phaelon56

That's a beautiful looking tamper, Hiroyuki. At about $80 - $85 US it's a bit on the pricey side. I like the idea of the spherical grip and the polished face although my Reg Barber has a nice feel on the grip and I haven't had any issues with coffee grounds clinging to the face. What I"m not sure I'd like is the balanced aspect regarding weight distribution. I actually really like the fact that my present tamper is bottom heavy. I previously had a machined aluminum tamper that was lighter and more evenly distributed in weight than the Reg Barber and I didn't care for it as much. Malachi has already addressed this in his typical concise and articulate fashion but I'll reiterate - try to get your tamp consistent in terms of pressure and technique and don't vary it. The path to consistency and great results in espresso production consists of eliminating variables. If you can get to the point where your techniques and processes are consistent, only the grind setting needs to be changed to achieve the best results. At home I find myself getting there if I'm pulling shots every day. When I'm away on travel or just letting the local cafe pull my shots, it takes a few days of practice to get back to a high level of consistency.

You're in luck! Casco Bay Molding in Maine is making replacement gaskets for the narrow mouth Silex pot and may also have them for the wide mouth model and some Cory vacuum pots as well. They worked with some vacuum pot collectors and enthusiasts to get intact original gaskets and made molds of them. The replacement gaskets are made from food grade compatible silicone rubber and should eliminate your probllem in addition to having good longevity. Silex Replacement Gaskets Edited to add: bad low grade Robusta coffee (e.g. Vietnamese) can have a slightly rubbery taste but I'm sure that's not the case here. And vacuum pot coffee rocks!

If there's a Caribbean community of any size in Seattle, most, specifically Jamaican, look for the neighborhood grocery or deli where Jamaican foods are sold. If you don't know where that is.... find out who sells goat meat and call them to inquire. Although there is a halal goat sold to the Muslim community in many cities, you'll generally find any number of Jamaican restaurants buying from the goat supplier. They'll know where the Ting is.

My GF lives in Charlotte NC and the grocery store she frequents there has been running the Jarritos on special at 29 cents per bottle. Ouch. I pay 69 cents per bottle for Goya Ginger beer up here in NY and it ain't that special (it is nice and spicy but it uses HFCS for sweetener).

That's very cool - I didnt' know Billy had relocated. He used to be in Vancouver WA near the border by Interstate 5, right? I never had a chance to visit him there but I have a cousin in Portland and will likely get out there within the next year - I'll be sure to check out Crema when I'm there.

How about if I just stop by in January or March on my next Seattle visit. We can pretend that I live in Seattle and pretentd that it's really today. Will that work? This is very cool. I'll not only be getting my own technnique worked out on some LM machien over the next several weeks but may be doing some training for new employees after that. Although the shops are standardized on Swift grinders, most of the baristi are still doing a final polish with a Reg Barber tamper before pulling the shots. I think we can probably get some useful understanding of what's happening with the shots by doing this. Not to mention the fact that never before have I been able to see such gorgeous pictures of crema. It's sooooo much easier to see the tiger striping this way and it shows up very nicely in the pics. Hats off to Zoka for this one!

Fantastic pictures on the blog - that crema looks great. Is the standard LM basket being used in this scenario and does dose size remain the same? Also.... does this complicate tamping to some extent?

I've been to one in MD. It's the only BBQ chain I've yet to try that I found to be acceptable. We had two big sampler platters with sides that fed eight hungry people quite nicely for about $100. I recall the chicken as being especially good and the sides also pretty good. I'll reserve judegment on the ribs as I have an inherent prejudice against restaurant ribs, whcih I generally find not to be too fatty and not truly slow cooked/smoked. I wouldn't go out of my way to eat at one but it is good for a chain and also a good value.

Did they offer coffee on your second visit and if so, how was it? (You did know I'd have to ask - right? ). I did find it quite puzzling that they didn't offer coffee or tea on your first visit but your descripotions and marvelous photos have me salivating at the thought of a visit (which, alas, may have to wait for late fall or early spring).

