Coffee Appreciation

Used to buy Monsooned Malabar from Newmarket coffee& tea - who have suddenly just closed down - anyone here have a good source for fresh Monsooned Malabar - thanks M

The boutique deli near me sells it, I think they mail order but never tried since I live 1 minutes walk away.
https://www.guntons.co.uk/cgi-bin/sh000002.pl?WD=monsoon&PN=Monsooned-Malabar-237%2ehtml#SID=29
I'll be honest I find their coffee can be hit and miss, their Sumatra Lintong has always been good but I've had stale (for good espresso) beans from them before. Never tried their Monsooned Malabar though so might be worth a punt.

I get Monsoon Malabar for my mum from Rave. It's a good chocolatey dark roast and even I enjoy it.

The solenoid valve on my Gaggia Classic got blocked today, bollocks... Went on YouTube and found a super easy fix that avoided taking the whole thing apart... Very happy... Also descaled it with tartaric acid instead of Puly and nothing terrible happened... Also backflushed with bicarb... Breaking all the rules today, I ran out of supplies...

https://youtu.be/P1x71NHsecU

BTW has anyone upgraded to the steel drip tray?

As in, the tray itself, not the mesh? Why would you - aesthetics?

Yeah, they look pretty as well as sitting a bit lower so you can use taller cups if you want...

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Whered'ya get that tray? I'd like more room below.

That's not mine, I haven't been able to find one for sale online...

While we're on gaggia upgrades, I recently switched to the IMS shower screen and it's been revelatory. Much less spurting with my bottomless filter. Really nice for adding another degree of consistency. Brass plate holder is next... anyone done it?

I did, Well worth it.

https://www.mrbean2cup.co.uk/gaggia-classic-stainless-steel-drip-tray

£46.99, pricey.

I like that, I've never been able to get my bottomless filter to work so it just holds my blind basket which seems a bit of a waste...

@andy.w Worth it or just a silly upgrade?

Urgh, is that really what they look like inside? Dread to think what mine is like after 10+ years!

Good tip on the solenoid valve there, descaling through the steam wand with the steam button. I don’t currently do that and it’ll probably cure the slight drip it has.

I've just splashed out on the shower screen and brass plate holder combo... Will report back!

Silly, but it does look good.

Hmm, maybe if I can find someone selling it here I'll take the plunge... It'll be $100+++ otherwise...

That's a lot of cash for pure aesthetics...

Fucking hipster!

Just taken the plunge in to the world of aeropress (thanks @Double_J) - any guidance on forum-approved brew methods? I'd prioritise speed over absolute quality as I often don't have much time before work in the morning. TIA x

Using electric kettle bring 300ml water to a boil.
Chuck filter paper and 4 tsp rather coarse ground coffee in the bottom part of the Aeropress.
Pour water over it, shove the plunger thing in, and shake a few times (think coctail mixing).
Tilt your head down and hold the setup over your open mouth, holding bottom part with your left hand, forcing down the plunger thingee with your right hand.
Enjoy.

Came home from a shoot to find Mrs cyoa has drowned my expensive scales in a flurry of pre-MiL visit cleaning. Completely filled with soapy water. Days later and I squeeze it and it still oozes out. Basically researching divorce now.

I squeeze it and it still oozes out

In before any of you.

I'd prioritise speed

Make espresso ;)

I know I was moaning about the price of coffee a while back but I was tripping, I actually get a kilo of beans for AU$38... I thought I was paying twice that, cheap as chips and really great quality...

Seeing things a bit clearer off the booze?

Ha! I just had a bit of a mental arithmetic fail, thought I was paying twice what I actually was...

PS I've just had a small glass of Glenfiddich...