It arrived today. I'll start dialing it in tomorrow Saturday . . .

OK, I couldn't wait. Friday night, I ground some Espresso Vivace Dolce (roasted 02/09 which I received on 2/11) at the "factory" setting (i.e.: where the machine was set when it arrived) of slightly over "5" on their dial. The espresso was much "thicker" in texture than the shots I'd been pulling on my La Val using the Mini Mazzer or my Quick Mill doserless stepless. Delicious!

I went upstairs thinking about the morning to come . . .

This morning came early, thanks to my chocolate labrador retriever who steadfastly refuses to look at the calendar before waking me up for breakfast at 5:35. No matter how many times I attempt to explain the concept of "weekend" to her, it just doesn't take hold. OK, so after feeding the brown dog, I finished off the last of that bag of coffee by pulling another shot at roughly "3" and another at "2.5," taking a small sip of each and pouring the rest down the sink. Then, since I was now (sadly) awake, I did my weekly backflushing, cleaning and maintenance with Joe-Glo, ran a sink shot (decaf) through the machine, and went back to bed.

When I woke up some three hours later, I went downstairs, pulled out a "fresh" half-pound bag of Vivace Dolce (also roasted on 2/9, but kept in the freezer until this morning), and made my once-daily cappuccino, along with a latte for my wife. As I walked back up, I found myself thinking, Well when you pay this much for something, you're psychologically pre-disposed to believe it makes a significant difference; I'll have to watch that.

Now, obviously Lynn knows I have new grinder in the kitchen, but immediately after taking her first sip, she proclaimed, "Wow! That new grinder does make a difference -- I really notice it in the finish." Well, that's where I was noticing it, too, so . . .

The finish exhibits much more "cocoa" richness than the coffee had when using the Mazzer of Quick Mill, even in milk. Absolutely delicious!

I still need to play around, and dial it in, but so far every shot is richer and shows more depth (with or without milk) than it does with my other grinders. I'll post more later.

* * * * *

Two additional notes about the grinder itself:

a) it was absolutely spotless when it arrived -- no coffee beans were ever run through the grinder to check/test it; and,
b) it is significantly louder than I expected, and deeper in tone (think Harley versus Suzuki). The Mazzer is certainly quieter.

I wonder if a rubber pad underneath the grinder will dampen the sound . . .

Cheers,
Jason

Marshall wrote:I don't think "factory setting" means anything on these machines. They don't come with a "recommended" sticker arrow like the Mazzers.

Just to be clear, I don't think the numbers mean anything specific either, which is why I put the word "factory" in quotation marks in my post above. The numbers obviously mean something relative to one another, in that 2 is larger than 1, and 5 produces a larger grind than 2; but I think the number at which the grinder leaves the factory is decidedly arbitrary.

Cheers,
Jason

Few more random notes . . .

I'm still impressed amazed at just how much difference the Cimbali Max Hybrid makes to the shot quality. I mean, obviously I thought it would; why else would I have purchased a new grinder? But I'm surprised at just how big a difference it is. (This should point out the obvious, that regardless of getting my first Pavoni Europiccola in 1976, I'm still a "newbie" at heart with a lot to learn.)

Took it down to "1" without choking the La Val, and back up to 1.25; now it's back at 1. So far, it's very forgiving, in that the flavor profile across the board -- from 1 to 5 -- is superior to what I was getting from the Mazzer. Also, the grinds are much fluffier and there is much less static with this new grinder than with either the Mini Mazzer or the Quick Mill, and the doser sweeps much cleaner than the Mazzer as well.

In fact, I'm enjoying the Max Hybrid so much, I haven't plugged the Mazzer back in to try shots side-by-side which, in the interests of science, you understand . . . .

If I remember, I'll try that tomorrow.

Cheers,
Jason

perstare wrote:Congratulations, Jason, on your new Cimbali Hybrid. I'm jealous. Your enthusiasm is quite contagious!

Thank you, but one shouldn't overlook the fact I may just be over-caffeinated!

perstare wrote: . . . does that mean you cannot grind any finer (as for the powder fineness required for Turkish coffee)?

You have me at a slight disadvantage, as I've only ever made Turkish Israeli coffee once -- with a psycho Israeli ex-girlfriend, and she brought the coffee back, pre-ground and in foil packets, from a visit back to Tel-Aviv. [shudder] Fortunately I'm married now -- to someone else (Thank God!) -- and I think the restraining orders are still in effect . . .

Sorry. Where were we?

Ah, yes. I remember. Grinding on "1" is much finer than where I was on the Mini Mazzer, more like Turkish in fact. If we go by the old comparison that coffee beans ground for espresso should be the approximate size of sugar crystals, this is much more like "superfine" crystals, but not as fine as powdered sugar. Does that make sense? (I hope so; I'm not sure how else to explain it.)

Cheers,
Jason