Espresso at home: worth it?

[Chuckles]

I think it’s only a matter of when. That Behmor is one knife. Ugh. What to sell..

 

[4wa1l]

I've found that a manual Flair lever machine with a hand grinder makes a pretty good espresso for not too much outlay. Certainly better than much of what you will have at a cafe. Not quite at the level of the best shots that you can find though. This setup does have it's cons though. You're limited to darker roasted beans, it takes a fair bit more work than a standard espresso machine and no milk unless you add on a stand alone stovetop boiler with wand.

For my tastes a V60/pour over setup is where home coffee really shines. With a V60, filters, hand grinder and narrow spout kettle, you can make very good coffee at home for relatively little money compared to a high end espresso machine setup. Of course it's different from espresso, but it's pretty amazing the sorts of flavours you can get from two ingredients. Furthermore you can geek out and tinker as much or as little as you want with grinds, ratios, timing etc...

Just to add on about a grinder. I have an older version of the Aergrind here (Aergrind Grinder for Aeropress). I've found it to give a pretty consistent grind and when I purchased it, it represented great value. Not too sure how it stacks up now.

 

[Luftmensch]

It's an expensive hobby. But if you love espresso, and you're not near a cafe, there's no alternative.

Fully agree! The entry price is high but the running costs are fairly low. I was lucky to get a good deal but if I had to replace my machine or grinder I think I'd easily be able to justify it. It is just too embedded in our daily routine to give up (and doubly so with CoVID working from home).

Maintenance on an espresso machine is a must. Gaskets and O rings fail and you really need a filtration system on the water that you use in your machine. We have a LaSanMarco that is plumbed in and we have two filters that we replace once a year. Even with good water scale builds up in time. Plus you must keep your machine clean and back flush on a regular basis. The burrs on the grinders also need to be replaced at some point.

Good points! And it is expensive if you outsource this to a commercial technician. Most of it is pretty simple stuff and within anybody's capability after an hour or so of Googling (or less). If you don't value your labour... this cuts the costs down to raw parts - which are fairly in expensive.

 

[Luftmensch]

Italy is the epicenter of poor espresso. Dark roast robusta-blends and under-dosed shots. Doesn't matter that they have a great culture around coffee, they drink pretty bad stuff.

back then it was definitely the dark roast blends and a lot of hit-you-over-the-head robust shots

In Italy I have had horrible espresso too, yet on average they do OK, not stellar but OK. Sure they love their dark roast with a pinch of Robusta, not roasted anytime recently

ever tried the "bica" in Portugal? People may not see it as the first or best Espresso that comes into everybodys mind, but it has a long tradition, too. Dark and strong... Love it.

Regarding Italy.. the coffee culture has largely changed over the decades and what used to be the coffee capital of the world is no more. Most of that due to the second wave of coffee and the fact the coffee industry had to change due to competitive pricing, eventually affecting quality and control to mass produced product.

You can rarely find a decent cup of coffee, but when you do, it's marvelous.

I guess this is what I mean about cultural awareness! On average, we grow up with a palette that is shaped (and continually adjusted) by the foods in our respective cultures.

I mirror the observations of Italian espresso but am not willing to say it is 'bad' (or even American coffee ). As far as value judgements, I think it is only fair to say "it is not what I like in an espresso". If an Italian came here, they might find our coffee weak and overly milky?

I do agree that cappuccino should only be enjoyed in the morning though.

As far as cappuccinos go, I have no problem drinking them in the afternoon, or even after dinner. And I have ordered them after dinner in Italy. I really don't care what the 'rule' is about it -- that's pretty silly in my opinion.

I agree... rules!? Pah! You like what you like! Personally, I only have cappuccinos after meals. Typically not before noon. I treat them as a transition to dessert since they are commonly served with a garnish of coco powder here. But that is just me. I have friends and family that will have them anytime they choose.

Coffee in Italy was largely awful As mentioned above, though espressos after meals at good places was still ok.
The dedicated coffee and cafe subculture in countries like Australia has elevated it far beyond the origin of the food.
A busy street kerb cafe in Sydney or Melbourne would be Far more likely to serve a good coffee than a busy place in Italy.
Increasingly Singapore is taking after that AU cafe trend too. Though I’ve not checked recently I’m sure the same would have been going on in London and NYC/SF et al

Definitely. I wouldnt be surprised if trained baristas are a minor export of Australia? Australia has many migrant workers taking up jobs in hospitality. Many of them would take those skills/culture home. There is a lot of exchange between Australia/NZ and her geographic neighbours (Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, HK). Also her cultural neighbours (UK, Canada, USA) - I know London has a small bubble of Ozzie caffes in Soho and Kangaroo Valley.

