Coffee Appreciation

I had been wondering about that dissipating crema thing, I was getting it a lot with my latest batch of square mile beans.

Haha! Sure is, that's why I spend 20 hours a week commuting

the coffee isn't bitter but certainly not as smooth as it could be. i'll defer to your expertise :-) but i think i prefer the "lackluster" crema. if i taste it on it's own after the cup is empty it tastes like lemon zest.

don't forget about me paying you a visit one Saturday soon.

I've tried the winter espresso and it was certainly on the bright citric side, even through the Marzocco Strada in Notes, which I guess will have been set up by Square Mile. Maybe try a different coffee, see how that goes.

I'm good any Saturday, give me a shout when you're free

I have just got one very similar to this from my mum, she must have bought it in the 80's. Is it rubbish?

^ Fraid so :(

Mr Smyth, thinking about it, your timings sound good but maybe go a little finer to move things away from the acidic end of the spectrum. Also try to pull the shot when the boiler light has just gone out, this will be when the water is at its hottest to temper that brightness

I just got some beans from the broadway market coffe stall called monsoon malabar. They smell very strong, almost pungent, not too sure whether I like them or not.

current set up

now wide eyed after dialling in the new grinder :^]

Woop-woop! Looking good fella. How are the shots now?

needs a bit more fine tuning

crema is great, timing is good - still a wee bit acidic (settling the grind in the portafilter and using a larger dose mad a big difference)

Still not getting a completely solid puck of grounds after a shot though, still quite moist [consistently through tho, not pooling on the top]

in other news check out this lovely!

For all you westies there's a newish coffee store on the Kings Road http://thecoffeemachinelondon.co.uk/

run by a really friendly swedish guy- got some lovely machines, they also stock aeropresses and Square Mile [but no Monmouth yet…]

i unscrewed the portafilter rest on mine so it's easier to fil the PF.

i might get the bend folded a bit lower so there's room for the pf and a bigger dose of coffee, i guess it's made for an ascaso one which may be a little lower

good idea on the portafilter rest - no need to bend it tho, just flip it :^]

^Eh? That's not yours is it?

A Nuova Simonelli Oscar has landed in my kitchen

Looks like an Argos special but that's because all the money has been spent under the bonnet. It's a heat exchanger (HX) system like the Bezzera and Vibiemme above which means it can deliver steam and brew water simultaneously so you can steam milk while the shot pours all day long (or until the reservoir runs out).

It belongs to a customer and has a few issues so I'll be tearing it down and giving it the full service and rebuild with a couple of upgrades to make it real easy to live with. I'll do a big post about it when it's done.

The positioning of that shop will please Richie.

nah - just took a snap of it in the shop :^]

MrSmyth - flipped it and the button is still activated by the portafilter, was originally a bit faffy getting a proper dose into the portafilter

You got enough beans there B-cup :^]

Should see me to lunchtime

didn't think to flip it. bit of a bart simpson moment there.

current set up
now wide eyed after dialling in the new grinder :^]

This looks strangely familiar..

the machines are back! it had turned a bit brew centric on the thread, not that ones better than another etc.

So finished off the first hasbean delivery, very impressed with the Jailbreak the GUATEMALA EL BOSQUE was good too, though the grape-y taste was probably a bit lemony for me. Though that could be my brewing as much as the beans themselves.

So probably going to re-order the Jailbreak and suggestions for the second bag?

Kicker is great......very lemony and fresh though so if you don't like that in espresso then avoid. Square mile Winter Espresso is great too

^ Fraid so :(

Mr Smyth, thinking about it, your timings sound good but maybe go a little finer to move things away from the acidic end of the spectrum. Also try to pull the shot when the boiler light has just gone out, this will be when the water is at its hottest to temper that brightness

only did 2 turns finer and the machine started to make throbbing noises as the pump struggled then finally came through but took forever to pour. crema was very dark, i drank it but not exactly the nicest shot i have ever had.
time to start over i think. will try 3-4 turns back (coarser) and will up the dose.

i guess part of it is the coffee and i prefer monmouth espresso blend to this batch from square mile

nothing like a sunday morning realising your out of beans and having to resort to nescafe

nothing like a sunday morning realising your out of beans and having to resort to nescafe

They sound like the lyrics to a song.

only did 2 turns finer and the machine started to make throbbing noises as the pump struggled then finally came through but took forever to pour. crema was very dark, i drank it but not exactly the nicest shot i have ever had.
time to start over i think. will try 3-4 turns back (coarser) and will up the dose.

i guess part of it is the coffee and i prefer monmouth espresso blend to this batch from square mile

Go for a smaller dose, between 14 - 17g if you've got enough coffee left to start over. Light roasted espresso can benefit from a low dose / fine grind combo.