Espresso Enthusiasts

[Scepticalscribe]

Mother in law is over thru thanksgiving, made her espresso with steamed milk this morning

Wonderful; what a lovely thought, (and action).

Anyone who prepared (good) coffee for me always met with my wholehearted gratitude and approval.

I trust that she enjoyed it; if the photograph is anything to go by, it looks as though she did.

 

[mtbdudex]

Drinking this West Coast blend, we like it. We’re flying the family out to see our son who’s a marine station in San Diego Camp Pendleton, so this is in preparation for visiting him December 26 through January 2.
We’re in snowy Michigan so being in warmer California will be a nice change.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Drinking this West Coast blend, we like it. We’re flying the family out to see our son who’s a marine station in San Diego Camp Pendleton, so this is in preparation for visiting him December 26 through January 2.
We’re in snowy Michigan so being in warmer California will be a nice change.

Looks amazing, and I hope that it is as tasty as it looks.


Safe travels, and enjoy your trip.

 

[mtbdudex]

Thinking of my mom this cold winter morning, it’s 19f and going down during the day to 2f brrr , this was her cup.
More west coast blend.

 

[DaveFromCampbelltown]

So, some years ago, I bought a DeLonghi ECP 31.21 noddy espresso machine from Aldi, at half price.
It's simple. Put coffee in the portafilter, press the button, hear grinding noises because you forgot to fill up the water, stop, fill up the water, wait till it gets hot, press the button again and get coffee out.
Adjust grind size and amount for the particular type of coffee.

It still works, but is getting a bit long in the tooth. One day soon, it will emit spitz 'n' sparkz instead of coffee.
It is essential that I have working coffee machine, otherwise the sky will fall in, the world will end and other similar disasters.

Looking around, I find that a later iteration of this class of machine is being discounted. Also, I have a gift card from many years ago that was still valid. A few tens of dollars later, this came home --

Eh, voila! A new EC885 Dedica now graces the kitchen. The other is stored in the garage as a backup for the time being.
Advantages of the new machine --

• It's narrower, so it takes up less room.
• The water reservoir holds more water.
• The portafilter now fits the grinder properly so you can grind just by pushing the button at the back with the portafilter.
• It has a better steaming wand.
• It pre-infuses the coffee in the basket. This is, apparently, a good thing.
• The portafilter baskets are larger, holding more coffee (never a bad thing).
• You can adjust the water temperature, too cold, just right, too hot.
• You can adjust the water hardness to soft, medium or hard. This puzzled me somewhat, as I thought it meant the water pressure, but a Youtube said that it referred to how often you de-scale your machine.
• It keeps the water hot for some time, so I don't have to wait between brewing cups.

In summary, it makes drinkable coffee, with a minimum of input from the operator (put coffee in portafilter, mount portafilter in machine, press button, remember to put cup under before too much spills).

 

[Macky-Mac]

...Looking around, I find that a later iteration of this class of machine is being discounted. Also, I have a gift card from many years ago that was still valid. A few tens of dollars later, this came home --

View attachment 2593535

Eh, voila! A new EC885 Dedica now graces the kitchen. The other is stored in the garage as a backup for the time being....

I had one of those years ago (or a model quite similar if it wasn't the exact same).

It was very nice. Unfortunately my grinder died. It was one I'd inherited and when I looked into replacing it.....I gasped at the price for the same grinder. Ultimately this lead to experimenting with other methods of making my morning coffee and at some point I donated the EC885 Dedica (or whichever model it was) to a youngster who wanted to try making espresso for himself.

 

[Lioness~]

I’m exploring to make protein-espresso, it’s fun and tasted very good today.

1st time: I blended the vanilla-soy protein with a small amount of water on the stove to a paste - and mixed the espresso with it. 3 of 5 result, but to much work with it.

2nd time - today - I put the protein into the coffee-cup and just made the usual espresso into it.
2/5 not better, pretty grainy, but I poured it all into my new Ninja mixer - which is awesome - so it turned out 4/5 after that. But it had cooled a bit to much.

I have ordered a little espresso whisk, that I also can use for this. Will test it.
But the Ninja mixer was really good - I will testing immediately when the espresso is really hot tomorrow 😋

 

[Avatar74]

Triple ristretto. Or as I call it, The Hard Reset™.

 

[GrandCiel]

Triple ristretto. Or as I call it, The Hard Reset™.


View attachment 2597682

You have me curious, what beans and ratio? I had two 19g in 19g out ristretto shots myself this morning. Espresso Vivace, Dolce blend.

 

[oblomow]

Triple ristretto. Or as I call it, The Hard Reset™.


View attachment 2597682

Rancillio Silvia?

 

[DaveFromCampbelltown]

Illy Intenso coffee pods were on special recently. Bought a few boxes to make the shipping worthwhile.
Had one this morning. Lived up the the "Intenso" name...

It looks like they are destocking their ESE pods, as has DeLonghi recently. This is a shame, as they are a simple way to have a coffee that is better than a normal pod, but with less involvement than a freshly ground coffee.

 

[GrandCiel]

Thought I'd try vacuum sealing quart mason jars and freezing again since it worked so well last time. I ordered 5 pounds this time, not 10. Caffe Lusso - Gran Miscela Carmo (GMC).

 

[Avatar74]

Rancillio Silvia?

Correct. Rancilio Silvia M V6 (replaced a 13 year old V3 about a year ago) with Auber Instruments PID kit w/preinfusion.

 

[oblomow]

Correct. Rancilio Silvia M V6 (replaced a 13 year old V3 about a year ago) with Auber Instruments PID kit w/preinfusion.

How does that work for you? Is it an improvement? As you might have guessed I am a Silvia user too and I have been looking at this modification. Ours is a much older one. V2 I guess.

