After 14 years my Quick Mill Andreja Premium’s pump failed and I used it as an excuse to pick up another e61 machine but this time a double boiler with rotary pumps. I narrowed it down to 3 or 4 comparable machines and let my wife pick based on appearance and she preferred the Izzo Alex Duetto IV Plus. I replaced the pump on the Andreja and gifted it to my daughter but still need to replace a couple more minor parts to get it functioning as new.
While researching I learned more about single dosing and that really appealed to me so I upgraded my 14 plus year old Mazzer Mini. My research and based on the type of espresso most local roasters roast, led me to a local Seattle companies grinder, the MC5 from KafaTek and I have not been disappointed. I put a list of recommended Seattle area roasters together and I am currently enjoying Dolce, a blend from Espresso Vivace in Seattle that is always at the top of the list of best and most recommended Seattle area espresso beans, at least from the coffee geeks.
Blends...For Espresso Vivace I chose the Northern Italian espresso roast during my early Italian explorations in 1989. The defining characteristic of this roast is the high caramelized sugar content of the coffee. As coffee is roasted it generates caramelized sugars, carbon dioxide, a multitude...
espressovivace.com
I can’t remember ever having or making a ristretto espresso before and was skeptical about a 1 to 1 ratio. In fact, before I tried single dosing, weighing my espresso and reading up about the different recommended ratios for different coffees, I didn’t know what a ristretto was. This is the type of roast the MC5 was made for.
It was wonderful. All the hype is justified. It is unlike any espresso I have had. If you are one that does not think you can tell the difference in espresso, try this and you might change your mind. Of course everyone's tastes and preferences are different but Dolce seems to have universal appeal in Seattle. It seems a bit of a shame to add anything to it but it is equally good in a latte. In addition to ristretto’s I also tried more of a macchiato than latte with whole milk but not much foam and made my wife a latte with oat milk and we both loved them.
It is different drinking such a small amount of espresso at a time though I assume the caffeine quantity is the same as the 1 x 2 ratio I pull with another local favorite, Olympia Roasters.
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