15 replies to this topic

[chrish1]

My Bunn Pour-Omatic is about shot; it leaks when I add water. I am considering replacing it with a Braun Flavor Select model. I am spoiled by the instantaneous coffee the Bunn makes but I don't make coffee at home during the week so it is not necessary. Any comments on the Braun or others?? Thanks!

[JayPeeBee]

I got the new Bodum electric (贡 @ Zabars).  It is  the closest to coffee made in a French Press yet.  It takes some learning to use it and it is a bit of a contraption, but so far, the end result is worth it.

[IslandMom]

I have the good old Braun - whatever model they had at Costco for ~ ผ.99.  Works fine for me, but then again, I'm in such a rush mornings that I'm probably not that discriminating.  I like Starbucks beans that I grind, or Lion's Coffee beans European Blend, and Kona coffee beans that I buy at Sam's Club or Costco.   Gulp gulp, and it's time to hit the road.  

[Bux]

As a result of another coffee thread here and on the recommendation of Steve Klc, we bought a Rancillio Sylvia. Actually I think it is a "Miss Sylvia" model. The Italians have a knack for naming coffee makers. Anyway, it should only be of interest to dedicated espresso lovers with time and interest to spare. It takes some dedication to operated properly, but when you do it right and have the best beans, it beats most restaurant espresso this side of the Atlantic.

[Fat Guy]

Bux, what did you pay for it, if I may be so bold? And can you recount any other details of your Miss Sylvia experience thus far?

[Bux]

what did you pay for it, if I may be so bold?

That's pretty bold and nosey. We paid about 踰 for it. Other details include the fact that we returned the first one. My suspcion is that the thermostat was defective. Results were very uneven, which is not to say it's very easy to get even results with a machine in working order, but the temperature variations were considerable and the noise was unbearable. There might have been something wrong with the pump. We've been having that kind of luck. A brand new toaster wouldn't pop up with the cancel button either last week. They just don't make them like they used to do. The toaster has a wide slot that will take whole bagels or a 10" long baguette, so that's an improvement. I suppose that's for the toaster thread.

Miss Sylvia is by no means an automatic machine. Slight variations in the amount of coffee, the grind and the tamping pressure will throw you way off course for the perfect cup of espresso. I don't think we've ever produced a crema that rivals a neighborhood bar in Italy, but we usually get a better cup of espresso than in most restaurants. My wife has been making the coffee and it's an involved process of heating the various parts, letting off steam to warm the head and drain the jets as well as tamping the coffee with 30 pounds of pressure. A bathroom scale under the apparatus is helpful until you get the hang of what 30 lbs feels like. The instruction manual is almost uselesss, but there's a great web site with lots of great infromation on how to use this and other machines. I think Klc gave the link in the other thread. If you dont really care about a cup of espresso or have to ask the price, it's probably not for you.

[Steve Klc]

Steven--this is where (I believe) Bux and I got our machines:

http://www.coffee-machine.com/cm/rancilio/silvia_features.htm

It took me a week of constant experimentation and immersion in the wonderful online information provided by Whole Latte Love about the Sylvia and making espresso to start producing something adequate.   My machine worked right out of the box and has been in constant use for 7 months.  Another site that was extremely helpful was:

http://www.coffeekid.com/main.html

And this site, currently in beta, already gets my seal of approval:

http://www.coffeegeek.com/

Rancilio prices on this model seem to be retaining their value like Apple Powerbooks.  I can't disagree with anything Bux has written about the Sylvia--his assessment is spot-on--however, I would wax on a bit more explicitly about how I am absolutely in love with her.

As much of this ground (sorry) has already been covered on that other eGullet coffee thread, I'll add:

The Sylvia is noisy but powerful, beautiful and decidely, blessedly, not automatic.  Its greatest value is that she relies heavily on her owner becoming an involved barista--with an experimental almost scientific approach.  Selecting beans, grinding beans to a certain precision, tamping are all paramount.  You have to buy a good grinder or you've wasted your money and otherwise all of your efforts to embrace the espresso process and obtain consistency are for naught--I use the Rancilio Rocky, but here's an interesting analysis of a new grinder:

http://www.coffeegeek.com/features/innova

In short, you have to be involved.  But requiring that involvement is not a weakness of Sylvia; rather, it is her enduring strength and responsible for the sustained viability of this machine among those in the know.

