~~~Off Topic~~~ Espresso Machine help

[SteveTheTech]

Ok so I'm going to be honest with you the majority of members I have met here and I are pretty much in the same age demographic and share many common interests. So I am wondering what you all do for your daily caffeine intake. I am an espresso junkie and I have taught the very nice woman at the D&D how to make an Americano iced coffee, of course with half the ice(I hate it when they fill the damn cup with ice and skimp on actual coffee than charge me $3+ for a cup of frozen tap water), skim milk and sugar.

I was at the local bucks today on an afternoon pick me up (DoubleShot on Ice, sometimes with Energy) they actually removed that from the menu two years ago but it is basically a Iced Americano with cream. I found these "Venti" insulated clear iced drink cups and bought one for me and the Mrs. and now I need a coffee maker to replace the one from the college days that has leaked and been stained beyond repair for years. An adult coffee pot is required.

If you cannot tell I really like a good strong cup of coffee mainly from the rich flavor not the fact that it is the fastest way to get the most caffeine possible in the shortest amount of time.

Ok so back to my actual question what are you using and does anyone out there use combination espresso and coffee maker. I need about 6 cup capacity for the rare Saturday I don't have to work. There are things like this beauty.



But a grand for a coffee maker seems like a hard sell. Does anyone have any experience with devices like



Any advise my fellow coffee drinker would be greatly appreciated.

[audtatious]

Hmmm. I tried to use similar years ago but gave up with all the effort. I'm low maintenance and happy with strong coffee and french vanilla creamer + sugar or a sweet-n-low

[fiveliterbeater]

sorry man; we all don't make the money you make to be able to afford an espresso machine lol! as you can tell a lot of people have viewed this thread and said to themselves "not only does this guy brag about how much money he makes, but he has to rub it in by saying he gets to have a fresh cup of espresso in the morning"

j/k!!!!

[SteveTheTech]

That was not my intention at all. I'm as cheap as the next guy. What is the old say "Champaign taste on a beer budget" that sums me up. Instead of spending $6/day (me and the mrs) a day on coffee if I could buy a unit that makes a satisfactory cup of coffee will save money in the long run.

I figured the guys with the $50,000 cars could relate.

I know you guys are not all working for your cars.

For the other coffee adicts out there there has to be a reasonable option to make a good strong cup of coffee with a shot of espresso.

Don't cheap out on me.

[NightWatch]

I had a DeLonghi very similar to the one in the link you posted. It was a piece of crap. I don't know of any combination machines out there at any price that are worth it. They either do coffee well, or espresso well, not both. Part of the problem is that to do both well you need two different types of boilers. One to make coffee at the correct temperature and a pump/steam boiler to make the espresso. Do not buy any machine that doesn't use a pump for the espresso - you'll never get decent creme' on the top of the espresso if you don't. IMO the Rancilio Silvia is probably the best home espresso machine out there. It retails for about $700 which is at the low end of good espresso machines. It doesn't do coffee though.

[ArbitrageMan]

I'm kind of a coffee fanatic. I actually get raw beans, and roast them myself. The vast majority of coffee you buy at the grocery store is already stale.

I agree with NightWatch about avoiding combination machines. They're never going to be able to make the espresso correctly. But that donest mean you need to spend a lot of money either. I have a DeLonghi espresso machine that was maybe $125 or $150, and it makes excellent espresso, with proper crema. The key with an espresso machine is that it be pump driven.Heres are a couple:http://www.amazon.com/DeLonghi...r=8-6 http://www.amazon.com/DeLonghi...r=8-1

And then its about practice. You'll never make a good cup of coffee the first few times you use one of the above machines. You have to try it a number of times before you'll get the combination of how much coffee and how much milk you like.

The other key to good coffee is using filtered water.

[SteveTheTech]

I knew at least one of you would be as OCD as I am.

The DeLonghi looks pretty cool and some of the people I work with swear by them. But I don't want to gamble with my morning cup. I had a feeling that there would not be the machine of my dreams within a reasonable price range. It seems like 15bar is standard for the pump models even the nice ones. I guess I will need seperate appliences. That is fine though now I can just get one of those regular coffee pots that grinds and brews off of a timer. Automation of some sort is ideally what I am in need of instead of having to put shoes on and drive to the coffee shop.

