Silly Commuter Coffee

jgsi

Any coffee maker that has its own world championships gets my vote.
At the moment I am not getting the espresso machine froth with the Aeropress... I am assuming this is an advanced technique to master?

dhope

JGSI wrote:

Any coffee maker that has its own world championships gets my vote.
At the moment I am not getting the espresso machine froth with the Aeropress... I am assuming this is an advanced technique to master?

Crema? Not something you really get with an aeropress. You can't generate the pressure required.

iPete

As above, this is know as 'bloom' and from my knowledge relates more to the freshness of your beans and grind.

http://foodal.com/drinks-2/coffee/guide ... -is-bloom/
http://mentalfloss.com/uk/trivia/27731/ ... les-on-top

rjsterry

pangolin wrote:

Don't get a blade grinder whatever you do.

Pourquoi? Not a total coffee geek by any stretch, but I have that Krups as well and its done very well over the years. Maybe a bit coarse and grinds "one size only" But the coffee's always turned out alright in a stove top pot.

pangolin

rjsterry wrote:

Pourquoi? Not a total coffee geek by any stretch, but I have that Krups as well and its done very well over the years. Maybe a bit coarse and grinds "one size only" But the coffee's always turned out alright in a stove top pot.

If you have a look at the grinds afterwards you'll see lots of tiny particles, dust almost, and lots of large bits too. Because it's ground by being hit with a blade rather than having to pass between a uniform sized gap between burrs, you get a real mix of particle sizes.

As a result the small particles over-extract while brewing (undesirable flavours dissolve and end up in the cup) whilst the larger bits under-extract as the middle never touches the water.

That said, burr grinders mean either more work for a hand powered option or more expense for an electric option. A blade grinder is still a lot better than buying pre ground coffee. If you're enjoying it as is by all means carry on. But if you're hankering for something to upgrade or trying to fill your Christmas list, the Baratza is what I'd go for.

spasypaddy

im so tempted to bin my gaggia colour off and just splash out on a new rancilio silvia...

the_fuggler

Anybody got any recommendations for Nespresso compatible pods that work? We used to use Big Cup Little Cup, but they rebranded and their capsules now seem to fail 30% of the time.

itboffin

Did someone say coffee?

mrfpb

I've just got back from a week at Belgian Centre Parcs and feel like I've not had a decent tea or coffee all week. I took my own kit (Monmouth coffee, hario and filters, tea bags) but it tasted wrong. Milk and water were the only two elements that changed. Even the stuff in the cafes tasted wrong. Ah well, back to normal now.

iPete

This coffee lark is quite circular, sold my Gaggia Classic, spent a few months on cafetiere and this week learnt how to use the 6-cup Bialetti moka pot properly, it's been sat in the cupboard for years.

essex-commuter

iPete wrote:

This coffee lark is quite circular, sold my Gaggia Classic, spent a few months on cafetiere and this week learnt how to use the 6-cup Bialetti moka pot properly, it's been sat in the cupboard for years.

Love my Bialetti, have a 2-cup and a 6-cup. Both get used most weekends.

iPete

essex-commuter wrote:

iPete wrote:

This coffee lark is quite circular, sold my Gaggia Classic, spent a few months on cafetiere and this week learnt how to use the 6-cup Bialetti moka pot properly, it's been sat in the cupboard for years.

Love my Bialetti, have a 2-cup and a 6-cup. Both get used most weekends.

I'm thinking adding a 2/3 cup would be a good move, I'm just not sure why yet?!

fat daddy

ah, why did I not know about this thread ..... its like home !

I am running a :-

Izzo Vivi Mk2
Electra Microcassa a leva
La paroni europiccola
La Cimbali MicroCimbali

for my Espresso based drinks and

CCD, Aeropress, hario cold brew and Melitta Aroma Signature

for brewed coffee

and grinding on a macap, mc4, mxd and lido E

I roast on a Gene 101 and currently subscribed to hasbeans #SSSSS .. although this week I am drinking a blend from 2 day coffee in Bristol

keef66

fat daddy wrote:

ah, why did I not know about this thread ..... its like home !

I am running a :-

Izzo Vivi Mk2
Electra Microcassa a leva
La paroni europiccola
La Cimbali MicroCimbali

for my Espresso based drinks and

CCD, Aeropress, hario cold brew and Melitta Aroma Signature

for brewed coffee

and grinding on a macap, mc4, mxd and lido E

I roast on a Gene 101 and currently subscribed to hasbeans #SSSSS .. although this week I am drinking a blend from 2 day coffee in Bristol

Nope, didn't understand a word of that. But I'm getting the impression that there's a whole world of coffee related equipment I know nothing about. And probably couldn't afford if I did.

