Coffee gear?

dave lackey

dave lackey

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Okay, I would now like to move upscale in the coffee world but I need to keep it in synch with the M3.😉

Moving upscale means going up from Starbucks/Dunkin Donuts ground coffee and using whole beans. But at that point, I am completely lost with all the talk about roasting/pressing/grinding/etc.

Of course, keeping cost/convenience in the consideration, can we discuss the intricacies and pros/cons of coffee gear to match the camera?:angel:
 
French press is where it's at if you want "classic" (as in minimal automation and perfect results). Forget drip and percolation (both invariably produce awful bitter coffee), forget espresso (too labor intensive and high quality gear is both expensive and big/heavy). Vacuum always seems like so much work to me. Stove-top (Italian) espresso is doable and simple (in terms of equipment and process, but you have to like the concentrated results).

Some people don't like French press because it is a bit more work (particularly in cleaning the gear after each and every use), but when done properly it is the best coffee I've ever had: the coffee will have tons of rich flavor and NO bitterness. As with all coffee making, the trick is grinding the beans; the cheap blade grinders will not do. You need some sort of burr grinder that will basically just crack the beans so they shatter into large chunks. The chunks have the right amount of surface area to release the proper amount of flavor without leaching bitterness into the liquid: fine grounds have too much surface area for the press method and will release too many oils. (Espresso uses such fine grounds because they are never in total contact with water: the steam as it passes through them releases the "proper" amount of flavor -- put into water like with french press, they make very, very bitter coffee.)

Then just a french press and a pot for boiling water (let it cool for about 10 seconds after taking it off the heat so it drops to optimum temperature): pour the water into the press, let steep for 3:30 to 4 minutes and voila -- perfect coffee.
 
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1261129873.jpg


French Press...cool... now where to get coffee ground with a burr grinder? This one seems to be a good buy...



thanks!
 
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Dave, the Baratza should do pretty good -- I have their Maestro Plus and at its coarsest it is okay for french press. The grounds might still be just a little small for optimum results, but it does alright as the coffee isn't bitter. (Next year hopefully we will be able to afford to upgrade to a Mazzer Mini.) Nice thing about the Baratzas is how quickly you can adjust them from coarse to fine, so if you want to use it for drip or even espresso it's a snap to switch settings (unlike some of the higher-end models which can require a lot of tedious turning of knobs). We did have our Maestro go bad after six months, but the company sent a replacement within two business days -- very good customer service.

EDIT: One thing to be aware of, french press when done right will have some sediment in it simply because the mesh in the press isn't small enough to completely filter out all the particles. So, the bottom of a press cup will always have a layer of sediment. Just pour it out if the grit bugs you.
 
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looks nice

looks nice

I haven't used this one, and don't grind for French Press, only espresso and occasionally auto coffee maker.

I've been very pleased with a capresso burr grinder which has about 16 settings. I only use settings between 2 and 4 for espresso.

Not sure how well it's built. It's replacing a year old Cuisinart burr grinder that just didnt grind consistently enough.


dave lackey said:
1261129873.jpg


French Press...cool... now where to get coffee ground with a burr grinder? This one seems to be a good buy...



thanks!
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ampguy said:
I haven't used this one, and don't grind for French Press, only espresso and occasionally auto coffee maker.

I've been very pleased with a capresso burr grinder which has about 16 settings. I only use settings between 2 and 4 for espresso.

Not sure how well it's built. It's replacing a year old Cuisinart burr grinder that just didnt grind consistently enough.
Click to expand...

From what I understand, Capresso makes some decent Burr grinders, but if you want to really step it up, I'd look into Mazzer.
 
dave lackey said:
1261129873.jpg


French Press...cool... now where to get coffee ground with a burr grinder? This one seems to be a good buy...
Click to expand...

Looks like the Solis Master or a re-branded one. I have the smaller Solis Scala, which is internally the same, and am quite satisfied with it.

Some hobby barista friends tell me it has its limitations when it comes to lever pressed espresso - there you'd want your coffee finer than it can produce without wasting its burrs. But as long as you are not into lever pressed or genuine Turkish coffee, it is fine - mine has already survived some six years of heavy use.

Sevo
 
Wes. said:
Dave,

Are you interested in espresso? I'd be more than happy to make some suggestions for you.
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Hi, Wes...

You know... never tried espresso. Curious, yes? So, I would definitely welcome some suggestions. Feel free to pm me if you think the intricacies would bore readers.🙂
 
dave lackey said:
Hi, Wes...

You know... never tried espresso. Curious, yes? So, I would definitely welcome some suggestions. Feel free to pm me if you think the intricacies would bore readers.🙂
Click to expand...

Haha, I'll try to condense the information so I don't bore people.

If you want to make good espresso, you need to keep 3 things in mind.

1. The Beans: Never buy beans from the market, Starbucks, Coffee Bean, Peats, etc... Coffee beans have a shelf life (and it's short). The peak freshness of beans is only about a week after they have been roasted. After that, the flavor, texture, aroma, etc... starts to go away. If you look at the bottom of one of the Starbucks bags, it will say something along the lines of the beans being good for up to a year. That's a clear indicator if how much they care about the coffee experience.

Being in Atlanta, it shouldn't be hard for you to find freshly roasted beans. If you go to any *real* coffee shop, they will probably have their own that you can buy, or at least recommend a local place.

If you would like to buy online, I suggest you look into these three companies:

1. Intelligentsia (http://www.intelligentsiacoffee.com/) - Based out of Chicago, Intelligentsia takes no shortcuts. Each of their bags has a label with the date that the beans were roasted. In my experience, each bag contains beans that were roasted 2 days prior to when you get them.

2. Blue Bottle (http://www.bluebottlecoffee.net/) - Based out of San Francisco, Blue Bottle is one of the favorites among the locals and anybody else who enjoys fine coffee.

3. Ritual Roasters (http://www.ritualroasters.com/) - Also based out of San Francisco, Ritual Roasters is somewhat of a rival to Blue Bottle. Due to their roasting techniques, their coffee is more powerful than Blue Bottle, but equally as refined. Ritual Roasters is my personal favorite.

2. The Grinder: Now that you have fresh beans, you need to grind them properly. For this, you absolutely need a burr grinder. There are many burr grinders out there, but they are not all created equally. The cheaper ones tend to overheat and their grind is less consistent than a more professional grinder.

Without going overboard, here are two excellent grinders that are built to last.

1. Baratza Vario (http://www.baratza.com/products.php?id=31)
2. Mazzer Mini (http://www.mazzer.com/scheda.asp?idprod=2)

You may ask: "Do I really need a grinder like this?" If you want to achieve an ideal grind (and yes, this is important), then yes.

3. The Machine: There are TONS of machines out there, but this is probably the most straightforward decision that you can make. For home use, there is only one machine that can deliver proper performance, good reliability, and compact (well, fairly) size.

1. Rancilio Silvia - (http://www.rancilio.it/rancilio/prod_model.jsp?id_model=49&id_language=3&id_category=26)

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Once you acquire all of those things, you need to dedicate the time to learn how to extract a proper shot of espresso. Much like photography, an expensive camera will not turn a person into a good photographer. Practice makes perfect and in the world of espresso, lots of practice is needed. 😀


ampguy said:
If the Capresso doesn't last, the next will be a Mazzer or Rocky.
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Lots of people seem to like the Rocky, but I have no experience with it.
 
Great advice Wes. Quality tamper is also good to have, and I personally prefer pure (reverse osmosis) water for my espresso.
 
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