Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

    Hi all,
    This is probably gonna sound pretty dumb to the experienced ones but for a year or so I had a little Sunbeam machine which made a great coffee and gave great frothy milk although the milk took forever to do as the steam wand only had a single small hole in it.
    So being an enthusiast I saw a Nuova Simonelli (Oscar professional) at a home show and bought one, it is an awesome machine but the steam wand is so efficient I can no longer get the milk right, the wand has 4 holes and blasts the milk to death iin seconds flat but alas! - no, or very little foam. If I do manage to get some foam it is weak and thin and soon dissipates. Ive tried every way I can think of to get it right but its just not happening for me, has anyone else had this problem or is it lack of experience on my part, any advice would be greatly appreciated, thanks in advance.

  • #2
    Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

    I have a 4 whole tip of the Faema and its a monster....doing large milk volumes it rocks but small milk volumes has taken me a long time to get right...and even then a small hand shake my mistake and you have suds. I have a second wand and will attach a double tip at some stage. I find for small amounts the EM6910 with a single hole is better for microfoam in small quantities - thankfully its therapeutic because it takes a while in comparison.

    Cheers

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

      welcome to the site too matey

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

        Welcome BM.

        You no longer have the "luxury" of a slow steamer.

        Technique will be ever more important now.

        I can honestly say Ive gone backwards at times, and had no better milk than youre now experiencing, for weeks on end.

        Some hints and tips and excuse me now if youve already heard some.

        Keep the milk jug in the fridge or as I do, fill the jug and then put it in the fridge when you put the milk back, then go on preparing your coffee.

        Grind, tamp, pull the shot.
        Then get the milk out of the fridge to steam it.

        After youve purged the steam wand, dipped it deep into the jug and started steaming, slowly lower the jug until you just break the milk surface with the steam and get a "ch, ch, ch" sound.

        You should be able to tell when the milk has increased in volume a little, I aim for about a cm in my 300ml jug.
        When its stretched enough, put the wand lower into the jug again to finish heating the milk.

        If you can keep a whirlpool effect going at this stage or alternatively a folding action, it will help incorporate the microfoam.

        Turn the steam off when the jug is too hot to hold or at say 60 degrees (to allow for lag time) if you have a thermometer and then clean the steam arm before swirling the milk a little and pouring.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

          Thanks for the welcome, Im looking forward to being part of this strange and eerie subculture.
          I read a post somewhere that suggested sticking toothpicks in 2 of the holes, while this may work I dont know how inclined I am to delimiting my new toy.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

            Hi BigMark,

            Let me offer you some encouragement!

            A few weeks ago I bought a new machine, a VBM Domobar Levetta which I found could also blast milk right out of the frothing jug if I was not careful.

            I had previously used a Saeco Via Venezia, which produced lovely creamy textured milk, but the important difference was, with the V/V I had a lot of time to think about what I was doing!

            My wife suggested I go back to using the old machine!

            With the Levetta I felt very discouraged for about two weeks because all I could produce was hot...sometimes overhot, watery milk with little or no froth, in about 15-20 secs.

            I then tried texturing with the wand positioned vertically, with the tip placed about 1 cm below the surface, in the middle of the jug.

            The technique for me to produce lovely microfoam was, in the stretching phase, to consciously keep lowering the jug to keep the tip in the same relative position to the surface of the milk, to make sure that the tip did not get buried deep into the milk...otherwise the tip would just heat the milk too quickly, rather than producing microfoam.

            I found it was preferable to "feel my way" gradually opening the steaming valve, thereby buying time, rather than to blast away at the milk from the outset.

            ( My steaming tip is the now standard 2 hole tip supplied with the Domobar, rather than the 4 hole original tip supplied by Vibiemme.)

            Although you could possibly experiment and buy a 2 hole tip from Coffee Parts, if I were you, Id really try to persevere and master the machine with the 4 hole tip as supplied by the manufacturer.

            Good luck and I hope that this helps!

            Trevorbeans

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

              Thanks for the suggestions TB, this is along the lines of what I have tried but will go back and refine it a little.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

                I see that Trevorbeans has kind of already suggested this but you could also try to not turn the steam on so much when only doing small quantities of milk.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

                  My suggestion would be to contact one of the site sponsors for a 2-hole tip. For me, going from a 4-hole to a 2-hole was the difference between froth and latte-art-able microfoam. Then switch back to the 4 hole tip when youre comfortable.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

                    Yes Identity,
                    I agree, and this was my next move, I have already concluded from advice received that this is where the problem lies.
                    Does anyone have any ideas about who would be the best people to contact or should I just browse them all.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

                      Hi Mark,

                      where are you based?

                      Talk Coffee are in Melbourne and Di Bartoli in Sydney - theyll both probably have them in stock, so whichever is closer. Some of the other sponsors would have them too (Im guessing CoffeeParts would) but Im not sure without phoning them.

                      Im just about to try to switch back to the 4-hole, but the milk I got from the servo is leaving.....argh, well Ill post a pic in the failures section

                      Dont think of the toothpicks as de-limiting, but as making the other holes go twice as fast. While this isnt actually true, it might be enough to get you to try it!


                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

                        I am in Perth,
                        Get this, I rang the distributor who I bought the machine from and they did some research into the 2 hole steam tip and rang me back saying that there is no such thing for that machine, fortunately I had done my own research and located one in Sydney which will be here tomorrow so heres hoping all goes well.
                        I will keep you posted regarding the impending success of this venture!

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

                          Practise, practise practise. I despaired after mastering steaming with a Silvia... and then going back to kindergarten with its commercial successor.

                          It took time, but now I do a reasonable job with confidence. You learn--over time---what works. WHere the best sweet spot is for the steam tip. The tell-tale sounds. How big that crucial little "dark spot"between the tip and milk should be.....

                          Knowing what to look and listen for, and taking the necessary steps to make it all fall into place.

                          But for single lattes, Id suggest you give yourself a sporting chance by using a tip with just two holes.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

                            I got the Vibiemme Levetta from my girlfriend yesterday and I am finding the same issues with steaming. Will try and get some pointers from some friends, but the above advice was helpful as well. It really lets off a lot of steam, especially compared to the little Sunbeam I had. I love my new tamper as well.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Newbie needs help wih milk texturing

                              Hopefully your friends have some experience or qualifications.
                              Otherwise Id recommend a course for some hands on practice with a qualified instructor.

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X