian beans? Monsooned Malabar, which I've had, sounds a lot like what Watabou enjoys. I posted about it back during spring. A gift from a place I order online. I liked it, but it was good plain and with some white sugar. Just above a medium roast, IIRC. I've had good Indian beans, but I believe the swelling due to the monsoon affects the flavor of the beans. Fairly balanced PH, though I suspect it would taste better if this wasn't altered by the uptake of moisture.

Roasts wise and not beans wise, I like to stick with medium and French roasts. I know some like @arkitect dislike French roasts and compare them to ash, but drink enough and you'll find a roaster who knows what they're doing.

I do enjoy the occasional city or cinnamon roast for a 'fruity' cup. Very 'sweet' on its own. Best pressed. I did recently roast my own green beans to that grade and I enjoyed it. Making espresso with it is possible, but it's very challenging and I just want my damn coffee.

 

[Watabou]

Our tastes are obviously different, but enjoy your coffee.

What beans comprise the blend?

Wish the package said that. It would be helpful. I generally tend to avoid the African beans which tend to be brighter.

My last coffee beans I bought were pretty nice! It was before I got the espresso machine though. It was called "Butkus" and it was exactly what I liked, woody, chocolatey, dark without being overdone.

Roasts wise and not beans wise, I like to stick with medium and French roasts. I know some like @arkitect dislike French roasts and compare them to ash, but drink enough and you'll find a roaster who knows what they're doing.

I find this to be true. The "Butkus" I mentioned is earthy done right. If you go to Peet's and get their version of earthy in "Major Dickason's", you'll find that it's very muddy in comparison. Not saying that's bad, just not what I prefer.

I like a bit of complexity to the coffee bean, just not too much where it's bright with fruit and citrusy notes making the coffee seem sour.

I'm thinking I'll try that for espresso once I go through the current beans.

 

[0388631]

I find this to be true. The "Butkus" I mentioned is earthy done right. If you go to Peet's and get their version of earthy in "Major Dickason's", you'll find that it's very muddy in comparison. Not saying that's bad, just not what I prefer.

I like a bit of complexity to the coffee bean, just not too much where it's bright with fruit and citrusy notes making the coffee seem sour.

I'm thinking I'll try that for espresso once I go through the current beans.

The Major Dickason is only muddy if it's stale, unless I'm missing something. It's rather velvety if you go to a location that gets roasts in quickly. We have a business contract with them and they ship us coffee 2-3 a week provided we give 24 hour notice. Roasted within 2-3 days of it arriving. We tried a local roaster but no one at our offices liked it. Intelligentsia and Stumptown were so and so. We'll be trying Blue Bottle in the fall or winter. So far they're willing to match Peet's in terms of function and price, to an extent. Also willing to blend up customs for our business.

The biggest concern I had was waste. Buying high grade metal filters for our drip machines, and having an espresso puck bin so those can be disposed of separately or recycled. Ideally, I'd love to get rid of all our semi-automatics and replace them with super automatics that can run off an RO line.


Home wise, I'm fairly happy with what I've got. I'd love to own a 3 GH commercial unit, but I don't really need it. I simply think it's beautiful. Fancy coffee is nice, but I'll admit and I've posted this before, the best cup of drip I've ever had in my life was a French roast of Starbucks in 2003 as a hotel guest. Likely specially roasted for them, as I'd drank Starbucks then but it was never remotely that good. I had four or five pots that morning through afternoon. Time spent racing to the bathroom was worth it. It, the coffee, was light and floral, had a natural sweetness and a silky finish. I've never had another coffee come close. Though I'll admit Starbucks' current blond is rather good for its price.


If you must use syrups in a blended drink, I recommend Monin and them only. Very high quality. I'm a fan of their lavender syrup. I usually mix a tiny amount with fizzy mineral water to freshen up the palette.

 

[AVBeatMan]

Forget the coffee, tomorrow's a bank holiday in the U.K. Cheers.

 

[arkitect]

Forget the coffee, tomorrow's a bank holiday in the U.K. Cheers.

Not only a Holiday, but a Bank Holiday with great sunshine weather.
Cheers!

 

[0388631]

Isn't that a Milton Gils book?

 

[AVBeatMan]

Isn't that a Milton Gils book?

Giles Milton. Yes. Paradise Lost: The Destruction of Islam's City of Tolerance: Smyrna 1922 - The Destruction of Islam's City of Tolerance. Well spotted!

 

[0388631]

Giles Milton. Yes. Paradise Lost: The Destruction of Islam's City of Tolerance: Smyrna 1922 - The Destruction of Islam's City of Tolerance. Well spotted!

I have a copy! One of the few books I randomly picked based on title alone and was disappointed with. I don't think I read more than a quarter of it. It's somewhere in the library gathering dust unless I gave it away.

