Nicoletti Espresso - Page 2

#11: Post by **slybarman** » February 22nd, 2020, 11:39 pm

lancealot wrote:I had been pulling some natural Ethiopians and I wanted a change of pace. I took at swing at Nicoletti after hearing about it in some other threads. In those threads, I got the impression that is was going to be along the lines of an american comfort espresso - redbird, lusso GMC.
I don't think it is very much like those coffees. At least my bag is not. Mine is bitter no matter what and has that rubber robusta taste. The results I am getting are more along the lines of a bad italian blend.
Today, 9 days post roast date, I have pulled it between 198 and 204, ratios from 18:28 to 18:40, and rippin' fast 20 second extractions up to 35 second slow-mo pours. No preinfusion. I have used BDB baskets and EPNW 14's too.
No matter what, I can't shake the bitter or the rubber. The beans look great! They look lighter than redbird espresso. I was not expecting these flavors. Any thoughts?

I got mine just a few days before yours and I'm getting pretty smooth chocolate shots from it. Maybe try lowering your dose a little and pulling a shorter shot. I haven't been weighing my extraction but I've been dosing 17g in and probably 20-21 or so out with lower pressure at the beginning and toward the end of the shot. 198 degrees per John.

#12: Post by **JohnB.** » February 23rd, 2020, 8:54 am

While I've pulled most of my Nicoletti shots at cooler temps I've had some nice shots recently at 201*f so play around with the temps a bit & see what you like best.

February 24th, 2020, 2:03 pm

I have ordered Nicoletti four times based on the recommendations from this site and have been very happy with the results. With the winter upon us, I have used it in place of my home roast since I don't like to roast in the cold.

The five pound bag generally arrives three days after I order it, which is three days after it was roasted. I keep about a pound out and then vacuum seal and freeze the rest. I use 19.2 grams in, about 28-33 out at 201 degrees with preinfusion. I plan to try some lower temps after I emailed Aldo and he recommended 195-198.

So far, every bag has been great, with a lot of chocolatey nuances in the cup. It is a nice medium roast with no oils. For me It is an easy blend for pulling great shots, and I have been very happy with it, especially for the price.

#14: Post by **slybarman** » February 24th, 2020, 7:24 pm

As it stand right now, I would say that if the costs were exactly the same, I would give the edge to Lusso GMC over the Nicoletti on flavor, but I do want to try some different temps as John suggests. But because cost isn't the same Id say Nicoletti is more of a toss up to me.

Lancealot (Chris) - I didn't notice before you were in Maryland. Where part of the state are you in?

#15: Post by **bluesman** » February 25th, 2020, 10:02 am

JohnB. wrote:Still going through the batch I got late Oct. Just had a nice dark chocolate shot about an hour ago. Don't know what to tell you but I've ordered it twice & enjoyed it both times as have others.

We love it! My wife and I went through a 5 pound bag monthly for over a year when Aldo stopped selling through Amazon and moved to eBay. As I don't want or need our personal info on any more big hackable servers, I stopped ordering it - but he's back on Amazon so we'll be drinking it again.

FWIW, the Old School Espresso is 50:50 robusta to arabica, and the standard espresso blend in the black bag (5 lb) is 30:70 robusta to arabica. We tried both and prefer the latter.

February 25th, 2020, 2:04 pm

Alright, so it is now 14 days post roast. The rubber flavors are gone. I think I just needed to let that coffee age longer. I read somewhere on HB that robusta benefits from age.

Today I am pulling at 198. I have pulled 5 shots. I think shorter pulls are better. 18:28/30 in 23-25 seconds is better to me than 18:36 in 30 seconds. This coffee reminds me in some ways of Mr Espresso Neapolitan Espresso and in some ways of Malabar Gold. If you liked those, give this a try. Just make sure to let it age a bit and pull it short.

I just got 5lbs of Lusso GMC that I will be into after the Nicoletti is gone. I have had GMC before but can't remember it. Interested to make the comparison.

BTW: To avoid any confusion for people who find this thread in the future, I think the 2.2 lb bag of the reg. espresso comes in a silver bag while I think that the 5lb bag of the same blend come in the black bag that bluesman mentioned.

#17: Post by **slybarman** » February 25th, 2020, 3:41 pm

FWIW, The one I ordered says 75/25 - Arabica/Robusta.

.

#18: Post by **bluesman** » February 25th, 2020, 3:50 pm

slybarman wrote:FWIW, The one I ordered says 75/25 - Arabica/Robusta.

That's very interesting. Here's Aldo Nicoletti's response to an Amazon buyer who asked what's in the black 5 pound bags that I buy:

" this is a mix of 70% Arabica and only 30% Robusta.... It's also roasted very light.
-Aldo Nicoletti (Nicoletti Coffee)"

He may vary the blends from batch to batch, but I'd think consistency would be important to buyers. I never got a bag that was different from the ones before, which is one reason I like this coffee so much.

February 25th, 2020, 3:55 pm

Probably "within the margin of error" in any case. Either could be a typo or he just forgot. Hard to say.

February 25th, 2020, 7:13 pm

lancealot wrote:Alright, so it is now 14 days post roast. The rubber flavors are gone. I think I just needed to let that coffee age longer. I read somewhere on HB that robusta benefits from age.

I was also having this issue. Taste became much better around 13-15 days. I ordered recently. It was still not drinkable as a straight shot to my taste in the Elektra or the Alex Leva even after that longer wait....but as a cappuccino it was like a chocolate desert and I really enjoyed it.

Perhaps our batch was a bit over roasted and we ordered at the same time?

I have a local roaster whose chocolately honduras doesn't come alive until about day 20 but is great at 15. If it is over roasted at all taste goes sideways but it only happened one time during the coldest part of the year I imagine it was a intake temperature over compensation for it being -8f keeping the facility a bit cooler.