Aeropress is probably the most compact option and is easy to clean and use. It's downside for me is choosing between a tiny cup or adding water to a concentrate. My wife uses it every day, but I don't think it gives a great cup. Chemex is great, but the one I've seen most is better for bigger batches. And you'd have to clean the pot. Clever dripper would be my recommendation here. No clean up, easy to use, without the size limitations of the aeropress, and you don't need a gooseneck kettle.
I recently went back to aeropress (with metal disk filter) after 2 years of using a Chemex with cloth filter. I like the flavor better with the aeropress, but I also was tired of spending so much time making pour over in the morning.
I'm curious as to the science on this. I never used a metal filter with my chemex. After I ran out of paper filters I switched to cloth filters and liked it better. When I switched back to aeropress I tried the metal disk filter and paper filters back to back a few times and I preferred the metal by a long shot. Seems like paper filters would be the ones to weaken the taste.
by the way, a few months ago my uber driver on a work trip to Seattle told me about the coffee business he had started. I've been ordering his beans online off and on for a while now and really like them. Last week I got his Mexican roast (dark) and Ethiopian (light/medium) and while I haven't tried the latter yet, I absolutely love the Mexican one. It's one of the best roasts I've had in recent memory. https://www.blackfin.coffee/shop
Had the able Kone filter and played with my grind a lot. Never got the taste to be as good as I could with the chemex filters.
Get a scale. Be precise. Both with beans and water. Get a good grinder. These are fundamentals. French press, kalita, v60 etc are matters of taste. I’d stick with French press if that’s what you like Corky Bucek
my observation is that it flows out of the metal filter much faster than the paper filter. the resulting coffee tastes weak and watered down. I think it doesn't have enough time to extract flavor.
I believe that I'm at a 5-7 day shipping wait, Cal - AL. I tried their SOs through subscription after someone post the free bag ad in this thread. They sent El Placer a Colombian. It seemed a bit stale. They then sent Mutumba a Burndi. It's a bit better but still seems a little stale. It's quite different from anything I've ever had. I'll probably decide after next months selection whether to continue or cancel.
I ordered some from onyx instead - I ordered Monday night and the coffee is supposed to be delivered tomorrow morning. so far, I’ve had 1 mediocre coffee from onyx. Everything else has been solid. also placed an order at black and white coffee. A sampler of 3 of their fruity Finca El Paraiso beans. Really looking forward to those.. https://www.blackwhiteroasters.com/...roducts/copy-of-copy-of-el-paraiso-lemon-lime
Thanks. I'll give them a try. The bags that I got from Arcade just didn't seem like they were freshly roasted. I'm really inexperienced with buying coffee from roasters. The only one's that I have tried I bought from the actual farms in Panama. Even their coffees that they sell in the grocery stores that are packaged for sell on the shelves with all of the mainstream coffees, tasted fresher than the Arcade stuff.
Anyone here have the Rocket 58 machine? My Quickmill Anita is 9 years old and still runs like a champ but I want to upgrade to a dual boiler this year.
New or used? What’s your budget? I feel there are many espresso machines you can buy that are better than Rockets. Profited 600 or Lelit Bianca - double boilers with flow control ala La LaMarzocco GS3
I’d like to keep it around 3k but can go higher if justified. I’ll check those out along with any others you recommend. I’ve been out of the game for almost a decade.
If you’re spending that much, I’d stay away from Rocket. ECM and Profitec machines are made in the same factory. If you weren’t dead set about the double boilers and don’t simultaneously steam milk while pulling shots , Decent Espresso is an intriguing choice if you like to tinker a lot. When I upgrade, I’m most certainly going to take a hard look at the ones I mentioned as my budget maybe somewhere in that region. A lot of steam power, big enough boilers for home use, and the flow profiling ability is pretty neat. Clive coffee has a solid 3 year warranty and whole latte love had an exclusive arrangement with Profitec / ECM to sell the flow control equipped machines. But they were going to come out with a after market kit this year. if you want to stick with QuickMill, check out the Lucca m58 that they built for Clive coffee. The only Perceived negative about Profitec 600 is that it uses a vibratory pump vs a rotary pump in the likes of the lucca I mentioned. Lelit really revolutionized the game in that price range with a flow profiling Bianca. It deserves a look IMO.
I appreciate the write up. I’m going to begin my research into this. I am drawn to the double boiler after having a HX for a decade. I’ll be honest, I don’t know much about the flow control so I’m curious to learn. Plumbed in machines are a no-go for me as I’m not going to bother with a water treatment system. Thankfully I’m not upgrading grinders right now.
Home barista has some good in-depth reviews of some of the machines I mentioned. Unless you get lucky with a used La Marzoco GS3 somewhere, I think all of the above are a solid bet. Rocket is all design not as much reliability. And even when it comes to design, it’s more steampunk than minimalist.
