My fine new Italian machinery

[Fresh Pants]

Nice. 

I have an Isomac Zaffiro, and although not an auto or semi-auto, makes a mean espresso. But, since I'm grinding beans (in a separate grinder) and packing my own shots, it does make a bit of a mess.

And a big +1 to not doing the home espresso thing to save money (even if it does sort of...).

When you got it home, did you make a whole bunch of shots and end up being all wired at 10PM playing with the machine? I did when I first got mine. 

[mstevens]

If anyone is looking for quality machines. I would recommend these.


http://www.bialettishop.com/EspressoMakerMainPageElectric.htm

Bialetti invented the stovetop "moka pot," but the innards on their electric espresso machines are made by Breville. Nothing wrong with that, but one might as well buy a Breville. A "moka pot" can make good coffee, but it's not really the same thing as espresso - for one thing, extraction takes a lot longer. For another, the grind is different. I started with a Bialetti years ago in college but never quite got the hang of it. I have had some extremely good coffee out of a moka pot - a friend seems to have the knack.

That "Mokona" model http://www.bialettishop.com/MokonaMain.htm is both cute and ironic.

Like DP said, Love the write up.  As I read it I began to read faster and faster and began to get this mental picture of you all hyped up on and honkin, on caffeine and speed talking.  Too funny. 

LA

Great-the doctor is overcaffeinated.


Almost as bad as the painter being drunk 

Huh? Wha'? Everything was going by too fast for me to catch that.

As it turns out, the official solution of the Queensland, Australia health authorities to patient deaths due to sleep deprivation in doctors working in state-run hospitals for 80 hours without a break is... to drink coffee! http://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSTRE5874AG20090908

we haven't caved in yet to doing it at home....part of the morning is going out for me.

If there were anywhere around here where I could do that, I might. There's a Dunkin Donuts in the town where I work and a place with a decent machine that I've never seen used - if they'd let me back there, I could probably get a reasonable shot but I've never gotten one from the cashier that runs it. I must admit I'm emphatically not a morning person, so the extra time spent getting to someplace, ordering, sitting there, getting back up, etc. might still be a deal-killer for lazy ol' me.

I have an Isomac Zaffiro

Niiiiiiiiiiiice! I recently drooled over one of those in Montreal.

As I see it, your machine is to my machine as a Ducati Monster is to a modern Vespa. Many similarities, but also many differences.

When you got it home, did you make a whole bunch of shots and end up being all wired at 10PM playing with the machine? I did when I first got mine. 

Well, duh! Fortunately, the beans I had on hand were decaf, but even so I probably ended up getting a decent dose of our favorite methylxanthine. I finally had to quit when the grinder kept my wife from sleeping.

[Kopfjäger]

Bialetti invented the stovetop "moka pot," but the innards on their electric espresso machines are made by Breville. Nothing wrong with that, but one might as well buy a Breville. A "moka pot" can make good coffee, but it's not really the same thing as espresso - for one thing, extraction takes a lot longer. For another, the grind is different. I started with a Bialetti years ago in college but never quite got the hang of it. I have had some extremely good coffee out of a moka pot - a friend seems to have the knack.

 

They make an espresso machine as well. 

http://www.bialettishop.com/ConcertoMain.htm

[The Architect]

Great piece of equipment!

It's hard enough to find a cup of espresso around here, forget a good cup.  So the next time I'm in your neck of the woods, I'm stopping by for a cup      

We have a yuppie coffee place here in town.  You can get almost any kind of cup of coffee.  They have a great machine but no one to use it correctly.  I get a cup every now and then.  I'm think a shot of Klotz may be a tastier.  It sure does smell better.  I'm almost tempted to walk behind the counter and make it myself.



I picked up a simple machine with a little advice from Good Eats

Good Eats S10E19 Espress Yourself (1/2) 

[bluemoco]

I watched pts 1 and 2 of that Food Network show - interesting!  I am a little curious as to why he used a French Press (in part 2) to make a 'Faux Latte'.  He should have used a Moka pot.   

Thanks for a great thread, mstevens!   

[mstevens]

the next time I'm in your neck of the woods, I'm stopping by for a cup      

Feel free.

I'm think a shot of Klotz may be a tastier.  It sure does smell better.

It's about all I can do not to taste the stuff every time I have a bottle open. Sometimes I think half my obsession with Monsters has to do with my first one having been filled with Klotz!

Yours? Purrrrty!

That show of Alton's was actually what got me thinking about espresso machines when I saw it a few months ago. I eventually realized that even with my deep love of toys and mucking about with stuff that doing espresso the traditional way would mean I'd only ever do it at night, which seemed as if it might be a mistake.

I still lust after a machine like Fresh Pants's, but the superauto is much more realistic for me.
For example, I brought a double cappuccino (which my co-workers insist on calling a "latte," so I might as well, too) to work this morning. I can just barely remember making it. With a manual or semiauto, I would have been stuck with the office paint remover.

[Fresh Pants]

From the other day.

