ESPRESSO MACHINES
Machines that can do this all at once were only invented in this century. Most low-end home espresso machines settle for "some" pressure, and cheat on the "not quite boiling" part as well. The result is strong but bitter, acidic coffee, nothing like a true espresso.
There are two categories of home machines that pull this off, using respectively a hand-operated lever or a serious electric pump. A lever machine is like a guitar, only better: You will sound pretty good on your first day of practice, and the entry level instrument sounds great in the hands of a musician. A pump machine is like a boom box: You are in the audience, and you get what you paid for. The same choice exists in woodworking, where the camps divide between hand tools and power tools. Hand tools in awkward hands like mine are trickier, slower, and open doors of perception. The web and its paper precursors have plenty of advice to offer on choosing and operating a pump espresso machine. However, the vast majority of my espresso friends have chosen a particular lever machine to make their coffee. These notes are my report on what we think we know.
Pavoni is one of the founders of this whole business, having produced one of the first commercial espresso machines to see widespread use in Italy. The cornerstone of the home espresso operation is a good lever-piston espresso machine such as the Pavoni Europiccola, shown at right. This particular model is the canonical coffee maker of algebraic geometers worldwide. Whether to pull a lever or press a button is a subject of great debate. There are so many variables involving "operator feel" to making an espresso, that (the lever view) to press a button for the critical step is like hitching the last quarter mile up Mount Washington after climbing all morning, -vs- (the pump view) there are enough control variables to give up a few degrees of freedom, and a good pump can do a steadier job of extraction than a lever. Everyone agrees that a Pavoni has a great deal of personality; some just feel that it has too much.
One cannot learn to make good espresso by absorbing facts. The process is a way of seeing, a piece of bootstrap computer code checking all the senses, as crucial to waking up as the caffeinated sensory reward at the end. A Pavoni, with the aura of a 1930's alien signaling device, is the most involving tool one can choose for communicating with the coffee muses.
Pavoni advocates split over a preference for the Europiccola or the larger Professional model, which sports a pressure gauge. Besides this hood ornament, the significant differences in the Professional are a doubled capacity, and a thermostat replacing a manual two-level heat switch. The Europiccola's heat switch is primitive but effective. The Professional's thermostat takes over a crucial element of control from the user, for better or worse; one advantage is that it can be left on for hours.
The nominal capacity of the Europiccola is 8 espressos. Realistically, it yields four cappuccinos without refilling. If you purge with hot water before each cup (recommended; prewarming the empty filter holder and cleaning out the system leads to better "crema"), then four servings gets out of reach. In this scenario, or for a party, you will have to refill a Europiccola. The good news is that with care, this isn't such a big deal.
Only once in your life will you skip the steps of first releasing all pressure by opening the frothing valve and lifting the lever arm (and hopefully you will escape injury). It takes the concentration of a professional chef to make decent espresso enough times in a row for a party, anyway; the short break while the Europiccola reheats is a good moment for wrestling with one's karma. Indeed, a quick glance in the Concise OED reveals karma the sum of a person's actions in previous states of espresso, viewed as deciding his or her fate in future espressos.
Mathematicians try to solve recurrence relations like this in closed form.
Zabar's sells the Pavoni Europiccola so cheap (including mail order) that Pavoni sticks a different name on just for them, the Carina. This is a black enamel metal base with a plastic underside, and in all other respects is identical with the Pavoni Europiccola. It comes in the same box, with the same useless video. The prices (starting at $350 or so for a chrome Europiccola) are typically 50% higher elsewhere.
The Unofficial Page of the Chrome Peacock is dedicated to the Pavoni, with leads to further sources. As a welcome reality check, also read the Home Espresso Machine Mini-FAQ or its newer revision on rec.food.drink.coffee for a contrary recommendation to buy a pump-powered machine.
How to Use a La Pavoni by Daniel Ho is a highly recommended account of how to use a Pavoni, complete with an ongoing discussion forum.
The La Pavoni Coffee Grinder can be found in chrome and plastic (model # PGC) or brass and plastic (model # PGB) at Zabar's for $120 (they are often out of stock; if you'll take either chrome or brass, say so). It is a conical burr grinder, hefty at over 4 lbs, and roughly 4" wide by 6" deep by 10" high. For its price it is the best grinder I know.
