Coffee machines ?

[jackal]

Mr Will said:

jackal said:

If anyone has any bean recommendations then please pass them on.

The girl in the Teddington coffee shop will sell you 125g samples of the different beans, as well as advising you which one to try next based on the ones you had last time.

It's where I've started buying my coffee from and I'm impressed so far!

thanks will

she recommended me some ethiopian to start so i'm trying that first

presumably this is their own roasted stuff ?

[poprock]

If you don’t mind mail order, I’d recommend Square Mile Coffee in London.

http://shop.squaremilecoffee.com/

Their subscription deals are a great idea, too. Sign up as a member and they send you a different coffee every month.

[Mr Will]

jackal said:

thanks will

she recommended me some ethiopian to start so i'm trying that first

presumably this is their own roasted stuff ?

I've tried the Ethiopian and Columbian single origin beans and I'm currently on a Brazilian blend. I think the Columbian just edges it for me at the moment, it starts a little more gently than the Ethiopian then build in the mouth, although it does have a slightly bitter finish which might not suit everyone (or every coffee machine!)

The large mechanical contraption in the corner of the shop is the roasting machine where they roast all the beans they sell. It means that whatever you choose they should never have been roasted more than about a week ago.

How are you finding the coffee?

[jackal]

Mr Will said:

jackal said:

thanks will

she recommended me some ethiopian to start so i'm trying that first

presumably this is their own roasted stuff ?

I've tried the Ethiopian and Columbian single origin beans and I'm currently on a Brazilian blend. I think the Columbian just edges it for me at the moment, it starts a little more gently than the Ethiopian then build in the mouth, although it does have a slightly bitter finish which might not suit everyone (or every coffee machine!)

The large mechanical contraption in the corner of the shop is the roasting machine where they roast all the beans they sell. It means that whatever you choose they should never have been roasted more than about a week ago.

How are you finding the coffee?

Thanks i will earmark those then.

I am still working it all out ....but getting there.

I am now making doubles all the time using a double dose of coffee, almost to the top of the double filter then tamped. 2oz shot plus 2oz of milk which makes for a very nice strong latte. I put a small bit of froth over the top but its not really a cappucino.

The extraction is taking too long though even with a lighter tamp. I think I need to grind coarser which is odd because my Krups grinder is on the middle setting so that means for half the settings the grind is too fine for an espresso machine. But then that is consistent with some reviews I read of it on amazon which say it either grinds too coarse or too fine.

My Gaggia Classic i got on ebay wasn't the amazingly looked after machine I was expecting. I took the shower screen off and half its holes were blocked and it was completely coated in encrusted coffee on its topside (took and age to clean with a fine needle). I cleaned the metal disc above it as well but cannot remove this as it must be completely glued onto the group with calcification. The steam wand also leaks too much water and takes an age to purge. I tried to remove the steam valve and clean the O ring but that valve is also glued on. I also find the steam wand plastic frother pretty annoying and its hard to get the froth hot as well as the milk and it gives too much froth and zero control.

So I am just going to buy a new Gaggia classic and return this one to the ebayer. I'll also fit the Rancillo wand attachment which is just a straight pipe and will allow me to decide when i want froth and how much ! Having opened the thing up I now know I can fix and maintain it and the reliability of the bean to cup machines worries me so the Classic is definitely for me. I like the more manual nature of it as well and the internet seems to suggest that its one of the most reliable units out there.

Overall, I'm pleased and its an awful lot of fun. I like understanding and having an appreciation of the technique. The 2 cups I had this morning tasted fantastic... easily as good as my local Costa/Nero.

[jackal]

over the last week I also found some fancy Moka pot that was given to me 10 years ago as a wedidng present by an Italian family that I know. Never used it but I gave it a whirl. Have to say that the results weren't very close to what I am now getting from the gaggia. It was pretty easy and quick to use though I found.

Edited by jackal on Saturday 26th December 11:02

[SwanJack]

I have a Krups grinder and a Gaggia Classic too. The grind setting is just to the finer side of the midway setting as well. I find that you have to adjust the grind and tamping pressure for every variety of bean. It takes a few extractions to find the right combination. What is odd though is that the Costa Coffee ready ground espresso coffee (sold in the supermarket and surpasses ground Illy by a mile IMO) seems very finely ground and needs quite a hefty tamp to get a good Crema.

[jackal]

SwanJack said:

I have a Krups grinder and a Gaggia Classic too. The grind setting is just to the finer side of the midway setting as well. I find that you have to adjust the grind and tamping pressure for every variety of bean. It takes a few extractions to find the right combination. What is odd though is that the Costa Coffee ready ground espresso coffee (sold in the supermarket and surpasses ground Illy by a mile IMO) seems very finely ground and needs quite a hefty tamp to get a good Crema.

very interesting & thanks for that

maybe the ground coffee has different levels of permeability ???




