Coffee Appreciation

I was tempted by a CX25, but in the end I went for microwave and one of these at c. 1/10th of the cost: https://www.bodum.com/gb/en/1446-01-latteo It doesn't give you that perfect microfoam, but it's by no means terrible, and it's dishwasher-safe.

Oh that's not my photo, just one I found online.

However, those happen to be the only two home espressso machines I've used.

Things I prefer about the La Pavoni:

• Looks better (subjective admittedly)
  
• Much more simple design means less maintenance required
  
• Largely constant design for the past few decades means parts are readily available and I have no concerns about that changing (there are many parts that are still shared by the pre and post- millennium models)
  
• As well as reliability, using a lever vs a pump means having control of the pressure over the course of the shot
  
• Much quicker to heat up (the La Pavoni is ready in less than 10 mins, I recall my Classic taking around twice that)
  
• Due to not using a pump, don't really have to worry about coffee getting sucked back into the plumbing
  
• Disassembly takes a pair of spanners and a gasket hook (haven't removed the boiler from the base so not sure about what's needed for that)
  
• No faffing around with switches depending on whether I want to pull a shot or steam milk, waiting for the steam wand to be ready while the espresso is getting cold
  
• While the drip tray is much smaller, it's a lot easier to remove than I recall the Classic being (and again as it's a lever-powered machine, there's no waste water being ejected into it each shot)
  
• An excuse to watch that clip of James Bond basterdising a latte-like substance
  
  

Things I prefer about the Gaggia:

• Better temperature stability across several shots, the La Pavoni group gets very hot after 2 shots and really needs to be cooled down prior to pulling further shots
  
• The little space on top to pre-heat espresso cups
  
  

Neither come with an ideal steam wand setup out of the box. For the Classic I replaced it with a Silvia wand. For the La Pavoni I drilled a hole in a 6mm acorn nut and used that as a tip (the original tip has 3 holes and the La Pavoni doesn't provide enough pressure with that). I have since purchased a proper La Pavoni single-hole tip, mostly as the acorn nut was a nightmare to keep clean around the base.

That's all that I can think of at the moment, I'm sure there's more but as you can probably guess I definitely prefer the La Pavoni. I definitely over-estimated to skill required to operate a lever machine, it's really not difficult once you've done it a few times. It's also an easy way to experiment with pressure profiles (I'm sure a 'cheap' pump-driven machine with pressure profiling is many times more expensive).

also v. interested when the time comes!

No, not even slightly. No harder than an Aeropress. If you can stump up the cash, a Cafelet Robot would be a better choice. I don't believe they need any pre-heating as there's no thermal loss. Not that it's a big deal to pre-heat it, but as you have a machine with a boiler it could be a PITA.

@withered_preacher - preheat or no preheat, that is the question?

Milk - what do people use and why?

For the past few years we have used full fat filtered milk (Tesco or cravendale) because it lasts for ages (so reduces need for trips to supermarket or deliveries). I have got really used to it’s predictable nature.

Since isolation began a local person has set up a milk delivery from a nearby farm. We now have the option of local organic pasteurised but not homogenised milk. It tastes great as milk and actually lets more coffee flavours through compared to the supermarket offering. Though does come at a price premium.

I am also asking if I may be able to buy unpasteurised milk to produce mozarella for when we make pizzas at home.

I don't believe they need any pre-heating as there's no thermal loss.

Not an expert on these machines by any means, but I'd be surprised if this were the case. Granted the thermal masses are different, but I'd view that as equivalent to pulling a shot with a cold portafilter.

Edit: Looks like I'm wrong on the thermal point, get's brought up here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11ZSXVZbQbA&feature=youtu.be&t=257

Bonus reaction clip here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11ZSXVZbQbA&feature=youtu.be&t=197

Edit2: Looks like embedded videos don't care about timestamps, relevant timestamps are 4:17 and 3:17 respectively

None, next!

;)

also @mmccarthy.
As learned from reading, I do a bit of a preheat by simply overpouring the boiled water into the packed portafilter while holding it at a bit of an angle. I do this for a couple of seconds and then leave the water at the level indicated by the maker. Cafelat say there is no need and they've made their basket as thin as possible so as not to pull too much heat away from the coffee. If the water is taken straight off the boil the temperature drop is said to put it in the correct range for espresso extraction.

Also, James doesn't press the screen onto the tamped coffee, this needs to be done to get the best results.

The non-homogenised stuff is great, like they use at Monmouth, great big plug of solid cream at the top. Shake it like buggery. It’s so rich you might need to make your shots a bit more intense.

Never been keen on filtered milk, always has a UHT taste to me.

I keep meaning to get some UHT to see what it’s like with cappuccino and flat white. Milk on the continent is like a sort of halfway house between sterilised and UHT, but it doesn’t taste anything like our fresh milk.

The more I watch/read about the Robot the more I'm thinking of getting one

Certainly better all round than the 9Barista which I sold on - don't get me wrong, but the process, clean up,and most importantly, end result, do not add up to the Robot's standard. Judging from my results despite my ineptitude, it seems to be more forgiving than a lot of the current crop of lever-type machines. I also really like that the interior never comes in contact with the coffee, so that all the necessary cleaning only involves the portafilter and a quick wipe of the piston with a hot cloth.

I'll just put this here...
https://www.home-barista.com/levers/cafelat-robot-user-experience-t54550.html
It's long but has some great info including lots of contributions from the maker, Paul Pratt.

I've been reading that thread all day! Did you buy yours direct from Cafelat?

Yeah, direct - regular version with pro basket.

The guage seems a bit useless? Nice to have but if you can't read it while pulling a shot...

There's been lots of work arounds, including your own position while pushing. From what I've read some people were depending too much on the gauge and trying to keep it in the "proper" 9 bar zone for espresso, while in actuality lever machines have never traditionally worked at that high level, closer to 5-8 bar. Partly for this reason I chose to get the bare bones version and because it's meant to be such a forgiving machine, I also prefer the aesthetics.

And most importantly how do the shots taste?

I like 'em a lot.

I had overall a good experience with my presso (pre rok)

After messing around for ages, I found that I pretty much had to use all my strength to get an espresso I liked, and would often brake them. This was several years ago so I wouldn’t be surprised if the design has changed, also probably down to user error more than anything.

I bought a proper tamp, and used a manual grinder that could get very fine, very even grinds.

Milk - what do people use and why

Oat, cos cow milk is bleurgh

Trigger pulled!

Cool, report back.

Pretty excited about playing around with home roasting over the next few weeks with thanks to YB aka @StevePeel

Manual shots on my Flair are still just as fun as the first one I pulled, but its there more for when I have the time to enjoy the process.