Coffee: we drink it or we get angry.

Discussion in 'Food and Drink' started by Jeb, Jan 16, 2016.

  1. randytsuch

    randytsuch Friend

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    What size is the portafilter?
    I remember making a bottomless portafilter for my first espresso machine, long retired. It was kind of a pain, and I have a drill press which makes it a lot easier. Bought a hole saw big enough to take the bottom out, and slowly drilled it out on my press.

    My current portafilter was bought, likely from espresso parts, but its a standard e61 sized one.
     
  2. DigMe

    DigMe Friend

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    when I made a bottomless for my old Gaggia (standard E61 sized portafilter) I just used a hole saw bit from a deadbolt kit and a bench vise and it went really well. Just had to take it slowly.
     
  3. ultrabike

    ultrabike Measurbator - Admin

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    I'm going to try an aftermarket 51 mm.

    This one:
    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07JQL9C8V

    Which is supposed to arrive in like 2 more ridiculous weeks, cuz it's cheap.

    I think most non-commercial espresso machines are about 51 mm.
     
    Last edited: Nov 2, 2019
  4. randytsuch

    randytsuch Friend

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    I looked in my closet, and found this guy
    [​IMG]

    https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B0SQR6awlJZrY0tqVlQ2QkJMZFZGTkJpYnNDU2JlY0JzRUtB

    I still don't know how to do images here, but I have a link to the pic too.

    Tabs are a little offset, but likely close enough. Free, just pay for shipping.
    This was from a hamilton beach espresso machine. I drilled a bunch of holes around the edges to take the bottom out, so not a perfect circle, but does the job. I suppose you could file it down to get a better circle if motivated. A triple basket will fit in it as is.
    I can measure it, but its fit in my current machine so its standard 58mm size. I have another one from my gaggia, but the tabs are offset more so less likely to work.
     
  5. Metro

    Metro Friend

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    Saw this posted on the other forum. It wouldn't actually perform better than other kettles, but it's a nice design with glass body so you can see the water level, and inductive heating (no electrical contacts or embedded heating element in the container).

    https://www.chemexcoffeemaker.com/chettle.html
    [​IMG]
     
  6. ultrabike

    ultrabike Measurbator - Admin

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    It might be too big. The Mr Coffee is 58 mm outside diameter. But inside it is 51 mm.

    Thanks!!!
     
  7. DigMe

    DigMe Friend

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    Ooh, thats nice and Id probably break it. :) Back in the US I have two Bonavita goosenecks and I had another before those. My first One broke the neck when I dropped it on tile. The second was just being a bit squirrelly sometimes in how you have to arrange it on the contacts and Bonavita sent me a replacement for free so now I have two. I keep thinking I should get one here but I havent gotten around to it. They are more expensive here.
     
  8. YMO

    YMO Chief Fun Officer

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    I hate you guys. One day I'll do coffee the un-middle eastern method without the Nesspresso.
     
  9. gixxerwimp

    gixxerwimp Professional tricycle rider

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    I've been using a cheapish scale I bought online locally, and while it's reasonably accurate (responds with 0.1g/bean), it tends to be a little sticky and needs a bit of a nudge to update the measurement after/removing adding a few beans.

    I did a quick search and the Acaia Lunar looks ideal in size/height and functionality (although BT and apps are superfluous), but way expensive. The larger Pearl has a price I can stomach more easily, but is too big and thick to fit on top of the drip tray. This Brewista looks ok, but is a bit bigger than I'd like it looks like QC is a problem from the reviews on Amazon.

    Does anyone have any other recommendations?
     
  10. ultrabike

    ultrabike Measurbator - Admin

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    So today I'm going to be reviewing Trader Joe's Ethiopian Sidamo Blend:

    IMG_7478_small.jpg

    I think we paid about $8 or $9 for it. Claims to be 100% Arabica medium roasted. The blend is about two roasting processes: wet and dry. The bag says the flavor should have "notes of cherry and blueberry with alemon and cacao finish".

    FIRST TRY:

    I was disappointed. I tried the drip and to me it tasted too bitter for a medium roast. I next tried the espresso machine, and it somewhat resembled the Trader Joe's Barista blend that flat out does not attempt to claim 100% Arabica. I was about to get the Trader Joe's Organic Ethiopian that I had before and really liked going by memory, but decided to give this a try.

    Did I tasted cherry, blueberry, lemon or cacao? No.

    I'll finish this, but I have had much better, from even Trader Joe's. This is going to need quite a bit of half-and-half. And that's my take on this.

