Which Coffee Machine?

[Not-Entirely-Useless]

I then realised that I did not really like coffee.

Expensive lesson

 

[TRITON]

plastic dumped in landfill stays in landfill forevermore.

And the crux of it is DON'T THROW IT INTO LANDFILL

But its not you or I throwing our plastic into landfill, its those we charge(ironically they charge us) to remove and dispose of our rubbish. So the people who do throw it into landfill are out local councils.

Owned by a French company that does most of its manufacturing in China

Im missing the point here.

 

[Luckosaurous]

And the crux of it is DON'T THROW IT INTO LANDFILL

But its not you or I throwing our plastic into landfill, its those we charge(ironically they charge us) to remove and dispose of our rubbish. So the people who do throw it into landfill are out local councils.



Im missing the point here.

Well yes, but back when I had a tassimo machine there was no option but to send it to landfill as the pods were not recyclable.

Out of interest are their pods still plastic?

The Nespresso pods are aluminium and so the aluminium can be reused infinitely. Recycling plastics requires the polymer to be cut into shorter and shorter chains and so there are only so many cycles plastic can go through before it is no longer recyclable, for that reason I alway prefer to use metal/glass.

 

[paulm]

I've gone full circle after the usual experimenting with various methods, gadgets and machines and come back to a very basic approach which gives me the coffee I like.

Seems to me that it's all about the beans, the grind, the water temperature and the brew time. Preferred approach now is using a simple fine metal mesh filter basket in a mug, grinding the beans fresh each time and putting in the basket and adding hot water that's a few minutes off the boil and brewing for a time that gives the result you want, for the columbian beans I generally use, and the grind I've settled on, I've found that to be 4 1/2 minutes.

Pouring the hot water slowly from a height also gets air into it and gives a smoother brew, similar to what I suspect the aeropress gadget does by other means.

Can't see how any of the gadgets and machines can add anything more to a coffee, except possibly the high pressures involved in better espresso machines, but I don't really go for espresso anyway !

But there's always marketing and sales folk around to convince you there's more to it and you must have their particular gadget or you're missing out !

 

[Not-Entirely-Useless]

m missing the point here.

It was response to this:

I just fixed my almost 30year old Krups Espresso machine after my lad broke it
Hopefully it’s good for another 30 years
This one was made in Switzerland. I doubt any of the current machines are.

 

[Not-Entirely-Useless]

Seems to me that it's all about the beans, the grind, the water temperature and the brew time.

Yup

Can't see how any of the gadgets and machines can add anything more to a coffee, except possibly the high pressures involved in better espresso machines, but I don't really go for espresso anyway !

Espresso's a special case. Everything else is a different method of doing what you do.

 

[Luckosaurous]

I've gone full circle after the usual experimenting with various methods, gadgets and machines and come back to a very basic approach which gives me the coffee I like.

Seems to me that it's all about the beans, the grind, the water temperature and the brew time. Preferred approach now is using a simple fine metal mesh filter basket in a mug, grinding the beans fresh each time and putting in the basket and adding hot water that's a few minutes off the boil and brewing for a time that gives the result you want, for the columbian beans I generally use, and the grind I've settled on, I've found that to be 4 1/2 minutes.

Pouring the hot water slowly from a height also gets air into it and gives a smoother brew, similar to what I suspect the aeropress gadget does by other means.

Can't see how any of the gadgets and machines can add anything more to a coffee, except possibly the high pressures involved in better espresso machines, but I don't really go for espresso anyway !

But there's always marketing and sales folk around to convince you there's more to it and you must have their particular gadget or you're missing out !

For me it was never about adding to the coffee, it was about reducing from my work load.

If we are working on the understanding that instant granules are simply not coffee, then shoving a pod in a machine and tapping the go button is the easiest route to getting coffee.

Beyond that I looked at which system offered the best range of flavours and sizes

 

[HamsterJam]

Owned by a French company that does most of its manufacturing in China

I suspect most consumer coffee machines are manufactured in China these days and indeed probably some of the pro machines too.
Good news is my 30 year old machine is making coffee again.

 

[TRITON]

Well yes, but back when I had a tassimo machine there was no option but to send it to landfill as the pods were not recyclable.

Out of interest are their pods still plastic?

The Nespresso pods are aluminium and so the aluminium can be reused infinitely. Recycling plastics requires the polymer to be cut into shorter and shorter chains and so there are only so many cycles plastic can go through before it is no longer recyclable, for that reason I alway prefer to use metal/glass.