After a year it shows signs of wear; if you can afford a truly serious grinder (e.g. a high end Rancilio) go for it instead.
Caveats: Yes, the tiny plastic crossbar where the coffee comes out looks like it will break, and it will. You won't miss it at all. Yes, the wire brush and instruction insert for cleaning looks like an afterthought. My guess is that the Pavoni engineers were truly befuddled at first by reports of complaints from the U.S. that didn't match their Italian marketing experiences, till some friendly soul took them aside and explained, "You wouldn't believe what oily drek passes for espresso beans in the States! Throw in a cleaning brush!" I recommend this grinder specifically for Italian-style espresso beans such as sold by Torrefazione Italia. If you disagree with my take on American roasting habits, this grinder will probably still work for you, but you're on your own.
This mill grinds more uniformly than any previous mill in my experience, and one must adapt one's brewing technique accordingly: One gets more flow through finer grounds than with a mill that generates irregularly sized particles.
(Mathematicians refer to this sort of thing as the sphere-packing problem.) This mill might be the answer to coaxing better performance out of feable low-end pump espresso makers, for with these grounds, one gets great espresso and great crema with less pressure. It grinds at a lower rpm than cheaper mills, and makes a more pleasing noise while doing so.
I've had no problems with static electricity charging my grounds. The grind fineness ajustment is continuous and very precise. However, within hours of purchase I decided to recalibrate the grind range to allow finer grinds (see instructions below). The next day I took the grind range down another stop, and now I am happy. (Others have reported that their grinders came calibrated just fine.) I have yet to experience a stuck lever on my Pavoni Europiccola, no matter how finely I grind or hard I tamp; the wall between "too fine" and "wet clay" comes more gradually with these grounds. I get great coffee with a remarkably light pull on the Pavoni lever, and even better if I grind finely enough to get the firm pull I'm used to. This mill also has the first "doser" I like using, with no internal waste (give it a good slap to dislodge the grounds in transit, after grinding). The doser mechanism doesn't involve a cradle, so it works with any brand of filter holder. In short, this grinder makes brewing espresso twice as easy and fun.
One might reasonably assume that adjusting the limits of the grind range voids the warranty, but an enclosed schematic makes it a trivial and reversible task. In any case, do not attempt this unless you are taking full responsibility for your actions; I am merely reassuring you that this mod is possible.
Work gently, and do not adjust the limits so finely that the grinder is capable of self-destructing. Take off the beans lid G1, and using a small Phillips-head screwdriver, remove the three screws which attach G2 to the base, keeping track of which screw is which. Note how the fineness control G13-G12-G9 continuously rotates the outer burrs G7. Note also how the two "bookends" G3, G3 hold the grind selection display G4. The left G3 bumps into G9 at the finest setting allowed.
Note how each G3 seats in a hole on G7, and how there are other holes at your disposal; each hole is a bit less than 3 units on the display. To allow finer settings, gently pry up each G3 with a small flat screwdriver, and move them both around to the next available hole. Confirm that at the new finest setting, the burrs don't knash and jam. Reassemble.
Zassenhaus hand mills are wooden, hand-operated burr grinders. Burr grinders tear the beans open between two raspy metal wheels like milling flour, exposing all sorts of flavor nooks and crannies. In contrast, blade grinders chop, bang, and bruise the beans to bits like a food processor, creating less surface area. The Zassenhaus doesn't wake up the neighborhood, and it doesn't heat damage the beans. The model which mounts on a counter edge like a pasta maker ($80 or so) is an outstanding coffee grinder, with a bit of a learning curve. The Coffee Connection used to carry this model, but stopped; Peet's is reported to have several similar models back in stock. Mine is large and clamps to a countertop like a pasta machine, not to be confused with smaller units that sit on top of the counter. Consider hand-turned flour mills as alternatives, and tell me if you find other reliable sources for this model.