 

[Avatar74]

You have me curious, what beans and ratio? I had two 19g in 19g out ristretto shots myself this morning. Espresso Vivace, Dolce blend.

Intelligentsia Black Cat. The flow rate on the rancilio is the default. I haven't tweaked the pressure from its default (9 bar).

I've tried more esoteric beans with the Silvia but the Black Cat produces very consistent results from one pull to the next, so I have continuously used it for years with great results.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Intelligentsia Black Cat. The flow rate on the rancilio is the default. I haven't tweaked the pressure from its default (9 bar).

I've tried more esoteric beans with the Silvia but the Black Cat produces very consistent results from one pull to the next, so I have continuously used it for years with great results.

In the past, I have ordered coffee from Intelligentsia, including Black cat, and always found it good.

 

[GrandCiel]

Intelligentsia Black Cat. The flow rate on the rancilio is the default. I haven't tweaked the pressure from its default (9 bar).

I've tried more esoteric beans with the Silvia but the Black Cat produces very consistent results from one pull to the next, so I have continuously used it for years with great results.

Thanks. I'm always tweaking recipes in an attempt to find what works best with different roasts with my grinder and espresso machine.

I haven’t tried Intelligentsia Black Cat Classic Espresso Whole Bean Coffee. Just too many great local options to venture out of Seattle. Interesting that Amazon includes a suggested recipe at a ratio even higher than a standard shots 1:2 ratio. It is always good to find a recipe that works best for your tastes but ristretto shots don’t taste good to me with all roasts.

How to Brew: For espresso, we recommend a fine grind and your finished espresso should weigh 2.5 times as much as your coffee dose, which provides an excellent total extraction and maximizes flavor.

Espresso Vivace Dolce is roasted specifically for Ristretto style espresso. Their appearance is very different than another of my favorite blends, Caffe Lusso GSM. While GSM seems best at 1:2, what some call a standard or long shot, I prefer Dolce at 1:1, closer to what most consider the more concentrated Ristretto shot. If you order a Dolce shot in an Espresso Vivace caffe, it will likely be an even more extreme Ristretto style shot of 18g dry in and as low as 14g or lower of liquid out.

While it can be tricky to get the recipe dialed in for your particular grinder and espresso machine, once I got it right, the end result is the smoothest, sweetest shot I have ever experienced. The only downside is due to the small size, a couple sips and it is gone.

Dolce Blend - Our gold cup espresso blend was created to offer the most complex and balanced flavors possible in straight espresso or black coffee. Our Dolce Blend features a heavy red-gold crema with a sweet floral presence and a rich note of chocolate.

This is the recipe Denis, owner of KafaTek, the company that makes my grinder uses. As both Espresso Vivace (David Schomer) and KafaTeK, (Denis) are local, they have met and worked together to work out the best recipes.

My shot parameters for Vivace Dolce made Schomer style: 18g in, ~11-14g out, 30-40 second shot time @ 203.5F. Ultra ristretto, extremely taste when made right:

 

[Avatar74]

Thanks. I'm always tweaking recipes in an attempt to find what works best with different roasts with my grinder and espresso machine.

...
My shot parameters for Vivace Dolce made Schomer style: 18g in, ~11-14g out, 30-40 second shot time @ 203.5F. Ultra ristretto, extremely taste when made right:

21g espresso. 2:1 ratio. 16 second shot time @ 220ºF (at the boiler, no group head temp reading). I don't overthink it. As the beans get a bit more stale I'll adjust my tamp, grind and duration accordingly. That's all.

 

[GrandCiel]

21g espresso. 2:1 ratio. 16 second shot time @ 220ºF (at the boiler, no group head temp reading). I don't overthink it. As the beans get a bit more stale I'll adjust my tamp, grind and duration accordingly. That's all.

Thanks. If you are using 21g dry in and 11.5g out (2:1), that is definitely an extreme ristretto shot. If you meant 1:2, (21g dry in - 42g liquid out) that is the recipe of a standard shot.

 

[Avatar74]

Thanks. If you are using 21g dry in and 11.5g out (2:1), that is defiantly an extreme ristretto shot. If you meant 1:2, (21g dry in - 42g liquid out) that is the recipe of a standard shot.

Generally yeah 2:1 or 3:2. I like hyperconcentrated shots... we're talking liquid crack. I often have meetings from 3am to noon.

 

[DaveFromCampbelltown]

Ok, NROD*
Put coffee grounds in portafilter before attaching to espresso machine.
It makes for a much richer, more flavourful coffee experience.

Don't ask me how I know...

*NROD - New Rule Of the Day - sort of like Soup de Jour, but for rules.

 

[adrianlondon]

It's good to flush hot water through everything to warm it up nicely before making your first espresso of the day ...

 

[Lioness~]

It have happened that I've nocked out a perfectly unused puck - if have been disturbed in thre espresso-doing, and found the portafilter still in the machine when returning.
So I'm trying not to put the portafilter into the machine until I'm ready to continue.

Very clear habbits are good when we still are sleepy 😴

 

[adrianlondon]

Very clear habbits are good when we still are sleepy 😴

Agreed! Especially as some of us are having our morning coffees precisely because we don't function well until we've had it 😁

 

[Avatar74]

It have happened that I've nocked out a perfectly unused puck - if have been disturbed in thre espresso-doing, and found the portafilter still in the machine when returning.
So I'm trying not to put the portafilter into the machine until I'm ready to continue.

Very clear habbits are good when we still are sleepy 😴

Happens to the best of us. I did it the other day. Now I try to keep the portafilter to the side, tamped and ready, and don't attach until I'm ready to extract.