EdipisReks1

50th anniversary on calibrated plasma? Yes please.

Al, if I weren’t vegan I would happily eat that. That is a nice hard mahogany sear.

Apparently I have a muppet. A muppet that pukes on me, but a muppet nonetheless.

Cauliflower Dal Fry and some really, really ugly naan (I ignored my own advice and didn’t measure, and this is the result: and you can tell which one was on a baking steel and which was on a cordierite baking stone). But the Dal was divine; the cauliflower dissolved into it but the lentils still had texture. Pressure cookers are magic. I would have been very happy to get this from a decent takeout joint (other than the ugly naan, though it tasted good enough), which is my benchmark for Indian food at home. A very beige meal, though. Used my new Tanaka R2 gyuto for the first time. It’s a dreamboat. Only had to give it a slight microbevel on a Rika followed by a chrome strop. I sold my previous Tanaka R2. Not selling this one. These really should be at least twice the price (they aren’t cheap, but they are too cheap for what they are, and what they are is just… sort of perfect.) I wish the spine and choil edges were a bit more broken, but it’s sort of the house style, and neither is uncomfortable in use. But even at half this price point I expect more rounded tactile grip edges. I can round it myself, but then I would have to re-etch, and I just don’t feel like dealing with Ferric Chloride anymore). Everything can be improved.

First shot with the Flair 58 pulled. I didn’t grind fine enough (first use, after all!) and it pulled as a turbo, 18.5 in 40 out in about 18 seconds. I’ll go substantially finer next time. It was acceptable, though, especially as a latte. I’m still getting too large of bubbles with the Bellman, but I think I’m using too much pressure (the Bellman is much more aggressive a steamer than my Breville is, and I’ve only used it twice, so I’m not beating myself up over it). All in all, not too bad! Also not an ugly puck. Zero channeling evident on the top side (it broke when I tried to flip it over, so you’ll have to take my word for it). I really like the IMS basket.

The journey is the point; if you just want espresso, go to Starbucks. Espresso is as close to zen as I can imagine something being where you still get to waste a lot of time and money.

I come up with reasonable ideas on occasion! Not often; on occasion.

I should probably use my new espresso machine before I buy a new new espresso machine, I guess.

Now I want a Europiccola. I already have plenty of 51mm stuff. Tamper, precision basket, distributor: it would be wasteful not to, right?

I already adore the show The Shrink Next Door, but then they go ahead and have a Europiccola?! Swoon.

I’m sure I’ll be making bad espresso tomorrow morning with it! There is always a learning curve with everything. Finished set up. Not as pretty as the Bianca, but not bad. And yes; I chose my kettle because it would match the 58.

Something arrived for me too.

Espresso comedy routine aside, I think you are off to a good start, Sam.

Also don’t get discouraged by bad shots: espresso is like performing music; nobody, no matter how talented, picks up an oboe for the first time and starts playing Bach. I mean, that doesn’t look terrible. Given what the puck looks like I would say you either need to coarsen up or fine up the grind. Helpful advice, I know. It looks wet, so my guess is you need to be a smidge coarser. Or you are tamping too hard. Or maybe the opposite! It’s a good start, regardless, and the bruises will be well earned.

Sucking at making espresso is precisely how you eventually make good espresso! If you made good espresso off the bat you could only have one direction to go in, and it wouldn’t be the direction you want. Oh, and you can discover that you suck at steaming milk, if you give that a whirl! I would get good at milk first, honestly; milk drinks were invented because most espresso is bad but is okay if turned into something where you don’t really taste the coffee.

Ordered a Smart Espresso Profiler. Should have it in March. Hopefully I don’t get hit by a car in the next four+ months. Not again anyway; I’ve been hit by a car and once was enough!

I guess I don’t know what Levercraft’s situation is. I know how this sort of thing generally goes, and I know I couldn’t get my coffee order in.

I’m a coffee expert.

I was not able to to buy the coffee I wanted and the main page says “we are going out of business,” though in more words. They can’t exist without the shop and are selling existing stock.

My attempt at buying coffee from LeverCraft failed. Looks like they are going out of business.

The pressurized part, which they call “True Crema Valve,” is removable, and then it’s like any other portafilter. I have to be in a particular state of mind not to, but I’m a weirdo. Anyway, he really likes the Nomad, and Quan has certainly used plenty of espresso machines.

I really do think the profiler is in my future, as I’ll finally be able to really use the full capabilities of the Acaias. Plus, as Sam said, Moar is Moar! It’s something to do. Regarding the Nomad, did you see Brian Quan’s recent video on his, Alex?

I just realized I have $700 in coffee scales. What am I doing with my life? Other than enjoying very good coffee, I mean. I should probably get a Smart Espresso Profiler for the Flair 58, to make the scales worthwhile.

Just tried the Bellman. That thing works! Lots of dry steam. I don’t know why people are scared of these: if you can safely operate a pressure cooker you can safely operate this. I’ll try a latte tomorrow if I feel up to it (Moderna booster yesterday kicked my butt, but I feel a lot better now).

Had my first cup of the Esteban Garcia. It’s absolutely delightful. Bright and rich and sweet and endearingly nutty, with a funkiness that is interesting and sort of rounds things out. I would happily buy this if it were to ever be available for sale, which it almost certainly never will be.