EdipisReks1

Black Cat is a pretty sweet for medium dark roast; I don’t consider it a negative for espresso, but I could see why others would. I’ve been using Elmhurst Pistachio milk for my milk drinks, lately. It’s delicious, and if even I can get basic latte art with it I would say it’s easy to work with. Recommended. Sorry about the Argos taking so long! AeroPress will happily show you exactly what you are getting from your grinder, and I bet that is a delicious cup. How loud is the P100, Bryan? One of my cats hates the Niche (doesn’t mind other grinders): it’s maybe not enough on its own to get me to spend so much on one, but I take his well-being seriously, so maybe it’s a good excuse!

I have a Tiffany branded lizard strap coming for the Chopard. I think it’ll look great; and will fit my wrist well. Going with Milanese mesh on the old Omega. This might be the perfect bracelet for it. I love this watch.

The Chopard is very beautiful. Extremely fine. Also very heavy! It’s a chunk of white gold, and at 39.5mm fairly large. I really like it. Under 7mm, automatic. The dial is almost iridescent blank, it’s so deep. I wish this had a display case back, as I believe this is a Geneva Seal movement, but that’s okay: most of my watches have solid backs. edit: I’ve worn it a bit the last day. I’ll have to either have a strap made or order a shorter one, as I’m on the first hole. It’s very comfortable, though: it wears very differently from the Hermes, despite the measurements being similar: the Chopard wears broader than it is, with the expanse of deeply reflective black dial, and it is physically much heavier. It gives the same feeling you get holding or wearing a Patek: it’s obviously a very fine thing even when compared to nice things. I think this is a keeper watch. I desire neither the Rolex 1908 Perpetual nor a Calatrava, anymore.

I don’t know how the links come out of this (looks like pin and collar, but isn’t, at least not a version I can seemingly remove), but an original beads of rice just about fits me on my Seamaster Cosmic, fresh from a service. I think it looks pretty great. It wears wonderfully: like an extra thin vintage DateJust. It rattles and is perfectly comfortable. It will get a lot of wear in the spring and summer, at least once I get it sized.

I’m out of practice steaming milk (the Bellman is nothing like a real steam wand), but it’s nice pulling a latte together so quickly.

Breville came in. I was unhappy to find that it had taken some cosmetic damage. The seller wanted me to send it back so that he could get a claim from UPS (he had them pack it: the first of a couple bad decisions that ended in feedback that was not “good”), but I figured “open box” really meant “lightly used,” and that’s just too much of a pain to deal with when it works and is brand new on the inside (OPV now changed to 6 bars and I checked for leaks) and I got it for pretty cheap. Looking forward to using it tomorrow morning. Hopefully I remember how to steam milk. Black cat is the only coffee I have at the moment, so that’s what I’ll be running. It’s certainly not a coffee that makes a mess!

That sounds really good. I need to buy some new beans; I’ve just been drinking Black Cat the last couple months.

Picked up an open box BES920XL for about 2/3rds retail. I’ll be back up and fully running soon, hopefully!

Hah. Sounds like the spring bars, for sure. I’m sure that was startling!

JLC gone. I think there is a Chopard LUC that I want to replace it in the winder with; don’t quite have the deal down, but it’s amazing how cheap the LUC watches are, second hand: there is enough left over from the JLC to get my replacement espresso machine and maybe a Niche Duo (probably not, but maybe) if my wire transfer ever posts. Also, saw a Christopher Ward 12, the stainless version, in person. I cancelled my order. I was lucky enough to be wearing my Santos at the time, and there is no point in having both, as I would always reach for the Santos first: it just wears better on my wrist; more compact despite being larger (lug to lug is more favorable, mostly). The CW The 12 is a lot of watch for the money, though.

I’m interested in knowing how those two beans are!

I sourced a replacement steam boiler, so I should be back up and running after it arrives from Australia and I have it installed. $150 plus repair cost is a lot cheaper than a new one! That is sweet, Sam! That machine still looks amazing, and plumbed in is living the dream!

Put in a pre-order for the Christopher Ward The 12 in titanium with a blue dial. I should have it in September. I’m looking forward to it! I was going to get an Hermes H08, but decided I just didn’t like the seconds hand. The Christopher Ward doesn’t have any details I haven’t liked, so far. It hurts a little, as it’s so pretty, but the JLC Master Calendar is up for sale. If anybody is interested I’ll share a link with info and pics, and I’ll give an HC price. Love the watch, but I just don’t wear it: I can’t read the damned thing because my eyes have gone to crap, so there is no point in keeping it, alas. The old saying that by the time you can afford a calendar watch you can’t read it is unfortunately true for me.

I think I’m just going to get another Breville Dual Boiler. A new new one, with a warranty, that they will still support. I’ve also decided that I neither need nor want a new grinder. I think not having an electric machine for a while got me past the FOMO and GAS over the Niche Duo. I’ve been pulling just delectable shots with the Niche Zero and Flair 58.

Black Cat is my “house” espresso. It’s good stuff. Breville can’t be fixed. The steam boiler has a failed weld. Looks like it was bad from the factory. You can’t get the part, unfortunately. Now I need to decide what I replace it with. I’ve been happy with the Flair 58 for espresso, but I miss milk steaming. I could just get another Breville Dual Boiler, but build quality leaves me a bit shy to the idea. I really liked the machine, though. I’m guessing either a Mara X or the Argos Odyssey, probably. I guess it depends on whether I want a cup warmer or not.

With the new pricing I think I’ll be getting the single burr Duo and the SSP MP burr. Also I should have my espresso machine back in a couple weeks!

My opinion is that “burr break in” is basically just nooks and crannies getting filled with coffee oil/debris. That’s a pretty substantial physical change; I can see it making a difference, even if I haven’t noticed it particularly with my own gear. How are you liking the grinder in general? Have you been doing pour over only? This grinder is probably more than I want to spend, but it’s on my list of considerations for if I upgrade.

40 grams in a hand grinder would be rough!

Have you tried a a hand grinder for pour over, Sam? Depending on batch size it might not be the best choice, but I would use one of my hand grinders for pour over instead of the Niche, if I didn’t have the Ode/SSP. The more I see about the Duo the more I think I’ll get it, but I’ll immediately put in SSP multi purpose burrs, which makes it a fairly expensive grinder, but an awfully good price for the workflow and that burrset. I’m not in a hurry, though: I still need to get my espresso machine fixed.

Hey Sam, I really appreciate the offer, but that’s okay: I’m too afraid of it getting lost in transit (I’ve now had things lost by all three major carriers this year). Hopefully when I get the watch in however many months it’ll work out for me. Shouldn’t be too hard to sell if I don’t end up liking it!

Interesting. I’m not a gigantic fan of sharp edges on watches. Too bad I can’t try the thing on. 😕

You have a Bianca, you don’t need to add anything!

I almost went and bought a Black Bay 54 when they hit stores right after W and W, but I hesitated. Just put my name on a waiting list (along with a Perpetual 1908, but I’m unlikely to actually buy it).

The milk frother they also have coming out looks clever.

After seeing a bunch of reviews, I think the Niche Duo doesn’t offer me anything over keeping the Zero for espresso and the Ode/SSP for filter, unless I also spend the extra $350 for SSP burrs. Which I would probably do, if I got a Duo. But I’m super happy with my grinders, I just would prefer to have one: swapping back and forth on the Duo isn’t as handy as just having separate grinders.