This is a multi-part message in MIME format. Just to alleviate any misconceptions, IMO just as a decent home roast is fairly simple to achieve so is learning to pull a decent shot. The required skills to pull a "decent shot" are not that difficult to learn, again IMO. Decent shot defined as a shot better than you'll get 99% of the time "out there"! It's only when continually trying to improve and learn does home roasting become a never ending journey, same for espresso excellence. And whether merely "decent", better than most commercially available, is fine by you or whether either journey is for you is a matter of personal choice. No need to be afraid of the Dark Side! Kona Konnaisseur miKe mcKoffee URL to Rosto mods, FrankenFormer, some recipes etc:http://mdmint.home.comcast.net/coffee/Rosto_mod.htmUltimately the quest for Koffee Nirvana is a solitary path. To know I must first not know. And in knowing know I know not. Each Personal enlightenment found exploring the many divergent foot steps of Those who have gone before. Sweet Maria's List - Searchable Archiveshttp://themeyers.org/HomeRoast/ From: homeroast-admin [mailto:homeroast-admin] On Behalf Of Larry Johnson Sent: Thursday, April 05, 2007 5:14 PM I definitely feel the temptation, but just as I'm starting to look at machines and grinders, someone will start a thread about backflushing the E61 with citric acid into the HX boiler while temp surfing (whatever THAT is) the SO God-shot with the bottomless portafilter with the thing and the other thing ..... and I figure my life is complicated enough. Look, I'm a old ex-field engineer, spent 29 years troubleshooting variable speed drives and DCS systems in paper mills, steel mills etc.; worked on variable frequency drives that ran off of 4160 volts and drove 6000 HP motors; and so far I've managed to break 2 Fresh Roasts, 1 Poppery2, and now my iRoast produces about half the heat that it did when I bought it 4 months ago (just enough to bake the beans in 15 minutes). Coffee technology is too much for me, man. I got a BM/HG, 1 working Poppery2, a Solis Maestro, a Presto Scandinavia, a French Press and a Moka Pot. That's all I can handle. Oh, and I like the coffee. Especially from the Moka Pot. Which is just like espresso, right? >shields up< |
Mike you are right on! I hope we don't scare anyone away with our obsession to push the envelope all of the time. Actually, I have stepped back in the last few months and am just enjoying great coffee. Les On 4/5/07, miKe mcKoffee wrote: <Snip> |
I don't mind pushing the envelope, but I mind defining 'decent' as 99th percentile. That's harsh judgement! On 4/5/07, Les wrote: <Snip> |
This is a multi-part message in MIME format. It may be "harsh" but it's the sad reality. Kona Kurmudgeon miKe mcKoffee URL to Rosto mods, FrankenFormer, some recipes etc:http://mdmint.home.comcast.net/coffee/Rosto_mod.htmUltimately the quest for Koffee Nirvana is a solitary path. To know I must first not know. And in knowing know I know not. Each Personal enlightenment found exploring the many divergent foot steps of Those who have gone before. Sweet Maria's List - Searchable Archiveshttp://themeyers.org/HomeRoast/ From: homeroast-admin [mailto:homeroast-admin] On Behalf Of Floyd Lozano Sent: Thursday, April 05, 2007 6:57 PM I don't mind pushing the envelope, but I mind defining 'decent' as 99th percentile. That's harsh judgement! On 4/5/07, Les wrote: Mike you are right on! I hope we don't scare anyone away with our obsession to push the envelope all of the time. Actually, I have stepped back in the last few months and am just enjoying great coffee. Les On 4/5/07, miKe mcKoffee wrote: Just to alleviate any misconceptions, IMO just as a decent home roast is fairly simple to achieve so is learning to pull a decent shot. The required skills to pull a "decent shot" are not that difficult to learn, again IMO. Decent shot defined as a shot better than you'll get 99% of the time "out there"! |
I have to agree on this. Even though there is a loose nut behind the portafilter handle on my Gaggia, my shots beat every espresso shot I have purchased. What temp should the water be that you add to the shot to make an Americano? Eddie -- Docendo Discimus Home Coffee Roasting Blog and Profiles for the Gene Cafehttp://themeyers.org/HomeRoast/On 4/5/07, miKe mcKoffee wrote:">http://southcoastcoffeeroaster.blogspot.com/Sweet Maria's List - Searchable Archiveshttp://themeyers.org/HomeRoast/On 4/5/07, miKe mcKoffee wrote: <Snip> |
LOL, there's a loose nut AND a loose cannon behind my PF!:-) Americano water temp wise I use ~190f water from (filter fed) hot water on demand unit at the sink. No complaints serving dozens of various home roast guests multiple Gatherings etc. Kona Konnaisseur miKe mcKoffee URL to Rosto mods, FrankenFormer, some recipes etc:http://mdmint.home.comcast.net/coffee/Rosto_mod.htmUltimately the quest for Koffee Nirvana is a solitary path. To know I must first not know. And in knowing know I know not. Each Personal enlightenment found exploring the many divergent foot steps of Those who have gone before. Sweet Maria's List - Searchable Archiveshttp://themeyers.org/HomeRoast/ <Snip> |