Bux and I have e-mailed back and forth about this for months, but I too am at the point where I can't order espresso out anymore.  It is very unlikely that servers in a fast-paced restaurant environment can get it right--and it is usually your server that draws your espresso.  Their job is hard enough and it is unrealistic to expect a decent espresso in 97.5% of the restaurants in the US. And you learn little tricks after awhile--like how to boost the percentage of robusta beans in your espresso mix to get the appearance of a little extra crema, just as the Italians do.

[Liza]

Just reporting -
From the David Rosengarten Report:
He recommends the burr grinder by Capresso for your beans. For what he calls American-style coffee, he touts a Dutch product called the Technivorm Clubline KB741, available from Boyds Coffee Company in Portland, OR (www.boyds.com).

For coffee beans, he likes Peet's 'Major Dickason's Blend', available from www.peets.com or 800-999-2132.
Espresso beans, The Daily Grind in Albany NY, www.dailygrind.com or 888-876-3222.

Complete info in The Rosengarten Report, Volume 1, Number 5.

[Bux]

For the record, we made our purchase at Porto Rico on Bleeker Street between 6th Avenue and MacDougal. Thus we paid sales tax and had to take a cab to bring it home as I underestimated the weight and size. It also meant we got a pretty fast exchange on a defective model. We bought the last one in the store, but they had others in the warehouse and we picked up the replacement the next day. They were good about the exchange even if they needed a little verbal convincing that we had given it an honest try. I would definitely deal with them again on the basis of this purchase. I agree with Klc, Whole Latte Love has a good site and coffeekid.com is the site we used for further information when we abandoned our Rancillo manual.

however, I would wax on a bit more explicitly about how I am absolutely in love with her. ... requiring that involvement is not a weakness of Sylvia; rather, it is her enduring strength and responsible for the sustained viability of this machine among those in the know.

Reminds me of my daughter. She never wanted to know if she was trouble to raise. She just wanted to know she was worth it.
;)
So it's the all Arabica that's giving us a problem with the crema? Could Louie, at DiPalo, be right all along in suggesting we purchase the less expensive blend of Danesi over the all arabica gold package?

[Steve Klc]

Liza--I realize you are just relaying info, but do you know if Rosengarten was recommending the in-expensive Capresso grinder that Williams Sonoma has sold? Was he recommending it for use in the context of espresso machines?  If so, he must drink tea. The reason I ask is because the Capresso model I'm familiar with is abject crap--worthless unless you plan to grind coarse for use with a French press while you are still drowsy.  Do you have a link to the specific article?  Since I posted this morning I spent a little more time on the Coffeegeek site and am incredibly impressed with its organization, depth and blend of professional and consumer advice--it seems a little sluggish, but then it's in beta. There are 46 user reviews alone of the Sylvia from the past year.  In a review there of the newish Solis Maestro grinder, Mark "Coffeekid" Prince asks "is the Rocky worth the $$$ more than the Maestro? If your primary coffee beverage is espresso, then yes, it is - you're getting commercial grade parts in the crucial areas that matter-- the burr set and motor--in the Rocky, and that ? is definitely worth it and I would not hesitate recommending it over a Maestro, telling you to save up your pennies to cover the difference."  But he's talking about espresso, made seriously by people who've already invested in a serious, semi-professional machine--like Sylvia or one of the comparable Saeco, La Pavoni or Gaggia models.  Reading the consumer reviews there reveals a wealth of tips about the buying experience, making deals, extra perks to be had, etc. across a broad spectrum of coffee styles, not just espresso.  