Plastic ? yes.

Reckon the alloy nespresso pods are better as metal is more recyclable than plastic and plastic is currently the bad guy because of its environmental issues. My tassimo machines were xmas gifts, and the nespresso machines were at that point in time outside my price range.

But ive taken all on board and I'll probably next time opt for one of these bean to cup machines.

I like the tassimo type because its an all in one. Does the latte's in a couple of minutes, whereas the nespresso type are designed for someone who wears loafers with no socks, has a man bun and slurps their small espresso or ristretto while sitting at home alone.

 

[cemannion]

A baby gaggia and grinder makes very good espresso especially if you use good beans

 

[Jarno]

At home, I drink coffee only occasionally, in the weekends, so I went with something simple:
A Chemex "vase"

With a manual coffee grinder (Hario).
I have the smaller variant in the caravan, easy enough, add a filter and hot water, just off the boil. Usually have a kitchen scale underneath to measure both coffee and water.
We do still have a Senseo machine on the countertop, an eyesore, but that is because the unwieldy thing does not fit in a cupboard.

 

[mossym]

For me it was never about adding to the coffee, it was about reducing from my work load.

If we are working on the understanding that instant granules are simply not coffee, then shoving a pod in a machine and tapping the go button is the easiest route to getting coffee.

Beyond that I looked at which system offered the best range of flavours and sizes

except that million of people worldwide drink instant every days and say its coffee. is it any more acceptable to say they are wrong
than it is me saying your pods are simply not coffee and unless you are grinding on the spot and using a proper esperesso machine its simply not coffee?

its not. as long as you enjoy what comes out of the cup then happy days. instant and pods aren't far apart from me, i'll drink both in the absense of better alternatives, but only then. but i can never understand the attitudes that coffee seems to inspire, those with fancy setups looking down on all others, those who like instant dismissive of thoe who put time/effort in, and those in the middle dismissive in both directions.

if you enjoy it, its the right coffee for you

 

[Blister]

I have a ECM Synchronika Espresso Machine, Very happy with it.

 

[Scifli]

I use the Delonghi Magnifica bean to cup having replaced a nespresso unit. This gives me a great cup and i use with Illy Granni arabica beans. works out much cheaper than a bought cup and much better IMO.

 

[Luckosaurous]

except that million of people worldwide drink instant every days and say its coffee. is it any more acceptable to say they are wrong
than it is me saying your pods are simply not coffee and unless you are grinding on the spot and using a proper esperesso machine its simply not coffee?

its not. as long as you enjoy what comes out of the cup then happy days. instant and pods aren't far apart from me, i'll drink both in the absense of better alternatives, but only then. but i can never understand the attitudes that coffee seems to inspire, those with fancy setups looking down on all others, those who like instant dismissive of thoe who put time/effort in, and those in the middle dismissive in both directions.

if you enjoy it, its the right coffee for you

I don’t look down on people that drink instant, it just doesn’t taste like coffee.

 

[paulrbarnard]

I don’t look down on people that drink instant, it just doesn’t taste like coffee.

Only the short ones.

 

[kinverkid]

I'm another one for the bean to cup. We had a DeLonghi machine for eight years only replacing it with a De Longhi Magnifica Start last year. Normally buy the beans in bulk from Next Day Coffee. I'll only have two or three cups in the morning then it's tea or water for the rest of the day.

 

[Not-Entirely-Useless]

I'll only have two or three cups in the morning

If the coffee has substance, that's plenty.

I use a Sage espresso machine (or occasionally a Mocha pot or cafetière) and very fresh beans. Two cups a day satisfies.

 

[flying haggis]

excuse my ignorance of this subject but if i have a coffee I want a mug not an eggcupful as a lot of these machines seem to only do. so that is why I and obviously millions of others use instant.

or will these all singing and dancing machines produce enough liquid coffe to nearly fill a mug allowing for milk to be added?

 

[Not-Entirely-Useless]

excuse my ignorance of this subject but if i have a coffee I want a mug not an eggcupful as a lot of these machines seem to only do. so that is why I and obviously millions of others use instant.

or will these all singing and dancing machines produce enough liquid coffe to nearly fill a mug allowing for milk to be added?

Any decent espresso machine will produce as much coffee as you want; you may have to spend a little setup time at the outset to get the volume & strength you want (although some don't even need that).

But if you like instant coffee, stick with it. No reason to change just because some people look down on it.