New Use for Old Beans

[okaychatt]

I'm incredibly slow when it comes to grinding, leveling, and tamping, and I need to build speed.

Finally - a use for all those beans that for one reason or another get too stale to use. I tend to have several kinds of beans on hand, and I rarely use them up before they go flat. Ah well - doing my part to keep the roasters in business.

I'm not ready to roast on my own quite yet. I'm not even sure I'd enjoy it. (Okay, okay, so I would enjoy it after a little practice.)

Any other tips to increase efficiency besides "Practice, practice, practice!" I only fix a maximum of six to seven doubles a day, depending on how many guests pop in for a quick cappa. That doesn't allow for much skill building. Since I'm more than a little nervous pulling shots when friends are here, I tend to go carefully, thinking my way through the steps.

BTW - My popularity has skyrocketed since getting an espresso machine. HA!

[JonR10]

Any other tips to increase efficiency besides "Practice, practice, practice!" I only fix a maximum of six to seven doubles a day...

I just go slow. I'm not looking to open a shop

It's OK, Kay, you guests know that good coffee is worth waiting for...

BTW - My popularity has skyrocketed since getting an espresso machine. HA!

Surely you were already the belle of the ball

[HB]

Any other tips to increase efficiency besides "Practice, practice, practice!"

Sometimes it's better to practice a particular aspect in isolation (e.g., dosing the correct amount by volume). I offered other specific suggestions in Exercises for tuning your barista techniques. To increase speed (or at least be aware of the time), I set a stopwatch for 45 seconds, which is my current pull-to-brew-switch norm. I would like to move that closer to 30 seconds (pros are in the 20 second range).

[JonR10]

...I set a stopwatch for 45 seconds, which is my current pull-to-brew-switch norm.

In contrast, it takes me between 90 seconds and 2.5 minutes to grind, reload, and pull a second shot. My end-of-session routine (PF wiggle, brush, plain-water backflush and wiping down the machine) normally takes me just a tad under 2 minutes.

[okaychatt]

Sometimes it's better to practice a particular aspect in isolation (e.g., dosing the correct amount by volume). I offered other specific suggestions in Exercises for tuning your barista techniques. To increase speed (or at least be aware of the time), I set a stopwatch for 45 seconds, which is my current pull-to-brew-switch norm. I would like to move that closer to 30 seconds (pros are in the 20 second range).

Dan - I like this idea of practicing one thing at a time. I try to dose by volume, but I used to weigh the beans first and grind until there were no more. I like your idea of grinding then weighing several times in a row better.

I also will try using the old beans as a base for my latte art. At this point, I'd be happy with your misconstrued onion. HA!

Jon - It's a comfort to know I'm not the only one that futzes around when setting up a shot. I'd still like to get faster, as I think it would lend me more confidence when under pressure. Not that my buddies are complaining, though I've provided them with some classic screw ups as entertainment.

Off to read the rest of the recommended thread and check out more of the home page articles. This site is very helpful.

[HB]

I also will try using the old beans as a base for my latte art. At this point, I'd be happy with your misconstrued onion. HA!

Plenty more where that came from. I call this morning's latte art "a sprig's fuzzy leaf":


A little overstretched, but even this "mistake" tasted pretty good

[okaychatt]

Plenty more where that came from. I call this morning's latte art "a sprig's fuzzy leaf":

image
A little overstretched, but even this "mistake" tasted pretty good

I'd be happy with that. At this point, I'd be happy with good microfoam. I've been working with my new S1 for a week or so, a few times a day, so I have gallons to go before anything approaching a real shape appears.