Hi All,

I've been reading this forum for some time but didn't jump in as I felt I didn't have much to contribute. I have been practicing espresso making for quite some time and often felt great frustration. Some of it was because I couldn't get to the desired results and some of it because I kept reading many posts in this forum, saying that basically unless you spend a couple of thousands of dollars on espresso machine and grinder, it will be almost impossible to reach good results.

I have finally decided to post here with the hope this posting will encourage beginners with low-budget to try their best even if their equipment is not as fancy as some of the names mentioned throughout this forum.

For me the starting point was to find the coffee that I like best. After many experiments I was happy to find the Toscano blend by Counter Culture. This blend is very aromatic and as flavorful. It has some mild sweetness and hints of caramel, hazelnut, and dark chocolate. Obviously coffee is mostly chosen based on personal taste but I thought I'd share mine.

The next step was to get the espresso machine and grinder. Since my budget was very limited I did quite a research and ended up with Breville Roma and Breville BCG800XL Smart Grinder. The espresso is a single pump machine and the grinder is conical burr. I am well aware this isn't the best machine out there but for the price I think Breville offers excellent value for beginners.

The espresso i produced was very close in taste to the espresso I tested in the local cafe from where I purchased the coffee beans (Octane - Atlanta, GA) so that was for me a confirmation that the grind is good.
As for frothing the milk, that was my biggest source of frustration. no matter how much I read, watched videos on you tube, read again and tried, I could not get the desired micro foam that everyone is talking about. I even thought that something was wrong with my espresso machine and contacted the Breville customer support and almost ended up spending good money in sending it to a service station. At the last minute I decided that maybe it is still me doing something wrong.
I spoke with several baristas who all told me that I will not be able to froth the milk correctly with home machine and forget about latte art unless I got one of the very expensive ones.
Then I found this excellent forum and web site but got frustrated again when I kept reading - The same theme more or less... the only way to get it right is to purchase an expensive machine.

I decided to not give up and continued to practice frothing the milk again and again - sometimes 3-4 times a day..... but still failing to get it right..... until two weeks ago! Something happened and I finally got the milk frothed correctly. It looked exactly like most of the descriptions... shiny lightly thick but not foamy.
When poured it into the espresso, I could see the foamy milk going into the coffee and then surface like a thin layer of paint but I was unable to draw anything. At this time I knew I am getting close and continued to get better and better as I improved my pouring technique.

I am happy to share these two pictures which I took this morning of my latte art: a leaf and a heart. They may not be perfect but I know that from now on it is just a matter of more practice.

My message to all the beginners: You don't necessarily have to spend thousands of dollars on equipment to make excellent espresso/cappuccino with latte art. It just takes some (very good) practice and patience.... but it will eventually work.

Heart



Flower/Leaf

I agree totally! Actually, you can even use the even cheaper Mr Coffee steam toy to make some (lousy) latte art too. I actually had done that in the younger days of my espresso journey It's just that the result tastes totally crap, especially with the starbucks preground coffee I had. Burnt roasted stale coffee+high temperature steam= bitter bitter bitter+ Cappuccino Like what you've said, it is totally possible to make microfoam with a cheap machine. All it takes are some online readings and a lot of practices. I can steam 5 oz of milk easily using the <$20 cheap steam espresso machine for my La Peppina now. One thing to note is that if the machine has a froth aider, you need to take it off to make microfoam. Otherwise, it's probably close to impossible with however much practice you have.


That's a very nice Latte heart by the way. Keep it up!

The FAQ contains a pertinent link on Learning latte art with soapy water. Learning how to steam milk is half the battle, regardless of the machine in use. Machines with larger boilers and/or higher wattage heating elements will produce more steam. Well-designed steam tips will produce flow patterns that are conducive to making milk texture for lattes or cappas.

bluemanta wrote:Some of it was because I couldn't get to the desired results and some of it because I kept reading many posts in this forum, saying that basically unless you spend a couple of thousands of dollars on espresso machine and grinder, it will be almost impossible to reach good results.

