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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.
arkitect said:
@Scepticalscribe
So while coffee isn't my big thing, I did think this might be a worthwhile post.
Yesterday in London to see the Rodin exhibition at the British Museum. And then did a perambulation of Holburn with my Pevsner guide in hand…

Before hand though I stopped and had a coffee at my usual haunt in the area: The London Review of Books Coffee Shop. Good coffee. (I do fail at this though, cannot remember what origin!)

Most enjoyable.

A pretty standard dull grey skied London otherwise.

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The London Review of Books Coffee Shop: How wonderful - sounds like my kind of place, and I must make a point of visiting there when I am next in London with some more time for a few extra activities.
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Lioness~ said:
Just tell them to go into some of the better shops they have and ask for a few bags of some of the best they recommend? It can be amazing, if you’re open minded :)
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Actually, that is a brilliant idea.
 
Scepticalscribe, I was taught to drink Kenyan tea the same way! One of my close friends, originally from Nairobi, puts teabags into a saucepan of cold milk which she slowly brings to the boil.

I'm addicted. This is what she gets me, what we just call "Melvins" despite the fact they make many types. She puts two teabags per person as they are rather small, but as I tend to drink this in the evening I just use the one.

Screenshot 2018-06-21 at 14.20.02.png
 
Scepticalscribe said:
That is a great story.

In Kenya, some of the locals drink "chai" (a form of locally served tea where the milk is boiled with the tea before it is served) a preference which arrived with indentured Indian servants - and other Indians from the sub-continent who had travelled to Kenya - in the 19th century.

They couldn't understand that I genuinely liked it, some restaurants telling me that I was the only westerner they had met who actually ordered it and liked it.

And I am sipping some Ethiopian coffee as I write this, served with organic milk and organic brown sugar.
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They were surprised you liked chai? How bizarre. Nobody would think even once about a westerner drinking chai in India.
 
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mobilehaathi said:
They were surprised you liked chai? How bizarre. Nobody would think even once about a westerner drinking chai in India.
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They were.

This was in an upmarket restaurant where I dined fairly frequently (their staff had come to know me quite well, producing wines that they knew I liked - such as Gewürztraminer - that were not on their wine list, but did find a home in their award-winning and exceptionally well-stocked cellar) and the staff - noting that I liked chai, remarked (more than once) that I was one of the very few westerners that seemed to like (and order) tea when made that way.

I thought it delicious and would happily devour pots (as I did) of the chai. It was a superb spiced version, cardamon, and clove making an appearance along wth other spices ('marsala' they informed me) that I couldn't identify.
 
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Scepticalscribe said:
They were.

This was in an upmarket restaurant where I dined fairly frequently (their staff had come to know me quite well, producing wines that they knew I liked - such as Gewürztraminer - that were not on their wine list, but did find a home in their award-winning and exceptionally well-stocked cellar) and the staff - noting that I liked chai, remarked (more than once) that I was one of the very few westerners that seemed to like (and order) tea when made that way.

I thought it delicious and would happily devour pots (as I did) of the chai. It was a superb spiced version, cardamon, and clove making an appearance along wth other spices ('marsala' they informed me) that I couldn't identify.
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Totally weird to me...

Even in the most upmarket places in India will have chai. It would be stranger not to drink it!

Anyway sounds great! ‘Masala’ being just a generic word for mixed spices...sometimes I’ll put ginger root, fennel seeds, or whole peppercorns too.
 
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Scepticalscribe said:
It was a superb spiced version, cardamon, and clove making an appearance along wth other spices ('marsala' they informed me) that I couldn't identify.
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Masala just means "spice/s" so can contain any mix. Like buying a "garam masala" spice mix for curries.

If you like I can type up the ingredients in my Kenyan Melvins although it might not be the same as you were served.
 
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mobilehaathi said:
Totally weird to me...

Even in the most upmarket places in India will have chai. It would be stranger not to drink it!

Anyway sounds great! ‘Masala’ being just a generic word for mixed spices...sometimes I’ll put ginger root, fennel seeds, or whole peppercorns too.
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I'm pretty certain that pepper and ginger may well have featured, too. But, it was delicious, and was served in a serious - and exceedingly elegant - tea-pot.
 
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JagdTiger said:
How about this?

https://www.nativeamericancoffee.co...ALUyTSpPXuQxafAZc8bTD0JKRP_f2anRoC-HYQAvD_BwE
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Looks awesome. My animals were where my taste was, almost spot on. Some nice flavors too.
They even seemed to ship to Sweden.
And of course if the custom just could forget to notice these things, I wouldn’t hesitate.