I have a little Bialetti pot thing (with a steel base so it works brilliantly on the induction hob) and I buy the tins of ground Illy coffee, and that produces a consistently delicious brew. Way better than anything I've ever had in a coffee shop or restaurant anyway.

mrfpb

keef66 wrote:

Nope, didn't understand a word of that. But I'm getting the impression that there's a whole world of coffee related equipment I know nothing about. And probably couldn't afford if I did.

I have a little Bialetti pot thing (with a steel base so it works brilliantly on the induction hob) and I buy the tins of ground Illy coffee, and that produces a consistently delicious brew. Way better than anything I've ever had in a coffee shop or restaurant anyway.

Having a device that works for you is the first step (and they vary from £5 to £1,000+), exploring different beans is the next step. If you're in London, you can visit Monmouth or other coffee shops that offer beans. There are good mail order companies such as Pact, Has Bean and Hope and Glory that will send you freshly roasted and ground coffee or beans. I like Pact as they let you set your own delivery intervals, and it's very easy to cancel an order. They also have multiple options for grinding - just let them know what coffee maker you use. It's generally easy to get a discount code - (mine is CLEM-UDIWOG - it gets us both £3 credit towards the next bag of coffee) but you may find codes giving you a your first bag for £1.

Go through the first few pages on this thread where most of the tips on buying coffee appear, you won't regret trying a few different ones.

iPete

How do people tend to drink their coffee from Moka pots; do you add hot water, have it straight, other?

vimfuego

mrfpb wrote:

I've just got back from a week at Belgian Centre Parcs and feel like I've not had a decent tea or coffee all week. I took my own kit (Monmouth coffee, hario and filters, tea bags) but it tasted wrong. Milk and water were the only two elements that changed. Even the stuff in the cafes tasted wrong. Ah well, back to normal now.

Nice, I was over there last week too (de Vossemeren). Same problem. Other than that - blinding week.

mrfpb

vimfuego wrote:

mrfpb wrote:

I've just got back from a week at Belgian Centre Parcs and feel like I've not had a decent tea or coffee all week. I took my own kit (Monmouth coffee, hario and filters, tea bags) but it tasted wrong. Milk and water were the only two elements that changed. Even the stuff in the cafes tasted wrong. Ah well, back to normal now.

Nice, I was over there last week too (de Vossemeren). Same problem. Other than that - blinding week.

I was at de Vossemeren too. Last year we went to Holland (Het Meerdal) and the coffee tasted better (they also had Dolce Gusto machines in the lodges, which the kids used all week for hot chocolate, but didn't make great coffee).

Hinaultscrapcousin

Need some help for an arabic coffee brewing on the go set up. I can get an ibrik of a suitable size and a cup but I'm not sure what stove to use. I like the idea of a meths stove like the Trangia ones, but I'm wondering if they'll take for ever and a day to boil the water. Can anyone help?

bigmonka

mrfpb wrote:

vimfuego wrote:

mrfpb wrote:

I've just got back from a week at Belgian Centre Parcs and feel like I've not had a decent tea or coffee all week. I took my own kit (Monmouth coffee, hario and filters, tea bags) but it tasted wrong. Milk and water were the only two elements that changed. Even the stuff in the cafes tasted wrong. Ah well, back to normal now.

Nice, I was over there last week too (de Vossemeren). Same problem. Other than that - blinding week.

I was at de Vossemeren too. Last year we went to Holland (Het Meerdal) and the coffee tasted better (they also had Dolce Gusto machines in the lodges, which the kids used all week for hot chocolate, but didn't make great coffee).

What's the deal with going to a foreign centre parcs? If it's a way to get a cheaper holiday then I'm all ears!

mrfpb

BigMonka wrote:

mrfpb wrote:

vimfuego wrote:

mrfpb wrote:

I've just got back from a week at Belgian Centre Parcs and feel like I've not had a decent tea or coffee all week. I took my own kit (Monmouth coffee, hario and filters, tea bags) but it tasted wrong. Milk and water were the only two elements that changed. Even the stuff in the cafes tasted wrong. Ah well, back to normal now.

Nice, I was over there last week too (de Vossemeren). Same problem. Other than that - blinding week.

