The Announcements above the forum listing frequently contains "quotable quotes" nominated by Team HB and the membership. Entries in the announcements are limited to recent quotable quotes; below is the unabridged collection with links to their source in the forums. We hope these nuggets of wisdom and amusing quips will lead you to a deeper understanding of the art of espresso.

 Just say "no" to bagged coffees sold in supermarkets

"From that list of national brand coffees, I would choose either none, or to drink tea. If I gave one piece of advice, it is this: If a roasted coffee is sold in a supermarket, don't buy it. Not a hard and fast rule, but generally it is good advice." --Randy Glass, Mountain Grown Beans, anyone used them before?

 When the inexperienced ignore the experienced

"We would have wasted a lot less time if we had learned and started out with standard Italian commercial practices and setups rather than our own careful considered but falsely premised ideas." --Jim Schulman, Microfoam for fast vs. slow milk steaming espresso machines

 Yes, MY cleaning ritual is the best!

"It's a well-documented fact. Anyone whose cleaning routine is less rigorous than mine is a dirty chimpanzee who serves rancid-oil-infused sludge. And anyone who's more rigorous than me is an over-fastidious nitpicker with a penchant for wasting time and detergent." --Nicholas Lundgaard, Problem with new La Marzocco GS/3

 It's [still] the grinder, stupid.

"If I'd bought a good grinder years ago instead of using pods, I would have been way ahead. I'm strongly convinced that buying a basic espresso machine and a high-end grinder is the most cost-effective combination and the fastest way up the learning curve." --Curtis Ide, ESE Pods are NOT Evil

 It's never too late to say you're sorry

"In the U.S., companies only do this implicitly and only after they've improved the product." --Marshall Fuss, McDonald's Australia Apologizes for Their Coffee

 Coffee snobs and the size of their bubbles

"Everyone just seems like a coffee snob stuck in their own little bubble," chides Jason. "Some of us live in ENORMOUS coffee bubbles! Coffee Geodomes that would make Buckminster Fuller say, 'That is one freakishly big dome!'" Randy jokes in Everyone started out as a newbie

 Forgiveness doesn't come cheaply

"It's something of a zero-sum game -- you can learn to pull an occasional good shot on very inexpensive equipment, however, it will take a long, long, long time. On the other end of the scale, I could teach you to pull a decent shot on a La Marzocco and Super Jolly in just a few minutes." --Jeff, Is home espresso better?

 Blind tastes tests prove results to you and others

"A blind taste test is an excellent way of determining whether your results are real or imagined. I don't advocate them solely to convince others my results have merit (though it may help); I advocate them to avoid accumulating useless barnacles on my barista routine." --Dan Kehn, E61 shower screen stays clean

 Working against equipment wastes time

"Learning how to use inferior equipment does little to improve one's ability as a barista. It only gets in the way. What you learn are the idiosyncrasies of the equipment and how to compensate for them." --Dick Green, Does struggling with unforgiving equipment make a better barista?

 Choosing wisely includes not choosing at all

"You can't strive for consistency with inconsistent equipment." --Randy Glass; "Want to be a better barista faster on a low budget? Buy a hand grinder and press pot, learn about coffee, and save up for good gear." --Jim Schulman, Does struggling with unforgiving equipment make a better barista?

 Some things must be experienced to be fully appreciated

"Evidently you have never experienced the infamous portafilter sneeze? Here's an easy test: Quickly remove the portafilter after pulling a shot; if your crotch doesn't get sprayed with steaming hot coffee grounds, the three-way solenoid is working." --Dan Kehn, Wet pucks

 If the student hasn't learned, the teacher hasn't taught

"The pros need to play an active role in educating the customer about how to taste coffee. Until that happens, the BS will fly fast and free in the market, the customer will have no idea, and HBers will be the whackos that pros get a chuckle over." --Mark Podolsky, Is there a new disconnect?

More quotable quotes...