danblev wrote:That would be a big problem in my view. Most of the time its two cappas here.

And yes, there is interest in an exceptional lever machine.

Waiting for the coffee review.

It steams and does a decent job of it. For a couple of cappas it would be fine but if you prefer those monster 120z double shot latte's the steaming may take a little too much time, but it will do them. With that hotrod 1300 watt heating element it will pump out steam until you run it out of water.

The machine is really showing it colors. As Jim so wonderfully pointed out, in Europe the shot is the norm and a milk drink in home is almost unheard of. The design of the machine certainly appears to target the espresso shot and milk based drinks as an occasional diversion.

another_jim wrote:The Achille should make a better pair of cafe cremas (6 pulls) than any other home lever (bigger basket, no overheating), and better than a vibe machine (no pressure drop problems when pulling super long shots). You can check this -- try fitting two 12 ounce latte cups under the spouts,

Here is an interesting development. While attempting to try Jim's recommendation, I discovered that my only 12oz cups will not fit under the spouts. The distance from the drip tray to the bottom of the spout is 3.5 inches, my cups are 4.5 inches. A demitasse cup or 6oz cappa cup fits perfectly but those monster milk drink cups that Americans tend to prefer will not fit under the machine. My 10oz coffee mugs will sit under them but no go on the latte sized cups. With a bottomless portafilter they would just fit, or remove the drip tray and angle the glass up and in.

cannonfodder wrote:Here is an interesting development. While attempting to try Jim's recommendation, I discovered that my only 12oz cups will not fit under the spouts. The distance from the drip tray to the bottom of the spout is 3.5 inches, my cups are 4.5 inches. A demitasse cup or 6oz cappa cup fits perfectly but those monster milk drink cups that Americans tend to prefer will not fit under the machine. My 10oz coffee mugs will sit under them but no go on the latte sized cups. With a bottomless portafilter they would just fit, or remove the drip tray and angle the glass up and in.

Interesting, I thought the cafe latte cups (same shape as a cappa cup, but 10 to 12 ounces) are shorter than standard mugs.

I should clarify that my only 12oz cups are the Bodum double walled cups. The double wall design makes the cup tall and narrow. I do not have any of the large bowl shaped cups as I never make drinks that size. My cup collection consists of 2oz, 3oz, 4oz, 6oz, 10oz and the 12oz. All of them fit under the spouts with the exception of my Bodum 12oz cups.

As I mentioned yesterday, my pressurestat adjustment and flushing routing was yielding some mixed results. I was getting a very unusual cup with both blends. Allow me to describe the process and my results.

I decided to use a three pull flush based on my previous experience with the machine set at 1.4 bar, it is currently set at 1.2 bar. I also used a 0, 5, 10, 20 second recovery after the flush before pulling my shots, discounting the time it takes to pull the container I was flushing into and locking in the portafilter. I would estimate that sequence at 4 seconds. I was using two Paradise Roasters offerings, Espresso Nuevo and Espresso Havana. I decided on my 'standard' dose, again I dose by volume not by weight although I weighed each dose after tamping just to verify for consistency. The two blends weighed in at two different levels using the save volume dose. The Espresso Havana came in at 18 grams for all 4 shots; the Espresso Nuevo was 17 grams with the exception of one that hit 18.

Through the entire test I was getting a very unusual cup. The 0 recovery shots were all sour, but the remaining shots were very unusual. I was getting a combination of sensations. I would get bitter undertones with some sharp sour twinges in most all of the samples. Given the night to ponder the results I believe I have stumbled onto the answer.

The long three pull flushes were unnecessary and heating unevenly. The first seconds of the pull was flash heated and burnt the start of the pull, however the water in the heat exchanger had not fully recovered and was running cool. I believe I was burning the beginning and then rapidly dropping off to a cold shot which produced the bitter and sour tastes in the cup. The flash burn could be a side effect of an extended power on time. The machine had been on and idle for three hours.

I loaded some Espresso Classico into the grinder this morning and pulled two shots using two cooling pulls (4oz) and have not had that bitter sour cup. The machine has been on for one hour. That two pull flush with a short recovery, around 5 seconds has removed the bitter as well as the sour notes I was getting last night. More detailed testing with a data logger and thermocouple is needed to see exactly what is going on in that portafilter.

This shot was just a tad over extracted. Note the two light spots of crema from the portafilter spouts.

I would like to ask the readership a question. Those of you that currently own a home lever espresso machine, how many shots can you pull in rapid secession before the machine overheats or runs out of gas?

I am working on a shot capacity test and want a maximum threshold to shoot for. I am going to try overheating the machine. My preliminary test suggests that it will take a lot of shots.

cannonfodder wrote:I would like to ask the readership a question. Those of you that currently own a home lever espresso machine, how many shots can you pull in rapid secession before the machine overheats or runs out of gas

Prior to the commercial lever I had a Cremina. Four was maximum. Shots 2 and 3 were the best.

My Gaggia Factory (rebadged La Pavoni) hits its limit on number 3 with shot 2 being the best most of the time. After a half hour of idle time it is not even worth the effort unless you like burnt shots.

With the Europiccola, 3 shots max, two being the best. With the Cremina, 4 shots max, either 2 or 3 being the best. I no longer have either, and not because I don't love lever machines.

An interesting phenomenon that I don't understand with the commercial lever (which has an HX), I have to warm it up to temperature rather than cooling it down. The process is fairly predictable. It takes 3-4 pulls to get it to about 200 degrees ( the purported best temperature for most of the coffees I brew). Possibly the HX functions quite differently in this machine.