Rancilio Silvia and PIDs

[rotuts]

Soooooooooo right. as humidity etc etc changes one will adjust.

the best thing about all this is that You Control Your Cup!

if its Honky Dorry, then that's it.

if not ............................

do not get me wrong

you might get the

http://www.chriscoffee.com/La_Marzocco_GS3_Mechanical_Paddle_p/gs3-1g-mp.htm

http://www.seattlecoffeegear.com/la-marzocco-gs-3-espresso-machine

rats. I couda but didnota get this when it was 6 K

but my personal Cuppa in the AM will be 90 % stunning. that last 10% as I roast my one is

Only My Fault!

rats again

Edited February 19, 2013 by rotuts (log)

[weinoo]

Since this thread is about Miss Silvia and PID, I'd suggest that you can pull a pretty great shot with her. And once you dial it all in, you'll be throwing fewer shots than they do at Blue Bottle, Four Barrel, Ritual, Gimme, Dolcezza, and all the other hoity-toity ICHs that I've been fortunate enough to visit.

[Jason Perlow]

This one was done with a nutating tamp.

[rotuts]

Just So.

working at home will always get you a better Personal Shot.

this is not frufru stuff its in yoru CUp!

[weinoo]

I think you need to up the temp on your PID.

[Jason Perlow]

I had it at 205 before. Right now I am experimenting with lower temperatures. 224 which where it was set at default was definitely way too high, it was burning the coffee and it was tasting bitter. The more videos I have seen on Youtube using Rancilio and PIDs appear to have the temperature between 195 and 205, I've seen a few as high as 215.

Edited February 19, 2013 by Jason Perlow (log)

[Jason Perlow]

You asked for it, you got it.

[rotuts]

good for you.

however, it makes no difference what so ever what it 'looks like'

the only thing is: all the Soochy and Coochy aside

it is it the perfect cup for you?

Perfect Cup no Soochy Coochy here also.

that's yout goal.

Perfect For You. > 90 % of the time.

good for you for Trying!

Edited February 19, 2013 by rotuts (log)

[weinoo]

Dude, you must be wired!

In any event, my PID is set at 224°F. From the little I know, I believe that is the temp at the boiler; the temp at the puck drops down a good 25° (or more), which means I'm pulling the shot at around 197 - 199°F, which is right where I want to be.

It's perfect for the coffees, grind and tamp that I pull.

[nickrey]

Try pouring the first half of the shot in one cup and the second in another (no need to stop the pour, just slide one in next to the other).

You'll find that the bitterness occurs predominately in the second half of the pour. This is why so many of us cut the pour early and have our coffees as ristrettos.

[weinoo]

BTW, I think this "how-to" at Home Barista was pretty damn helpful when I started on my espresso path.

[Jason Perlow]

This is getting extremely geeky

[weinoo]

There's more to come. I mean, you started off by talking to Kinsey...that should've clued you in.

[Jason Perlow]

Indeed. Another coffee geek friend twisted my arm and got me to order a VST 22g filter basket today.

[rotuts]

exactly right. but I cant see the boiler at a true 224, it would be, well, boiling.

all espresso machines have various failings. the RS has the problem with the group-head's mass.

not to say you cant pull some mean shots, I used mine for about 4 - 5 years, then someone put a bee in my bonnet and that was that.

[rotuts]

espresso is the ultimate geeky thing any one can try. make a lot of your own wine, do you?

[nickrey]

espresso is the ultimate geeky thing any one can try. make a lot of your own wine, do you?

Have you seen the Modernist cuisine threads? Espresso, ultimate geeky? Not likely. Fanatical? Obsessive? Caffeine driven? Sure.

[rotuts]

I still maintain:

espresso is the ultimate geeky thing any one can try. make a lot of your own wine, do you?

doesnt mean its going to be any good. a paco-jet and a blast freezer, etc etc not for most of us.

[weinoo]

exactly right. but I cant see the boiler at a true 224, it would be, well, boiling.

all espresso machines have various failings. the RS has the problem with the group-head's mass.

not to say you cant pull some mean shots, I used mine for about 4 - 5 years, then someone put a bee in my bonnet and that was that.

But I think the boiler is sealed, sort of like a pressure cooker, so that it can also produce steam for milk. In that case, the water could theoretically boil at a higher temp than 212.

[rotuts]

excellent point. sounds right. the Geeks at HomeBarrista would know.

the achilles heel of the RS is the (lack) of a large heat-sink at the group head.

not to saw with some skill one can get a mighty tasty shot!

( today is play with the editor day )

[nickrey]

I still maintain:

espresso is the ultimate geeky thing any one can try. make a lot of your own wine, do you?

doesnt mean its going to be any good. a paco-jet and a blast freezer, etc etc not for most of us.

Since when did geek = equipment? Geeks use clever processes outside the mainstream. Books such as "cooking for geeks" talk about modernist techniques, not coffee. Even then although not many have paco jets or blast freezers, a lot of us have chamber vacuum sealers and a multiplicity of strange sounding chemicals to manipulate texture and taste.

If you are going to use an alcohol analogy, it's probably better to use beer rather than wine. It can be argued to be more technically precise because you cannot blend away your errors.

[rotuts]

a bottomless filter, with a Weiss stir, might just be a

clever processes outside the mainstream

a lot of people make their own beer.

not so many make their own wine.

[slkinsey]

Espresso is probably the most technology-centric food preparation. You can make a great steak using a crappy pan. But you can't make great espresso on a crappy espresso machine. Generally speaking, and assuming a reasonable but not outlandish level of expertise, the better the espresso machine is the better the average espresso you can produce will be. It's all a matter of finding your sweet spot in price versus quality. I love espresso and cappuccino, but I am satisfied with the quality of the former out of my PID-hacked Rancilio and I don't make enough of the latter to care about the Rancilio's minor shortcomings in this regard. I have no doubt that I could make much better everything using a La Marzocco GS/3. but I just don't care enough to spend sixty-five hundred bucks on it.

[Jason Perlow]

Yeah, that is a lot of dough, as shiny and cool as that thing looks.

[rotuts]

its the differential as the $$ go up as in all things. the first step up from the RS to say the QuickMill give you the biggest boost.

Im very happy with my set up, as the operator error ( me ) with the roasting, grinding, tamping etc wouldnt get me much more than

what I have now. with of course a 3-4 k grinder to match that GS/3 in addition.

so id get little return for the additional 10 K , even if i was a billionare!

Edited February 20, 2013 by rotuts (log)