Aeropress!

[Gillthepainter Profile Website]

For preference, I have decaf black.

All other coffee at home I have with powdered coffeemate. I actually don't know what it's made of.

[Stokey Sue Profile]

Mixture of corn syrup, modified veg oils including coconut and palm oils and dairy by-products (sodium caseinate) it seems....

Used to love that stuff, once upon a time

[Gillthepainter Profile Website]

Damn! That's taken the shine off it, Sue .......................

[Rainbow Profile]

Damn! That's taken the shine off it, Sue .......................

Sometimes it's better not to know
But the first time I read the ingredients on a packet (on a plane, I think, a long time ago) was the last time I drank the stuff!

[Renee Profile]

Me too! I used to keep it in the cupboard in case I ran out of milk, but haven't bought it for a very long time.

[Sakkarin Profile]

I used to use Coffee Mate, and was trying to think why, and like you realised it used to be the standby when I ran out of milk (although I confess in the 70s it seemed like quite a sophisticated coffee additive). These days I always have several bottles of milk in the fridge, so never run out, so never have to resort to dried stuff.

On the issue of rating coffee, I also saw a report that says that my area is one of the hardest water areas in the country (320 mg/l), so any of my coffee tasting is adulterated with half a teaspoon of chalk as well as the milk and sugar.

https://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/ ... ardest-uk/

[Stokey Sue Profile]

I have a Pozzani water filter, which removes the chlorine and a lot of the chalk, I think it makes a noticeable difference to tea and coffee

[scullion Profile]

i fitted a pozzani, too.
we have very soft water which tastes vile. the water filter makes a huge difference to ours.
i have also glazed and fired the used ceramic part of the filters when they are spent.

[PatsyMFagan Profile]

I have a Pozzani water filter, which removes the chlorine and a lot of the chalk, I think it makes a noticeable difference to tea and coffee

me too, but have to admit that I still get the scummy layer on my tea .. and it leaves the most horrid stain round my cup. The only way I get round this is to make tea in the pot

[Pampy Profile]

I've got a Pozzani too. I live in an extremely soft-water area (so much so that I've been advised not to use salt in my dishwasher) but I actually quite like the taste of it.

[scullion Profile]

i've never used salt in the dishwasher.
you can check the hardness of the water in your area online to see if you need to or not.

[Sakkarin Profile]

When I started off with my Aeropress, I was using 12g of coffee, I've found since that my ideal mug-sized brew with my favourite beans is just 10g.

There's a follow-up video to the article on expresso grinding here, what struck me was when he said that he says there were 19g of coffee beans in the expresso he made...

For comparison, the first coffee pods I looked up, Lavazza, contain 7.5g of coffee.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-englan ... so-formula

[Stokey Sue Profile]

They make different Pozzani filters for different water qualities - mine removes the effects of very heavy chlorination and some chalk, basically for London and the home counties

My espresso machine saga continues, I now appreciate that the motor can’t cope with the 14-15 grams of coffee de Longhi recommend for a double shot but can only handle 10 - 11 grams. Two good coffees so far today.

I guess that’s saving me nearly a third of the cost of beans

[Pampy Profile]

For comparison, the first coffee pods I looked up, Lavazza, contain 7.5g of coffee.

I was once told by an Italian chef that 7 - 7.5g was the correct amount of coffee to make an espresso.

[Sakkarin Profile]

Dear me, this is an "instruction" video by someone using the same model as my (redundant) Pavoni expresso machine. Paint drying or what? Looks like he's using about 20g or so of grounds for 2 cupfuls. Well thimblefuls.

EDIT: Downloaded the Pavoni manual, it says:
To obtain a desirable cup of espresso you should first start with the proper coffee grind. Your la Pavoni machine requires fine grind espresso coffee, since grinding techniques vary you may have to experiment with more than one type of grind until you are satisfied. The grind should have the consistency of powdered sugar.

Hmm, I think that "powdered sugar" may mean icing sugar (an Americanism?), I thought initially as I started posting it meant granulated.

It also says:
You can adjust for slightly coarse grind by tamping harder, and vice versa., although I don't understand the "vice versa", as I can't see anything being finer than icing sugar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYC0GXJj2gQ

[Sakkarin Profile]

Just an update on a couple more coffees.

Starbucks Caffe Verona Dark Roast (pre-ground) - OK as a standby, but too bitter for me. £1 from B&M

Aldi Colombian Beans - very good, but need to do a side-by-side with Lidl when current pack runs out.

[dennispc Profile]

Brazier coffee in Somerset roast their own.

[Renee Profile]

Pampy, as you're not too far away from me, are you with United Utilities for your water supply? My water isn't soft, but does vary, because it comes from different sources.

[Pampy Profile]

Yes, I am with UU. The water around where I live is very soft.
It comes from the Trough of Bowland and can be supplemented from the Lake District.

[Renee Profile]

I've just checked again and it is Mod. Soft, but still obtained from different sources.