I never buy beans that do not have a roast date. Best before dates don't count. I'm glad to see a bit of a shift in what some supermarkets carry now as they have more local products with roast dates on the bags. It's now possible to get beans roasted within the last 1 or 2 weeks in some grocery stores.Supermarket beans are hideous and would have been roasted many months before you get to use them .. Life is too short for bad coffee
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Coffee - do you and how do you consume it?
- Thread starter spacevector
- Start date
I sometimes use supermarket beans when I have run out on the day the deli is closed. (Just generally bad planning)Supermarket beans are hideous and would have been roasted many months before you get to use them .. Life is too short for bad coffee
It is nowhere near as good as the fresh roasts i normally use, but is quite capable of producing a nice milk based drink. I find avoiding the "brands" (Lavazza etc) and choosing the supermarkets own "extra special" or equivalent, gives better results.
Are their other fans of the Oxo Rapid Brewer here? I usually drank light local roasts (Pablo's in Denver) alternating between pour over and AeroPress for many years, but six months ago got one of these contraptions and am very happy.
Like AeroPress there are multiple techniques, I have settled on (and dialed in) "soup shots" as demonstrated by Lance Hedrick. Also called turbo shots or modern low pressure espresso. I make Americanos from these shots and it has become my daily driver.
A firm believer in ritual as a subjective experience enhancer in both audio and taste, the Rapid Brewer's combination of relative speed, with a multi- step process (grind size, tamping pressure, timing) that are both have impact and are easily repeatable even when I am sleepy, works great for me.
Like AeroPress there are multiple techniques, I have settled on (and dialed in) "soup shots" as demonstrated by Lance Hedrick. Also called turbo shots or modern low pressure espresso. I make Americanos from these shots and it has become my daily driver.
A firm believer in ritual as a subjective experience enhancer in both audio and taste, the Rapid Brewer's combination of relative speed, with a multi- step process (grind size, tamping pressure, timing) that are both have impact and are easily repeatable even when I am sleepy, works great for me.
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On the videos I've watched, the Niche Zero and the Lagom Casa seem to make the same amount of noise/ Considering the Casa is supposed to be a brushless motor, I'm a little disappointed in what they seem to sound like. In comparison the brushless motor in the DF83V is dead silent until you drop beans in.
And they both seem to take longer on the grind than my old Lelit Fred.
Anybody know a way to mod the Niche or the Casa for silent operation and grind speed?
(The Niche, using Mazzer Burrs should in theory be capable of grinding in half the time!)
And they both seem to take longer on the grind than my old Lelit Fred.
Anybody know a way to mod the Niche or the Casa for silent operation and grind speed?
(The Niche, using Mazzer Burrs should in theory be capable of grinding in half the time!)
owned both. Niche Zero is lower pitch and is more pleasant, probably because of stronger motor and the cover on top.On the videos I've watched, the Niche Zero and the Lagom Casa seem to make the same amount of noise/ Considering the Casa is supposed to be a brushless motor, I'm a little disappointed in what they seem to sound like. In comparison the brushless motor in the DF83V is dead silent until you drop beans in.
And they both seem to take longer on the grind than my old Lelit Fred.
Anybody know a way to mod the Niche or the Casa for silent operation and grind speed?
(The Niche, using Mazzer Burrs should in theory be capable of grinding in half the time!)
but casa, for me, grinds much better and also much less retention. I don't miss the NZ a bit
very similar to Mazzer Philos in shapeLooks like Dyson cordless vac design language, I'd sure not like to confuse the two.
Hm. Roughly same pricing, too
As long as it grinds well, I don't mind. looks good to my eyes actually
I might get to borrow a Kony for a short while. I know it’s not low retention but would be interesting to see how it compares to the Niche Zero as it’s the same burrs. In the cafe it seems like it grinds in about 10-15sec. This 30sec grind time seems silly.
I think I’m gonna find myself trying to mount my DF motor in a conical burr chassis!
Low rpm (and therefore low grinding speed) seems to bring out clarity (as they claim), especially with pour over. In fact the NFC disc of NZ was introduced 1 year or so after it was released.I might get to borrow a Kony for a short while. I know it’s not low retention but would be interesting to see how it compares to the Niche Zero as it’s the same burrs. In the cafe it seems like it grinds in about 10-15sec. This 30sec grind time seems silly.
I think I’m gonna find myself trying to mount my DF motor in a conical burr chassis!