I am considering changing for a Iberital MC2.

http://www.happydonkey.co.uk/hd0866-iberital-mc2-a...

Seems to be very highly rated, as good as the Rocky or MDF, and a lot more convenient grinding straight into the portafilter. I really don't like having to remove the box from the Krups then take the lid off the spoon the coffee into the basket. All a bit of a faff.

Edited by jackal on Saturday 26th December 11:53

[whoami]

I've just upgraded (it's a significant upgrade) from a Nespresso to a Jura Impressa J5.

http://www.jura.com/home_x/products_home_use/j_lin...

No comparison.

Enjoy.

Edited by whoami on Saturday 26th December 16:27

[cramorra]

jackal said:

over the last week I also found some fancy Moka pot that was given to me 10 years ago as a wedidng present by an Italian family that I know. Never used it but I gave it a whirl. Have to say that the results weren't very close to what I am now getting from the gaggia. It was pretty easy and quick to use though I found.

Edited by jackal on Saturday 26th December 11:02

Sounds like your gaggia needs a proper descale (get some pulycaffe or similar) use acc to instructions and wooah also a proper backflush may help with the shower gaskets are a few p on the internet
You will have to do this even if you buy new so why not fix the one you have unless you were ripped off in the bay and want your money back for that reason...

[sleep envy]

SwanJack said:

I have a Krups grinder and a Gaggia Classic too. The grind setting is just to the finer side of the midway setting as well. I find that you have to adjust the grind and tamping pressure for every variety of bean. It takes a few extractions to find the right combination. What is odd though is that the Costa Coffee ready ground espresso coffee (sold in the supermarket and surpasses ground Illy by a mile IMO) seems very finely ground and needs quite a hefty tamp to get a good Crema.

the grind should also vary according to the time of year and ambient humidity

coffee grinding is very much a black art

had my gaggia machine for over a year now and it's starting to slowly fail - leaky steam wand, buttons aren't feeling quite right, gets relly noise, etc, etc

to be fair it does lead a fairly hard life for a domestic machine but will soldier on with it until I head back to italy in the summer and will pick up a refurb'd faema

[jackal]

cramorra said:

jackal said:

over the last week I also found some fancy Moka pot that was given to me 10 years ago as a wedidng present by an Italian family that I know. Never used it but I gave it a whirl. Have to say that the results weren't very close to what I am now getting from the gaggia. It was pretty easy and quick to use though I found.

Edited by jackal on Saturday 26th December 11:02

Sounds like your gaggia needs a proper descale (get some pulycaffe or similar) use acc to instructions and wooah also a proper backflush may help with the shower gaskets are a few p on the internet
You will have to do this even if you buy new so why not fix the one you have unless you were ripped off in the bay and want your money back for that reason...

Thanks, yes i have some pulycaffe on order. To be honest on ebay i paid quite a lot. I can get a new one for 250 quid delivered. For the knowledge that the machine is EXACTLY as it should be i'd rather pay the extra.

[Piglet]

jackal said:

cramorra said:

jackal said:

over the last week I also found some fancy Moka pot that was given to me 10 years ago as a wedidng present by an Italian family that I know. Never used it but I gave it a whirl. Have to say that the results weren't very close to what I am now getting from the gaggia. It was pretty easy and quick to use though I found.

Edited by jackal on Saturday 26th December 11:02

Sounds like your gaggia needs a proper descale (get some pulycaffe or similar) use acc to instructions and wooah also a proper backflush may help with the shower gaskets are a few p on the internet
You will have to do this even if you buy new so why not fix the one you have unless you were ripped off in the bay and want your money back for that reason...

Thanks, yes i have some pulycaffe on order. To be honest on ebay i paid quite a lot. I can get a new one for 250 quid delivered. For the knowledge that the machine is EXACTLY as it should be i'd rather pay the extra.

You might have been better off thinking about that before you bought the one on ebay! Bit late to change your mind now unless it really was mis-sold to you....

[jackal]

Piglet said:

jackal said:

cramorra said:

jackal said:

over the last week I also found some fancy Moka pot that was given to me 10 years ago as a wedidng present by an Italian family that I know. Never used it but I gave it a whirl. Have to say that the results weren't very close to what I am now getting from the gaggia. It was pretty easy and quick to use though I found.