It's great to have you here, Kyle. Welcome! We don't get into the level of obsessive detail here about things like as the nuances of various espresso machines, such as one might find at Coffeegeek, but you will find some friendly and informed discussion. I find great satisfaction in the level of interplay that exists here between coffee, food, cooking, dining and all the culinary arts. Browse through some recent threads and you'll find, among other things, some intriguing discussion of a superheated steam coffee roasting process and also the Matsuya paper drip method (many thanks to our esteemed member Hiroyuki for filling us in on these processes!). I was fortunate enough to visit Zoka in early July when I did a day of training at ESI and enjoyed my machiatto - I'll try to get back in when you're on duty next time I breeze through Seattle. Can you tell us more about Crema Cafe and perhaps offer general commentary on the coffee and espresso scene in Portland? I've been to Stumptown and was duly impressed but was only in town for one day and had no opportunity to check out other places.

I just stumbled across an interesting article at the Roasters Guild web site (the Roasters Guild is a part of SCAA, the Specialty Coffee Association of America). Coffee and Wine: The Industries and their Common Denominators It's brief but offers good insight. I'm not a drinker of alcoholic beverages and therefore can't speak from the position of a wine enthusiast. I do, however, believe that the conclusions drawn seem valid. The article offers hope that coffee appreciation can continue to be developed and elevated to the point where we can break out of the commodity mentality that has pervaded the industry for so many years (and, tragically, made it difficult for most small growers to earn more than a basic subsistence income). On a related note, the Illy company of Italy has been influential in raising the bar of quality for growers in Brazil, long one of the world's leading producers. By paying a higher price and also establishing an annual competetion with a cash prize, they've encouraged growers to focus on quality rather than quantity. It's a slow process but a technique (paying higher than commodity prices) that has already seen success in the area of food products (e.g. heirloom vegetable varieties, "antique" apples, Niman Ranch pork etc). Here's a piece about the annual competition that Illy sponsors - its a bit of fluff to some extent as this is their own press release but it does offer worthwhile information. Illy's Brasil Prize Competition

I'm in the process of planning my first visit to Paris and have found this thread to be helpful. Admittedly, it may not be terribly efficient but despite the dining related planning that I'll do, it's inevitable that we'll have a few meals at random. If I'm choosing a place from those available in a particular neighborhood when we happen to be there, it's helpful to have an idea of places to avoid - I've already added these to my short list of "must NOT visit".

I'm amused by the number o fplaces that have a "Zagat rated" sticker somewhere on or adjacent to the front door but a reprint of the specific Zagat review is nowhere to be seen. Might we assume that they actually got a bad rating from Zagat but are perfectly happy to glom onto the supposed cachet of having been rated at all?

Thanks - these are great suggestions. I'll be back in the Queen City for a weekend within a month and will report back on my findings.

Yes - a wonderful blog. I got tired at times just reading about how much you accomplish on one day! I am, of course, kicking myself for not having made it out to Bainbridge Island when I visited Seattle in July but I'll leave more open time in my schedule on the next visit (hopefully in January).

I do. My GF lives in the University Park area and I'll be visiting regularly until I move there in early '05. I usually get there for 3 - 4 day weekends and we try to have at least one dinner out. She's from Memphis and hasn't really searched out good 'cue since she moved there but I'd love to find some. Any suggestions welcome and we don't mind driving up to 45 minutes or so to find it. Also curious to see if I can locate the following: - good Northern Italian restaurant - best Vietnamese (hole in the wall joints are fine) - a great taqueria - there seems to be a rapidly growing Mexican population but the Mexican restaurants I've spotted are of the generic Americanized variety. Surely there must be a great little formica table joint somewhere?

I'm with Tryska on the apple fritters from Wegman's. What I really wish for is to have Top Pot (from seattle) opena few east coast outlets. Those are doughnuts. The best one I get are at the local farmer's market on Saturday mornigns - straight from the fryer - plain or dunked in cinnamon sugar only but they are still warm and sooooo good.