I was at de Vossemeren too. Last year we went to Holland (Het Meerdal) and the coffee tasted better (they also had Dolce Gusto machines in the lodges, which the kids used all week for hot chocolate, but didn't make great coffee).

What's the deal with going to a foreign centre parcs? If it's a way to get a cheaper holiday then I'm all ears!

Yep, a lot cheaper in school hols than UK Centre Parcs, even when travel costs are added in. For us it's a wide family holiday (3 families and grapparents in 3 lodges/chalets) I don't organise it, but I think there is a saving from big bookings.

mtb-idle

agreed, I went to de Vossemeeren a few years back. Take your MTB too as the Ardennes is nearby with purpose built trails.

The benefits? As well as it being cheaper you have a load of Belgian/Dutch/french people around rather than being surrounded by aggressive, overweight tattooed Brits (he says stereotyping hugely but as a non-aggressive, non-tattooed, non-overweight but proud Brit I can say that).

mrfpb

To be fair, the aggressive overweight tattooed brits are priced out of UK Centre Parcs. I was able to take my pre-teen kids to the sports bar and watch the rugby or footie without them being exposed to any aggressive or obnoxius behaviour.

vimfuego

We've been going to Center Parcs in Europe (mainly Belgium & The Netherlands) for the last few years - you do now get way more Brits there than you used to meaning that sadly there have been more knuckle-draggers recently - witness one family from Essex getting carried away in the family paintball last week, berating 8 year old kids for "cheatin' innit" & yelling "yeah gotcha you're dead" at them having successfully shot them......... (got to love the stereotyped "Brits abroad") BUT in fairness I've never seen much of that & it's a good mix of rational human beings ( & nationalities) usually.

Basically, it's been waaaaaaaay cheaper than the UK equivalent even with travel costs. Plus the beer is good, no Starbucks, friendly staff, no massive language barrier & you can easily explore the surrounding areas if you fancy it. You can't get a good cup of tea for toffee but hey, you're not at home so what do you expect? De Vossemeren is great if you have younger kids (great pool/slides plus a massive indoor activity area) & the one ten minutes up the road in the Netherlands (Kempervennen) has a snow centre if you like skiing/snowboarding/bruised ribs/broken legs etc. Plus it's only an hour or so from Ghent (been there during Flanders week in the past).

Went with another Dad and 4 of our kids on a MTB ride just outside the park last week (used their hire bikes rather than taking my own - relatively new Focus jobs but clearly not maintained all that well) - loads of fun on trails along the adjacent "canal" (starting pretty much at the front gate) & into the local town for a swift recovery beer. Great fun & the sprogs loved it - there's nothing at all challenging or technical but puts a smile on their faces so it's all good.

But shhhhhhhhhh. It's just between us yeah?!

bigmonka

This is sounding great, I might look in to booking a trip next year as the UK ones are a bit too expensive for an aggressive, tattooed, overweight nuckle-dragging essex boy like me ;-)

Abie 2

Hey there!

Maybe I am a bit off-topic and I would also pay for a new coffee machine. Please help me to decide. I would like to buy a new coffee machine, a Gaggia or a Rancilio Silvia. I can't decide which one. I found an article comparing Gaggia Classic vs. Rancilio Silvia explaining the pros and cons. But I would like to hear your opinion. Thank you

langtounboy

Abie 2 wrote:

Hey there!

Maybe I am a bit off-topic and I would also pay for a new coffee machine. Please help me to decide. I would like to buy a new coffee machine, a Gaggia or a Rancilio Silvia. I can't decide which one. I found an article comparing Gaggia Classic vs. Rancilio Silvia explaining the pros and cons. But I would like to hear your opinion. Thank you

I've had both and find the Silvia a much better machine. If you're planning on any milk based espresso drinks the steam wand on the Silvia is, more powerful, easier to use and a doddle to clean. You'll be achieving latte art with a little practice.
The only downside to the Silvia is you'll have to lift the lid to check the water level unlike the Gaggia which is clear.
Make sure you pair the machine with a decent grinder

alexatkinson903

I think you may buy something like from this list: www.coffee-statistics.com as the beginning. Because there are pretty simple machines for usage, but you can grind the beans by yourself as you wanted.

mrfpb

Having tried various Pact and Monmouth beans, my office is currently enjoying and highly rating the Ikea medium roast (£5 per 500g) via hario drip filter.

andyrr

I've just finished a 1Kg bag of the Lidl beans - these were the Arabica/Robusta ones and in my Gaggia machine it resulted in pretty good espresso.