 

[AVBeatMan]

I have a copy! One of the few books I randomly picked based on title alone and was disappointed with. I don't think I read more than a quarter of it. It's somewhere in the library gathering dust unless I gave it away.

Oops! Oh dear. I thought it was a little slow. I've read 25% so far and the First World War has just begun. I've read all his books so will stick with it.

 

[Watabou]

Had my best shot yet. I used the single portafilter this time just to try, and used just 7 grams of espresso in the basket as standard. This time, I got a lot more sweetness coming through, and for the first time, it wasn't sour, just bright.

It actually matched what I brewed in my Aeropress using the same coffee. So great to actually see progress. That tells me that I'm doing something wrong when brewing with the double basket.

 

[Watabou]

Yep, perfect. Got the shot down on the double portafilter as well. I used 14g this time in my double basket, compared to 18g+ I was using for this coffee before today.

So for bright coffees (or maybe just this one), 14g seems to be the trick. Any more than that and it brings out too many sour notes. 14g gives me a bright shot, with sweetness and a tiny amount of bitterness to balance it.

 

[JamesMike]

Ugandan sounds good, having a cup now.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Ugandan sounds good, having a cup now.

Enjoy it.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Enjoyed an excellent Ugandan coffee myself, this afternoon.

 

[Watabou]

Got a freshly roasted Sight Glass' "Cubito, Bourbon" Guatemalan coffee (roasted on 8/24).

The Crema dissipated pretty quickly but the coffee tasted nice! Nice fruitiness, enjoyed an Americano today.

So what machine and grinder is everyone using for espresso?

 

[mobilehaathi]

Got a freshly roasted Sight Glass' "Cubito, Bourbon" Guatemalan coffee (roasted on 8/24).

The Crema dissipated pretty quickly but the coffee tasted nice! Nice fruitiness, enjoyed an Americano today.

So what machine and grinder is everyone using for espresso?

I've been working with a Gaggia Baby Class and a Baratza Virtuoso. It has been working out very well so far. What are you using?

 

[Watabou]

I've been working with a Gaggia Baby Class and a Baratza Virtuoso. It has been working out very well so far. What are you using?

The somewhat new Rocket Appartamento paired with a Baratza Encore grinder for now. A new grinder is in the mail (Fiorenzato F4 Nano).

My reasoning was to buy a nice machine now rather than get the Crossland CC1 which I came close to buying. This way I don’t have to upgrade later down the road and spend more money. This will last me a long time, and I’m hoping to grow with the machine.

I’m still keeping my Encore but for other brewing methods. I might actually buy the Virtuoso burr and use that for my Encore for Aeropress/French press.

 

[JamesMike]

The LC is warming up in preparation of a nice cup of Kenyan, milk is warming too.

 

[mobilehaathi]

The somewhat new Rocket Appartamento paired with a Baratza Encore grinder for now. A new grinder is in the mail (Fiorenzato F4 Nano).

My reasoning was to buy a nice machine now rather than get the Crossland CC1 which I came close to buying. This way I don’t have to upgrade later down the road and spend more money. This will last me a long time, and I’m hoping to grow with the machine.

I’m still keeping my Encore but for other brewing methods. I might actually buy the Virtuoso burr and use that for my Encore for Aeropress/French press.

I had an Encore for a while, but I find the Virtuoso is better for espresso since it has finer grind adjustments. The encore works brilliantly for FP, moka, and pour over though.

How do you like the Rocket? Have you used many other machines? Unfortunately the only machine I've spent any time working with is my Gaggia.

 

[Watabou]

The LC is warming up in preparation of a nice cup of Kenyan, milk is warming too.

What is LC? Espresso machine?

I had an Encore for a while, but I find the Virtuoso is better for espresso since it has finer grind adjustments. The encore works brilliantly for FP, moka, and pour over though.

How do you like the Rocket? Have you used many other machines? Unfortunately the only machine I've spent any time working with is my Gaggia.

This is my first espresso machine, so I have a lot to learn. I was way too apprehensive to buy it, and was sitting on it for several months, trying to justify paying that much for my first espresso machine. Had a really nice cappuccino at a cafe a couple of days ago and that pushed me over the edge.

Good thing I don't have any other expensive hobbies.

 

[JamesMike]

What is LC? Espresso machine?



This is my first espresso machine, so I have a lot to learn. I was way too apprehensive to buy it, and was sitting on it for several months, trying to justify paying that much for my first espresso machine. Had a really nice cappuccino at a cafe a couple of days ago and that pushed me over the edge.

Good thing I don't have any other expensive hobbies.

Take a look.
https://www.google.com/search?q=le+....69i57j0l5.20411j0j9&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8