Espresso machines

[rwsaunders]

gkk...take a screwdriver to that electrical switch cover plate and place those four screws in the vertical position. They're distracting me from appreciating your awesome espresso gear...I want the that bean grinder too!

[gkk]

gkk...take a screwdriver to that electrical switch cover plate and place those four screws in the vertical position. They're distracting me from appreciating your awesome espresso gear...I want the that bean grinder too!

Dammit saunders, you just made me spend 20 minutes going through every plate in the house. Can't unsee that. (Thanks!)

[rwsaunders]

^ at your service, sir.

[Eric Estlund]

Field report: That Quickmill rules. I did a quick adjustment to my grid quality and duration, and boom. Super shots, stupid easy and repeatable. Using a Baratza Vario.

[Too Tall]

Neat. I like hearing that. It qualifies as "reasonable" as in only one kidney.

Field report: That Quickmill rules. I did a quick adjustment to my grid quality and duration, and boom. Super shots, stupid easy and repeatable. Using a Baratza Vario.

[Eric Estlund]

Long black. I'm enjoying the new machine.

[kytyree]

You've all contributed to me upping my coffee game a little. I've started with a Baratza Virtuoso refurb ordered today. I know I needed a new/better grinder, not sure if I'll go much further, usually I'm pretty happy with my French press, but...

[Too Tall]

That looks allrighty Eric.

[dashDustin]

No, no experience yet. My understanding is E61 components will work which was another selling point for me.

The folks at Chris Coffee are the sole importer or were when I bought mine last year. At the time, the same model from espressooutlet, Clive, or one other place had the machine shipping from Albany, NY which I discovered meant it was coming from Chris. I went with Chris Coffee because they tossed in a lot of cool accessories like a bottomless portafilter and a few things of coffee. Their repair folks are also really helpful and were quick to reply to a few questions I had before purchasing. A few months ago I asked for a quote to add a shot timer to mine (that's a feature the Izzo 4.0 has over my 3.0). Their service folks had all the parts in stock and could have shipped quickly had I decided to upgrade.

your post inadvertently opened my eyes to a whole new world.

and as such, my list of possibilities has grown to 4.

Rocket R58 - https://clivecoffee.com/product/rock...resso-machine/
Profitec Pro 700 - https://clivecoffee.com/product/prof...resso-machine/
Lucca M58 - https://clivecoffee.com/product/lucc...by-quick-mill/
Izzo Alex Duetto - Alex Duetto IV by Izzo

The stainless boilers and clean wiring of the Profitec have me leaning that way. The Rocket and and Lucca both come with naked portafilters, which is nice. The Lucca boilers seem to be a little nicer than Rocket, but the wiring of the Lucca isn't as clean as Rocket or Profitec. Rocket being the most pricey and I'm afraid I might be succumbing to their marketing. So...really, the choice comes down to Profitec and Lucca. German, Italian.

[Too Tall]

You boneheads quit wasting your money on these (awesome) espresso machines. Get the flair. I'm kidding but am dead serious about how good the shots are. Next time I'm traveling to trade shows to peddle my snakeoil I'll bring it with me to dazzle and amaze. At the very least you may want for for travel and when your fancy machines are out for service ;)

[Andrevich4]

your post inadvertently opened my eyes to a whole new world.

and as such, my list of possibilities has grown to 4.

Rocket R58 - https://clivecoffee.com/product/rock...resso-machine/
Profitec Pro 700 - https://clivecoffee.com/product/prof...resso-machine/
Lucca M58 - https://clivecoffee.com/product/lucc...by-quick-mill/
Izzo Alex Duetto - Alex Duetto IV by Izzo

The stainless boilers and clean wiring of the Profitec have me leaning that way. The Rocket and and Lucca both come with naked portafilters, which is nice. The Lucca boilers seem to be a little nicer than Rocket, but the wiring of the Lucca isn't as clean as Rocket or Profitec. Rocket being the most pricey and I'm afraid I might be succumbing to their marketing. So...really, the choice comes down to Profitec and Lucca. German, Italian.

They put a lot of thought into that Lucca. Plus, Lucca is a great little town so even though QuickMill isn't based there, you'll think Italy every time you use it.

