Hi! Im new here. Go easy on me!

[Needle]

Hi all - Newbie in Brisbane here.

We had had various cheapie coffee appliances over the years that have failed and was never particularly happy with the output anyway. So we always revert back to our Trusty french presses (and what I use at work).
I am looking to improve our coffee - so will be starting with a better grinder (2nd hand most likely) to replace our current coffee chopper and will be experimenting with a range different roasters fresher beans.

Plan is to purchase a quality machine in the future as funds allow - again will probably start 2nd hand and work our way up in features. Have been researching here for a short while and have an eye on the Oscar II, Lelit Victoria and Bezerra BZ10 as possibilities. Wife will be doing most of the use during the day and likes her milk based coffees to be hotter than normal - So I am guessing Dual boiler or HX will end up being the path we go for her ease and speed of use.

If I had not started researching first (and finding the wealth of information here) I most likely would have started with a BES870 on an ebay voucher day.

Anyway enough rambling - glad to be here and will continue to learn and ask the occasional question about gear/process as I go.

cheers
Craig...

[Dimal]

Welcome Craig...

You've just taken the "Red Pill" on your journey into the world of great coffee.
Enjoy the journey...

Mal.

[Needle]

Welcome Craig...

You've just taken the "Red Pill" on your journey into the world of great coffee.
Enjoy the journey...

Mal.

Thanks Mal. I just hope I do not end up wishing I took the blue pill.

[WaltzingDingo]

G'day! New to coffeesnobs!
Not new to coffee per-say, I've been drinking for YEARS with an Aeropress or pour-over, but very recently got insanely lucky in my hunt for a first espresso machine and snagged myself a Gaggia Baby '91 built in December of 2000. For $20 on the Facebook Marketplace in my area! Great condition, just needed a new group-head seal and the shower screen + screen holder to be removed and scrubbed to death due to the trapped scale. Amusingly documented the process on my FB, she was a dirty girl.
If a ton of bad luck befalls upon me for the rest of the year I'll know I burnt it all on finding this machine.

Although the machine cost me bugger all, I invested in a ROK manual grinder as my go-to grinder. An upgrade from the small hand grinder I've been using for years for my Aeropress. Took me some fiddling, and I'm not sure if I'm 100 happy with the timing of my shots just yet, but good lord I have fallen even deeper in love with coffee now that I have a machine that can pull great shots.

For those curious re:my Gaggia Baby - yes I have also modified it! I installed a rotary dimmer switch (after buying like 4 different ones from Bunnings to see which would work with the tiny pump!) with a light switch that allows me to stop the pump without closing the solenoid, and let the water dribble into the puck for a few seconds of pre-infusion. I need practice with it, however I'm otherwise super happy that the dimmer also functions as a soft-start so it ramps pressure upwards rather than how it used to work - full pressure on or off. Got frustrated by the ruined tamps!
I may share my shenanigans in a post some time in the future.

This place seemed great so I figured I'd pop in for the long haul and look out for other Gaggia Baby owners!

[Javaphile]

Welcome to the party. From the sounds of it you'll fit right in!


Java "Pull up a chair and have a cuppa!" phile

[outofthebox]

Hello!

Hello everyone!

Newbie from India. My name is Amit. I discovered coffee late in life, was helped a great deal in developing a taste for it by Dutch & Aussie colleagues & friends at my workplace in Singapore.

In addition to coffee, I'm also snobbish about music, riding bikes and gadgets. Mostly a pour over and espresso fan but I also enjoy the occasional moka pot & cafetiere.

After a decade or so of living with entry level equipment, I'm looking to upgrade my espresso rig during year end holidays. This forum comes up fairly often when I'm researching the usual suspects. Lots of knowledge here. I'm looking forward to improve my coffee knowledge and make some new friends here.

[Dimal]

Welcome Amit...

You're certainly in the right place to fulfill your coffee desires mate.
Have fun while you're here...

Mal.

[flynnaus]

Hi Amit
As this is an Australian site, it is a bit hard for us to recommendations for someone in another country. Your choice of equipment depends on what product range is available to you within your budget. Make a short list of what you would like and we may be able to advise if we are familiar with that equipment. If you are still living in Singapore (?) you might have a look at a couple of shops that sell espresso gear like Highlander or Cowpresso.

[outofthebox]

Hi Amit
As this is an Australian site, it is a bit hard for us to recommendations for someone in another country.

IMO Aussie tastes in coffee and the decades old tradition, like many other good things in life, are spot on and second to none. That is what matters to me most.

As for available choices in India, I've decided to skip the SBDU variants, although Rancilio Sylvia and many local brands (of Chinese origins) are available.

The usual K cup appliances & fully automatics from Saeco, Gaggia, WMF etc are more popular here, (please don't beat me up for saying this, but most likely due to prevailing mllennial habits here).