And Bux brings up a worthy point:  there is something to be said for buying locally, even if you usually have to pay more up front and pay sales tax--no matter how frustrated you are you can walk in and drop your item on the counter and say "Let's see you make it work!"  Way back when, I bought my first IBM PC locally and was so glad I did, though now I'm buying my new iBook online.  And Bux, as always, brings up another important consumer issue with any high-end purchase, and surely a semi-commercial espresso machine qualifies--what's their return or replacement policy?  But I buy online and mail order alot now, especially as technology and manufacturing has improved across so many sectors, and bought from Whole Latte Love mainly because they had a much better price than the few sources available to me locally, free shipping and I respected the amount of effort they put into their site--effort at content and education that many can benefit from.   Plus, they actually do the repair and warranty work on Sylvias, and knew its intricacies and tendencies inside and out.  

[Liza]

Rosengarten says you can use a non-professional model burr grinder by Capresso, which he prices between ฮ and 贄. The one he uses is model #555, which costs ๕.99.
He doesn't tell what the difference is between burr and propeller grinders, except to say that they "create oily ground coffee that is not evenly ground."

His website is:
www.DavidRosengarten.com

(Edited by Liza at 2:51 pm on Jan. 10, 2002)

[Rosie]

Quote: from IslandMom on 12:38 am on Jan. 6, 2002
I have the good old Braun - whatever model they had at Costco for ~ ผ.99.  Works fine for me, but then again, I'm in such a rush mornings that I'm probably not that discriminating.  I like Starbucks beans that I grind, or Lion's Coffee beans European Blend, and Kona coffee beans that I buy at Sam's Club or Costco.   Gulp gulp, and it's time to hit the road.  

Island Mom--Kona is the best coffee in the world IMHO. However, I beleive the Kona coffee sold at Costco in NJ is a blend. I didn't have one bad cup of coffee when I was in Hawaii. Unfortunately I seldom have a good cup of coffee in NJ.

(Edited by Rosie at 2:49 pm on Jan. 10, 2002)

[Steve Klc]

and I should have mentioned this earlier, but alot of very knowledgeable espresso people, who have already gone through this process, hang out in this newsgroup:

http://groups.google.com/groups?oi=djq&as_q=&as_ugroup=(alt.coffee)

[Steve Klc]

some trusted Hawaiian sources for you Rosie that might help, especially if you use a French press pot:

http://www.kona-coffee-council.com/

http://www.smithfarms.com/

[Rachel Perlow]

OK, here's our source for pure Kona, Bay View Farms. Jason and I visited them on our honeymoon and got a personal tour with Eva and met Roz in the tasting room. We bought a lot then and had it shipped home as souveniers for family, wedding attendants, etc. Since then we have ordered from them several times. One of the best received presents we ever sent was a Thank You to a business colleague of Jason's.  We sent her a couple of pounds of their coffee and one of macadamia nuts. Totally fresh amazing coffee and nuts.

I am now going to wax rhapsodic about their mac nuts. :cheesy:

They have the Best Macadamia Nuts Ever .  They are whole, very large, dry roasted without oil or salt. They are excellent for eating out of hand (I like to dip them in a little kosher salt, or sprinkle some on after toasting them) or to use in cooking. They have a really true flavor since there is no greasy, powdery, salty coating - like some other mac nuts available nationwide in supermarkets. A couple we know recently came back from Hawaii, and they gave us a bag of mac nuts. They may has well have been that unmentionable famous brand. They were mostly halved nuts and had a lot of salt on them. Useless for baking.

If you like mac nuts and you want to try some really excellent ones, call Bay View Farms.

[Jason Perlow]

A few things about Bay View, they are the 2nd largest processor of coffee beans on the island (Captn. Cook is number 1), and they also farm their own beans as well. They buy from many small independent growers and are highly selective in the coffees they sell for themselves, the other processed/roasted beans they sell to other coffee producers.

As rachel says, they farm their own Mac nuts as well and they are literally the best ones we have ever had. They are more expensive but well worth it.