Author Topic: What's caffeinating you today? (Read 128878 times)

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #675 on:** 15 December, 2019, 09:58:15 am »

Single basket?

Notoriously harder than using a double and IME much more prone to channelling (where water takes path of least resistance and pisses though without extracting resulting in bitter weak taste). Tamping technique vital.

But, youd have to tell me exactly what you are doing (weight of coffee to weight of drink) and what you mean when you say "isnt as good"

Ham · « **Reply #676 on:** 15 December, 2019, 12:06:58 pm »

Yes, single basket. Using a grind that works well in the double, tried 6g (too little) 7 (best but still "thin") and 8 (better than 6, not as good as 7, bitterness coming in). Tamping, I try to even the pile then tamp down (with the supplied plastic tamper) and pushing harder, moving around to the edges.

I wonder what happens if I put a single dose in the double basket.

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #677 on:** 15 December, 2019, 12:45:22 pm »

Plastic tamper, you say?

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #678 on:** 15 December, 2019, 12:47:51 pm »

Get a proper tamper. They arent expensive.

One possible avenue to try is to grind much finer and tamp lighter. By lighter, I mean holder the tamper mid-air and pressing the basket into it, rather than the other way round.

Pingu · « **Reply #679 on:** 18 December, 2019, 06:29:16 pm »

Quote from: Ham on 15 December, 2019, 09:22:20 am

Quote from: Hot Flatus on 21 November, 2019, 07:14:53 pm

Ooh a Rancilio. Is it a Silvia? If it is, I can impart some suggestions which will save much faffage and annoyance...

Does that include getting a decent single espresso? Struggling with that, don't use it much but I've tried four times this morning after trying for real last night after a meal and can't say that any was as good as the doubles I normally do.

Coffee Compass is the source of my Cuban Serrano. It has disappeared from their online shop, amusingly (? possibly more sinister than that) Paypal as an USAnian co objects !!1! to cuban trade even if it isn't headed usa-wards so you have to phone them direct, if you want it, and use the SEEKRIT password - "here's my credit card" works.

MacBeans in Furry Boot Toon have a Serrano Superior which costs £9.10 for 250g including shipping. I've no idea if that's relatively expensive or not!

pumpkin · « **Reply #680 on:** 19 December, 2019, 03:19:06 pm »

Rapha have got a Hario V60 on their site now. Same price as the regular one from Hario

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #681 on:** 19 December, 2019, 03:41:12 pm »

The word 'Rapha' on the device wont make the coffee taste any different.

ian · « **Reply #682 on:** 19 December, 2019, 03:54:30 pm »

It will if the coffee has been filtered through pre-worn Rapha-branded cycling shorts.

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #683 on:** 19 December, 2019, 03:59:24 pm »

Its the glacial Rapha water that has passed through the sacred rock of the Stelvio, taking out with it some of the essence of the spirit of cycling. The suffering, the pain...

pumpkin · « **Reply #684 on:** 20 December, 2019, 03:17:52 pm »

surely only water (unfiltered)that passed under the wheels of Bartali and Coppi could be suitable. Or volcanic water from Puy-de-Dome when Anquetil and Poulidor rode mano a mano.

pcolbeck · « **Reply #685 on:** 20 December, 2019, 04:43:18 pm »

No idea but its nice. I bought five 250gm pouches from a Leeds roastery that was at Malton Food Festival a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately the bean type was on business card sized labels clipped to the packet with a paper-clip. Of course by the time I got home they had all fallen off. So random it is until they are gone.

Ham · « **Reply #686 on:** 12 January, 2020, 07:49:56 am »

Today? Just Not Turkish Coffee^*. After a week of it, my conclusion: it's fascinating you can make a drink like that, good on yer. But, why bother?

I found a possible explanation for the consistency on a label

(click to show/hide)

^* Actually, Coffee Compass Moka Italia blend, seeing as how you asked.

Basil · « **Reply #687 on:** 12 January, 2020, 08:13:32 am »

So. Proper builder's coffee then?

T42 · « **Reply #688 on:** 12 January, 2020, 09:27:22 am »

Reminds me of a joke that ended "their windaes fell oot".

Anent tamping, mentioned a month ago, looking for tampers on Amazon France is fun: they're often billed as sabotages.

andrewc · « **Reply #689 on:** 17 May, 2020, 11:39:34 am »

I'm at the end of my last order from Coffee Compass, so decided to support my local roaster instead. https://92degrees.coffee I had some of their Yellow Bourbon a couple of months back & it was lovely.

markcjagar · « **Reply #690 on:** 17 May, 2020, 12:59:26 pm »

I've been drinking Dark Peak from Smith St. a local roaster.

I make cold brew and mix with chocolate Oatly which is delicious to take to work or on a longer ride.

Hot I drink black made with an Aeropress, it's a really nice brew.

DrMekon · « **Reply #691 on:** 20 May, 2020, 11:33:00 am »

Got a cheap Sage DTP (thermocoil with PID) and a load of stuff from Rave at the beginning of lockdown, then a load more from Foundry in Sheffield. Grinding with a MC2.