Thanks to John and all the rest of you for this wealth of references - I have my work cut out for me. It appears that my plan of about 100 Euros per day with the assumption that the exchange rate will still be at or near 80 US cents per Euro is going to work. I don't drink alcohol and my beloved rarely has more than a glass of wine once a day. Apart from the birthday splurge we should do nicely. Tha challenge will be figuring out which places we can miss! A kind soul PM'd me to recommend a place where the beef bourgignon was/is particularly good (based on his experience although he mentioend that little else at that restaurant was notable). If anyone can think of a few specific places where two relatively inexperienced diners might best experience a few of the staple classic dishes it will be appreciated. I'm thinking along the lines of escargots, coq au vin etc - sort of old-timey simple dishes that perhaps I've tried in the US but have most likely been a pale imitation of the original. Edited to add: I appreciate all the links that have been provided but it's been over thirty years since my last high school French class - I'll brush up a bit with some conversational French study tapes or CD's before the trip but anticipate stumbling through conversation with a lack of grace.

I don't drink alcohol and when I have guests who drink wine they generally bring their own. I've been using little 8 oz screw-cap bottles of wine for cooking and they work out nicely. They have a decent shelf life in the cupboard and with most recipes calling for either one cup or two cups of wine, I have few partial bottles leftover. Sutter Home has a Merlot and a Chardonnay and there's another brand whose name I can't recall that's also decent. A also have a friend who flies first class on occasion on business upgrades but doesn't drink. She gets a couple of those littl ebottles of Cabernet that they offer for free in first class and gives them to me. The four pack of the 8 oz bottles run about $5.

Ladled on top - definitely. I like to twirl the strands of pasta onto the fork and get the sauce onto it in the process. Then of course there is the visual contrast of the red sauce against the background of the creamy pasta - very nice. I did jhave mien last night as planned but need a larger bowl - of that I'm certain - it did get all over me

There was a really good FoodTV piee awhile back on the search for the perfect meatball. I think it might even have been Mario Batali who hosted. There were a few differemt variations and the key kitchens they visted were in Italy. beef, pork and veal was generally included in the meat mix and the bread was soaked in milk but then squeezed to eliminate most of the milk before it was mixed in. The ones that looked most interestign to me were rather large and were flattened a bit, browned on both sides in the oven in a roasting pan and then added to the sauce for the final cooking. This fits in nicely with tonights dinner but my spaghetti will have Gianelli hot Italian turkey sausage instead of meatballs ('cause that's what was int he freezer and this is "let's cook what's in the freezer week). I'm curious.... does no one else add red wine or tomato paste to their sauce? Surely I am not alone on this. Or am I?

This reminds me of a small Chinese restaurant in Lyndhurst NJ on Ridge Road (Route 17) just south of Rte 3. When I first walked by it a few summers ago my attention was drawn to a photocopied and enlarged NYT review that was displayed in their fromt window. If I recall correctly it awarded them 2 1/2 stars and was rather a glowing review. Noticing that the paper on the display seemed a bit faded I looked for the original review date: 1977! I have both eaten there and had takeout. 2 1/2 stars it ain't but it's unquestionably better than competing Chinese restaurants in the area but I have to wonder..... have tastes changed and the bar been raised or was this place really that god back in the day?

Most folks grind slightly coarser for French Press than they would for drip coffee that's going through a paper filter. It's all about the sludge factor. Finer grind = more sludge in the bottom of the cup when sing a French Press. Some people are okay with the sludge and others don't care for it. Pertinient to this is consistency of grind. If using a whirly blade grinder there will be less consistency to particle size - some little chunks mixed in with powder - some sludge is inevitable. Using a good quality burr grinder (e.g. Rancilio Rocky or its equivalent) will yield consistent particle size and lessen the problem.

I agree that his issues with the ambiance were purely from a personal aesthetic but his comments, regardless of what the star rating is, did directly adress some issues with both food and service I see nothing in that passage about ambiance - it's about food and service and in a very specific way.

This is sounding great - I'm already hungry Is there any particular ethnic food that's especially good in paris? I have the impression that there's a decent sized Moroccan / North African population but wondering if there are other things worth checking out. For those who may think to warn me about cold weather and gloomy skies in January - I'm living in Syracuse NY at present - Paris will be like a tropical getway in comparison