Hello!!
First post from a total espresso newbie

I am fairly new to the forums here but I have read many of the pressurized PF threads (tips how to depressurize them etc) I own a combo delonghi pressurized PF ( I guess!)

I really enjoy the coffee I am drinking but I am sure it can get better!

Depressurizing the filter seems to be agreeably the way to go. BUT! I have neither the equipment nor the budget for a FINE grinder (200$ I think).
I d love u to tell me if I can improve easily my quality of coffee with a low budget grinder and beans. So that it will be a noticeable upgrade from my Lavazza Qualita Rossa drinks! (notice I prefer milk based coffes also).
Or I shouldnt bother with a grinder If I want to stick to pressurized PF????

Also I m not such an enthusiast an I think I ll get tired of the learning process for a very good espresso (fine gring - correct tamping etc)

I hope I am not too tiring and I didnt find an "improve your pressurized PF coffee thread"

Cheers!

Espresso requires a minimum of sufficient gear and a learning curve to get there. The questions you posted have no useful response because you're saying you're not willing to do the basics. If you look at our home page you'll see a link to introductory videos. Please watch them if you're interested in learning about espresso.

Is it really that much frowned upon to ask about pressurized PF coffee ?
I guess that some budget grinders will help my filter coffee taste as well as the pressurized PF.

Thank you for your time anyway
I will watch the videos and have read quite a lot of "basic espresso" threads

furiousarmadillo wrote:Is it really that much frowned upon to ask about pressurized PF coffee ?
I guess that some budget grinders will help my filter coffee taste as well as the pressurized PF.

Not frowned upon or wrong. It's just that a pressurized portafilter does not produce real crema and a quality grinder is needed to produce espresso that's worth drinking. (Tried it myself long ago. It doesn't work.) You'll see what I mean when you check the introductory videos.

Also if you write something like this you are saying you don't want to put in the effort.

furiousarmadillo wrote:Also I m not such an enthusiast an I think I ll get tired of the learning process for a very good espresso (fine gring - correct tamping etc)

You can make really good coffee with fresh roasted coffee, an AeroPress or Melitta drip and a good burr grinder. Making espresso is harder and requires more expensive, specialized equipment.

We don't mean to be rude, it's just that you've kinda come to the Ferrari forum to ask about your Pinto. Its just not what we do here. Pressurized portafilters don't make espresso as we define it on this forum, not really. They are a crutch that allows people to make something that superficially resembles espresso using stale preground coffee. Making real espresso requires a quality grinder, there's no avoiding it.

Preground coffee stales very quickly, so in that sense if you are going to stick with your pressurized baseket I suppose any grinder is better than none. Don't bother depressuring your filter unless you plan on getting a real espresso grinder. It will do more harm than good. If you like the results your getting that's all that really matters, your personal taste is no one's business than yours.

If you want to explore the world of specialty coffee without spending an arm and a leg, stick with brewed coffee, like aeropress or pourover, and save espresso for later.

Thank you for your replies!

I realize that it's not real espresso but.... I thought asking on the most advanced forum would provide me with some nice tips
I guess after plenty of research I ll maybe save for a Baratza Encore so that I have my future real espresso option available .

Thank you for your time

Thanks for being open to our feedback. BTW the Baratza Encore is good for brew grinding but not for espresso. Here's a thread that summarizes entry level grinder options.

Inexpensive grinders for La Pavoni newbies & others