From Rave
Colombia El Carmen (Suarez Project) < got as a safe bet to dial in the espresso machine.
Brazil Zona de Varginha < delicious in espresso
Guatemala Bosques de San Francisco < working in the espresso and the v60
El Salvador Los Pirineos Pacamara < floral, fruity - amazing for pourover

From Foundry
DAMBI UDO, GUJI - massive pineapple and blueberry flavour. More fruity than the tinned strawberry finca limoncello I usually get from Hasbean. Only for V60.
El Jardin Colombia - mostly caramel, bit of plum. Boring in the pourover, great in the machine.
No 9. - Foundry's espresso roast version of El Jardin. Hard to screw up in the machine. Really forgiving in terms of grind / tamp. Whether it rushed out in 20s or got close to choking the machine, as long as I got 36g out for 18g in, it was delicious. On my second kilo.

Mostly drink espresso and pourover, but practising latte art in case the unis go bust and I need another job. Really inconsistent, but texture is always good. Need more practice.

pcolbeck · « **Reply #692 on:** 20 May, 2020, 11:51:42 am »

Bog standard Lavazza Red in the filter machine this morning. Next up though is some single origin Ethiopian roasted by our local Malton coffee emporium Roost.

https://www.roostcoffee.co.uk/shop/ethiopia-shalaitu/

They do mail order as well as having a small shop / cafe (not very long opening hours and closed some days so check the times before you visit once the lock down is over).
Great coffee at reasonable prices.

Hot Flatus · « **Reply #693 on:** 20 May, 2020, 02:32:51 pm »

I've run out of commercial Italian bar coffee, which I like for its neutrality as espresso. Back on the Coffee Compass Jampit. Oh my god, I've missed that deep leathery fug seeping through the creamy steamed milk.

Used to drink Rave (know the owners quite well) until they changed their roasting machine to one more suited to light roasts, and it just didn't do it for me. Haven't found anything to beat CC for value for money yet.

citoyen · « **Reply #694 on:** 21 May, 2020, 12:55:04 am »

Quote from: Hot Flatus on 20 May, 2020, 02:32:51 pm

Haven't found anything to beat CC for value for money yet.

Thanks for the tip.

Value for money is a big uptick at the moment with the amount of coffee I'm getting through while WFH. I'm mostly chugging my way through Aldi specials - definitely a case of quantity over quality, but it's palatable enough in the Chemex. I did treat myself to something nice from Hasbean (the Philter blend) to fill out the order when I bought some new filters, but that feels like a lifetime ago.

pcolbeck · « **Reply #695 on:** 21 May, 2020, 06:55:03 pm »

Quote from: citoyen on 21 May, 2020, 12:55:04 am

Quote from: Hot Flatus on 20 May, 2020, 02:32:51 pm
Haven't found anything to beat CC for value for money yet.

Thanks for the tip.

Value for money is a big uptick at the moment with the amount of coffee I'm getting through while WFH. I'm mostly chugging my way through Aldi specials - definitely a case of quantity over quality, but it's palatable enough in the Chemex. I did treat myself to something nice from Hasbean (the Philter blend) to fill out the order when I bought some new filters, but that feels like a lifetime ago.

Keep a lookout at Lidl too. Their normal coffees are a bit crap but every so often they have kilo bags of 100% aribica Italian blend beans roasted in Italy. Those are OK and cheap.

T42 · « **Reply #696 on:** 22 May, 2020, 10:17:19 am »

Maxicoffee's Italian blend again: unspecified Brazilian, Ethiopian, Congo, plus 20% Cherry. Our local roaster does something similar but he uses Viet robusta and the result is vile.

Never tried any Congolese coffee. I used to get a red bourbon from Burundi that was good, I'd imagine something similar.

DrMekon · « **Reply #697 on:** 26 May, 2020, 02:17:14 pm »

Back on Rave Colombia El Carmen, at £20 a kilo, as my local roaster is sold out of espresso beans for 3 weeks. We're getting through a kilo a week WFH. I've seen Coffee Compass recommended on coffee forums UK. I see they are doing mystery coffee of £14 a kilo. That's a useful saving.

Ham · « **Reply #698 on:** 26 May, 2020, 02:44:45 pm »

Quote from: DrMekon on 26 May, 2020, 02:17:14 pm

I see they are doing mystery coffee of £14 a kilo. That's a useful saving.

If you like a rich dark roast, it's rather good, too. I've tended to gravitate to grading coffee according to how long I enjoy it after I've finished drinking it, and it's fair for that, too.

Ham · « **Reply #699 on:** 31 May, 2020, 08:29:46 am »

Today, I am sipping the flavour of the harvest of virgins. Not just virgins, but virgins that have undergone a selection process followed by 25 years of training under zen masters, while absorbing the combined works of Plutarch, Pythagoros and Plato and at the same time achieving grand master status on an instrument of their choice (it wasn't all hard work)

AKA Brazil Ipanema Fazenda Rio Verde Grano Segreto Premier Cru Gold Edition A40 Wine Red Acaia

(From CC)

Is it any good? Yes, definitely. Would I say it was "better" than other favourite coffees, like the Cuban Serrano? probably not, although it is a very fine coffee indeed. Worth a punt, for sure.

( A review from someone who reviews coffee is here )