Naked Science Forum
General Discussion & Feedback => Just Chat! => Topic started by: Karen W. on 19/11/2008 18:50:25
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Just curious.. I am in the market to buy a new Expresso/cappuccino machine and a teapot!
Post your favorites with piccy's..
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I'll ask my son, who runs an espresso shop about machines. As for tea (oolong is my favorite), I use a french press with loose tea. Drop in tea leaves, pour in hot water, wait a a couple of minutes, press down the plunger for a perfect cup of tea. Easy to clean.
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That sounds good!
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When he opened his shop, I got a real education in the art of making a good espresso. We all sat around making shots and tasting them, varying the type of coffee, the amount of ground coffee and the pressure that you pack the grounds. My conclusion at the end was that you need good coffee to start with, freshly ground for each cup, and surprisingly, how much difference packing the grind made. Too much packing and you get burnt tasting coffee, too little and the water goes through too quickly, not forming the "crema" that gives espresso its sweetness. Around 30 lbs of pressure seem to work best for his machine and coffee.
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I hate burnt tasting coffee! So many places around here brew burnt tasting coffee! Yuck!
I want a good machine that I can make good cappuccino's with.... I like mocha cappuccino!
Sounds like good tips!
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Get a brown betty teapot and as for coffee, why make one at home when your favorite barister can make one much better.
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$6.00 a cup here and thats a medium smallish cup! Thats 42.00 a week for a morning cup of Cappuccino!
My Machine broke and I liked mine better then a shop!
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Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee !!!!!!!
I have a bean-to-cup machine at home, so it provides freshly ground coffee and and excellent crema. It'll make lattes, macchiatas, espressos...you name it. I've also gone through the testing phase for the right bean, and whilst it's an individuals choice, there is certainly some common ground. (ahaha). I use a bean that provides a full aroma, full (but not overly strong) flavour and a nice "bite". It's well rounded and, well, it's just gorgeous!
The machine was expensive (€800), BUT, calculating the cost of buying coffee over a year, and the non-cost personal benefit, it pays for itself within a year. It is my absolute tip top favourite toy, and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone.
But, I guess that I can't tell you what it is on here? Or the bean?
I can PM anyone who wants to know.........
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Tea Tea Tea Tea Tea Tea Tea Tea !!!!!
Don't get a small pot - get a big one that has perhaps a 2l volume. IMO this makes for a better brewing process. Also, there are some pots that have a small hole at the end of the spout which stops that "tea-drip" which is useful.
I have to use T-bags that are sent by post to me, since the only tea I can get here is flavoured stuff, like strawberry. I'm shuddering even just thinking about that.....Loose leaf teas are the best, and use BOILING (not boiled) water, preferably filtered.
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Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee Coffee !!!!!!!
I have a bean-to-cup machine at home, so it provides freshly ground coffee and and excellent crema. It'll make lattes, macchiatas, espressos...you name it. I've also gone through the testing phase for the right bean, and whilst it's an individuals choice, there is certainly some common ground. (ahaha). I use a bean that provides a full aroma, full (but not overly strong) flavour and a nice "bite". It's well rounded and, well, it's just gorgeous!
The machine was expensive (€800), BUT, calculating the cost of buying coffee over a year, and the non-cost personal benefit, it pays for itself within a year. It is my absolute tip top favourite toy, and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone.
But, I guess that I can't tell you what it is on here? Or the bean?
I can PM anyone who wants to know.........
Please PM me the names.. LOL Pretty Please! LOL
I wonder if what I think is a tea pot and what you think as a Tea pot are different.. I have a regular kettle for boiling water for tea.. Stainless steel etc.. but is there a better way.. I also have a small brown Betty I will not use.. as there is a story behind her.. LOL
My kettle has a whistle and I have never made Tea in it only added water to an individual cup with tea bag...
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When he opened his shop, I got a real education in the art of making a good espresso. We all sat around making shots and tasting them, varying the type of coffee, the amount of ground coffee and the pressure that you pack the grounds. My conclusion at the end was that you need good coffee to start with, freshly ground for each cup, and surprisingly, how much difference packing the grind made. Too much packing and you get burnt tasting coffee, too little and the water goes through too quickly, not forming the "crema" that gives espresso its sweetness. Around 30 lbs of pressure seem to work best for his machine and coffee.
Thanks for all the tips Bass!
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Tea Tea Tea Tea Tea Tea Tea Tea !!!!!
