Coffee Appreciation

Yep, both of those. The higher the roast level the more the cell structure of the bean breaks down, allowing the oils to creep to the surface and look all shiny. Oils also come to the surface as the coffee ages. Water processed decaf is black and oily even at a moderate roast level because the decaffeination process involves flushing the green coffee with hot water which causes it to become far more pourous.

A nice chestnut brown roast level with a subtle sheen is shiny because the bean has fully puffed out and reflects the light nicely, and a fully matte finish will be due to the bean still being a little bit wrinkly from a medium roast or a medium-dark on a very hard bean.

The picture shows three roasts with the darkest being found in Naples, located in the southern half of Italy. The medium roast is representative of coffee found in Florence and the Central Italian style, and the Northern Italian roast might be found in a typical espresso bar in Milan.

http://www.bestcafes.com.au/espresso-coffee-a-complex-and-fragile-beauty

Thank you both..

So.. Is a black shiny bean "past it"?

I searched the thread for key-words, but I don't think this has been posted.

http://funraniumlabs.com/the-black-blood-of-the-earth/

For the ultimately gnarly science coffee.

I searched the thread for key-words, but I don't think this has been posted.

http://funraniumlabs.com/the-black-blood-of-the-earth/

For the ultimately gnarly science coffee.

Right, getting the grind right, and frothing the milk are both tricky.

The milk part is the trickiest as you can keep experimenting until the grind is correct.

I'm sure you can do that with the frothing, but it's going to take a little longer!

Start with the wand just under the surface, crank the steam wand up to max. Raise the wand to the surface so you're getting that "shh, shh, shh" sound. When you stop depends on what sort of foam you want, on our machine I tend to use about 2 seconds for a flat white, 3 for a latte and 5+ for a cappuccino. Obviously as it's a huge machine it steams milk much quicker than a consumer one but it gives you an idea of the ratios for the drinks. Once you have your frothing done sink the wand into the milk and begin swirling the milk around to mix the air properly. It's important to do this heating at the end as if you're frothing at the end you'll end up with big bubbles in your milk, not a good look.

And no, you don't need a thermometer, never since I started making coffee (about 3 years ago) have I used a steam wand. Though at my brief stint in Eat they did push you into using it, but I assume that's because the majority of their employees are not exactly all that knowledgeable on the subject.

Actually that's a lie, I used to use thermometers quite a lot for etching.

This has probably been covered before, but the UTFS isn't working on my phone.

What is the best coffee to use in a French Press? Never really used one before, but after having some of the nicest French Pressed coffee every morning on holiday in Dubai has made me go out and buy one.

All info gratefully received!

IMHO anything will work in a french press so long as it's ground right and brewed for the right amount of time. If you get the process right, you can vary the dose/steep time to get your preferred coffee tasting great, or try out different coffee types.

There's a guide to technique here, which you might want to read: http://coffeegeek.com/guides/presspot

As with all coffee, the grind is key. Bombcup posted some interesting stuff a few pages back about varying the grind and steep time for several different coffees.

Nice one, thanks for the info!!

for those of you who still haven't got your own grinder yet, espresso room in gt ormond st will grind square mile coffee for you (as do other places) but they will also just do half the bag so you can go back and get the rest ground later.
i thought it was a good idea if you dont get through a bag that quickly.

Woodnecks.

Anyone use them?

Thinking of getting one.

for those of you who still haven't got your own grinder yet, espresso room in gt ormond st will grind square mile coffee for you (as do other places) but they will also just do half the bag so you can go back and get the rest ground later.
i thought it was a good idea if you dont get through a bag that quickly.

Thanks for this.

Where do I get a 12mm male -> washing machine female (3/8th?) adapter?

I bet Bunnings would have one but fucked if I'm travelling back to Oz to hook this machine up. #b&qsuckmyplums #londonhardwarefail

Just bought one of these,

Bit of a faff compared to the aeropress, however it really brings some of the flavours of the coffee through.

Pretty cheap as well!

I was genuinely amazed at the coffee we got out of one of those. I never liked filter coffee before that.

Does anyone know anything about La Pavoni Europiccolas? I've just gotten a rather swish second hand one in copper and brass. I've noticed though that on the base, the sticker says the voltage is 110~. I bought it from a guy in the UK that sold it as perfectly functional with no mention of it being a foreign market machine or anything and although there was no plug on it when it arrived, it's wired for a 3 pin plug with an earth lead. Am I going to be okay to just stick a plug on it and have at it?

Sure it's not voltage 110-250V or something? Lots of stuff has dual region power supplies. I'd check first though.

This says 2 versions available..
http://europiccola.co.uk/
Version 100/110 Volt and 220/240 Volt available.

Here is the sticker and device.

Looks like I'm going to have to contact the seller and ask them.

something along these lines would work as well

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=19413

Yep, thats 110v. Don't go plugging it in. Euro 230v wiring is brown - live blue -neutral and green / yellow - earth.

You would have to convert it by changing the element to a 230v unit which is neither cheap nor easy. I would send it back unfit for purpose, unless you bought it from a 110v country.

That adapter will only handle 45w, you're going to need about 1000w

Edit, this would do the trick though http://www.toolstop.co.uk/index.php?option=shop&page=shop.product_details&product_id=1309&l=uk&utm_source=google&utm_medium=base

Balls.

Thanks, looks like I'm going to have to get one of those transformers.

Tada!!

It seems bizarre to me that 3 or 4 days ago I thought to myself that it was silly, given that I enjoy coffee, to be drinking so much instant. And now here I am with building site equipment powering kitchen appliances...

Good work sir

and for comparative purposes, here's the Bez next to my Gaggia Classic

The Bezzera now has a anti-vac valve fitted and no longer leaks when warming up which is nice. I also replaced some of the silicone pipe that had split.

the ranci looks aces… you're going to have some fun dialling that in