I'm back in the hood this week, visiting my mom in NJ. Abe was kind enough to invite to his apartment in Manhattan yesterday afternoon. Abe may not know it, but he's one of my espresso heroes. Like pretty much everyone here on Team H-B, he's got an annoying knack for being right most of the time.

Da man hisself, with some aged Paradise Espresso Classico.

Abe has a spectacular espresso bar in his kitchen. He's plumbed both sides for direct connect espresso machines, and his equipment is about as good as it gets: Versalab grinder, heavily modified Expobar Brewtus, and a terrific collection of Illy cups.

Brewtus has two PIDs (one for each boiler), a rotary pump, and is directly plumbed.

This was my first experience with the Versalab M3, and I was very impressed. In many ways, it's the ultimate home espresso grinder.

All shots were dosed by weight (15-16g) and pulled naked.

We experimented with three different roasts from Abe's freezer: Caffe Fresco Ambrosia, Paradise Espresso Classico, and (gulp) Miguel's "by invitation only" Nectar.

This shot would have looked good in a paper cup.

The Nectar was not roasted for espresso, but was the most interesting coffee: a rich tangerine bomb, quite tasty with a half teaspoon of sugar, but much too sour when sampled straight. Our Nectar experimentation was something of a revelation for me. The first shot was distinctly sour, so we gradually adjusted the temperature upwards. I honestly believe I tasted a shift in flavor with each temperature increment of 1F.


Dammit Abe, this may turn into an expensive visit for me. It really was fascinating to play with brew temperatures in such a precise and repeatable fashion. Is there a PID'd double boiler in my future? Only time will tell...

Thanks for the fun afternoon - John

John,

It was great having you at Casa Carmeli, I only wish we've tried some frozen beans that were less than five months old. But hey, even those shots were better than some shots I get in competitions... . It was nice meeting your mom by the way, and when I told her how your distribution technique has changed so many people's lives I wasn't exaggerating.

Nectar of course was only 10 days old. You may have not noticed but besides temperature I also changed dosage on Nectar, bringing it down to 13 grams to try and tame the sour note. That coffee was probably a prime example where adding 1/2 teaspoon of sugar to a shot can transform it from a sour brew to a tangerine mango jam with some dark chocolate. It was clean and very unique.

Nice pictures too!

Abe Carmeli wrote:It was great having you at Casa Carmeli, I only wish we've tried some frozen beans that were less than five months old. But hey, even those shots were better than some shots I get in competitions... . It was nice meeting your mom by the way, and when I told her how your distribution technique has changed so many people's lives I wasn't exaggerating.

Nectar of course was only 10 days old. You may have not noticed but besides temperature I also changed dosage on Nectar, bringing it down to 13 grams to try and tame the sour note. That coffee was probably a prime example where adding 1/2 teaspoon of sugar to a shot can transform it from a sour brew to a tangerine mango jam with some dark chocolate. It was clean and very unique.

Thanks again for being such a great host, and being so kind and gracious with my mom. IMHO she's a pretty neat lady, even if she drives me nuts after a day or two.

Although the coffee had been frozen, it was still an eye-opener for me to play on your equipment. None of my prior experience (mostly HX and now manual levers) had prepared me for such exquisite control over brew temps. Wow! I'm not in a position to argue the merits of flat vs. humped brew temp profiles, but it really is amazing to be able to control the temperature so precisely.

At the other end of the spectrum is my mom's setup:

And now, straight from the Hall of Shame...

...an ancient Black & Decker drip brewer, a Bodum Antigua grinder, a couple of French presses, and a Salton steam "espresso" maker which, if I remember correctly, cost $20 (and included a set of espresso cups!). FWIW, those suckers are steam demons. I actually made a very drinkable cappuccino tonight. The trick is to yank the cup as soon as it starts to hiss and sputter, long before the brew "cycle" is completed. Then you avoid the nasty burnt swill, and get a shot on par with an AeroPress.

Lucky guy, I've been looking for an excuse to visit Abe in NYC. He's offered to host me, but isn't brave enough to extend the invitation to our small crowd of young sons. You're right about Abe's barista prowess; he heartily took on all comers (me included) at EspressoFest 2006 in Charlotte. The man is a machine behind the machine.

An Abe Carmeli sighting!

He's alive!

ken

Ken Fox wrote:An Abe Carmeli sighting!

He's alive!

ken

The rumors of my demise have been greatly accurate. Against all logic, I hibernate in the summer. In winter, I find the inexplicable urge to emerge from my cave and take a stroll in the fresh freezing air.