Coffee Appreciation

I have around £1000/£1500 to spend on a grinder and espresso machine. I'm happy with second hand and it can be plumbed in if needed. What would be the forum recommendations?

Finally got a little more space for a coffee station.

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Nice, what is the machine?

La Pavoni Europiccola. Really great little machine for the price (granted it's not much more than a water boiler w/pressure stat!)

Grinder is a Baratza Sette 270, apparently not great for more coarse filter grinds (apparently too many fines that clog the filter when run at a coarse setting). They sell a burr that's more geared towards coarse grinds so will test that out with the Chemex.

I got round to doing this. Took 10 mins to file off enough of the body to unscrew the needle and pop out the washer. Cleaned it all up, but it still leaked. Put some plumbers tape on the thread and hey presto! it stopped the leak.

It might not last, but at least now I can just unscrew the needle and add more tape without having to completely remove the assembly.

It's hot as fucking balls every day in New York. I finally got around to making iced coffee according to James Hoffman's recipe. Man, that's delicious.

Cat & Cloud Coffee available through the Dog & Hat subscription this month! Looking forward to trying it out after hearing so much about it

We have continually had great beans from @StevePeel

Occasionally we buy bags when passing through places and there is a local hipster cafe/roastery but we get such consistently great coffee and some interesting variations that’s Steve is our go to guy. It’s also like when I used to buy records, he knows the kinds of things we like and makes suggestions as to what will most suit us.

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My Gaggia Classic is running like a dream now... Was a bit disappointed with the IMS shower screen at first but a finer grind has made all the difference... Great results, time after time... An absolute pleasure...

Yo, is the coffee machine still for sale?
Am keen.
Edit: I see that it is not.

Sorry for wasting your time.

No time wasted - I sold it on the forum, it sold pretty quickly.

Keep an eye out on Gumtree, you will definitely find some very good examples, badly listed, that have only been used a couple of times.

Examples below:
https://www.gumtree.com/p/coffee-machines/gaggia-baby-dose/1343087300
https://www.gumtree.com/p/coffee-machines/gaggia-baby-twin-coffee-machine-for-sale/1344796456

They will likely need a deep clean and most likely need the solenoid valve sorted if water has been sitting in the boiler for extended periods of time.

Then you can start the upgrade process!

First stop today and Loaded up at YBR’s

@StevePeel wasn’t in but bought a selection of beans 👍

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Ah thanks for dropping by, sorry I missed you. Enjoy N-Town!

Aww so glad you’re enjoying the recommendations, we’ve got a few more new coffees coming soon, new washed Guji, Brasil Daterra yellow bourbon lot and Kenya in August.

Unsure if this post is better suited to the bikepacking thread but... Are there any bikepacker's here? How do you make your brews? Setting off on my first bikepacking trip and am undecided on what brewer to use.

I like the GSI outdoors ultralight Java Dripper, they do another one too, a collapsible Silicone jobby.

Recently started using Rivers Micro Coffee Dripper which is very good. Slightly heavier & more faff to use but sits on mug direct so much more stable than the gsi.

Aeropress is too big for bikepacking IMO.

Are "coffee bags" a thing these days?

Ignore double post!

Thanks for the tips. I've seen the GSI Java Dripper but cleaning the net seems like a bit of a faff. Maybe a the silicone one would work better.

I am hoping to make 500ml batches which rules out the micro dripper as well as the Aeropress which I also agree is too large.

Was looking at the Snow Peak Collapsible Coffee Dripper which looks great but unsure how packable it is in a curved saddle / bar bag.

Coffee bags as in the equivalent of a tea bag but with coffee grounds inside? Tried it once and would never go there again... Would be interested in trying these Dripkit's though https://dripkit.coffee/

GSI net clean can be faffy, invert & dunk a good start. Silicone should be easier clean someone on here has one I think?

Snow Peak Collapsible Coffee Dripper

Looks lovely, papers makes cleaning easier, bring home for compost!

Dripkit's

Post up if you do try, they look good in theory.

I brew in my main cooking pot French press style, but then just pour it through a paper filter into my mug. Means the only coffee hardware are the filters.

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You could even do without the filter papers, use coarse ground coffee, let it steep in your pot for 10-15 mins then just pour it into the cup gently. All the ground coffee will settle nicely in the bottom of the pot. That’s a traditional scandi brewing method, tastes great too.
https://youtu.be/st571DYYTR8

Good point ^.

However, have we considered the weightweenie approach fully? Does grinding finer allow you to take less coffee and still achieve a decent extraction?

Ha, well in theory yes but time is also a factor in extraction so you would have to reduce the steep time by quite a lot and the grounds might not settle fully by the time it’s brewed :)

Yep, hence the paper to keep things clean.

Also, minimising steep time means I have less chance to knock it over while it's balanced on a wonky rock.

ie, cowboy coffee