The site's must-read articles document the basic barista knowledge and techniques that apply to all espresso machines:
These articles offer more diagnostic advice:
For HX espresso machine owners, add:
These and other noteworthy articles on the web are listed in this forum and on...
Thank you to everyone here for educating me on some water basics. It's nearly goodbye awesome CO water hello crappy AZ water. Packing up the espresso machine and roaster this weekend. Scottsdale water has a lot of chlorides. Since there is no convenient place in the new house...
I would kindly like to ask you a question, how could I practice Latte Art without having to make an espresso each time? is there any alternative that can replace the coffee shot ? I will still steam the milk as usual, but I am finding quite a pain having to waste so...
Workplace G.M. approached me a while back about purchasing are own coffee equipment with an emphasis an increasing the quality of coffee. Currently we were renting hardware and purchasing pre portioned ground coffee at what I thought was an exorbitant amount. Service from...
I decided to drain my Elektra Maxi boiler and have a look inside. It's hard to really inspect the inside of the boiler. Peering into one of the holes doesn't show too much. Umm, it's dark.
A few months ago, on a whim, I bought a WiFi endoscope. You can find these for about $35...
I've had the privilege to review two espresso machines for Home-Barista.com: the Breville BES920XL and the Decent Espresso DE1+ . In both instances I was not able to match the body and mouthfeel* of my Spaziale Vivaldi S1 (although clarity and flavor separation was greater on...
My Breville Barista Express has a built in 10 second pre-infusion.
If I start my timer when I flip the pump on, should I shoot for a 30-40s shot to account for the 10s pre-infusion?
OR
Should those pre-infusion seconds count for less since the pump isn't at full pressure?...
Since I have it disassembled I plan to descale by putting parts in citric acid bath. I guess 1 tablespoon citric acid per liter. I know things like copper tubes, boiler, and group head should go...
I've been actively trying to learn how to make great milk foam so I can create latte art; for about 1.5 years. I've looked at nearly every video/tutorial I could find. I've practiced with water & soap; milk & non-milk products. I've gotten okay; and can do the basic 3 designs.....
I've always assumed beans are fresh for about 2 weeks from roast. So you have about 3 days for them to outgas, then after day 14 or so, flavor starts to fall off.
The other day I visited a local Brooklyn roaster, and saw the beans for sale were all 10 days old or older. So I...