Roasting your own beans at home would be pretty interesting, and I bet it makes your whole house smell like coffee.

I have a feeling I will end up in the same position soon enough.

Maybe the espresso machine of my dreams will have to wait until the holidays.

I appreciate the incite, thanks

[ArbitrageMan]

I knew at least one of you would be as OCD as I am.

The DeLonghi looks pretty cool and some of the people I work with swear by them. But I don't want to gamble with my morning cup. I had a feeling that there would not be the machine of my dreams within a reasonable price range. It seems like 15bar is standard for the pump models even the nice ones. I guess I will need seperate appliences. That is fine though now I can just get one of those regular coffee pots that grinds and brews off of a timer. Automation of some sort is ideally what I am in need of instead of having to put shoes on and drive to the coffee shop.

Roasting your own beans at home would be pretty interesting, and I bet it makes your whole house smell like coffee.

I have a feeling I will end up in the same position soon enough.

Maybe the espresso machine of my dreams will have to wait until the holidays.

I appreciate the incite, thanks

You know, its funny, one would think that roasting coffee beans would make the whole house smell like coffee. It doesn't. I take my coffee roaster out on the back deck and run it because if I use it inside, the entire house smells like smoke for the next week. The process iteself is really quick and easy though.

[SteveTheTech]

I did a little research on home roasting and it sounds really interesting, although I need to learn more about it before getting into it but it looks interesting. I assumed it smelled like this amazing little coffee house in Newport I went to on vacation. It seems that that is not the case and it is in the process of extracting the oils not during the initial chemical reaction. I am a weekend barbecuer and when I get the chance will smoke anything that was once alive, but I want to try something new and since the wife has us on a diet coffee is still one of the only good things left.

What do you use for your morning coffee?

I am looking for the best way to make iced coffee, I was thinking at first espresso machine was the way to go as I really like an Iced Americano. I think I could find the perfect cup using a dark roast with a little work to find the best ratio. I am now hunting for a grind and brew automated coffee maker, I don't think I will alter the title because I like the word espresso.

[M45-Zero260]

That's really interesting...roasting your own coffee beans at home! That's the first time I've ever heard of that. I may be in denial about being coffee OCD, but my mouth does water and I swear I can smell the distinct coffee aromas when I see a coffee roasting special on the Discovery channel on "How it's made". My "fetish" is seeing the "French Press" on HDTV. How wonderful the color, froth, and goodness is in that freshly brewed cup. Ahhhhh....

Anyway, I just buy the store-brand whole coffee beans in the foil wrapped pouches, and grind them at home with every pot I set up the night before. It's surprisingly good! About 90% the flavor and quality of buying Premium brands, at 25% the cost. The aroma throughout the house is enough to wake me up in a trance toward the kitchen (I haven't set my alarm in 10 years, only the coffee pot at 5:10 AM). The dogs know to stay out of the way until I get my fresh cup of brew and my morning smoke. (Yes, another bad habit, but EVERYONE has their vices).

Thanks for the entertaining post, and happy brewing to all the coffee fanatics out there!

[ArbitrageMan]

Roasting your own coffee beans is surprisingly easy and fast. I have a roaster (but you dont need one) and it takes about 7-10 minutes from start to finish to roast them. Its amazing how smooth the coffee is when its comes from truly fresh roasted beans.

When I started roasting my own, I used to use my oven. You put it on broil, spread out the raw beans on a cookie sheet, broil them for 10 minutes, or until theyre the right color, and thats it. They turn out more evenly done when you use a roaster, but if youre starting out roasting, it works.

You get raw beans on the internet for half what you pay for roasted ones of the same variety.

Iced coffee is a weird thing, and I make it a lot, but I dont think its the correct way. I'll brew some coffee, STRONG, fill a cup with ice, and pour the coffee over the ice. You have to get the coffee strong because the ice melts and slightly dilutes the coffee.

Im sure there are different schools of thought; brew it cold, use a french press with cold water, brew it hot then put it in the fridge.