 

[WildBoar]

I guess this is what I mean about cultural awareness! On average, we grow up with a palette that is shaped (and continually adjusted) by the foods in our respective cultures.

I mirror the observations of Italian espresso but am not willing to say it is 'bad' (or even American coffee ). As far as value judgements, I think it is only fair to say "it is not what I like in an espresso". If an Italian came here, they might find our coffee weak and overly milky?

3 out of my 4 grandparents were Italian, born in Italy. So I am well with in my cultural bounds to say I think the espresso is very bold/ rustic, and short on nuanced flavor. And that has it's place. I drank enough of it in a couple trips to Italy to appreciate it for what it is.

But I also know there can be a lot more to it. I started ordering from Counter Culture shortly after getting an espresso machine. The flavors that came out of those beans were a significant difference (and, to me, an improvement) to that I drank in Italy. After a couple of years CC beans had gotten so expensive I needed something a little more economical. A DC-area roaster that had mainly services office buildings resurrected their long-departed coffee shop, and they started roasting a lot of single-origin beans. Since they sold in 5 lb bags, and I could easily drive over and pick them up, I switched to them for a couple of years. Their two espresso blends were fairly one-note and very robust, very much like what I had in Italy. I got these beans for about 2 years before switching back over to something a bit more flavorful, and I have stuck with this other roaster now for 3-4 years (Ceremony Coffee Roasters out of Annapolis). It is just more enjoyable to slowly drink this while reading the paper in the morning than drinking the robust stuff (which you want to drink fast to get it over with).

 

[Rangen]

Never had espresso as good as what I can make at home. Everything has to be just right, though. Grinder is the most important part. I like using Yemen beans (I roast), roasted not over two weeks ago. Older coffee can pass with other brewing methods, but espresso is merciless, exposing any flaws.

Then there's the technique. I was getting oranging until I got a leveler and a convex tamper. I had to use a scale to figure out the right tamping pressure.

When it all came together, it was glorious.

 

[Rangen]

Have been on the verge of picking up a roaster. More equipment! Considering the Gene Cafe, Hottop, or AWC BK. On the fence.

Roasting is indeed a rabbit hole. After cast iron pan (don't recommend) and hand-cranked popcorn popper (worked until the cast metal gears broke, decent results), I got a Hot Top and put 300 roasts on it. It worked well, for an appliance roaster with a 1/2 lb capacity. It's sitting in a cabinet now (I could be persuaded to sell it), because I got a real roaster.

Definitely check out home barista and more dedicated forums if you want to go down the path. There's a very interesting roaster, made by a guy in Taiwan, which uses an induction burner. Name escapes me. But some people who are very serious about roasting have been using one for years. That's if you're inclined toward the managing-it-yourself route.

 

[MarcelNL]

Definitely check out home barista and more dedicated forums if you want to go down the path. There's a very interesting roaster, made by a guy in Taiwan, which uses an induction burner. Name escapes me. But some people who are very serious about roasting have been using one for years. That's if you're inclined toward the managing-it-yourself route.

You may be looking for the Huky 500, it comes from Taiwan, and is using an infrared burner.

OR

The Aillio Bullet roaster is using induction, Danish design, Taiwan production (a bit more expensive than the Huky).

 

[Rangen]

You may be looking for the Huky 500, it comes from Taiwan, and is using an infrared burner.

Yes, thanks, the Huky is the one I had in mind.

 

[AFKitchenknivesguy]

Just got this in yesterday, looking forward to getting it dialed in.

 

[WPerry]

Just got this in yesterday, looking forward to getting it dialed in.

Let us know how it goes. Also, do you have any beans that you've had difficulty with that you plan to try again? I gave up on lighter roasts on my HX, but if I didn't have to temp surf and added pressure profiling, I'd want to give them another whirl.

 

[AFKitchenknivesguy]

These are the beans I use and never had any issues:
https://redbirdcoffee.com/collections/featured-coffees/products/red-bird-espresso&
http://www.caffefresco.us/offerings/suggested_ambrosiaEspresso.php

 

[WildBoar]

That machine looks sweet! And my grinder says 'hi'.