Just a further update. I am more then impressed with these beans. I have been lazy and haven't bothered using the k10 with the beans yet. Instead I have NOT adjusted the grind at all and the pours have been incredible even until today (I believe 17 days post roast). I know the big conical burrs makes it more relaxed in terms of grind with age but this roast has been incredibly consistent even when it's supposed to be well past it's age. I have not experienced this with another type of bean yet. This is great news for a low volume drinker like me as I usually end up throwing out 1/4 of the bag.

Just received my 5#'s of "Main Squeeze" Espresso today, in individual 5 1# bags.
Good sturdy bag, which, in time, I'm sure will be a bit more elaborate with info. Right now, it's apparent these folks are focusing on the coffee!
It smells wonderful, and the beans, though varying in size, all appear evenly roasted, no blems of any kind.

Shipping took only 2.5 days, so my bags are only 3 days old.
What I've discovered whilst using the Strega, is with some judicious profiling, and allowing the grind to "rest" after grinding about 3-4 minutes, I'm getting excellent results with 3 day old roasts, especially my home roasted SO.
Thus, I will put some in the Forte tomorrow afternoon, a full 4 day resting.
Comments to follow.

I was in need of ordering another shipment of coffee, so I ordered from Bodka. My Christmas guests will enjoy this blend quite well I think since they love milk based drinks. Getting 5 pounds bulk ordered.

Also going to try a custom blend of their Sumatran & Ethiopian that sounds quite interesting for espresso too.

Gonna be a chocolaty holiday season with espresso this year!

IMAWriter wrote:It smells wonderful, and the beans, though varying in size, all appear evenly roasted, no blems of any kind.

When I had my sample I noticed the variation in bean size too, but my guess is that they are all of different variety roasted separately and mixed post roast. I didn't have any issues with bean quality overall, and the end product in the cup was quite nice. I will be interested in seeing more opinions on this espresso blend.

As easy as it was to dial this in for most of us I would think it's a good choice for use in a cafe too. It would probably hold quite stable throughout the day.

Dano, I should have said, though there are obviously several different varietals (it IS a blend..LOL) they all looked beautifully roasted to VERY slightly varying degree. As it should be, if need be.

Well, FINALLY, I have a moment to post some thoughts regarding my coffee from Bodka.
First off, I commend David and company for have the cajones to jump into the artisan roasting scene. From what I've purchased so far, I believe there is a bright future ahead for Bodka.
For time's sake, I'm re-printing the rough copy of my impressions.

Main Squeeze Comments:
I'm not getting (nor want) the chocolate overload as others have posted. The Main Squeeze is beautifully balanced, easy to deal with...seems like a nice moisture content.... If I pull at 201f (approx.) there is the slightest sweet tobacco, along with a streak of citrus AND berry. I don't ask about components, but the lower end resembles a Sumatra like Blue Batak, a sort of high toned Sumatra. LOL Almost like if cranberry was citrus. Weird, eh?

The pulls at 199 (approx) are not quite as complex, but sweeter. To my taste, the berry was more like blackberry than blueberry. I get the milk chocolate, not dark. No nutty stuff.
My pours have a touch of that lovely red crema when I pull slow (by retarding the upward movement of the lever), like David Schomer's espresso Dolce, before he removed the 15% robusta.
I'm going for both about 25 gram and 35 gram pours with 18 grams of coffee, but an "accidental" LONG pour I did, about 55 grams (2 oz" was wonderful.
Main Squeeze as a 7oz cappa is delicious, and for my daughter a 10oz latte had enough kick to please her.
By day 10, it was really starting to resemble Klatch's "Belle Espresso" more than a little bit. Not a bad thing.
I must say this espresso should appeal to about anyone. It smells great, is easy to deal with/grinder friendly, and has no overly sharp edges, at least when ground in my Forte flat burr. I may grind a bit with my lovely little KyM manual burr grinder soon. I have another 12oz out of the freezer now. I'm curious to see what a conical burr, albeit small will give me with the Strega.
I've thoroughly enjoyed Main Squeeze and hope to order again in the not too distant future.

