Coffee Preparation

[forty_caliber]

Had to give up my espresso gear when I retired. On going expense, less discretionary dollars coming in. Sadly, I've become a pod person. Our original style Nespresso machine will never make a God shot, but it's good enough. Have one in the house and one in the RV.

Then again, there is really not much need for me to get all caffeinated up anymore. I love to sit on the porch and wave goodbye to the neighbors as they leave for work.

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[FrankZ]

Had to give up my espresso gear when I retired. On going expense, less discretionary dollars coming in. Sadly, I've become a pod person. Our original style Nespresso machine will never make a God shot, but it's good enough. Have one in the house and one in the RV.

Then again, there is really not much need for me to get all caffeinated up anymore. I love to sit on the porch and wave goodbye to the neighbors as they leave for work.

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Having a really good cuppa while doing that might be a bit too far.

I can't see how, if you have the gear, pods save money. I run about 2 pounds a week which is nominally 60 shots which is less than $.60USD per shot. How much is 60 pods?

 

[forty_caliber]

Having a really good cuppa while doing that might be a bit too far.

I can't see how, if you have the gear, pods save money. I run about 2 pounds a week which is nominally 60 shots which is less than $.60USD per shot. How much is 60 pods?

I get 80 Lavazza Ristretto for about $40 on. the zon. A daily shot is about it for me these days.

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[Kathleen]

Frank once got locked out of his house when he lost his phone and the battery to the front door failed.

I think there was a movie like that.
Only the house locked the person inside

Hey now! Don't joke! I once got locked inside my former car. The lever did not work. The locks would not release. The windows would not roll down. The autolocking would not function. I had to limbo over to the backseat, flatten one of the panels on the seatback, remove the hatch, and get out via the back hatch emergency release.....all while wearing a dress and heels for work.

 

[dragnlaw]

Anyone take a video? AFV you would have won the Grand Finale Prize.

 

[taxlady]

@Rocklobster Maybe you can explain something to me. What is the difference between an allongé and a Canadiano? When I order an allongé in a coffee shop or resto, I almost always get an enjoyable coffee. On the few occasions that I have had an Americano, it just wasn't as good.

 

[Rocklobster]

Hmm. I don't really kow. I know the Americano is an espresso with added hot water to bring It up to 6to 8 ounces. When I used to do a alonge, which means long, we just let the water run through the coffee grounds until the cup is as full as we want it. Maybe that's the difference. My wife just lets hers run until she gets a long coffee. She likes it better that way

 

[FrankZ]

Hmm. I don't really kow. I know the Americano is an espresso with added hot water to bring It up to 6to 8 ounces. When I used to do a alonge, which means long, we just let the water run through the coffee grounds until the cup is as full as we want it. Maybe that's the difference. My wife just lets hers run until she gets a long coffee. She likes it better that way

Sounds like you do know.

 

[Rocklobster]

Well, a semi-educated guess is still a guess. :p

Not sure if I ever mentioned this but my first wife was Italian and I spent a couole of years there. Her folks owned hotel so I worked in the kitchen and later became a barista. I was a young man then and didn’t really know the nuances of the trade. But did learn to appreciate the traditions.

Here’s a pic of me with my son in the bar where I spent a good portion of my time there. . He used this 25 years later for an album cover. This was in ‘88

 

[Meryl]

My Moka Bialetti first thing in the morning and occasionally later on in the morning, another coffee (decaf) from my coffee-pod maker.

A decaf instant nescafe goes down well sometimes, too,but never first thing in the morning

 

[taxlady]

I often drink decaf that I make in my Bialetti. Lavazza makes some very nice decaf ground for espresso.

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

I currently have a Mcilpoog Bean To Cup Fully Automatic Espresso Machine, which I am ready to throw off the fourth floor balcony.
View attachment 75585
I have had nothing but trouble with this machine, and every complaint results in "send us a video" after which they send a video of how to fix it. I have tried to explain to them that that is not how a warranty works, but they refuse to provide a repair facility referral or replace the machine. I am now about to place negative reviews with every reseller they use.

UPDATE! I was looking up the machine on Amazon and noticed that when I purchased the machine, I had also purchased a 3 year warranty from Asurion. I called them on the phone, explained the problem, and they said, "box it up, attach the prepaid shipping label we emailed you, and we will refund your purchase price in full, so you can go buy any machine you want." I didn't even have to argue with them!

I have chosen a Philips espresso maker with a milk frother, which the other one didn't even have, it's "designed in Italy and built in Romania" (when in Rome, do like the Romanians!) and it's fifty bucks cheaper! It will be here on Wednesday. Until then I will be drinking French Press.

 

[Shining Wizard]

When I left cheffing, I was already a coffee addict and I missed the commercial machine. So I spent a good chunk of my payout on a lovely Expobar machine that was semi-professional (all still manual). It was quite expensive!
It worked beautifully for about nine months but then the issues started. I had to take it to a specialist repair shop to get it fixed, numerous times. Eventually it ended up costing me more in repairs than I paid for it so it was a pricey mistake.
Just recently, I bought the new KitchenAid manual machine and it’s been rock solid!

In between I had a Breville machine that was pretty good too, and far cheaper than the Expobar!

 

[Lee Vining]

No room on the kitchen counter for the Keurig so it’s donated to the Good Will and we’ll check out the slim K brewing gadgets.

 

[Kaneohegirlinaz]

I own 4 coffee makers, one is dead and I really should "chuck it over the balcony", but keep forgetting. It's a cheap-o espresso machine that I got for free at work many, many, MANY years ago. I think it was a Imusa, the name is pretty smudged, but when I looked up cheap espresso machines, that's what mine looks like. I use to make us two Lattes in the evenings after work, with a shot of the barista's choice - usually Bailey's Irish Cream and teaspoon of sugar, MMM! Maybe I need to buy a new one ...

I have three Keurig brand makers. One large one with a big water reservoir on my coffee bar in my kitchen and two slim, smaller ones for traveling.
DH is not to have caffeine any longer, but his cardiologist gave in and told him "just one cup of full diesel, the rest need to be de-cafe!"
So I bought re-fillable K-Cup pods and grind my own decafe bold what ever is on sale and medium K-Cup pods from Costco for moi, again, when they go on sale - I only have one cup a day.

 

[taxlady]

We used to refer to coffee with caffeine as "high octane" and the decaf as "unleaded".