I already mentioned many times that we went through the same methods of trial and error that many of you did in the search of the right espresso equipment.

While choosing espresso machines is pretty complicated task (because of the types of the machines and the features variety), choosing the grinder appears to be a peace of cake. (I always suspected that the limited choice gives you more pleasure than the unlimited one, saving valuable time and nerves)

Yes, there are just 2 types of grinders. What a mercy! In a time where we seem to have unlimited choices, it is sometimes a relief to not have one hundred choices to pick from. There is a blade one and the burr one.

Considering the delicacy of the coffee bean, we wont even discuss such a “beast” as the blade grinder. This grinder can crash frail substance, destroying the aroma and eventually the coffee itself.

Why do people buy them? It is cheaper. Big plus. But do not forget – you are getting what you are paying for. And the last thing we wanted to do – is compromising out coffee

We got our first blade grinder De’Longhi in the discount store for whooping $20. Needless to say we used it only twice. The first time was to try it and the second was in some hope that it would not give us the same results as the first time. Miracles rarely happen and the grinder found his life in the shelf of the Salvation Army store.

I like this old English quote: “we are not so rich to buy a cheap stuff.” And you do not necessary have to pay a fortune for a decent burr grinder. Lelit PL043 is a real gem. This is the most affordable burr grinder on the market. You can get it for about $250 (usually shipping is included in price). And for a home use it is a lifesaver.

The tamping is a very important part of creating a great espresso. After your portafilter is filled with coffee you have to press it down firmly. This process is called tamping. By tamping the coffee hard you are assuming that water will pass through the coffee longer, and this will extract more aroma.

If you skip the tamping, water would pass through much faster causing weak, watery and acidic coffee.
One of the most important things in preparing the coffee is that the taste is consistent from one cup to another. Tamping is an important ingredient in the taste stability, which always has to be done with the similar pressure. Tamper is supposed to help you to get most consistent quality.

Flat or oval base?

There are many opinions abo

ut the shape of the tamper’s base. Europeans are leaning more toward the flat base, Americans to the oval. This practice shows that the flat base is more appropriate for the double portafilter and the oval one for the single. Our main goal is to get even pressure along the coffee platitude in portafilter. Professional baristas usually use tampers with the oval base.

What material?

Many companies are selling tampers that are either plastic or aluminum. From the manufacturer standpoint they are ideal-but the consumer should be aware of some serious disadvantages when considering buying the tamper. Plastic is very light and doesn’t meet the goal to get the maximum pressure and also it is very soft. Aluminum is very light, gets easily scratched, and can become corroded when the humidity is high. This can create small aluminum particles that can get into the human bodies and accruing’ can cause some illnesses. Therefore aluminum is not recommended in the food industry.

A Combination of the stainless steel for the base and hard wood for the handle is the best material for making stainless steel

Diameter portafilter baskets by the different brands:

The tamper diameter has to be 1 mm smaller than the portafilter basket-but not much smaller. Because of the much smaller diameter, pressure is not evenly distributed, thus causing poor quality of espresso.

Diameters:

Astoria – 58mm

Astra – 56mm

Aurora – 56mm

Azykoyen – 58mm

Bezzera – 58mm

Brasilia – 58mm

Bunn – 58mm

Caramali – 58mm

Cimbali – 58mm

Conti – 58mm

Elektra – 58mm

Expobar – 58mm

Faema – 58mm

Futurmat – 58mm

Gaggia – 58mm

Isomac – 58mm

Lelit- 58 mm

La Marzocco – 57mm

La Pavoni – 56mm

Nuova Simonelli – 58mm

Pasquini – 57mm

Rancilio – 58mm

Reneka – 56mm

San Marco – 55mm

Spaziale – 53mm

Unic – 56mm

VFA – 58mm

Wega -58mm

While buying tamper you should remember that the diameters above could be changed. Sometimes when the manufacturer launches the new model, they can change the diameter. Therefore, you should always measure your portafilter diameter before you place your order.

We just came back from Jamaica (it was awesome!). We spent a week there during school vacation.

And, like always, the coffee was one of our top interests. Jamaica is famous for its delicious brand Blue Mountain (one of the Arabic sorts). It began being cultivated there in 1723. Besides the rich natural aroma, the beans get very special shade of the taste because they are put in barrels that previously stored rum. The beans are hard, slick, and have an amazing harmony of aroma and acidity. This brand is highly prized by the coffee connoisseurs, but is pretty expensive ($150 for kg), since the grow quantity is very small (about just 50 tons a year). Unfortunately, many consumers do not know the rarity of this coffee and can be easily tricked into buying what they think is Blue Mountain.