This mill can grind finer than any mill I have ever seen. This mill can grind fine enough to burn out the motor on a pump espresso machine, and freeze the lever on a Pavoni. The ideal grind looks too coarse at first. It never demands a cleaning, though an occasional going-over with a dry toothbrush keeps the grind uniform. Like any burr grinder it needs to be "primed" with coffee particles part-filling the burrs before the grind settles down. There is no calibration on the grind selection dial; using a Zassenhaus is like trying to play a violin in tune. All of the arguments for using a Pavoni to make coffee by hand, with continual tactile feedback leading to a heightened awareness of the process, apply to using this mill.
I eventually cheated by labeling the dial with a metalic gold marker, drawing an arrow on one side of the handle, and reading off how the arrow lines up with the letters on the dial. You may want to similarly calibrate any unlabeled hand grinder.
This mill is capable of a very uniform grind, and offers a very sensitive continuously variable grind control. However, after a year of constant use, the grind setting seems to float on me. I now prefer the La Pavoni Coffee Grinder, but the Zassenhaus is a great mill if you like the idea of a hand-operated grinder.
The three questions to ask in examining any coffee mill are
"is it a burr grinder?"
"how do I control the grind?"
"can it grind uniformly fine enough?"
A large, continuous control is better than a control which takes discrete steps, or a tiny twist knob.
Braun makes the best inexpensive electric burr grinders ($40 and up; try Zabar's). The grind is less uniform than the Zassenhaus, although the very finest particles tend to accumulate separately in the hopper, and can be ditched. This is a disk burr grinder, inferior to cone burr grinders because it spins faster, heating the beans more (but not as badly as a blade grinder).
There are little plastic tabs within the Braun that keep the user from adjusting the grind to the point where the two grinding wheels knash and burn out the motor. By unscrewing the top from the base, locating the tabs, and filing off the tab on the base, you can go a step or two finer. This sometimes helps in getting the grind right for espresso, depending on your beans. Watch your house guests carefully if you disable this safeguard. Take the unit apart and clean out the accumulated coffee regularly, or the mill will eventually seize up and burn out.
Keep in mind that the Braun burr grinder has a thrust bearing adjustment screw on the bottom of its motor shaft. The screw has a lock nut and is accessible by removing the base of the grinder. I adjust mine by first unscrewing the hopper (selecting a finer grind by one or two clicks) and then tightening the thrust bearing screw a little. Then I try it out by turning on the grinder and very carefully/slowly screwing the hopper towards the finest grind. If the burs meet and gnash slightly the thrust bearing screw is holding the motor shaft too high, and I repeat the performance lowering the shaft a little more each time until the burrs do not touch when the finest grind is selected.
The coffee newsgroups tend to view Braun burr grinders as defining the bottom end of acceptable, but they are a huge step up from blade grinders. Similar models are said to spew grounds in unwanted directions, and some people experience severe static electricity problems. Static is solved by humidity or an all-metal construction; one writer borrows a darkroom piezoelectric static gun to zap away his problem. Static actually serves to sort the particles by size, which can be an advantage. Call me simple; I like the Braun.
In general, be leary of a coffee mill with a "doser" or "dispenser." The coffee's flight path will typically involve an overnight layover in the doser compartment, and Murphy is sure the doser won't be the right size for your espresso machine, anyway.
But don't be so quick to dismiss doser-grinders. The doser itself has both positive and negative aspects, but the burrs on the better doser-grinders are conical instead of flat, which in my experience leads to better uniformity of grind. We retired a Bialetti disk grinder (comparable to the Braun) about a year ago in favor of the Rancilio Rocky. The difference between the two at similar coarseness is very obvious under a magnifier, and our espresso's quality has slightly but noticeably improved.
It would be interesting to see the different grinds from various devices under a microscope. If anyone has access to microscopic photography facilities, I'd love to collaborate in posting a comparative study.
French presses (plunger pot, Cafetiere, Melior, Bodum, $10 and up) make the best non-espresso coffee, if a good espresso machine is out of budget. The Melior (try Zabar's) sports a second, replaceable filter, essential if you don't like much chew to your brew.
You should emulate espresso's extraction temperature, by letting the just-boiled water cool a bit before use. You could also emulate espresso's flavor isolation, by quickly brewing a generous quantity of coffee. However, the French press is best understood as a different beast. In particular, one brews a coarser grind for a longer time, with a less concentrated result. Stay below the mud barrier; the analogue to "stuck lever" syndrome from too fine a grind is "stuck plunger."