A couple of thoughts:
1. Make sure you get a good grinder. Get a high quality one, and make sure it's stepless. I got a used macap M4, drilled and tapped it to make it stepless and was surprised how big of a difference it made.
2. I REALLY like the big drip tray on the Duetto. I thought it looked less elegant compared to some of the others but not having to drain the water all the time is nice.
3. If there are any accessories you want (like bottomless portafilter) a lot of the sellers with throw that in.
4. My big concern on the joystick steam and hot water is it seems really easy for a kid to grab and accidentally engage. That would be awful and made them a no go for us. Not sure where you are between kids, grandkids, etc. but these machines can last a decade or two so might be something to consider.
5. I'm surprised the Lucca doesn't have a stainless steel option. The folks at Clive put a lot of thought into that machine and they're denizens of Portlandia so I'm sure they at least thought about it and can explain why. Given the information we had at the time, my wife was insistent on getting stainless. Maybe that T.E.A. coating on the brass is legit -- some folks around here might know. But we're trying to limit our exposure to anything with heavy metals in it, particularly when there's high heat, pressure, and multiple servings a day involved.
6. One apparent downside to the Duetto is the fact you can't get a latte cup under the brew head. At first I thought this was a draw back but I found that eyeballing it straight into the cup wasn't producing the best results anyway so I've been going brew head to 4oz glass (which I got from Chris coffee) to vessel. So the lower brew head seems to save me from getting too cocky.

All that said, I went back and forth on this for awhile and finally my wife put her hands on my shoulders, looked me right in the eye, and told me "Just. Buy. It." Maybe you're not there yet but SHE was.

[sevencyclist]

My Rocket and Baratza Vario setup. Blue Bottle Hayes Valley Expresso is my wife's favorite. I get freshly roasted batch from local Blue Bottle store about 8oz package once a week.

2017-07-20 07.25.43 by sevencyclist, on Flickr

[Eric Estlund]

Are most E61 bottomless portafilters about the same? Loaded question, I imagine, but if it fits and it's open...

Considering machining my single, but then I wouldn't have it as an option.

[Too Tall]

SevenCyclist with a strong move. Fantastic.

[Cookietruck]

Are most E61 bottomless portafilters about the same? Loaded question, I imagine, but if it fits and it's open...

Considering machining my single, but then I wouldn't have it as an option.

not sure if you're into ristretto shots in a demitasse, i am. i took the bottom out of my portafilter and the shot temp in the demitasse was too high afterward.
i ended up getting another portafilter so i could have my shot right after i pulled, instead of waiting a minute cupping the demitasse with my hands trying to hurry up and pull heat out...

something to think about.

[stackie]

Yes. All e61 portafilter are the same. Any will fit your group head.

OTOH, I'd have no qualms about machining your own as you obviously have the capability.

I hear cookies argument about temp. But, I would guess that you could simply not store your espresso cup on top of machine like we all do. That alone would drop the temp enough make it quite drinkable within seconds. I use bottomless PF exclusively and would never go back to a spouted PF. Too hard to clean. Why contaminate your God shot by running over stale coffee oil from your last 100 shots?

FWIW I brew a 24-28 gram shot from 18 grams of coffee into an expressio cup (Rapha of course ��) and find it eminently drinkable immediately from the temperature standpoint. Just a quick swirl, and three sips.

Jon

[Too Tall]

Stackie, FWIIW I'm using 16 to 18 grams in the Flair. I need to weight the finished shot and will report back but I think we are getting similar extraction.

We don't have espresso cups yet so am using a very thin porcelain coffee cup and yeah it needs to sit for a few seconds.

[Eric Estlund]

Nice- thanks, guys.

Pretty sure I am extracting more than a ristretto. I've just been experimenting by grind time and quality- not sure what that translates to in weight. But I've been grinding directly into a double basket. I go straight to a room temperature cup and it's pretty well good to go.

[Too Tall]

This is for Shoogs:
*More notes - 16 to 17 grams from my MACAP does the trick everytime. You must not load more or the sieve will not seat ontop the reciever. In the video I ment to say to wait 30 second for the coffee grounds to soak.
*If the video does not play just click the Video's Title Name.

[dashDustin]

https://clivecoffee.com/product/lucc...by-quick-mill/

ordered. somewhat freaked out, as i've never bought something that expensive for myself, outside of my Planet Ocean. i went back and forth through various machines before finally deciding on this one.