In this thread you can share what new coffee, equipment, techniques etc. you have tried this week.
What have you enjoyed and what didn’t you like? Have you learned anything new?
I hadn’t used my espresso machine for a few months and the limescale was … wow. Just no flow at all. Clogged solenoid valve again. Its all good now tho, and I’m mostly doing the allonge and sprover recipes from Lance’s recent video, which were what inspired me to dust off the machine. Lance pointed out that you don’t actually need to control the pump pressure for those recipes, since with a coarser grind the machine will never reach too high of a pressure. And altho my hacked Gaggia can do pressure adjustments it’s a PITA so I rarely ever did it. These recipes do taste better with a lower brew temperature tho, so I’ll probably forget to dial it back up then wonder why my normale tastes like battery acid at some point in time.
Why’d I stop using the machine? I went v60-only for a while to try to decide if my Vario grinder was good enough for that, or a needed an upgrade. Its pretty damn good, but i might upgrade anyway. If you keep it calibrated to where it can do espresso, the very coarsest setting is still too fine for some coffees in a v60. Especially with slower filters like Abaca-plus or t-92.
Made such a small change two weeks ago that had more of an impact than I’d imagine!
I use the Fellow Ode 2 as my grinder; I unfortunately still have the stock burrs but hope to upgrade eventually. One thing that had always frustrated me was its retention. It started out mild but began to retain full grams. I’d clean the burrs, the anti-static pins, use the knocker, bang on the sides… It just never seemed to make a difference. I finally looked into it and found out about RDT (Ross Droplet Technique)! I started slightly wetting my beans, stirring them with a metal chopstick dipped in water. I always preheat my coffee glass, carafe, and dripper, so I conveniently have water to dip into. Since doing this, I’ve had almost no measurable retention! Definitely recommend if your grinder seems to hold onto your coffee!
Next thing I need to address is my scale 😵💫 it has unfortunately become very unreliable.
I haven’t needed to RDT on my hand grinder but when I get an electric grinder I’m sure I’ll need to. It’s crazy how effective it can be, from what I’ve heard.
I almost always use RDT with my Ode 2. In my experience some beans need it more than other but it generally is better to use RDT.
Not really directly about the coffee but my go-to coffee shop now https://ray-jules.com/ here in Belgium just had a promotion of animal-based bags and is giving 10% of the revenue from the series to a belgian conservation group.
I am trying to improve my Moka pot technique lately. I bought some cheaper beans for that to make many trials without too much remorse. They are very high roast despite the package stating it’s “5/10 intensity”.
The coffee I obtain is pretty tasty when made into a milk drink (cappuccino or latte), but still very harsh and bitter on it own.
I have also tried with some of the expensive beans I am currently enjoying as filtered coffee. The result was disgusting. Even worse than the cheap beans.
I use the following method:
- fill up the basket with coffee to the brim without compacting (for my Moka this is 25g of high roast beans or 30g of medium roast)
- boiled water in a kettle then fill the moka lower chamber to the valve (that’s about 330~340g)
- assemble the moka tightly
- put on high heat for 1 minute (induction stove, the moka is compatible)
- when the coffee starts coming up, immediately reduce heat to 5/9
- switch off heat when the upper chamber is 2/3 full
- steer the coffee and serve
I am taking advice :)
I mostly use a 3-cup and it sounds like yours is closer to a 6-cup so ymmv, but,
- Have you tried playing with water temperature? Lance Hedrick did some testing and found when you start with boiled water, the brew ends up extracting at a much higher temperature, which could cause bitterness. I’ve done hot and cold and didn’t find a huge difference so I stick with boiled water to save time, but it’s something worth testing out.
- Try testing with less amount of water. I find right up to the valve to be fine but I’ve seen some people have better luck going about 1cm below the valve.
- I don’t ever go above medium heat (electric ceramic, not induction), then temp surf, trying to have the least amount of flow until it’s done, so in my experience just having the edge of the pot touching the heat, or sometimes just fully removing it from heat until flow stops and putting it back on.
Everything else looks good from your technique. How’s your grind size? You want to be a bit courser than espresso but finer than pour over. And are you doing any kind of puck prep? I know it’s not espresso but I’ve found doing a bit of distribution can help prevent channeling. I use a WDT since I have one anyway for espresso, but you can even just use an acupuncture needle or something else similarly fine. Have you played with paper filters at all? Aeropress filters work quite well on most moka pot sizes.
FWIW, my experience with Moka pot starting temp mirrors Lance’s. Everyone recommends to start with boiling water, but I find it easier to control the flow of the brew when starting with room temperature water. I don’t mind waiting the extra minute or so to boil the water in the Moka pot and I don’t have to screw the top to a searing hot aluminum container that I’m trying to hold with a towel.
Yeah, trying to assemble the whole thing while it’s that hot can definitely be a pain.
How’s your grind size? You want to be a bit courser than espresso but finer than pour over.
On my manual grinder, I use between 2.5 and 4.0 out of 10.0 for V60, and I found 2.0 works best for the moka.
And are you doing any kind of puck prep?
I just tap the basket with my finger to distribute the ground, I don’t do anything else. I don’t have a WDT, I will try to find a needle or toothpicks and try that.
Have you played with paper filters at all?
No, I don’t have this type of filter at hand.
I will try to play with temperature, and maybe get myself a smaller moka pot, as this one is indeed a bit too big. It forces be to make a big batch every time.
For what it’s worth, I find the 3-cup moka pot to be substantially more forgiving than the 6-cup, to the point where I’ll oftentimes brew two 3-cups rather than one 6-cup if I need a larger brew. At the same time, a 6-cup is absolutely still doable. I’ve made some really good coffee in a 6-cup but it’s been far more finicky.
imho adding aeropress filter improves moka more than anything other than buying good quality coffee.
the coffee im enjoying has a very narrow window of grind and technique that produces a good cup. but i found it.
Does it discourage from buying the same beans again? Or even from the same roaster?
i wouldnt get these again. today i got a somewhat pleasant leathery note from them.
That’s a very satisfying feeling.
