Newbie Ikon questions

[Hopper]

Hi all

Based on copious research (mostly of these pages), Ive just bought for my wife a Breville Ikon and Sunbeam 0480 grinder. I want to make sure Ive got all the parts for her for Christmas morning, so my questions are these:

Do I need a single or double unpressurized basket (whats the difference), and where do I get them? Im in Coburg, VIC.

What other bits and pieces do I need for the Ikon and 0480?

What beans can you recommend to commence my journey?

Thanks
Hopper

[james74]

Re: Newbie Ikon questions

Hi Hopper,
I have never had any sucess using single shot baskets, on my old breville both pressurised and standard baskets, and on my giotto. I would just go with the doubles. Even if you get the pour time at about 30 seconds, i find the single basket does not give the body in the shot i enjoy.
FRESH coffee is a must once you try it for the first time but the flavour is a very personal thing so this is something that you will have to try for yourself. Just stick with the smaller boutique roasters and you cant really go wrong, just try their blends untill you find the one you like. Also, give some single origins a go, it is quite amazing how different coffee can be from different countries and altitudes, even if the actual variety of coffee is the same.
James

[Senator]

Re: Newbie Ikon questions

you could always try the starter pack at brownbay (one of the forums above), that way you will get a variety of freshly roasted beans.

Being in NZ, we cant get that over here, but I have had different beans from my roaster for about the past 2 months and really enjoy the variety (still waiting on him to get some SO Yirg to try tho )

As for the Ikon / 480 combo, std baskets and a "decent" tamper (not the std plastic thing)

Sen