I'm sorry that you have come away with this perception, but would encourage you to read the HB Guide to Choosing a machine/grinder at the "right" price to find evidence to the contrary. As you have experienced, the lack of consistency is the devil that possesses many entry-level machines. It's not impossible, just difficult to achieve consistently good results.

You did well. Steaming milk has a lot to do with who is operating the machine, not the machine. Put Michael Schumacher in a Lada and he'd still kick my ass even if I was in a Ferrari.

Clint Orchuk wrote: Put Michael Schumacher in a Lada* and he'd still kick my ass even if I was in a Ferrari.

That's probably far more accurate than most people think. I was driving a Formula Ford in a Bondurant school, and the instructor was driving the li'l four-banger compact grocery-getter from the rental lot. My car had about the same displacement, no clean air kit, little more than straight pipes for exhaust, no doors, windows, roof, hardly even a seat, no carpet, no a/c, no trunk, no bumpers, and not even fenders. It did have a race tuned carb, tubular frame, lightweight aluminium skin, slick race tires, a far lower center of gravity (I could see under the Ford Fiesta...Focus?) and a four-speed transmission.
It took everything I had (and I've gotten compliments on my driving skills from racers and racing trainers, so I don't completely suck) to keep up with him. Training will get you farther than kit will, any day. Kit is what you spend money on when your skills surpass what the kit can provide.

*as long as it isn't a Mercedes, though, yeah? ; >

Sherman wrote:...I'm sorry that you have come away with this perception, but would encourage you to read the HB Guide to Choosing a machine/grinder at the "right" price to find evidence to the contrary.

I did go back to the guide and I guess this is the sentence that made me feel what I mentioned before:

"...
Other points to consider when deciding on your budget:

Unlike many hobbies (e.g., golf, audio/video), you reach the "high end" very quickly. Above $1400 at full retail, the differences among espresso machines is vanishingly small.
The same holds true for grinders. They peak around $700 (flat burr) to $1400 (conical) at full retail. You could spend over $2000 for a Mazzer Robur, but unless you're running a cafe, there's no rational reason to consider it.
There are few purchases that will give you and your family/friends pleasure every day. That's why for me, when it comes to espresso gear, I shop on capability/convenience/quality first and price last.
..."

Sherman wrote:As you have experienced, the lack of consistency is the devil that possesses many entry-level machines. It's not impossible, just difficult to achieve consistently good results.

Indeed and I now think that beginners should be encouraged to master the skills before running to spend on high-end gear.

Clint Orchuk wrote:You did well. Steaming milk has a lot to do with who is operating the machine, not the machine.....

Thanks. I couldn't agree more! and that's one of the exciting things in making cappuccino or latte... you actually the one who makes it - not the machine.

Psyd wrote:....Training will get you farther than kit will, any day. Kit is what you spend money on when your skills surpass what the kit can provide...."

ah... words like gold!

....time for my afternoon espresso....

-E

samuellaw178 wrote:I agree totally! Actually, you can even use the even cheaper Mr Coffee steam toy to make some (lousy) latte art too. I actually had done that in the younger days of my espresso journey It's just that the result tastes totally crap, especially with the starbucks preground coffee I had. Burnt roasted stale coffee+high temperature steam= bitter bitter bitter+ Cappuccino Like what you've said, it is totally possible to make microfoam with a cheap machine. All it takes are some online readings and a lot of practices. I can steam 5 oz of milk easily using the <$20 cheap steam espresso machine for my La Peppina now. One thing to note is that if the machine has a froth aider, you need to take it off to make microfoam. Otherwise, it's probably close to impossible with however much practice you have.

My coffee actually taste extremely good. As someone who grew up outside of the US and very close to Europe, I am very picky and snob about how my coffee taste. I think you meant to say Charbucks

samuellaw178 wrote:That's a very nice Latte heart by the way. Keep it up!

Thanks very much.

I once watched world class baristas make cappuccinos on stock silvias that they'd never worked on before in a barn on a dairy farm in Iceland. Very nice latte art was poured.

Tools are just tools.