WhyFi

Now you need a good burr grinder.

seedsbelize 

I'm still one handed, for at least a couple more weeks. Beyond that I don't know. There is the issue of repairing the tendon. How long that takes to heal I have no idea. So jigsaw puzzling remains in my immediate future.

Trsnrtr

I've got a burr grinder.

seedsbelize 

$17,000?

WhyFi

Cool! Is it worthy of the new machine? Most coffee geeks spend about half as much on their grinder as they do on the machine.

Lemond1985

Picked up one of these, used, off Ebay a couple of months ago for $150. It's a Saaco, and with their racing team sponsorship, I had to have it. I wanted something simple with as few things as possible that could break. It's designed for restaurant use, so it's pretty heavy duty.





It only makes two 1 1/2 oz shots at a time. But it's full-strength 15 bar espresso, just like you get at Starbucks. None of that watery, Mr. Coffee simulated espresso. Glad I bought it, but now I'm making 15 cups a day, so I may need an intervention at some point.

Trsnrtr

No, it is not. I'll probably have to buy a new grinder.

seedsbelize 

11, and 1111 turn up quite a bit in my world. But 9 is the magic number(which has yet to pay off).
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Trsnrtr

I already need an intervention.

Trsnrtr

Seriously, I have trouble getting a consistent grind out of mine and I know that it will probably drive me nuts. I'll probably end up ordering a new grinder by the end of the week. We'll see.

In the meantime, do you have one to recommend?

Trsnrtr

For the record, I got up at 7 AM and it's now 8:15 and I'm palpitating. My cardiologist wants me to limit my coffee intake and he would not be proud this morning.

Lemond1985

Please, send that espresso machine back now, while you still can! You'll never survive the draw of unlimited "free" espresso shots. Trust me on this, the cups are so small, it's very easy to drink too much without realizing it.

WhyFi

Even on larger home machines like mine, that are based on commercial grouphead designs, you're usually getting a portafilter basket designed for a double. For home use, there's really not a need for more.

WhyFi

I haven't looked at grinders in a while. The one to look at in that category used to be the Rancilio Rocky, but I don't know what they're going for these days.

BillyD

HEY! Coffee is serious business.

WhyFi

I don't know how you guys can do it. Most mornings. I have one latte (double). Two or three times a week, I'll do another latte or an Americano. Any more than that would have me wired.

Lemond1985

I just bought a $70 used burr grinder, one you can take apart and clean, after staring at them for a couple hours. Tried to find something simple not made in China.

Trsnrtr

I believe you! I'm currently using a Nespresso Vertuo and run two of their double espresso shot pods through it every morning just to get started. I throw that cup down in about two seconds. Then, I follow that up with two cups from my Aeropress. Getting ready to run the Aeropress as I type.

Trsnrtr

Mine is $50 Cuisenhart that my local coffee shop told me would work for making coffee at home but my barista didn't know that I was going to buy an espresso machine at some point or I'm sure he wouldn't have recommended it.

Anyway, I'll go into research mode this week. Something to do during the stay at home...

WhyFi

You can buy little bean-like things to run through your grinder to clean it out - effective and way, way easier than taking them apart. Either check with your Local Kitchen Store or find 'em online.

Trsnrtr

It's going for $370 at Whole Latte Love. Haven't looked elsewhere, yet, but that's doable.

BillyD

Speaking of numbers, here's something you don't see every day. The temperature is virtually uniform on almost the entire east coast. (Oyster Bay is in Long Island, Cape May is in So. Jersey, Laurel is in Maryland, New Paltz, Poughkeepsie and Syracuse are in upstate, NY))

WhyFi

I started down the road when I found a Francis! Francis! X1 that someone had put on the curb in Brooklyn. One of the LED indicator lights had burned out but it worked as it should. This was shortly after Christmas, so I guess Santa thought it needed replacing. Anyway, I had a similar inexpensive burr grinder and wasn't happy with the inconsistency. I did a wee bit of a upgrade and got my current Mazzer Mini. The Mazzer put out grinds much finer and more uniform, so much so that the X1 wasn't worthy and would choke unless I dialed it back and fed slightly more coarse grounds than ideal. So I did the obvious thing - I upgraded the X1 to my current Anita. That free machine cost me a lot.

Seriously, though, it's been about 14 or 15 years since I bought that stuff. I've never regretted it and I figure that it's paid for itself a few times over.

BillyD

I love coffee dearly but I'm not a big fan of feeling wired, so normal drip coffee is fine with me, black no sugar.

Expresso is a rare treat, which happens to be well overdo. Lemme see, how long will it take me to get to Trsnrtr's house?

WhyFi

That's gone up, but not horrible considering how long it's been, I'm sure it's been upgraded a time or two, as well. WLL and ChrisCoffee in NY were my go-to - both great places.