Ive had the Breville Dual Boiler for the past 4 years and have been very pleased with it. At the time I chose it over the Rocket/La Spaziale/Izzo. It’s not nearly as pretty as it’s Italian counterparts, but it’s very well engineered and, at least for me, been very reliable. I’m not as in tune with the market now, but I think if I were to ever get a new machine I would get the Londinium lever machine
Glad it’s working out for you. I considered it before getting my Profitec 300, as I got a deal I couldn’t pass up and these machines last a decade easily if not more. My buddy had to send it in for servicing in the first 8 months of owning it. Unfortunately, that’s been the case with the BDB - if you’re lucky, no hitch. Otherwise, you’ll have to deal with the servicing fairy early on and often times, when the machines out of warranty. That’s why I buy shit with a card that gives me at least a couple years of extended warranty.
A couple of questions for the thread: - how long do you keep coffee beans if kept in an airtight Tupperware container? Want to open several packs to have variety But want them to stay reasonably fresh -For those with a French press: how long do you typically let the coffee extract? Everywhere I have found says 4 mins. Sometimes I find the coffee to be weaker than desired (or a bit sour this morning with the local beans I got) so I assume it’s an issue of the grind being too coarse or not using enough coffee (use about 50g for my 8 cup)
I've kept some that I've brought back from Panama for months in Tupperware containers. Most of the stuff that I've gotten here I try to finish before buying or opening another bag. I'm sure that others itt can help with your question. I know some vacuum seal and freeze but I've never done it. I do the 4 minutes but I have started wetting the grind which allows the beans to gas off before dumping all the water and starting the 4 minute brew. I don't weigh or really measure. I do something around 2 Tsp for a cup. I find that I have to adjust a bit for different beans. Here's an article about sour coffee. https://coffeebros.com/blog/coffee-tastes-sour-here-why-and-how-to-fix-it/
Thank you sir. I do wet the grounds and let them sit for 30 sec before pouring the rest. That article was informative. I think it’s two things here: beans I bought are naturally more acidic. First time buying beans from a local roaster. I also think I should have had a finer grind. I don’t have a mill or burr grinder...just a cheap one I bought at Walmart that’s more like a food processor. Need to invest in a good grinder to get a more controlled grind
Yeah I'm not really sure either. Did you order beans from that roaster down near Gainesville/Aliceville area? I used to have a -$20 Capresso blade grinder until it broke. I actually believe that it had a more consistent grind than the $5 yard sale Cuisinart burr grinder that I have now. I really need to invest in some better equipment but my wife bitches about my coffee and beer expenses now.
check your local craigslist / facebook marketplace / ebay for used grinders - you never know what gem you may uncover. Or just buy the Baratza Encore (Refurb goes for around 99$ plus shipping and new is around 140$ and ships free from most retailers.
I switched my coffee subscription from Onyx to Counter Culture to try and save a couple bucks. This morning was my first taste of some finca el puente but my grinder stuck on French press grind so this cup is weak as hell. Not a good start to the day
Found a local roaster within running distance of my house. Dude geeks out on his stuff, love listening to him explain it all. All I've been drinking lately.
I got the Stagg EKG (Thanks to Nelson) but my first 2 pour overs have been pretty bitter. I'm using 200°, a beehive dripper, medium grind on Capresso infinity, and feel like i'm being patient with the pour. Any tips?
Honestly, everything I've had from Counter Culture seems to be .. OKish? Not bad but not what they used to be .. esp. from a consistency standpoint .. i fear they're gonna go the Sam Adams route sooner than later.
Grind was unexpected coarse again, no change from 12 to 30 (Baratza Encore). Finally figured out I’d lost 2 burr flanges, no clue how.
A roaster in the San Diego area was just awarded micro roaster of the year by a publication. Gonna have to go check it out sometime this week. Surprised I hadn't heard of it before. https://www.mostracoffee.com/
Doing the same. I had been hesitant to do trade because they didn't have a 4 week option, but you can apparently set that up upon account opening. Hopefully the usps fuckery doesn't muck things up
Ever since onyx bumped up their prices and reduced bag sizes, I've been enjoying a lot of Black and White Roasting coffees - solid blends for a great price point (28$ for 2lbs) and their anerobic fermented beans are flavor bombs. Fermented Eduardo Campos Lot 3. Lot of pomegranate notes and a little bit of that Dr. Peppery notes at the end. 19$ for 12 oz
I did their sub for a while but never got an anaerobic. Are you getting those thru a sub or just buying it outright?
Outright. Free shipping at 25$ so easy to hit the threshold. I wish I ordered more of the Eduardo Campos Lot 2 which had the strawberries and cream notes. That's probably the best coffee I've had this year.