On the theory that a picture is worth a thousand words ....



Disclosure: Heather is a client.

RapidCoffee wrote:OK, I'll take a stab at this. If your vacuum technique really sucks (oops, I said it), then you run the risk of dislodging the seal between the puck and the sides of the basket. This could cause channeling. Weigh this against the benefits (basically, none) and you may understand why I recommend against it.

Again, there is benefit to me. If I leave that grind coffee layer on the side of the basket it tends to collect on the side of the dispersion screen at the joint with the screens. The coffee collects there and is not fully removed by the p/f wiggle.

I really do not see how this could disrupt the puck adhesion to the basket. We are talking about a very little suction here. And as I wrote before you would have to be careful to avoid doing it if you didn't want it. I just do it twice to clean the side. No need to flip the basket (I have done that before), no need for side tap (now that will disrupt a seal).

I just saw the Heather video. Just is going against a lot of what is being advocated by different people here. Nonetheless, I just realised that indeed if you overdose, like she does, you do not see the suction occurring as the tamper really does not go deep enough in the basket...

RapidCoffee wrote:Drink what you like best. De gustibus non est disputandum. I just find it surprising when someone with a passion for superior espresso, as you obviously have, prefers canned Italian blends to fresh specialty microroasted coffee.

Read Ken's text (I am sure you did already). I have the same reaction to Spanish, Californian or British-Columbia wines. They are so extreme, so excessively woody and charred, so fruity, that although I really enjoy it, I will mostly select and drink Italian (Toscana) or French (Bordeaux) wine. The latter two are by no mean soft and delicate but they offer a more balanced, orchestrated flavour. These are just generalisation used to give an example, there are wonderful wine and coffee to be had anywhere. One just has to find them.

I would welcome anyone's recommendation for Montreal region roasted coffee? I am not a fan of ordering coffee by mail.

So Marshall... when do you sell your Cimbali Max Hybrid and purchase a Capresso Infinity?

I remember this video, because it's the weirdest mismatch of equipment I've seen since, well, since I paired a Robur with a $15 Hamilton Beach closeout special from K-Mart. But Heather has the chops to make her own rules...

RapidCoffee wrote:So Marshall... when do you sell your Cimbali Max Hybrid and purchase a Capresso Infinity?

I remember this video, because it's the weirdest mismatch of equipment I've seen since, well, since I paired a Robur with a $15 Hamilton Beach closeout special from K-Mart. But Heather has the chops to make her own rules...

Actually, that second drink reminds me of an old Valley Girl expression that I'm sure Marshall, being a resident thereof, will remember:


Gag Me With a Spoon

ken

Serious question, maybe even worth a poll.

Is it rare for people in the States to drink their espressos black? Does a poor old European have to filter the majority of the "new wave" dosing etc. preferences through a froth of milk?

PS: Oh and she twirled her tamper! Tut, tut!

Marshall wrote:On the theory that a picture is worth a thousand words...

Videos do not = good taste. I have a Capresso Infinity that has been demoted to a work grinder in favor of a Baratza Virtuoso that is used only for brewed coffee because it is totally incapable of reproducible espresso grinding. I don't care if Heather Perry is the chosen one or a client of yours, she can't make reproducibly good drinks with that grinder. That video does not help your argument but in fact except for beautiful microfoam and latte art skills it is pretty much a what not to do at home video!

Marshall - I am very happy to accept that you and many others make exceptional espresso by imitating coffee shop, barista competition style techniques or by paying for lessons. However, I don't understand your constant ridicule of others who choose to be more careful and take a few extra moments to make a drink or only a few drinks at home. I don't buy your saying you point this out for lurking non-posting beginners for reasons mentioned better by others above.

michaelbenis wrote:Is it rare for people in the States to drink their espressos black?

With the exception of "third wave" cafes and the kitchens of home baristas, the overwhelming majority of drinks are espresso with varying quantities of milk. The archive has related polls, but I would not apply these results to the US population at large since this site appeals to espresso aficionados.

I'm not aware of a forum poll on this topic, but Abe's The Disappearance of the Straight Shot is a good discussion of it.

I needed to chime in, because, this suggestion by Ken has been one of the most valuable things I have done in my quest for better espresso:

Ken Fox wrote:
What would probably be of more value to readers of this board, would be to try to hook up with other board participants who are already experienced in making espresso, and to spend some time visiting them in their homes seeing how they make espresso on their own equipment. If you could do this with several other people, seeing several approaches, that would be very instructive. This is obviously only going to work in a metropolitan area where you could find a concentration of home baristas, not in the middle of nowhere like where I live.

ken

It has turned out to be mutually beneficial to spend several sessions comparing technique, coffee's, gear and roasting. Initially I proposed to get together so I could see what advantages a Titan grinder has...the downside was 1. I have upgraded my grinder and 2. my espresso has improved where I was once on par with what I could get from a cafe here, now there are very few that I can accept the espresso they serve.

That's just one of those things I can never understand. The coffee I make at home is immeasurably better than anything I can get outside it, but I never find that coffee totally undrinkable. Even at the airport yesterday, picking up a friend from Sicily, I merrily drank may way through 2 Costa espressos... and I quite enjoyed them...

GC7 wrote:... I don't understand your constant ridicule of others who choose to be more careful and take a few extra moments to make a drink or only a few drinks at home.

Sprezzatura

I, for one, am tired of a world where absolutely everything is overly involved and complicated. It's time to end the joyless tedium of it and revive this old aristocratic virtue instead. Not slogging through espresso seems like a good place to start.