The burr can certainly grind faster but it grinds slow by design. As in home environment I am fine with that. But yeah 2-3s for a double espresso would be ... nice, spare the noise
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once you do the math, a proper espresso setup is actually saving money in long run. pods are quite expensive for gr of coffee compared to coffee beans.We have a nespresso vertuo machine (I know - don't hate me). They now have a range of Starbucks pods which means I can get the same awful coffee, but for a fraction of the price at home
but well, it's a rabbit hole you might not want to get yourself into
Can I ask you what's on top of the Gaggia? An app?
https://gaggiuino.github.io/#/?id=home
very interesting DYI/modding project. I am bad at that so I bought decent instead
I know you're right on this, I guess it's just the convenience and ability to have lots of blends on the go we appreciate. Less keen on the environmental impact of all those pods being made and shipped
I own a beautiful Ascaso manual espresso machine, all stainless steel, with a PID controller that regulates the water temperature during extraction and two grinders, one with fine grind adjustment and a slow, fairly quiet grind setting, and a De'Longhi machine with an integrated grinder... which I bought when the Ascaso broke down and was sent in for repairs. The Ascaso came back from repairs and is no longer in use, because the De'Longhi makes coffee that is perhaps even better, or at least just as good, and much less tedious to prepare. But here, as in the world of audiophiles, it seems some coffee lovers find it tastes better when they've actively participated in its "making"...
I used to love a Rwandan coffee grown by a women's cooperative, roasted by a local craftsman in old copper machines, but he's closed down. It was special because he was also a renowned harpsichord maker... his coffees were carefully selected. These days I buy Zambian whole bean coffee that's wonderful... even though it comes from a supermarket... and I try many different kinds, some quite expensive, some very good, some frankly ordinary... like the recently purchased wild Ethiopian Mocha, which was rather bland yet incredibly expensive.
I used to love a Rwandan coffee grown by a women's cooperative, roasted by a local craftsman in old copper machines, but he's closed down. It was special because he was also a renowned harpsichord maker... his coffees were carefully selected. These days I buy Zambian whole bean coffee that's wonderful... even though it comes from a supermarket... and I try many different kinds, some quite expensive, some very good, some frankly ordinary... like the recently purchased wild Ethiopian Mocha, which was rather bland yet incredibly expensive.
Sage (or Breville in the US) Oracle touch is a very convenience, and you can change beans easily.I know you're right on this, I guess it's just the convenience and ability to have lots of blends on the go we appreciate. Less keen on the environmental impact of all those pods being made and shipped
sure it's a steep price to get into (for convenience, there are much cheaper ways )
, but once you get a taste of proper espresso, you'll not go back. Life is too short for bad coffee(I'm trying to get you into the rabbit hole, because I believe every one who drinks coffee deserves good coffee, even if they think "this is good enough for me". just like music)
We remodeled the kitchen 2 years ago. We drink a lot of coffee and had this coffee maker installed. It grinds your selected beans and has a ton of settings and adjustments you can make to suit your taste. With the amount of coffee we’ve made, it’s paid itself off. That’s accounting for Starbucks prices. And for rest record, I can’t stand Starbucks. Lol
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EJ3
Master Contributor
Good to see that I am not the only one that thinks that. I spent a lot of time in S. Korea between 2004 & 2017, many Korean's wanted to take me to Starbucks. But I never went to any Korean coffee place that was as bad as Starbucks. So I would say, why not lets go to your local one, it can't be as bad as Starbucks is?Starbucks pods which means I can get the same awful coffee, but for a fraction of the price at home
They were usually surprised that an American felt that way.
「 ✦ JIM ✦ 」
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I started with a Gaggia Classic a few years ago and fully modded it with a brass head, PID, flow control, precision baskets and shower screen. I also stripped the boiler and fully insulated it to improve temp stability. Turns out good espresso. Also had a Quick Mill Essence. Beautiful machine with the E61 head but it started to leak after a week and so did the replacement so I backed them. Not what you'd expect from a 2.5k machine. The electrics/wiring internally were similar to their (Italian) sports cars of the 90's, a total joke and not acceptable for this day and age. Couple of years ago I converted to a Londinium spring lever (Vectis). As long as you're into dark to medium/dark roasts at a 1:2 ratio its a total game changer and makes all pump machines taste inferior, even the likes of La Marzocco, Dalla Corte etc. There's literally zero maintainance too apart from replacing the seals once or twice a year depending on usage and can be done in 10 mins. The only mod I have made is I installed a solid state relay to switch on and off the pressure stat therefore taking the current load away from the small contacts. This will greatly increse the life of the stat.
Espresso can only really be as good as the grinder and the understanding of adjustment according to the conditions and beans used. I am currently using a Kinu M47 Classic which is a really sweet manual hand grinder built like a tank and a Fiorenzato F64 Evo. The Evo is a bit of a hidden gem and is used in a lot of Italian cafes. It's pretty noisy and wastes a fair bit of coffee due to purging but the grinds it produces are really really good and with the lever is one hell of a tasty experience. Fine espresso is an art form and the faff that goes into making a small quantity of fluid just makes it more enjoyable, for me anyway.
Espresso can only really be as good as the grinder and the understanding of adjustment according to the conditions and beans used. I am currently using a Kinu M47 Classic which is a really sweet manual hand grinder built like a tank and a Fiorenzato F64 Evo. The Evo is a bit of a hidden gem and is used in a lot of Italian cafes. It's pretty noisy and wastes a fair bit of coffee due to purging but the grinds it produces are really really good and with the lever is one hell of a tasty experience. Fine espresso is an art form and the faff that goes into making a small quantity of fluid just makes it more enjoyable, for me anyway.
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