Floyd, Floyd Lozano wrote: <Snip> I find 99th percentile may be harsh, but not an unrealistic definition of 'Decent' for the folks in this group. Just using fresh homeroast gets you a substantial portion toward that 99%. And the more commercial shops that I visit, the more I become convinced that the shops pulling shots that compare favorably, are few and far between. The unusual shop that does, however, pull high quality shots ...... should (must) be coddled, and praised at every opportunity - - example: espresso bar in the Powells Bookstore - Hawthorne Blvd. Annex (Portland, Or.). Mike (just plain) |
"LOL, there's a loose nut AND a loose cannon behind my PF!:-)" I have to agree on this ... :-) ... LOL Thanks, Eddie On 4/5/07, miKe mcKoffee wrote: <Snip> -- Docendo Discimus Home Coffee Roasting Blog and Profiles for the Gene Cafehttp://southcoastcoffeeroaster.blogspot.com/Sweet Maria's List - Searchable Archiveshttp://themeyers.org/HomeRoast/ |
Hmmm... I use the hot water output from my Livia. You don't suppose that is too hot do you? I guess I could measure that temp to see what it is. They have always been wonderful. Michael On Apr 5, 2007, at 10:51 PM, miKe mcKoffee wrote: LOL, there's a loose nut AND a loose cannon behind my PF!:-) Americano water temp wise I use ~190f water from (filter fed) hot water on demand unit at the sink. No complaints serving dozens of various home roast guests multiple Gatherings etc. Kona Konnaisseur miKe mcKoffee URL to Rosto mods, FrankenFormer, some recipes etc:http://mdmint.home.comcast.net/coffee/Rosto_mod.htmUltimately the quest for Koffee Nirvana is a solitary path. To know I must first not know. And in knowing know I know not. Each Personal enlightenment found exploring the many divergent foot steps of Those who have gone before. Sweet Maria's List - Searchable Archiveshttp://themeyers.org/HomeRoast/<Snip> |
While an HX machines boiler water temp is well above 212f if the Americano tastes wonderful to you then the water temp is fine! For instance @1bar boiler ~253f, 1.2bar ~257f. That is not to say the water will be that hot when it exits the water wand since it will no longer be under pressure. Hmmm, just checked what the water coming from my Bric's water wand with boiler set 1.2-1.25bar pstat toggle is via fast response Thermopen thermometer: ~209f. Seems a bit high for drinkabliltiy. That was drawing water into pre-heated SS pitcher. If "building" your Americano pulling hot water into the cup then pulling the shot into the hot water, the water wand hot water would of course have cooled some. But it does seem wander wand water could be a bit high if pulling the shot then adding the hot water. I use the hot water on demand unit simply from habit and it's convenient. With Silvia it also at first meant not depleting the tank water faster leading to filling the tank more often. (after float valve auto-fill mod became moot, but continued using hot water on demand unit.) With direct filled Bricoletta not tank to fill but still use hot water on demand unit, again 'cuz that what it's there for, hot water on demand! However, using the boiler water for Americanos with an HX machine actually has a beneficial preventative maintenance side effect. Regardless the water used if it has any mineral content at all over time the mineral content concentration will increase in the boiler. While steaming pure water in the form of steam leaves the boiler leaving what ever minerals it had behind. When enough water is steamed out the boiler re-fills, but the minerals from previous fills haven't left, so now overall boiler mineral content slightly higher than what it was. One of the preventative maintenance tricks to help keep HX boiler mineral content down is simply to regularly flush water out the water wand drawing in new water diluting the accumulated boiler mineral content. By using the boiler water for Americanos on a regular basis you're doing that already! On tank machines can easily really drive boiler mineral content down by flushing boiler with distilled water occasionaly. Since you won't be totally "replacing" the boiler water with distilled water but rather diluting, enough minerals left behind for proper auto-fill functionality. You can do the same thing with a direct plumbed HX machine but it's more hassle since it's not simply filling the tank with distilled water to flush the boiler. Kona Kurmudgeon miKe mcKoffee URL to Rosto mods, FrankenFormer, some recipes etc:http://mdmint.home.comcast.net/coffee/Rosto_mod.htmUltimately the quest for Koffee Nirvana is a solitary path. To know I must first not know. And in knowing know I know not. Each Personal enlightenment found exploring the many divergent foot steps of Those who have gone before. Sweet Maria's List - Searchable Archiveshttp://themeyers.org/HomeRoast/ <Snip> |
Mike remember when I was at your house with The Brute and I made Debi a few Americanos with him? She kept saying how good the Americano was. I pulled the hot water from the boiler of the Brute not from your sink doohickey. I always make my Americanos from the steam boiler. Try it you will like it. |
This sounds like the beginning of "green espresso and ham" Would you could you, from the sink? Try it. You'll like it, I think ;- ) On 4/6/07, Barry Luterman wrote: <Snip> -- John Nanavati Plainfield, New Jersey |