emradguy Senior Member Joined: 31 Mar 2011 Posts: 1,727 Location: Houston Expertise: I live coffee
Espresso: Izzo Alex Duetto II Grinder: MacapM4T, Macap M4, OE Lido,... Drip: Espro press; Aeropress Roaster: internet
Posted Mon Feb 11, 2013, 9:54am Subject: Re: Help is needed to decide my espresso machine and grinder!
Having used my Duetto II for over a year, without the option to plumb in, I am not only envious of your adjacent sink, but scratching my head wondering what you're waiting for? If it were me, I'd have drilled the hole in the counter and set up an inline carbon filter and softener while waiting for the machine to arrive.
gearbolt Senior Member Joined: 9 Aug 2007 Posts: 39 Location: San Jose, CA Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Izzo Alex Duetto 3.0 Grinder: Mahlkonig K30 Vario Vac Pot: Kona Roaster: TBD
Posted Mon Feb 11, 2013, 12:24pm Subject: Re: Help is needed to decide my espresso machine and grinder!
emradguy Said:
Having used my Duetto II for over a year, without the option to plumb in, I am not only envious of your adjacent sink, but scratching my head wondering what you're waiting for? If it were me, I'd have drilled the hole in the counter and set up an inline carbon filter and softener while waiting for the machine to arrive.
Ha ha ha. :) You are absolutely right. If I were single, I would just do these things right away. When I took the photos I on purpose move the setup away from the faucet since I know people will start asking why you are still using the water tank and empty the drip tray by hands.
We just finished our remodeling a year ago and at that time I wasn't thinking to go down the semi-auto espresso road since I had a super-auto when I planed for the interior setups. That was a big mistake I made. ;(
Anyway, I am thankful that my wife "allows" me to have such huge machines in the kitchen. You won't see any unnecessary appliances in our kitchen. All of them are either built-in or hidden inside the doors/panels.
I plan to teach her to make her own capp. I hope that once she gets involved more and knows the tasks of adding water in the tank and dump the drip tray water, she will come to her "sense".
Oh, by the way, I use the Chrome's Incognito window for the post. :)
Coffeenoobie Senior Member Joined: 11 Dec 2011 Posts: 2,320 Location: PNW Expertise: I like coffee
Espresso: N S Oscar Grinder: Vario W
Posted Mon Feb 11, 2013, 12:46pm Subject: Re: Help is needed to decide my espresso machine and grinder!
Great grinder and I am glad you are happy with your machine. It takes a lb or 2 to get going and so people only getting one lb when they first start are out of beans just about the time they get it dialed in. (I did that) So you did good getting a 5lb bag to start off with.
Coffeenoobie
Buying advice: GRINDER GRINDER GRINDER. Don't cheap out on the grinder. My coffee treasure map... Click Here (maps.google.com)
emradguy Senior Member Joined: 31 Mar 2011 Posts: 1,727 Location: Houston Expertise: I live coffee
Espresso: Izzo Alex Duetto II Grinder: MacapM4T, Macap M4, OE Lido,... Drip: Espro press; Aeropress Roaster: internet
Posted Mon Feb 11, 2013, 1:58pm Subject: Re: Help is needed to decide my espresso machine and grinder!
gearbolt Said:
Ha ha ha. :) You are absolutely right. If I were single, I would just do these things right away. When I took the photos I on purpose move the setup away from the faucet since I know people will start asking why you are still using the water tank and empty the drip tray by hands.
We just finished our remodeling a year ago and at that time I wasn't thinking to go down the semi-auto espresso road since I had a super-auto when I planed for the interior setups. That was a big mistake I made. ;(
Anyway, I am thankful that my wife "allows" me to have such huge machines in the kitchen. You won't see any unnecessary appliances in our kitchen. All of them are either built-in or hidden inside the doors/panels.
I plan to teach her to make her own capp. I hope that once she gets involved more and knows the tasks of adding water in the tank and dump the drip tray water, she will come to her "sense".
Oh, by the way, I use the Chrome's Incognito window for the post. :)
awesome! you're lucky she's involved. Once she gets tired of filling the reservoir and dumping the drip tray before it overflows, you'll get the green light for plumbing in. My wife will just go to *$$ if I'm not around to make her lattes. So, well...I'm going to have to wait until my she's ready to give up our breakfast area for a freestanding bar, because the estimate I just got to bring plumbing to where my machine is, came back in the several thousands - yikes!
gearbolt Senior Member Joined: 9 Aug 2007 Posts: 39 Location: San Jose, CA Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Izzo Alex Duetto 3.0 Grinder: Mahlkonig K30 Vario Vac Pot: Kona Roaster: TBD
Posted Mon Feb 11, 2013, 2:07pm Subject: Re: Help is needed to decide my espresso machine and grinder!
JasonBrandtLewis Said:
FWIW, I find this is a very consistent grinder -- I only weigh my doses once every week or so, more as a "check" than anything else. It never varies by more than 0.05 grams.
Yes, I also feel that the K30 Vario grinder's timer/grind amount is consistent and that was the main reason I just used the timer to control my dosing. Almost each time when I did the grind re-distribution, I could get the same feel of the grind amount in the PF. But I did remember that there were one time, I got much less grind in the end (I paused the grind and then resume). I think it may be because I stopped the grinder very close to the end of the grind time(?) and somehow the reminding amount does not have enough push to fall out(?).
Yes, I absolutely agree with you that it is truly a joy to use the K30 Vario, even compared to the Duetto. It is so quiet (compared to my old grinder which is not a real espresso grinder) and very fast. It is funny that sometimes I wish it could slow down a bit so I can enjoy the moment. :) Maybe it is my caffeine talking.
qualin Senior Member Joined: 30 Jun 2012 Posts: 464 Location: Calgary, AB Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Izzo Alex Duetto 3 Grinder: Mazzer Mini Elect. Type A Vac Pot: Looking to buy Drip: Manual Roaster: Considering?
Posted Mon Feb 11, 2013, 6:59pm Subject: Re: Help is needed to decide my espresso machine and grinder!
JasonBrandtLewis Said:
FWIW, I find this is a very consistent grinder -- I only weigh my doses once every week or so, more as a "check" than anything else. It never varies by more than 0.05 grams.
Maybe my own grinder is at fault. I can grind for the exact same amount of time and get as much as a 1.5 gram variance. 14.4 grams on one double, 15.8 on another.. same exact grind time. Could be my coffee... Otherwise, I'm not sure what is causing the large variances. I use Grindz every time I switch to a new batch of beans and grind at least 5 grams of coffee before using it.
gearbolt Senior Member Joined: 9 Aug 2007 Posts: 39 Location: San Jose, CA Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Izzo Alex Duetto 3.0 Grinder: Mahlkonig K30 Vario Vac Pot: Kona Roaster: TBD
Posted Sat Feb 16, 2013, 8:11pm Subject: Re: Help is needed to decide my espresso machine and grinder!
qualin Said:
Maybe my own grinder is at fault. I can grind for the exact same amount of time and get as much as a 1.5 gram variance. 14.4 grams on one double, 15.8 on another.. same exact grind time. Could be my coffee... Otherwise, I'm not sure what is causing the large variances. I use Grindz every time I switch to a new batch of beans and grind at least 5 grams of coffee before using it.
I actually weight the grinds 3 times at different times. They are all 16.5g for 3.3 sec. My scale is only down to 0.1g resolution. It is not bad at all. ;)
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