It’s the resin that gets ya.
I have a Hario pouring kettle that’s accurate to within one millimeter and filled with boiling water… so watch out!
I’ve said it before in this thread, provided references, and I’ll say it again: the oils are one of the unhealthiest parts of the coffee, and eliminating them is one of the things that makes me very happy with my paper-filtered Aeropress. Giving up a bit of flavour and oily mouthfeel are worth it.
That’s the first I’d read of that. Is triacylglycerol something special or just a particular triglyceride, ie “a bad fat?”
My somewhat half-educated understanding was that cholesterol either was or wasn’t a problem for individuals depending on their genetics, with some people able to eat 10 whole eggs a day while laughing and others… not so much. I don’t eat a ton of cholesterol-laden foods and I’ve never had that sort of blood work done…
I don’t know enough physiology to tell you the exact mechanism, as my initial interest in coffee came from applying to work with a psychologist who specialized in its well-being boosting properties, mainly from performance benefits. Which, by the way, are significant. I didn’t end up working with him, but I do remember the takeaway message from many of the journal articles I read: 2 cups a day. No more, no less. That’s the amount associated with the most positive outcomes. Causal, correlation, I couldn’t say, but the relationship seemed to be there.
I do know that my family history tends to show that I might be vulnerable to high cholesterol levels, and although the current research pegs the necessary intake levels fairly high (approx. 10 cups a day), I’d rather not risk it.
My mother just got a new kitchen put in. She already has a Nespresso machine and loves it (mainly because my dick father waters down whatever pot of coffee we have going.) Sales lady/designer heard this and convinced her to get a built in coffee machine.
This yoke:
http://www.neff.co.uk/737532.html
The thing makes every fucking kind of coffee under the sun, has a water depot, 18 bar pressure for espressos, which is almost as good as a commercial one and stores and grinds the beans for each cup automatically. This shit is the future.
And speaking of the future, induction hobs? WTF? Boiled half a pot of water in a minute.
Goddamn coffee porn.
I would have lobbied for one of those, but a machine that does everything is just easier for my family.
Your wife has excellent taste in appliances. I much prefer this more cumbersome approach than the one above (because I’m a coffee dork and not just somebody who enjoys drinking coffee)… but having something built in, where you just press a button does have it’s benefits (like me not having to make Chai Tea for my wife because the steamer scares her)
That is amazing. And I already own a superautomatic machine, so this would be the next level of amazing for me.
Is it too late to move back home with your Mom? Also, my biggest word of advice for her is descale OFTEN. The majority of any issues I’ve had with my units has been due to scaling and not keeping on top of it.
So, I’m starting to seriously consider the next step in the road to obsession here and eying up some espresso machines.
This one has caught my attention as a possible option: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B002S51RQG/ref=aw_ls__2?coliid=I3OY17MPLM81N3&colid=2NBH85RAYR6DA
Thoughts?
I currently don’t have a grinder, so it having one is a big plus, but is have no problem buying separate units if needed.
I don’t have a budget set in stone yet, but I’m looking for something that will last and isn’t a cast iron bitch to maintain.
Nah, I wouldn’t get that. Get the following instead, save a couple bucks, and end up with superior coffee.
$200 - Gaggia Color espresso machine. While inexpensive, its internals are actually quite excellent.
$130 - Maestro Plus burr grinder. Another value choice.
I recommend spending the money you saved on half-pound deliveries of espresso dolce blend from espresso vivace, my favorite roasters. You pay their cost for shipping, and they shiop via US post priority mail.
You could also buy some nice espresso cups and latte mugs, maybe a nice long metal spoon, etc. Class up the place a bit.
If you’re really looking to spend, get a rancilio silvia and rocky combo. It’ll run you around a grand.
Personally, I gave up on my massive espresso machine and just grind beans to order then press them through my aeropress. You lose the crema of real espresso, but it’s very easy, fast, and tasty. But I live in a small NYC apartment, if you have the room a real espresso setup can be really nice.
If you do go a Silvia, get a PID controller for it. Don’t worry about the steam PID, just the boiler temp.
After some obsessive research (which is a thing of mine), I think if I’m going to go the spendy route I may have found what I’m looking for.
Machine: Breville BES900XL
Exhaustive look at that model (pre-release from last year). Sounds like they engineered the living shit out of this thing, I’m quite impressed.
Grinder: Baratza Virtuoso Preciso
Another (ridiculously detailed) look at it, though not technically a review.
Alternate Grinder option: Breville BCG800XL Smart Grinder
So, if I go full retard those options seem to be offering quite a lot more utility and ability than the Silvio/Rocky setup, for close enough price point to not be important.
Though I love my Aeropress, being able to get my espresso fix full on at home would be well worth the investment for me.
Isn’t your proposed setup going to run 50% more ($500) than the Silvio/Rocky option? That’s not insubstantial.
Have you used a home espresso machine before? A lot of people discover they don’t really want to be their own barista only after buying expensive espresso machines. Unless you know yourself well, you may be better off with the option Stusser mentioned and just plan on upgrading in a year or so if you decide to stick with it.
Wow, serious stuff. I’m still playing around with my burr grinder that I got for Christmas and the French press I got a few months ago. Maybe it’s the placebo effect, but I think I can taste and smell a real difference even with just the new grinder (press is usually saved for weekends where I only want a cup or two at a time). The coffee is much less bitter and I can keep the whole beans in the grinder’s hopper and then grind them each morning immediately before I brew. I’m still experimenting with different types/brands of beans, which is also fun.
I’m also weaning myself off milk and sweetener in my drip coffee. I figure if I’m going to have this equipment, I shouldn’t waste the result by dumping stuff into it that makes it taste completely different. I’ve ditched milk entirely and am reducing the amount of sweetener I put in. Pure black is the goal.
Well I figure if I bide time this year I can probably snag at least one of my listed options on sale (WS just had a 30% off deal last month, which brought the machine price down to under $900).
I’ve pulled shots from friends machines (which are all different brands and models), it’s not terrible to do once you dial in what you want. Once you get a routine down, it’s really not a huge deal. The annoying part is wasting coffee, getting crap shots at the beginning, but once you get the variables down for that particular unit, it’s much simpler.
I used to think I didn’t want to deal with all that, but years later my thinking has changed a bit. These days I’d rather deal with a bit of hassle and prep myself than go to some coffee shop I don’t really want to be at and throw money at them to not always end up with exactly what I want.
You’re spending a small fortune here, and as with everything you’ll hit severely diminishing returns. They are very well reviewed components and will serve you well. If you end up not using it, you’ll kick yourself, though.
That’s very true. I think as I get older I’m just in general more inclined to do things myself.
Like about a year ago I switched from an electric shaver to a de safety razor and badger brush and haven’t looked back. Sure it takes a bit more care and attention and so forth. In the end though I get an amazing shave and my face has never felt this good after a shave until I made the switch and there are endless ways to customize the results to me personally (different blades, shaving soaps, etc…). That makes the whole thing a lot more personal and I’ve been thrilled with the results.
I think the whole idea of being able to really do it better for me is where those things really win. So in this case, I see it similarly in that there’s a higher (ok MUCH higher) initial output, but the ability to get exactly what you want and tweak it just for yourself is a huge deal in the end.
A quick plug for my pal’s beans-by-mail service. I’ve got a subscription coming into the Gawker office and it’s been great stuff. https://tonx.org/