Don't get a small pot - get a big one that has perhaps a 2l volume. IMO this makes for a better brewing process. Also, there are some pots that have a small hole at the end of the spout which stops that "tea-drip" which is useful.
I have to use T-bags that are sent by post to me, since the only tea I can get here is flavoured stuff, like strawberry. I'm shuddering even just thinking about that.....Loose leaf teas are the best, and use BOILING (not boiled) water, preferably filtered.
Sounds like I need to make a real cup of tea eh? Or have someone else make me one!
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PM's sent!
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Thanks Received..!
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So, like I said, not cheap, but good! What do you think?
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Sounds reasonable and looks like a very versatile machine.. just what I am looking for.. seems simple to use too! Thats a plus! I like it alot!
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[;D]
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LOL.. Nice Stuart Thanks!
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Here is what Douglas Adams had to say about tea (and Americans [;)]
from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A61345
One or two Americans have asked me why it is that the English like tea so much, which never seems to them to be a very good drink. To understand, you have to know how to make it properly.
There is a very simple principle to the making of tea and it's this - to get the proper flavour of tea, the water has to be boiling (not boiled) when it hits the tea leaves. If it's merely hot then the tea will be insipid. That's why we English have these odd rituals, such as warming the teapot first (so as not to cause the boiling water to cool down too fast as it hits the pot). And that's why the American habit of bringing a teacup, a tea bag and a pot of hot water to the table is merely the perfect way of making a thin, pale, watery cup of tea that nobody in their right mind would want to drink. The Americans are all mystified about why the English make such a big thing out of tea because most Americans have never had a good cup of tea. That's why they don't understand. In fact the truth of the matter is that most English people don't know how to make tea any more either, and most people drink cheap instant coffee instead, which is a pity, and gives Americans the impression that the English are just generally clueless about hot stimulants.
So the best advice I can give to an American arriving in England is this. Go to Marks and Spencer and buy a packet of Earl Grey tea. Go back to where you're staying and boil a kettle of water. While it is coming to the boil, open the sealed packet and sniff. Careful - you may feel a bit dizzy, but this is in fact perfectly legal. When the kettle has boiled, pour a little of it into a tea pot, swirl it around and tip it out again. Put a couple (or three, depending on the size of the pot) of tea bags into the pot (If I was really trying to lead you into the paths of righteousness I would tell you to use free leaves rather than bags, but let's just take this in easy stages). Bring the kettle back up to the boil, and then pour the boiling water as quickly as you can into the pot. Let it stand for two or three minutes, and then pour it into a cup. Some people will tell you that you shouldn't have milk with Earl Grey, just a slice of lemon. Screw them. I like it with milk. If you think you will like it with milk then it's probably best to put some milk into the bottom of the cup before you pour in the tea.1 If you pour milk into a cup of hot tea you will scald the milk. If you think you will prefer it with a slice of lemon then, well, add a slice of lemon.
Drink it. After a few moments you will begin to think that the place you've come to isn't maybe quite so strange and crazy after all.
1 This is socially incorrect. The socially correct way of pouring tea is to put the milk in after the tea. Social correctness has traditionally had nothing whatever to do with reason, logic or physics. In fact, in England it is generally considered socially incorrect to know stuff or think about things. It's worth bearing this in mind when visiting.
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I've heard about this Eco Kettle (http://www.ecokettle.com/ECOKETTLE.htm), (but I've never used one), it saves electricity by only boiling exactly the amount of water you require.
This also means that it boils very quickly if you only need one cup, ideal for coffee addicts who need their fix immediately [:)] .
(BWT If you make "instant" coffee in the microwave will you go back in time ? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_Wright#Notable_jokes) [:)] )
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Karen-
Just emailed you my son's recommendation on espresso machines.
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Thanks Bass!
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8 cup brown betty
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I said that already. I must have been eating onions. They give me repeats.
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Get a brown betty teapot and as for coffee, why make one at home when your favorite barister can make one much better.
I take it that you meant a barista; a barrister would be rather expensive.
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Get a brown betty teapot and as for coffee, why make one at home when your favorite barister can make one much better.
I take it that you meant a barista; a barrister would be rather expensive.
You didn't say 8 cup and a barister would foul the coffee unmercifully. Just think about it - put it in the top and it comes out the bottom. GAG!
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My Lawyer makes really good coffee, especially if you grind him up.
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Do legal secretaries make good coffee?
Waht about illegal ones?