With careful measurement and timing in a microwave, you can heat your water to the ideal temperature (explore the range 190-200 F) without ever boiling it. Pay attention to the angle you place the measuring cup on a rotating microwave platter, and it will stop handle out.
You won't get any "crema" (the elusive "head" on an espresso, like on a Guinness), and the flavor is different in part because a French press doesn't extract using pressure, so it doesn't dissolve various coffee compounds. (Here, it seems like you're ingesting them in solid form, instead!) Many varieties of coffee bean taste good in a French press; it's particularly good at making a seriously earthy cup of Central American coffee. One does far better with a French press than a cheap espresso maker, until one is able to splurge for a Pavoni or a serious pump machine. I used a French press for ten years; I was the last of my friends to convert to a Pavoni. French presses are a continual chore to clean.
Stovetop espresso makers ($12 and up) make fantastic espresso outdoors on Italian islands. Somehow this doesn't translate back to a home kitchen. The basic problems are inadequate pressure and boiling water. (You can certainly spend a lot more than $12 on a low-end consumer appliance and end up with these same problems!) If you must, splurge for one made of stainless steel (not aluminum), tamp coarsely ground coffee at your own risk (you are betting your life on the safety release valve), and coax the coffee out slowly, stopping early. In college I also inserted chem lab filters into my stovetop unit, which made spectacular coffee until it exploded.
To put these assertions through the harsh light of scientific scrutiny, I A/B tested my Pavoni output against a good stainless steel stovetop espresso maker. With everything else held constant I can't finish a stovetop espresso, but the cappuccinos are actually enjoyable. Milk hides a lot. It's like stereo, you have to know what you're missing to want to spend more. Unfortunately, one visit to Italy and you know.
One can buy stovetop milk steamers, making such cappuccinos and lattes possible. Do not buy the combination stovetop units, costing as much as separates. They make you wait several minutes after brewing coffee, before you can steam milk.
Coffee extract is a delicious alternative in a work setting where there is neither the time nor the cleanup facilities to make decent coffee in one's office, but the communal machine makes incorrigible coffee. Extract keeps beautifully in a fridge, requires no specialized equipment, and it is easier to control all the factors once every few weeks for making extract, than every time one wants some coffee. I like espresso fridgiddo: a small, concentrated shot swilled cold from an office fridge, half and half with milk in the tiniest paper cups on the market.
Making extract is best informed by experience with a French press. I've never had any luck with cold brewing. Use 1-2 times as much 190-200 F water as freshly roasted coarsely to medium ground coffee by volume, steeping 3 to 5 minutes in a giant measuring cup. Stir at first but let settle, so most grounds stay behind. Pour through cheesecloth, and bottle in glass with tight caps. One could use a fast filter, with some loss of flavor and sediment. Serve from the bottles as if decanting wine, and the remaining sediment will show a stubborn preference for the bottom of the bottle even at cleaning time.
This is a great way to amortize the energy required for home roasting; roast your beans the day before, as they improve with time to degas. Attentive roasting with a powerful air popcorn popper in the garage seems to be a cult favorite, and some have modified the circuitry for higher temps; I'm not sure how. See Drew Ivan's page on Roasting Coffee for a start.
Again, home roasting technique is a subject of some controversy. I would never breath a bottle of wine with a hair dryer (though I've considered fish tank gurglers), and air roasted beans taste flat to me, as they do to some other writers.
There is an electric clarity to good strong unfiltered extract drunk cold; a way to truly appreciate your favorite varietals.
Cleaning Your Espresso Machine
These instructions are intended as a guide to help you maintain your espresso machine in good working order. They apply mainly to the conventional domestic manual espresso machines rather than automatic machines which contain electronics with pre-programmed cleaning and descaling cycles.
Keeping your machine clean:
- prevents oily deposits spoiling the taste of your carefully made espresso;
- helps keep your machine in good working order; and
- is important for good kitchen hygiene.