    SECOND TRY:

    Lowered the amount of coffee. Much different. I can feel the special sauce flavors. I don't get the lemon and cacao finish. But the blueberry thingy might be there somewhere. It seems it's still too strong of a dosage. I need to dial down the right amount of coffee to water before I can make a final claim on this.

    I also used the blade grinder this time which proved to be much more inconsistent than the burr grinder as expected. I'll post pictures of the blade vs burr grind, and make some notes.

    THIRD TRY:

    These last impressions are on the last few beans, so not so fresh. I can get the cacao finish. The blueberry deal is still there, somewhere. So is the lemon, which really means acidity. The cherry is bullshit, as it is not there and never was.

    Tasting the extraction of these beans (15 grams into 2 oz espresso shot) vs. fresh (as in same day roasting) professionally pulled espresso, I say this coffee is a bit bitter. Probably due to not being as fresh. But it yields relatively good coffee.

    The last beans yielded this late:

    IMG_7545_small.jpg

    Here are the beans:
    IMG_7479_small.jpg

    To me there seems to be a lot of mishaps in this bag. I'm not even certain all of this is Arabica. Any random scoop yields non-uniform beans. However, down in this thread I was informed that this is normal with Ethiopian coffees. Which means that one is shit out of luck trying to figure out Arabica content on these just by sight.

    VEREDICT: OK for $8.
     
    Last edited: Nov 15, 2019
  11. Eric_C

    Eric_C Friend

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    Yes: American Weigh Scales. My first was this one: https://www.amazon.com/American-Weigh-AWS-100-Digital-Resolution/dp/B0012LOQUQ
    It was fast and accurate, and the battery lasted forever. I "upgraded" to Hario scales but tbh i find them laggy--a bit like the one you're using, it doesn't always respond when 1-2 beans are added/removed.
     
  12. ultrabike

    ultrabike Measurbator - Admin

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    This is a great recommendation. We have one, but the battery does not last. This runs on 2xAAA instead of CR32 or similar. I bought it a few seconds ago!
     
  13. DigMe

    DigMe Friend

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    Ehtiopian and yemeni beans are like that as far as nonuniform shape goes. Totally normal. As far as the flavors.. What is the roast date?
     
  14. gixxerwimp

    gixxerwimp Professional tricycle rider

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    I'd like to use it to measure the weight of each shot, so water resistance would be a plus. Sure can't beat the price though. I'll check if have another model with a form factor that better suits the drip tray.
     
  15. ultrabike

    ultrabike Measurbator - Admin

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    I dunno. But it says "Best by 08/27/20".
     
  16. randytsuch

    randytsuch Friend

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    Problem with Trader Joes beans is they don't put the roasted on date. You can only try to guess based on the expiration date. So you might be getting stale beans.

    I'd look for a roaster down in OC, or go to a "third wave" coffee place, they should sell good beans with roasted on dates. Some markets even sell good beans, but when I've seen them they are usually stale at markets.

    I used to go to Intelligentsia (sp?) in Santa Monica to buy beans, but Redbird is cheaper when I buy 5lb bags.
     
  17. ultrabike

    ultrabike Measurbator - Admin

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    After I finish this up, I'll give TJ's Organic Ethiopian and their Tarrazu another try. But after that I might give these other guys a visit:

    https://www.bodhileafcoffee.com/

    I've been there, and I think they roast stuff fresh. We'll see.
     
  18. winders

    winders boomer

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    I don't use roasted coffee beans until 5 days after the roasting date and try to use them up within 2 weeks of opening them. I never grind them until I need to use them.

    After opening I store them in a cool dry place. Not the refrigerator or freezer.
     
  19. DigMe

    DigMe Friend

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    For natural processed ethiopians if you want to get that chracteristic berry flavor then its best to buy fresh and light-roasted. These tend to be my favorites.
     
  20. randytsuch

    randytsuch Friend

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    They sell green coffee (stuff Marv buys to roast), so I'd be really surprised if they didn't have freshly roasted beans.
    Its easy to tell, the bags will have a roasted on date that I keep going on about lol.

    Did a quick search, Portela seems to have a good rep too.

    If you go to one of these places, I'd recommend ordering a double shot (they should default to a double) of espresso and see how you like it. I would expect they know how to pull a good shot. They also take more care (from what I've seen) when you order a shot vs a milk drink. Milk hides mistakes, and they figure you're serious if you drink shots.

    @DigMe Love blueberry notes in a good Eth.
     

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