I'm looking at entry level HX units, preferably ones with a lever. These are my choices and the current list prices here:

1. Le'Lit Mara PL62 @ AUD 1550
2. La Nuova Era Quadra A006 @ AUD 1950
3. Nuova Simonelli Oscar II @ AUD 1440
4. Expobar Office Control @ AUD 1260

In terms of grinders my options are:

1. Compak K6 @ AUD 450
2. Macap M2M @ AUD 550
3. Nuova Simonelli MCF @ AUD 500

Entry level commercial use units from Anfim, Rancilio, Mahlkoenig and Cunill are also available as is the Baratza line up. Baratza Vario goes for AUD 650. But any of these as of now are not my first preference, unless anyone here has different experiences with them. (I have none).

My first choice would have been the Ceado E5P or E6P, but sadly the Ceado distributor in India only brings in their juice extractors/cold press machines.

[kexkez]

HI New in terms of posting but have been lurking in and around this forum for a number of years. Finally looking ti buy our first machine a Lelit PL41TEMD. have previously considered a Rancilio Silvia with PID and Rocky grinder but earlier this year changed my decision to the Lelit. I need to buy a grinder as well. Currently using a Sunbeam EM480 for plunger coffee but this won't cut it for the lelit. Considering the Eureka Mignon as my fresh start point. Would love advice on what else to get. I'm country WA but only a few hours from Perth. There's a coffee machine place about 36km away in Bunbury so can do a basic course and buy my cleaner etc there. What else will I need, I wonder. Trying desperately to ignore the , what else would I like... thoughts.

[Dimal]

G'day "kexkez"...

I'm not familiar with any of the specialist coffee businesses over in WA but if the one in Bunbury has a good rep', maybe you could start up a relationship with them, then involve them with your journey towards espresso nirvana.

No doubt some of our CS Sandgropers will be able to help out but I would suggest posting a new thread under one of the hardware categories and ask for assistance there. Will be seen by more CSers that way...

Mal.

[Brewster]

Good idea Mal

https://coffeesnobs.com.au/grinders/...-perth-sw.html

[kexkez]

G'day "kexkez"...

I'm not familiar with any of the specialist coffee businesses over in WA but if the one in Bunbury has a good rep', maybe you could start up a relationship with them, then involve them with your journey towards espresso nirvana.

No doubt some of our CS Sandgropers will be able to help out but I would suggest posting a new thread under one of the hardware categories and ask for assistance there. Will be seen by more CSers that way...

Mal.

Hi Mal thanks. Saw this as a spot to introduce myelf and stop lurking. I've bitten the bullet and got myself a machine and new grinder. ( posted int eh grinder section for advice) Now delving into the not so deligthful murky world of hard water information. This is going to be an interesting ride.

cheers

[Knobby]

Hi All,
Whilst I’m not a coffee newbie, I’m new to Coffee snobs.
Have just levelled-up my coffee game from a 2001 Mokita Combi Super Inox to a Rocket Mozzafiato Evoluzione R and a Eureka Atom. Am loving the extra flexibility that the Atom gives (not to mention how quiet it is!).
The problem I’m facing is that I’ve just moved to a new job which exclusively stocks Blend 43 in the kitchen. Even the automatic machines in my old office that did the grinding and frothing for you made a better cup than than Nescrappe’s finest. At Sydney coffee prices I can’t exactly afford to buy my 3-4 cups a day and I certainly don’t have time to run home in the middle of the day.
Do any of your more experienced coffee snobs out there have a good suggestion on how to have good coffee at work? My wife tells me to stock a jar of Moccona in my locker, which would be marginally better, but I’m looking for something a bit more enjoyable.
Cheers
Knobby

[Yelta]

Hi All,
Whilst I’m not a coffee newbie, I’m new to Coffee snobs.
Have just used levelled-up my coffee game from a 2001 Mokita Combi Super Inox to a Rocket Mozzafiato Evoluzione R and a Eureka Atom. Am loving the extra flexibility that the Atom gives (not to mention how quiet it is!).
The problem I’m facing is that I’ve just moved to a new job which exclusively stocks Blend 43 in the kitchen. Even the automatic machines in my old office that did the grinding and frothing for you made a better cup than than Nescrappe’s finest. At Sydney coffee prices I can’t exactly afford to buy my 3-4 cups a day and I certainly don’t have time to run home in the middle of the day.
Do any of your more experiences coffee snobs out there have a good suggestion on how to have good coffee at work? My wife tells me to stock a jar of Moccona in my locker, which would be marginally better, but I’m looking for something a bit more enjoyable.
Cheers
Knobby

Welcome to Coffee Snobs Knobby.

You could invest in an Aeropress and take ground coffee from home would be a vast improvement on instant.
https://www.coffeeparts.com.au/brands/aeropress