[Closed] another coffee maker help thread

We've got a Gaggia Gran (I think thats what it is!) which makes great coffee but is a bit of a faff. Also got an Aeropress mainly for when we're away camping in the van but it lives in the house between trips and gets used more than the Gaggia*

* in no way am I coffee expert so I'm prepared to me told that owning a Gaggia and an Aeropress is the equivalent of owning a Saracen and an Apollo

Aeropress is pretty good for what it is. I use one in the office.

Gaggia make great coffee machines and is a good choice.

Most people will tell you that you need 3 things to make good coffee:
1. fresh beans. nothing you get from the supermarket will fall into that category. you need a local roaster or buy online as you need it
2. a grinder for the above. Ibertal MC2 (IIRC) is the default choice.
3. A decent machine - Gaggia Classic is pretty much the de-facto standard.

if you look a the above and think "naaa cant be bothered with ordering coffee every week and the expense of a grinder too" then go get a Nespresso.

I have a Sage Barista Express. it has served me excellently over the last year. a few cups a day for the household. easy to clean. easy to set up. pretty much spot on. It froths slightly better than the Classic, but most people change the wand for rancillo one for that reason on the gaggia.

Hope that helps.

Rancilio Silvia. Say-no-more.

Aeropress is pretty good for what it is. I use one in the office.

Yup,it's low faff.

Is milk part of your coffee experience? How much faff is too much faff for you?

I have an aeropress that I drink black americano style long vats of coffees from and a La Pavoni and a grinder at home that I mainly drink Macchiatos from. I like both but they are worlds apart in terms of cost and faff.

Cheers people. I know its been done before but there is so much to consider.

I my happy with the faf and definitely think espresso machine is for me at this time. I have looked at Aeropress etc and will probably get one at a later time for when out and about.

I have looked at Gaggia Classic and Rancilio Silvia and many others such as DeLonghi etc. The classic was originally nearer my original budget thoughts but like bikes easy it is to keep increasing the more you look.

However, is it true to avoid the new version and only look at the old version? I've read pros and cons each way.

Is the Silvia worth the extra money?

My preference is for flat white coffee but yes will generally be milk coffees.

My girlfriend likes the Serbian / Turkish coffee (sludges), so who knows what we will also be making?

Silvia matched with a Rocky grinder here, works wonders, silvia is a little temperamental about grind but once dialed in makes good coffee for an entry level setup, although it's not the most forgiving beginner friendly machine. but it will teach you good habits and provide more user then a more entry level machine.

I have a Gaggia Classic, but don't bother with a grinder. I have a local roasters (Wogans) and get freshly ground coffee every week. It's good enough for me and less faffy and noisy so I don't wake the kids in the morning.

the trouble with buying ground coffee is it will start to go stale as as soon as it’s ground and because the grind will never be consistent or matched to your machine your dose will sometimes vary outside the 17.5-20g sweetspot or you have to over-tamp. a grinder will give you more control, if you were thinking of getting a more expensive machine and omitting the grinder i would think again. get a good grinder (iberital, mahlkonig vario, Kompak k3 touch advanced, baratza, eureka mignon etc) and a gaggia classic.

not sure whats going on with the new classic but the RI8161 is still available. the new RI9403/11 looks like it has a plastic spout on the portafilter. i would break that when tamping.

if you have more budget the new sage machines are very good.

The entry level (£300 or so) DeLonghi bean-to-cup machines are excellent if you want good coffee but with minimum fuss. I concede that it [i]may[/i] be possible some of the more complex setups might produce better coffee but I'm 100% sure I couldn't be bothered with all the fuss.

I've got a handpresso which is great but a bit of a one-trick pony - ese espresso pods, that's it. very good at what it does once you've got the pods you like and not much in the way of faff.
What does an aeropress do? Is it just a filter or can it do full strength espresso as well?

I gave up on an aeropress, too much faff for me.

I have a Delonghi bean-to-cup (think was £400, not sure of the model off the top of my head). It's OK but not great, I tend just to use it for americanos now. Quality beans does matter but personally I can't really tell the difference between 1 day old beans and 10 day old beans (kept in the fridge in a sealed box between use). I've also had coffee I prefer made from supermarket vacuum packed beans than freshly roasted ones - there's so much variation in how beans taste I personally think finding a bean you like matters more than freshness (within reason).

although it's not the most forgiving beginner friendly machine. but it will teach you good habits and provide more user then a more entry level machine.

What sorts if things do you mean? Always interested as every day is a school day.

What does an aeropress do? Is it just a filter or can it do full strength espresso as well?

no. it makes aeropress coffee. slightly stronger cleaner taste than filter or french press.
to make espresso you need 9bar pressure 93º steam and 17-20g ground coffee.
stovetop coffee isn’t espresso.

they are great for travel and easier to clean/deal with waste as you just push the ground coffee and filter disc into a bin.

boblo, as it's not a pid systems you don't have true control of temperature and pressure at the group head, this makes it much more fussy about grind consistency to stop channeling and the ability to pull consistant shots. you can get round some of this with temp surfing but does add more faff to pulling each shot. Also as it's a huge lump of cast iron on the inside it can take a long to warm up properly for good results. again you work around this by flushing the group head and port filter a couple of times during warmup.

Another happy Delonghi user here, its a Magnifica model.

Also have an Areopress that I have used for several years, but with the bean to cup machine you can get a much stronger cup of coffee.

Apologies for the thread hijack but as coffee types are in here has anyone tried cold brewing coffee?

Read about it this morning I'm intrigued:
"Cold brewed coffee naturally seems sweeter due to its lower acidity. Because the coffee beans in cold-press coffee never come into contact with heated water, the process of leaching flavor from the beans produces a different chemical profile from conventional brewing methods." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_brew

I've just shelved my Classic for the time being - been brilliant with the Rancillo wand mod, extra alloy scoop, etc but I found I'd slowed down on the amount I was drinking with a change in meds so it's just been sat there.
The spanking new Cunil MC5 Inox grinder I bought is still in its box!!!!!
Debating if it goes in the classifieds/Ebay or back out later

Thanks again. I have a lot to learn!!!

I will be getting the grinder thing sorted after machine decisions.

Is the old classic ok with the boiler reservoir volume? I understand it was increased a fair bit on the new version.

I've also read regarding the solenoid etc but not sure how it will affect me? I reckon the metal spout is better than the plastic on the new.

I have not really looked at bean to cup machines, a friend of mine has a Delonghi Magnifica but was a present to him so cannot offer any help.