Home roasting is a beautiful thing. It saves tons of money, and you are always drinking what you love.
Category Archives: Highly Caffeinated
Home Roasted Guatemala
Today’s home roasted Guatemala. Yumm.
Gaggia Classic Espresso Shot with Good Grinder
I did a video with the Gaggia Classic and a budget grinder to prove you could get a really nice shot with a setup that you could get out the door with at about $500.
So, now, here’s the reason you always hear people talk about the grinder, grinder grinder, when giving advice on making better espresso at home. Here’s a shot with the Gaggia Classic and a good grinder, the Macap M2M. This setup is closer to $1000 out the door new (machine and grinder).
Note that I did use a slightly different technique here and different beans, but that really made little difference to the overall outcome. In the budget shot, I used a single origin, natural process Sumatra bean…which produces great crema. In this shot I used a blend, but plain and simple, the better grinder yields a better shot.
Starbucks Rewards Revamp
Starbucks is pulling a fast one folks!!! You already know I don’t like their coffee…in fact it’s total crap. But, they apparently are taking advantage of the fact that most people can’t do simple math anymore with their new Starbucks Rewards program.They are revamping their Starbucks Rewards system starting April 1st…because “we listened to you”. Instead of 1 star per visit, it’s now 2 stars per dollar you spend…ok…so what? Instead of 30 stars to Gold level, it’s 300 stars…wait…hold the phone…menu please?
I’ll round a bit here to make the math easy, but a cup of coffee is $2 (forget all the fancy-schmancy drinks). So, with the old program, a coffee a day for 30 days got you Gold level for a total of $60.
Under the new program, Gold level costs you a flat bargain price of $150!!! So, for the addicts, this is good news, they will reach Gold faster and not much changes. For the people like me that got an ice tea once in a blue moon…no Gold for you (and no rewards either!) Starbucks just pocketed a shitload more money out all of you…because they guarantee at least $150 is spent before rewards are reached.
New Grinder! Macap M2M
I just got a new grinder and boy am I happy. It is the Macap M2M Espresso Grinder. I picked it up at 1st Line. This is labeled as a “commercial” grinder. And I can see that working in a small cafe. But, it’s not fast enough to work in a really high volume shop. However, the Macap M2M is built like a tank, and the small footprint is excellent for home application. You can read my full review here.
Happy Valentine’s Day
Not only is fresh coffee better tasting, a little practice and skill at home and you can wish your loved one Happy Valentine’s Day without having some hipster barrista taking all the credit.
Machine: Gaggia Classic
Coffee: Jumped Up Little Germ Coffee Roasters “Trunch” Blend Espresso
Time for a Gaggia Classic
I decided that the ROK wasn’t going to cut it anymore in my apartment in NY and I needed to upgrade to a machine that still had a budget price, but could keep me from missing my Bezzera BZ10 so much. I picked up a Gaggia Classic espresso machine (review here) and I am happy.
I did the Rancillio steam wand mod immediately and I highly recommend you do it too. This machine is small, but performance is superb.
Brewing Myth – Brew Water Too Hot
The brewing myth goes something like this: If you use boiling water you will “burn” or “scald” your coffee thus making it bitter.
This, for lack of a better word is complete bullshit. Coffee is roasted at temperatures approaching 500 degrees F. 212 degree water cannot burn the ground coffee. It’s physically impossible.
So, why do you end up with bitter coffee if the water is too hot? The answer is quite complex, but simple at the same time. Extracting coffee is a chemistry project. The water dissolves elements of the bean and the result is brewed coffee. Like most chemistry projects, time and temperature affect the end result. If you use water that is too hot, you will extract the parts of the bean that are bitter first and the rest of the yummy part will be over shadowed. But, you can get this same result using too fine a grind or too long a steep.
So, yes, brew water too hot will give you a bitter result, but it’s NOT because the grounds are being burned.
ROK Espresso Shot
A shot of home roasted Yemen Mocha Sharasi from Sweet Marias with the ROK Espresso.
Culture 36 (Culture Espresso)
Culture 36 is the 36th street location (between Broadway and 8th Ave) for Culture Espresso (main store on 38th near Bryant Park). One of my tests when I walk in to a shop is to ask, “how are you dosing your portafilters?” If I don’t get a coherent answer I usually order water.
The answer here? “19gr in 36 out”. Off to a good start.
I got a flat white and my 8yr old daughter got a hot chocolate. Both came with well crafted latte art, and my daughter says her’s was better (a nice 3 level tulip). The coffee is from Heart Roasters in Portland and is very nice (a nice legit medium roast…not typical 3rd wave under-roasted pseudo medium). If the coffee strikes you the right way, you can purchase a bag to take home.
The shop it self is reasonably sized for NY which is a treat…there’s room to sit and actually move. And, if you are a WiFi junkie, there’s free WiFi here. The music selection was also very nice. Wilson Pickett was on when I walked in.
Another nice feature of Culture 36 is their house baked cookies. The chocolate chip cookie we had was large, moist and gooey…just how it should be.
If you are in the theatre/dance world and spend stupid amounts of time at Ripley Grier, check this place out.