I'm all out of beans today though. 
Guess I'll go get some more. 

After watching the Good Eats episode, I feel like having an espresso. Its fun to make coffee!

I still lust after a machine like Fresh Pants's, but the superauto is much more realistic for me.
For example, I brought a double cappuccino (which my co-workers insist on calling a "latte," so I might as well, too) to work this morning. I can just barely remember making it. With a manual or semiauto, I would have been stuck with the office paint remover.

Since when have our Italian machines really been all that realistic/practical? (Monster included)
Sure there are other ways to make coffee, but whatever the machine, we're doing it because its something we "must" have.

[Pip]

Gawd! Now I want a good esspresso machine...

Dammit. 

[stopintime]

Maybe this is the thread with the right crowd to make an old dream come true

I've not been able to forget how Ducati/espresso correct it would be to have this sticker above my turn signal switch.
It's a photo shop by a DMF'er.

Ooooh nice ......

[mstevens]

Maybe this is the thread with the right crowd to make an old dream come true

I've not been able to forget how Ducati/espresso correct it would be to have this sticker above my turn signal switch.
It's a photo shop by a DMF'er.

Ooooh nice ......

Thanks - I'd seen that before and couldn't find it.

[Bun-bun]

What coffee(s) are you using in your espresso machine? Do you use a specialty espresso only coffee, or a "regular" arabica like kona, sumatran, etc.?

[OT_Ducati]

chock fullo'nuts

[Bun-bun]

chock fullo'nuts

Hey! Don't get personal.

[Howie]

Celebes Kalossi Italian roast, mmsmooth, but hard to get a good crema.

[mstevens]

What coffee(s) are you using in your espresso machine? Do you use a specialty espresso only coffee, or a "regular" arabica like kona, sumatran, etc.?

Espresso is just a method of preparing coffee using a fairly large amount of very finely ground coffee, high pressure, and rapid extraction. There really isn't any such thing as "espresso-only" coffee. People use all sort of coffees to make espresso. Finding what you like is half the fun. I've used some very pedestrian supermarket beans (intended for "regular" coffee, not espresso) to make some perfectly drinkable espresso. If you like a coffee prepared by other methods (filter, French press, etc.), you'll probably like it as espresso whether it's Chock Full O' Nuts or anything else. If it's no good those ways, subjecting it to the torture of an espresso machine probably won't improve it.

That said, I do have some thoughts and some personal preferences.

1) Espresso does require the proper grind, and most pre-ground coffee won't work. If you're grinding your own, the grinder matters more than the espresso machine. An expensive grinder with a cheap machine will make better espresso than an expensive machine with a poor grinder. Once you grind coffee, it starts to deteriorate very quickly. Very. My espresso is brewed a second after it's ground. If you must buy pre-ground coffee, get tiny amounts and use it fast. I think you said in another thread you were shopping for a Saeco superautomatic, in which case you want whole beans anyway.

2) The mermaid place burns its beans. Some like this. Some hate it. They'd have you believe espresso beans have to be cinders, but it's not true.

3) Roast preferences vary across Italy, but range from what many Americans would call "medium-dark" in the south to "medium" or "light" in the north. The French (in what they call "expresso") tend to use lighter roasts than the "French roast" they use for cafe au lait, which is made with drip or press coffee. Either way, it's not "espresso roast."

4) A lot depends on whether you plan to put milk in your coffee. Many Italian blends that are intended for morning drinking (the only time they use milk) have more robusta beans, while afternoon/evening blends are more likely to be all-Arabica since they'll be drunk neat or with booze in them.

5) Superautomatic machines may be unhappy with especially oily beans which tend eventually to gunk up the works.

You should strongly consider trying a can of Illy "Normale" roast beans. It may not be the world's absolute best espresso, but it should give you a very good idea of what millions of people think of as an excellent blend and roast profile. It's expensive, and you may need to check dates on cans unless you buy from a mail-order place that moves a lot of coffee. Many people think Illy deteriorates very quickly once opened, which is probably why they put it in 250g cans.

My everyday beans are currently Lavazza Super Crema. It's quite decent either with milk or on its own. Everyone for whom I've made drinks with it likes it. It isn't stellar, but isn't weird either and has no particular faults. It's not as outrageously priced as Illy and doesn't stale as fast. For some reason, I tend to want to use Italian coffee in my machine and Lavazza is the Folger's of Italy.

My current overall favorite, especially for straight shots, is a monsooned Malabar ("Malaber Gold") from wholelattelove.com. Unfortunately, I fear it's oily enough to gum up the innards of my superauto if used too often. That's probably why it makes such a ridiculous crema. We seriously spoon the crema out of the cup after we've drunk the coffee because it's so thick and persistent.

Your best bet is to go to the places near you that do their own roasting, if there are any, and try small amounts of various things until you find what you like. Many people work with a local roaster to develop their own blend. Some get in to roasting at home. Since I don't have any roasters nearby, I buy mail-order.