Equipment
This article is about equipment basics with a focus on those who are new and consider to start a hobby or just want to buy their first Espresso Machine. Therefore I will keep this post high-level and for those area’s that are interesting I will create separate post. Lastly this blog will be a document in continious progress…
Considerations
Before you jump in I think it’s important to reconsider. What kond of person are you? And what do you expect of your new Espresso Machine? Please know that when you have this beautiful E61 based Espresso machine in your kitchen it will not deliver you an Espresso with the touch of a button.
Expect to deal with:
- Warm up times (My ECM Synchronika takes at least 30 minutes to warm both boilers and the E61 Grouphead to a stable 92 degrees celsius)
- Expect to deal with Grinder Adjustments. When dialled in minor but when switching beans it will take some time.
- Maintenance. My standard maintenance will cost me about € 280,00 yearly not including the water filter replacement.
- Cleaning, Backflushing etc.
- Learn and invest time and practice to be able to deliver a good Espresso your family and friends will talk about.
- Learning to reject coffee, When you succeed you will no longer like coffee served by others..
If you don’t like the above stop here and just by that Jura or Jura like machine.
Grinders
The quality of your grind influences your final result by at least 80% – perhaps even more. To make this point clearer, let’s turn the statement around: if you had a budget of €1.000 and spent €800 on a grinder and €200 on an espresso machine, you would probably enjoy a better-tasting espresso than if you reversed those spending amounts. The same goes for very exclusive beans. If you grind them wrong or on a very bad grinder you will not like the end result.
As you continue learning about espresso and coffee in general, you’ll develop a deeper understanding of the extraction process – how water, pressure, temperature, and grind size interact to shape flavour. In time, you’ll recall this moment and experience have a nice “Aha Erlebnis”
What is a good grinder?
I will answer this bullerwise.
A good ginder will:
- Grind very evenly and consistently
- Your grind setting will not drift away from the setting you’ve made.
- Grind your 9 or 18 to 20 grams of beans within a reasonable time
- Will not heat your beans to a temperature that could change the taste.
(friction will generate heat) - Input = Output. 8 Grams of beans should result in 8 grams of grinded coffee. When you put in 8 grams and get 7,76 grams of output the 0,24 grams will stick aroud somewhere as “residu” which will affect the quality of your next brew.
- Make not a lot of noise. (just an effect on your mood… that potentially impacts your taste)
- Has a design that prohibits spoil.
- Have standard available and easy replaceable burrs.
- Last for many years
What is a good machine?
There are a lot good machines on the market available. ECM, Rocket, Profitec (also ECM), La Marzocco, Lelit They all have pro’s and con’s. Personally I’ve a strong preference for ECM and Profitec which I will explain later in a separate post.
Bulletwise: