Coffee Appreciation

For me it used to be square mile's red brick. ok so it changed as the seasons went on but by and large it behaved itself in much the same way and was easy to get a consistent result. once i've ploughed through the last has bean guest espresso bag I'll be trying red brick again and if it's not as good as before I'll look elsewhere.

yeah, a good consistent blend is what I'll be hunting down next year too. Pact has been good recently but a change isn't out the question. I've enjoyed some Tank SO's so may give their espresso blend a couple of months try.

So the blend remains consistent for all of the tamp/grind/temp variables even though the beans change? That's cool but unexpected!

Bainbridge picked me up some beans from his visit to Notes

El Centro Espresso
Coast Rica
Red Catuai

Lordy, that's a lot of coffee in the cup, big big flavours with a lovely finish

the beans were tiny, which surprised me, and got a real caffeine hit which doesn't happen that often

interested in seeing what the next estate is that they'll roast from

http://sprudge.bigcartel.com

Oh man, I want the Linea one... Anyone want to combine shipping?!

Nothing shows up in that link - what is it? x

Aw, they had some amazing t-shirts and stuff with cats doing coffee things, but I think it was for an limited time. I was very tempted by a T-shirt, but the shipping was ridiculous!

What do you do if you are a barista and Hugh Jackman asks you for a coffee? This obvz:

.

Calling myself out:
I have been using my Gaggia with Brita filtered water so didn't bother to descale.
Having decided to give it a go anyway, its made a massive difference.
Muppet !

Aeropress advice sought.

Moving up from a simple cafetiere.
Do I need to get the stainless steel filter,
or,
will the paper filters suffice?

I bought the metal filter when I got the aeropress - would recommend.

Cleaning the thing is just so easy, I leave it stood until my next cup and then just pop the dried puck out.

It's the main advantage over cafetiere

I bought the metal filter when I got the aeropress - would recommend.

Cleaning the thing is just so easy, I leave it stood until my next cup and then just pop the dried puck out.

It's the main advantage over cafetiere

Many thanks your prompt reply.
I was leaning steelwards,
I've always wondered how many paper fibres I have ingested over the years from filters?

I add some tap water to the dregs/used grounds,
swill,
and throw over one of the vegetable beds
as a (very) wet mulch.

The pucks will probably go into the kitchen compost container.

Pretty sure all top cafés (and aeropress championships -- yep that's a thing) use paper filters for good reason. I think the metal ones will let too many solids through, where paper holds it back. Just make sure you give them a good hot rinse, you can press hot water through before brewing so everything's warmed too.

Most importantly though, try both and decide which you prefer.

Can the papers go in compost?

yes, fully, although some people get their pants twisted because of 'bleached' papers. What isn't commonly realized though is that good papers are bleached not with chlorine but with oxygen.

natural papers impart a taste that isn't good even if you rinse them.

as for the original question, I think both metal and paper are good to have so you can taste the difference between them (which is considerable).

Can the papers go in compost?

When I was collecting coffee grounds from a high street chain coffee shop,
(nothing too odd,
I needed an acid soil environment for blueberry plants),
I put all the paper filters I collected,
torn up into roughly inch strips,
through my compost bins.

S Filter for AeroPress - Ultra Fine Stainless Steel Coffee Filter: Amazon.co.uk: Kitchen & Home

no doubt others are available:
'50,000+ holes per square inch'
is going to stop all but the very finest coffee grounds,
or,
am I missing out on a 'nano-coffee' movement?

But if I understand it correctly, the fines are exactly what you're removing with the paper filter? As previous suggestions, it's probably best to try both if possible and see how they taste to you. I've not used a metal filter on the aeropress, bit I imagine you'll lose some clarity, but at the end of the day, if it tastes good that's all you need!

When I was collecting coffee grounds from a high street chain coffee shop,
(nothing too odd,
I needed an acid soil environment for blueberry plants),
I put all the paper filters I collected,
torn up into roughly inch strips,
through my compost bins.

Haiku?

Haiku?

I'm far too verbose,
for,
the (notional) 17 syllable structure of Haiku.

(Ever read 'Tristram Shandy'?
Legibility & readability are good on this forum,
in the main,
but some others I frequent,
even when there is useful information some posters who have no notion of punctuation or ability to use paragraphing end up consigned to tl:dr.

If, like a dork you loose your aeropress filter cap, you can buy a replacement for fiver here. Which is the cheapest (with postage) I could find.

Calling myself out:
I have been using my Gaggia with Brita filtered water so didn't bother to descale.
Having decided to give it a go anyway, its made a massive difference.
Muppet !
What descaler did you use?

I'd recommend citric acid for use on aluminium boilers. You can buy it cheaply on eBay.

I managed to break the boiler element on my "new" espresso machine (an Expobar Office) by descaling it with a strong solution which somehow caused the element to develop a short. It has literally taken me most of my week off work to entirely strip the whole machine and re-assemble with a new element. The boiler was full of crap, but is thankfully clean now.

I wouldn't recommend buying an ex-commercial machine (or a well used domestic one) if they haven't used soft water. I'll be sticking with the Tesco Ashbeck or whatever it's called. Tastes better anyway.

Descaler - Baby Puly Cleaner - 10 Sachets: Amazon.co.uk: Kitchen & Home

Haiku?

s'what I thought!