We haven’t had a chance to see the coffee plantations, which are located (guess where?) in the Blue Mountains. Roads are not good and traffic is even worse-it would have taken us whole day and at least 10 hours of driving both ways in order to get there. So we postponed the visit on the coffee plantation for the next time we visit. But we did try coffee in the coffee shop, and at the hotel using the regular coffeemaker with the filter. After comparing these two, my husband asked me the question “Is there any way we can bring our Lelit, next time we come to Jamaica?”

Cappuccino is my favorite drink. It doesn’t have the boldness of the regular espresso and the foam- hmmm…. it is delicious. A cappuccino is nothing more than espresso coffee with frothed milk added. What you will need to make that froth is a milk frother. They are attached on cappuccino machines. This machine will then be able to make both cappuccinos and espressos.

The Coffee cappuccino was born in sunny Italy. It was invented by monks – Capuchins from the monastery on the north from Rome. The monks drank the coffee with the milk only. They noticed that when milk was poured in, the coffee sometimes created foam, which was very pleasant on the taste buds. Monks were deprived of many everyday pleasures. Therefore the pleasure from coffee was one of only pleasures they had the access to.

In order to get the foam in the coffee the milk gets whipped. The results were good but not consistent, and they wanted something special – Alpine snow above the shinned earth. They then recalled drinking coffee with whipped cream. But coffee was hot and the cream was cold. Cold cream and milk is easier to whip.

They started to warm up whipped cream by steam and learned how to whip hot milk or cream mechanically. On the road to God every learning curve is a blessing. It continued for a long time and the rumors about this delightful drink spread all over Italy. The technology was changed by local self -thought mechanic Giuseppe who lived nearby the monastery. He invented the first cappuccino machine.

The whipping machine consisted of 2 compartments. The first one is where the water gets hot, than is turned to the steam and is delivered through the small pipe to the second compartment. The second compartment is where the cream is whipped. This way ( whipped milk by hot pressured steam) was invented in the end of the XIX century by another monk- inventor padre Carlo.

Espresso machines usually fall into four categories:

1. Manual

2. Semi-automatic

3. Fully automatic

4. Super automatic

Your choice depends on how much control you want over the process of making the espresso and how much money you want to spend on your coffee craving. For someone who simply loves the process of making espresso for its aesthetic value, the manual, is the perfect machine. It is also known as the piston.

For homeowners, a semi-automatic can be ideal every day use. It can also be used at small gatherings and parties. If you enjoy performing the steps involved with making a perfect cup of joe-while at the same time letting the machine do some of the work, the semi -automatic traditional espresso machines will certainly be appealing. Proper grinding, dosing, tamping, temperature, pressure, and extraction timing is an art that requires experience and precision.

A fully automatic is a completely automatic household coffee machine. This allows the user to relax while the machine grounds and measures beans and creates single-serving cups of java. The used coffee grounds will be deposited into a trash compartment inside the machine. These machines essentially take all the steps involved in making coffee beverages and completes them for you.

The Super Automatics clean themselves automatically. Some Super Automatic Espresso Machines will even froth and dispense milk automatically. These machines do all of the grinding and dosing to the exact desired dose. They also come with a variety of options such as bypass doses, enabling decaf brewing, animated touch screen, automatic warm up timer, and automatic milk frothing. All of these options add to the luxury and price.

Many people like to compare the espresso machine of their choice to Rancilio Silvia. Although Silvia is very well known and has been on the American market for years, Lelit sells mostly to Europe and Australia. Like always, you pay premium price for the brand name- despite the fact that both machines are of the same quality. You won’t be able to find a brand new Silvia cheaper than $590. The Lelit will cost you almost $100 less.

Lelit PL051 is nearly identical to a Rancilio Silvia. Not to mention it is more forgiving than the Silvia; by that I mean pulling shots with the Lelit is much easier. The Silvia is finicky with grinding whereas the Lelit is not as picky. The internal components are durable and of professional standards; in addition, the stainless steel body is impressive.

The quality of shots for the Lelit is much better than a machine half the price because of the brass boiler. This type of boiler allows for more temperature stability; as a result, the taste of your shots will improve dramatically. The boiler produces dry steam for an extended amount of time because of its construction.

Some people hesitate to buy Lelit because of concern about the service.

This is legitimate concern that is easily resolved by informing the customer of the correct information. Most parts and components in both machines are similar. So, if your Lelit distributor is not in your area you can go to ANY espresso machine service shop and get your service done there. Make sure that this shop is servicing professional espresso machines, so the technicians have the necessary experience needed.

You always can buy exclusive Lelit parts directly from Lelit and ask them to send it directly to the service shop. Of course, there is a warranty period (usually 1 year) in which your distributor will service your machine for FREE!

Came across the great article about the coffee makers review.

http://www.bestelectronicequipment.com/home-appliances/do-you-think-the-time-investment-is-worth-it-98

The author has a great point.