BTW, I also LOVE the Ethiopian Konga I got last minute. A wonderful SO, pulled short and stout. It is most likely the same Konga I purchased green from the GCBC. If so, Bobka has done a super job roasting it, better than mine. (sort of expected, though my trusty Behmor does a fine job From the US Roaster that Bodka employs, it actually tastes more like the Gedeo Worka, with that awesome tea and berry. I really loved it as a Kalita pour over going for a slightly under extracted cup. (Coarser grind). I HIGHLY recommend this coffee for those wishing a wonderful SO as espresso and as pour-over.





Edited by Dan K and RJ for the egregious accidental substitution of a "b" for a "d" in the roaster's name.
I DO love "Bobka"...as in coffee cake...perhaps along side a cappa pulled from "BODKA."

Having just received samples of this yesterday, I have to concur that this is a delightful blend. One of the sweetest espressos I have pulled in a while, similar to the Linea blend but much more forgiving to use. Dark chocolate, marzipan, brandied cherries, and spice predominated in my early shots, pulled at ristretto ratios and 199F on the Caravel. Based on this thread, I'll have to try some double pulls, as many members seem to be getting lots of success at lower brew ratios as well.

This is, in short, that rare thing, a forgiving, comfort-food espresso that retains enough subtlety to avoid being boring.

A quick update:

I polished off my sample bag of Main Squeeze in record time. This will definitely be ordered again! I tried two other sample packs of their coffees as SO espressos, the Ethiopia Konga and their Guatemala Huehuetenango. Like Rob, I enjoyed the shots I pulled using the Konga. But what really blew me away was the Huehuetenango! Pulled in a normal temp range, slightly more restricted than usual, this produces one of the nicest shots I have had in a long time. Deep chocolates, roasted peanuts and juicy apricot, with delicate floral overtones, all in a nice balance. It is at once powerful and graceful, in a way that is hard to describe. After a few shots of this, I immediately hopped on the internet to grab a bunch more!

Main Squeeze. David hit the jackpot with this one. Great balance.

Just finishing my second very lite Main Squeeze capp this AM as I hurry to finish this impression. The pulls at 199 were sweeter while 201 were slightly more bittersweet, which my palate prefers. The La Spaz likes a slightly longer pull than other machines, slightly over 30 seconds. In this case 18g out of OE Pharos.

Pharos adjusted for Sweet Marias Los Alecos blend- Main Squeeze was choking the machine so had to set somewhat coarser. In fact Bodka Ethopian Konga had to be adjusted even coarser than Main Squeeze.

So 18 g MS in a triple bottomless, 201 and around 32 seconds was great. Have to try it with the Olympia Cremina tomorrow.
Will definitely be ordering more soon.

And Ethiopian Konga? Rob took the words right out of my mouth, "A wonderful SO, pulled short and stout...."
Works very well with short milk drinks. No wonder it works well as espresso since it is grown at 2250 meter elevation. A very SHB-hard bean. Raised on dried beds? Maybe why I like Yemeni Sharasi so much and order 20 pounds of green at a time.

Very sorry didn't order a sample of Guatemala Huehuetenango after (creative nickname's) glowing revue.
Easily rectified.
Thanks David for being so accessable and for brightening up the artisan roasting scene for us.

Wife and I just had Main Squeeze again this morning.

18g/dose
Her's was ground a little too tight, and on a 40sec ristretto was bittersweet and once her cappuccino was served the review was "Ooooohhhhh!". Mine was loosened one notch on the Vario and cut short at 30sec with more punch across the flavor spectrum for these beans, more floral notes than the extreme ristretto, and in a cappuccino was lovely! (My tongue has just the right amount of tingle from espresso after the cappuccino.)

I recently enjoyed that norovirus going around after helping someone find their lost keys in a public bathroom... Ughhh... Gave myself 1 week of no coffee to make sure all digestion was back in order. Anyway, this was my choice to be the first espresso shot after a week without, and it was a great!

genecounts wrote:Main Squeeze. David hit the jackpot with this one. Great balance.


So 18 g MS in a triple bottomless, 201 and around 32 seconds was great. Have to try it with the Olympia Cremina tomorrow.
Will definitely be ordering more soon.

Have you tried it with the Cremina? I just ordered 2 lbs last night, and curious how it went. I will start with the 16g dose since this is usually what I use with other beans.