Moka Pot Pick-Me-Up Potency

Coffee preparation techniques besides espresso like pourover.
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SpromoSapiens
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#1: Post by SpromoSapiens »

Call me a trendhopper, but all the talk recently about moka pots is drawing me back into the fold. I, like so many others, first experienced it in Italy, tried it myself back in the States, failed, and never tried again. But that was long before I had any real understanding of coffee, and what with Blue Bottle's reinvention and so many recent threads, my curiosity must be satisfied.

So I'm about to purchase a moka pot, but I'm the only one in the house that will be drinking it, and I'd like to get the right size for my typical caffeine regimen. It'd be nice to be able to make 1 batch and be done.

I typically have 2 doubles in the morning, averaging 17.5g in / ~2oz out / 25-30 seconds, of something fresh and full city (more or less) from my Livietta (boiler set to peak at 1.1; 5 second heat flush). Lately, time permitting, I have substituted one of those doubles for an Aeropress of 20g (2 vario macro notches coarser than my espresso setting) + 130g water, starting to pour at 200F, total contact time 2-2:30.

So, that's my caffeine regimen. From what I understand, "cups" in moka-speak are demitasse cups, about 2oz, but I don't know how caffeinated those are. Will, say, a 3-cup moka batch satisfy my morning needs? Would 4 cups be too much for just lil ol' me? Will I need a shot before I brew a 2-cupper in order to get to work?

I know it's probably impossible for anyone to say with certainty, I just wonder what other espresso-people's experiences are.

This is assuming that there is limited flexibility to the dose one can successfully administer within a prescribed cup-size of moka pot. I figure it's akin to the portafilter, i.e. a range of a few grams, but not a whole lot of wiggle room...?

Thanks!

Alan Frew
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#2: Post by Alan Frew »

"Cups" are 30ml, about 1oz, so buy a 6 cup model. You don't get much latitude with dosing ("full" is the general recommendation) so the most important variable is grind.

Alan

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SpromoSapiens (original poster)
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#3: Post by SpromoSapiens (original poster) »

1oz ? Zounds, that's teeny tiny. Meanwhile, Stumptown says a 4-cup moka basket takes up to 17g on a drip-like grind, which sounds awfully weak to me. Too little, too coarse. If I go finer I figure I'll get a few more grams in there, but even 20g for a 4oz cup seems dubious. Do most people dose higher, and is the pressure inside that basket more or less than a fairly fine-grind aeropress?

Is water volume a variable? Does moka pot allow one to use less water for a more intense brew, if preferred?

[I don't know how I got my morning shot weight wrong in my original post. Truth is, I rarely weigh my shots. I changed it to 2oz, as this at least I know to be true.]

Another question is the cooling factor. Does flavor change positively as it cools?

By making 2 drinks every morning, both are fresh and warm, but usually about room temp by the last sip of aero. I like the shifting flavors and I like to try to stretch out the pleasure. I went through a recent phase of long blacks for this purpose recently. The funny thing is that, way back in the day, I thought moka brew was intensely syruppy and bitter. I look forward to a bitterness-free brew, but now i worry it won't be heavy enough. If it's at least on par with Aeropress or a stiff (apx 1:1 water/spro ratio) long black, I'm sure I'll appreciate it, but if it's weaker, I'm not sure. I guess we'll see.

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Boldjava
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#4: Post by Boldjava »

SpromoSapiens wrote:1oz ? Zounds, that's teeny tiny. Meanwhile, Stumptown says a 4-cup moka basket takes up to 17g on a drip-like grind, which sounds awfully weak to me. . .
To me as well. With my moka pots, I grind midpoint, between a pourover grind and an espresso grind. Works well. I load the basket, level it, and don't tamp.
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LMWDP #339

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[creative nickname]
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#5: Post by [creative nickname] »

For my 4-cup Bialetti Venus, I grind the same as for a Hario V60-01 (which is on the finest end of pour-over), dose about 16g, for an output of about 160mL of coffee. I also use a paper aeropress filter on top of the puck, which adds clarity and makes the resulting brew more heart-healthy. The strength is comparable to a long black, but it has a richer body and aftertaste.
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canuckcoffeeguy
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#6: Post by canuckcoffeeguy »

I have a 4-cup Bialetti Brikka. The basket accommodates between a 22g-25g dose. Don't know the exact amount of water. I measure using the upper chamber, which has the suggested amount of water level marked by Bialetti.

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SpromoSapiens (original poster)
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#7: Post by SpromoSapiens (original poster) »

How easy is it to clean? do y'all find it cumbersome for multiple consecutive brews? Is the spent coffee soupy? With the hot metal and the need to knock and/or scoop from the basket, I'm guessing two brews in quick succession would be preventively inconvenient...?

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canuckcoffeeguy
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#8: Post by canuckcoffeeguy »

I've only used my Brikka, so not sure if all Moka pots are the same. But the Brikka's spent pucks are bone dry. Much drier than my espresso pucks. Must be the extreme pressure pushing the finite amount of Moka water through, as opposed to the unlimited water supply and declining pressure(once shot is done) of a pump machine.

Also, you can cool a Moka pot down under a cold tap for successive shots. Then a quick rinse and dry.

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[creative nickname]
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#9: Post by [creative nickname] »

I place mine in a bowl of cool water to stop the flow once it gets light in color, in order to avoid overextracted and burnt flavors. This also rapidly cools the base, so that it is easy enough to knock out the old puck into my OE Coda if I want to do another quick pot in succession.
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SpromoSapiens (original poster)
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#10: Post by SpromoSapiens (original poster) »

Alrighty, it sounds like either a 3 or 4-cupper will do the trick. If it doesn't pack the requisite wallop, a preceding doppio is no biggie, much my like current shot-and-a-press lifestyle.

I checked the Bialetti website, and they define their "cups" as 2 fl oz apiece, sooo... I suppose that's the ticket.

I guess this whole thread should have been in the "buying advice" forum. If not up to now, then definitely now, as my final question is...

Is there a reason to buy Bialetti over, say, Chefs Secret, or Holstein Housewares at half the price? These seem like pretty simple pieces of equipment. No moving parts. Is there a difference in the basket or the valve?

EDIT 1/23: Thanks everybody, I'm cutting this thread off and continuing the inquiry in the "Buying Advice" forum now.

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