But I just bought 10 kg espresso beans & found another ~2 kg green beans. That will last for awhile. But I’ll keep the link.
Nice to support the Native Americans too :)
 
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Made a bit too much drip and it overflowed into a mess. Blew it out using a blower and it's outside air drying. This is why I almost never make drip. Too easy to make it overflow.
 
mobilehaathi said:
Well if you determine your preferred grinds to water ratio, the overflow problem is fairly easy to prevent.
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Fill line was exceeded, I think, and there is no anti-overfill measure like holes that would dump excess water. I splash the grounds in the sieve a few times to get them ready which adds water to the carafe (preinfusion if you wille). In other words, I was very careless. It happens every so often. Usually I know something's wrong when I'm at the other end of the kitchen, looking out towards the back yard and start smelling a very pleasant caramelized coffee scent.

I don't like this dripper much. I had one I really liked years ago but I accidentally broke the carafe by dropping it in the kitchen sink while it was soapy.

I like them for the convenience factor. Make a strong brew, walk away and come back minutes later to ready coffee, provided you remember it's on.
 
Zenithal said:
Fill line was exceeded, I think, and there is no anti-overfill measure like holes that would dump excess water. I splash the grounds in the sieve a few times to get them ready which adds water to the carafe (preinfusion if you wille). In other words, I was very careless. It happens every so often. Usually I know something's wrong when I'm at the other end of the kitchen, looking out towards the back yard and start smelling a very pleasant caramelized coffee scent.

I don't like this dripper much. I had one I really liked years ago but I accidentally broke the carafe by dropping it in the kitchen sink while it was soapy.

I like them for the convenience factor. Make a strong brew, walk away and come back minutes later to ready coffee, provided you remember it's on.
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I don’t particularly care for those machines either. We have one that we use when we need to make coffee for many people (family visiting, etc.), but I prefer the brew from a pour over or chemex.
 
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mobilehaathi said:
I don’t particularly care for those machines either. We have one that we use when we need to make coffee for many people (family visiting, etc.), but I prefer the brew from a pour over or chemex.
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They are fickle even if the tech's been around for ages. I use it when I'm in the mood to drink 6-8 cups in a sitting. And with an SS filter, it tastes about as good as a decently timed pressing.
[doublepost=1529632566][/doublepost]Double espresso using some Kenyan beans. AA for those who are picky about specifics.
 
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Scepticalscribe said:
What triggered the headache?

I'd suggest drinking plenty of water, and maybe a paracetamol.
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But then I can't have my crisps and beer in a half hour. Still very strange to crack one open this early in the morning. Headache is likely caused by me cleaning and not readjusting the HVAC (central air) vents in my home office. I hadn't cleaned them in a while and would sometimes see small bits of lint waft about. Even with my stature I still need a step ladder to get to them. I haven't in over a week because I keep putting it off. I'll deal with it until later today.
 
Zenithal said:
But then I can't have my crisps and beer in a half hour. Still very strange to crack one open this early in the morning. Headache is likely caused by me cleaning and not readjusting the HVAC (central air) vents in my home office. I hadn't cleaned them in a while and would sometimes see small bits of lint waft about. Even with my stature I still need a step ladder to get to them. I haven't in over a week because I keep putting it off. I'll deal with it until later today.
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Well, deal with the headache first, and then (if you still feel up to it) greet the crisps and beer in half an hour or so.
 
It went away thanks to the beer. About to make a nice cappuccino and have some cake with it. Take a stroll in the garden. I would take a nap before the next match but knowing me I'll sleep all the way through the first half. :eek:

Because that is precisely what happened last week.
 
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Zenithal said:
It went away thanks to the beer. About to make a nice cappuccino and have some cake with it. Take a stroll in the garden. I would take a nap before the next match but knowing me I'll sleep all the way through the first half. :eek:

Because that is precisely what happened last week.
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I had a coffee - a smooth Ethiopian - (and a nap) and missed most of the second half.

But, on the plus side, I awoke refreshed.
 
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Scepticalscribe said:
I had a coffee - a smooth Ethiopian - (and a nap) and missed most of the second half.

But, on the plus side, I awoke refreshed.
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I should have slept through this match. Serbia Switzerland should be fairly riveting. Great fixtures throughout the weekend.
 
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