Every Time You Make A Coffee
After every cup of coffee you should clean the milk wand thoroughly with a damp cloth and release some steam to expel any milk and clean the nozzle holes. If you are not going to make another coffee for a while we recommend you empty the grounds from the filter basket, rinse it with some water from the group head, wipe with a damp cloth, replace, and run some water through it to rinse out any remaining coffee from the spouts. If you leave coffee grounds in the filter for a long period they can get baked on and become difficult to remove.
Daily Routine
Wipe the chassis of the machine with a damp cloth or neutral cleaner to remove splashes and coffee grounds.
On machines with professional group heads (those that have a pressure release mechanism such as the E61 group head on the Isomac Millennium) you should carry out the backflush procedure using a blind filter (a blind filter looks similar to an ordinary filter but it has no holes). Insert the blind filter into the filter handle, run water through the group head and at the same time jiggle the filter handle to rinse the water around the shower-screen and the seal on the underside of the group head. Then tighten the filter handle, run water into the group head for about 10 seconds, and release the pressure as if you had just finished drawing an espresso shot. Repeat this last step (building and releasing the pressure) 3 or 4 times to rinse any residues out of the pressure release mechanism.
Daily/Weekly Routine
Machines with professional group heads need to be cleaned regularly using cleaning tablets or powder. We would recommend using a cleaning tablet or powder every 30 uses or so, or at least once a week. The procedure is identical to the backflushing procedure described above except you need to place the cleaning tablet or powder into the blind filter before tightening the handle. It is recommended that you wait about 30 seconds between each backflush to allow time for the cleaning tablet or powder to dissolve and disperse the coffee residues. After 3 or 4 backflushes thoroughly wash all traces of the cleaning tablet or powder from the blind filter and repeat the backflushing process with plain water. Using an angled nylon brush carefully clean all remaining coffee grounds and residues from the underside of the group head paying particular attention to around the seal.
Dissolve another cleaning tablet or sachet of powder in a plastic or stainless steel bowl to soak the filter baskets and handles. After soaking for a while scrub them with a stiff bristle nylon brush to remove stubborn coffee residues (wear gloves to protect your hands from the cleaning chemicals). Thoroughly rinse the filter baskets and handles before using them again.
Thoroughly clean any milk residues from the steam wand and clean the inside of the wand using a fine pipe brush. You may also choose to use one of the cleaning products designed to help remove milk residues.
You will need to descale your machine every 3 to 6 months depending on the hardness of the water you are using in your machine. Even if you use filtered water you will need to descale your machine occasionally to remove traces of limescale from pipes, valves, and the boiler. If you are not already using filtered water then we would recommend that you do - even if you live in an area with soft water a water filter will still remove impurities and improve the taste. The harder the water is the more often you will need to descale your machine. Water test strips can be used to find out how hard the water is in your area.
We would recommend that you use a citric acid based descaler (such as the Urnex one available in our products section). This is designed for use in espresso machines and any traces that remain after the descaling process are harmless. You can also use distilled white vinegar but this tends to leave a lingering taste and smell.
Empty the water reservoir and fill with an appropriate amount of descaling solution. Run the machine to fill the boiler and pipes with the descaling solution. If you have a heat-exchanger machine it is important to run water through both the hot water wand and the group head as they have independent pipes and sections in the boiler. Run some of the descaling solution through the hot water wand and group head, and on professional machines also use the backflush procedure to run some of the descaling solution through the pressure release valve. Leave the machine switched on with the descaling solution in it for about half and hour, and then empty the water reservoir and refill with clean water. Flush the clean water through the boiler, pipes, steam wand, hot water wand, group head, and pressure release valve - you will probably need to use 1 or 2 full reservoirs of clean water. When you are satisfied that the boiler and pipes are full of clean water make at least one cup of coffee and throw it away. You can also use PH test strips to check that all the descaling solution has been rinsed out.
The descaling procedure may vary depending on the type of machine and the descaling product being used. The procedure outlined above is intended as a rough guide but you should always follow the instructions from the manufacturer of the machine and the descaling product where available.
On some machines with a heat exchanger you can empty the boiler by switching the machine off (after it has been running at operating temperature) and then open the hot water tap - the steam pressure will force hot water out of the boiler and it will not refill because it is switched off. This can help speed up flushing the descaling solution from the machine after descaling. |