Edited by jackal on Saturday 26th December 11:02

Sounds like your gaggia needs a proper descale (get some pulycaffe or similar) use acc to instructions and wooah also a proper backflush may help with the shower gaskets are a few p on the internet
You will have to do this even if you buy new so why not fix the one you have unless you were ripped off in the bay and want your money back for that reason...

Thanks, yes i have some pulycaffe on order. To be honest on ebay i paid quite a lot. I can get a new one for 250 quid delivered. For the knowledge that the machine is EXACTLY as it should be i'd rather pay the extra.

You might have been better off thinking about that before you bought the one on ebay! Bit late to change your mind now unless it really was mis-sold to you....

Errrrrr, it's not too late for anything. My comment about the price was an add on to the discussion here but has nothing to do with the validity of the actual transaction. The machine was misrepresented in its description. Quite why I'm explaining this to you I don't know !

[sleep envy]

SGS in catford are the officialvrepairers for gaggia in the uk and the buy and sell used machines so worth a call

btw you need to agitate the boiler in order to get all the crud out of the system, keep pulsing the group dispense button to break down the limescale

for those in hard water areas, it should be done every three months

[sleep envy]

SGS in catford are the officialvrepairers for gaggia in the uk and the buy and sell used machines so worth a call

btw you need to agitate the boiler in order to get all the crud out of the system, keep pulsing the group dispense button to break down the limescale

for those in hard water areas, it should be done every three months

[Piglet]

jackal said:

Piglet said:

jackal said:

cramorra said:

jackal said:

over the last week I also found some fancy Moka pot that was given to me 10 years ago as a wedidng present by an Italian family that I know. Never used it but I gave it a whirl. Have to say that the results weren't very close to what I am now getting from the gaggia. It was pretty easy and quick to use though I found.

Edited by jackal on Saturday 26th December 11:02

Sounds like your gaggia needs a proper descale (get some pulycaffe or similar) use acc to instructions and wooah also a proper backflush may help with the shower gaskets are a few p on the internet
You will have to do this even if you buy new so why not fix the one you have unless you were ripped off in the bay and want your money back for that reason...

Thanks, yes i have some pulycaffe on order. To be honest on ebay i paid quite a lot. I can get a new one for 250 quid delivered. For the knowledge that the machine is EXACTLY as it should be i'd rather pay the extra.

You might have been better off thinking about that before you bought the one on ebay! Bit late to change your mind now unless it really was mis-sold to you....

Errrrrr, it's not too late for anything. My comment about the price was an add on to the discussion here but has nothing to do with the validity of the actual transaction. The machine was misrepresented in its description. Quite why I'm explaining this to you I don't know !

Sorry you post just sounded like you'd realised that you paid too much for it and would have preferred to put the money towards a new one, my mistake. As I said, if it was mis-sold then it's a different matter.

[jackal]

@piglet, no probs... for the money I paid it would have been fine if it was in the condition described but it's not even been descaled or cleaned possibly since it was first bought !

@sleepenvy, thanks for that. I will give them a tinkle.

[MarsellusWallace]

Ive been following this thread with interest as I am a keen coffee drinker and spend what ammounts to a small fortune at our local Costa/Cafe Nero.I only drink a couple of cups a day,and I wanted a machine to provide me with a cup of nice tasting coffee with minimal hassle so I wont use it for a week or so and then decide its not worth the hassle and go back to Costa/Nero.
The Nespresso machines appeal on this level so I went to have a look at the one someone has linked to earlier on.In the end I paid extra for this model as I mostly make Lattes and you could fit a larger cup under the dispensor and the milk warmer is located on the side of the machine rather than being a seperate unit.
Im very impressed so far.

http://www.johnlewis.com/230841712/Product.aspx

[Colonial]

Mr Will said:

+

+

=
Job done

That's how my morning coffee is made anyway, takes less than 60 seconds to grind the beans and then a couple of minutes to brew on the stove while I'm organising my breakfast (hint: smaller stove top espresso makers brew much faster, only get one as big as you need)

Combined with freshly roasted beans from a local coffee vendor, it makes the best coffee I have ever drunk in this country. It's quick, easy to clean and gets used daily, even after several months.

Only way to go - I only drink espresso so it makes the best ones around. Better than any machine available. Low temperature makes it even smoother (but takes longer)

[uncinqsix]

Colonial said:

Only way to go - I only drink espresso so it makes the best ones around. Better than any machine available. Low temperature makes it even smoother (but takes longer)

It makes short, strong coffee, but it doesn't make espresso.

(I wouldn't agree that it's better than any machine either, but that's down to personal taste - liking moka pot coffee better than espresso certainly would save you a lot of money on kit )