Greetings,
Approximately 12 months ago I bought an Iberital Challenge to use with my Silvia (I learnt the hard way - barista (nut at the controls), grinder, machine - as far as decent equipment goes (been using good beans for a while)) and the Iberital was the best I could afford at the time - it was sold to me with the warning that Id want to replace it at some point in the not so distant future - that time has come!
Since Ive had the IbC Ive gone from using a mix of locally roasted + home popcorn roasted beans, to pretty much exclusive home roasted and have added the iCoffee to the collection. The quality of the coffee has been much better than 12 months ago, and a damn sight better than I get at cafes in terms of consistency, however Im not happy (with myself) and am looking at things to assist in improving consistency and quality of my shots. About a month ago I got the mother of all shots that Ive tasted - EVAR - it was a straight espresso (single shot, the other went into a cap, and I dont like to waste my coffee): it had balance, a sweetness that I wish to replicate, wonderful mouth feel, fruits leading into a mocha(ey) finish that had no nasty bits anywhere in it. I have not been able to replicate.
My current issues Im trying to deal with:
1) Tamping uneven pressure - I just cant seem to consistently get a perfectly even puck first go (1 in 3 is right). I know the side I usually am high and tend to overcorrect and the other side gets left high.
2) Dose - If I go a relatively coarse grind I need to overdose to buggery which is near impossible to get measured correctly as its over the top of the basket which means sometimes its right, sometimes its wrong. If I dont over dose to all buggery I get thick ropey jelly like crema and what I feel are under extracted shots - in a measured shot glass - 60mL of crema colour which will settle to 22-30mL of black after 2 minutes (still with a little 1-2mm of now darker crema on top).
3) Grind - If I grind a bit finer so can pull consistent dosing I end up with much higher percentages of channelled shots. Which I assume is too fine of a grind, combined with uneven tamping and distribution within the basket.
To make it easier to work around these self created issues Im thinking that a new grinder with doser may aid me in my quest for improvement. With the little kidlets running around, I dont really have the time to be measuring out with scales exact grams of ground coffee, not to mention bench space contention - I figure that a doser will aid in dosing consistency at the expense of more wasted coffee.
I figure that a new grinder will lead to quicker grinding and more even particle sizes this should aid in dialling in the right grind for the beans on any given day and reduce some of the issues related to channelling.
The last thing is the nut behind all this equipment needs to work on their technique when it comes to tamping. I suspect Im trying to work within a fairly confined space and the elbow making a right angle business is being pushed off course, and I just need to get that nailed out. A bottomless portafilter would assist in diagnosing this.
I figure if I get family to combine their gifts, raid the coffee general fund (put away a few bucks each week to spend on coffee equipment, gets a better result than spending $4/coffee from a shop) I should be able to spend $800-1200 on a grinder. (If I get cash and wait until after my birthday in Feb, I may be able to increase that out to $1500-2000).
Space is at a fair premium, and ideally would not like to go too large, or needlessly big. Looks are not so important to me (although neutral colour I suppose would keep the Mrs happier) its performance. I missed out on picking up a refurb commercial grinder (Brezzera BZ/BB something or other) when I got the Iberital due to budget constraints. Its now time where something can be done, but Id like to do it right.
I think what Im looking for would be:
Grinder with a doser, relatively quiet motor/operation (make coffee when the little ones are sleeping). Im not particularly concerned with stepless vs stepped the steps on some of those machines are so tiny anyway. I dont think its important if I get planar or conical burrs as Im only going to be grinding enough for a double shot at a time. Im just not sure of which brand or model will cover this requirement.
** I will be going to one of the sponsors for this purchase, Id just like some comments and feedback. I think Ive learned enough over the last 12 months to understand the advice Im given here, and potentially the right questions to ask to clarify.
M
Approximately 12 months ago I bought an Iberital Challenge to use with my Silvia (I learnt the hard way - barista (nut at the controls), grinder, machine - as far as decent equipment goes (been using good beans for a while)) and the Iberital was the best I could afford at the time - it was sold to me with the warning that Id want to replace it at some point in the not so distant future - that time has come!
Since Ive had the IbC Ive gone from using a mix of locally roasted + home popcorn roasted beans, to pretty much exclusive home roasted and have added the iCoffee to the collection. The quality of the coffee has been much better than 12 months ago, and a damn sight better than I get at cafes in terms of consistency, however Im not happy (with myself) and am looking at things to assist in improving consistency and quality of my shots. About a month ago I got the mother of all shots that Ive tasted - EVAR - it was a straight espresso (single shot, the other went into a cap, and I dont like to waste my coffee): it had balance, a sweetness that I wish to replicate, wonderful mouth feel, fruits leading into a mocha(ey) finish that had no nasty bits anywhere in it. I have not been able to replicate.
My current issues Im trying to deal with:
1) Tamping uneven pressure - I just cant seem to consistently get a perfectly even puck first go (1 in 3 is right). I know the side I usually am high and tend to overcorrect and the other side gets left high.
2) Dose - If I go a relatively coarse grind I need to overdose to buggery which is near impossible to get measured correctly as its over the top of the basket which means sometimes its right, sometimes its wrong. If I dont over dose to all buggery I get thick ropey jelly like crema and what I feel are under extracted shots - in a measured shot glass - 60mL of crema colour which will settle to 22-30mL of black after 2 minutes (still with a little 1-2mm of now darker crema on top).
3) Grind - If I grind a bit finer so can pull consistent dosing I end up with much higher percentages of channelled shots. Which I assume is too fine of a grind, combined with uneven tamping and distribution within the basket.
To make it easier to work around these self created issues Im thinking that a new grinder with doser may aid me in my quest for improvement. With the little kidlets running around, I dont really have the time to be measuring out with scales exact grams of ground coffee, not to mention bench space contention - I figure that a doser will aid in dosing consistency at the expense of more wasted coffee.
I figure that a new grinder will lead to quicker grinding and more even particle sizes this should aid in dialling in the right grind for the beans on any given day and reduce some of the issues related to channelling.
The last thing is the nut behind all this equipment needs to work on their technique when it comes to tamping. I suspect Im trying to work within a fairly confined space and the elbow making a right angle business is being pushed off course, and I just need to get that nailed out. A bottomless portafilter would assist in diagnosing this.
I figure if I get family to combine their gifts, raid the coffee general fund (put away a few bucks each week to spend on coffee equipment, gets a better result than spending $4/coffee from a shop) I should be able to spend $800-1200 on a grinder. (If I get cash and wait until after my birthday in Feb, I may be able to increase that out to $1500-2000).
Space is at a fair premium, and ideally would not like to go too large, or needlessly big. Looks are not so important to me (although neutral colour I suppose would keep the Mrs happier) its performance. I missed out on picking up a refurb commercial grinder (Brezzera BZ/BB something or other) when I got the Iberital due to budget constraints. Its now time where something can be done, but Id like to do it right.
I think what Im looking for would be:
Grinder with a doser, relatively quiet motor/operation (make coffee when the little ones are sleeping). Im not particularly concerned with stepless vs stepped the steps on some of those machines are so tiny anyway. I dont think its important if I get planar or conical burrs as Im only going to be grinding enough for a double shot at a time. Im just not sure of which brand or model will cover this requirement.
** I will be going to one of the sponsors for this purchase, Id just like some comments and feedback. I think Ive learned enough over the last 12 months to understand the advice Im given here, and potentially the right questions to ask to clarify.
M

.... Its a common side issue with reading and digesting the volumes of information that can be found in these forums....
tap), remove the collar, and then use a plastic card to level off the basket, which leaves the correct dose for my setup.
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