Breville Cafe Roma - what grind to use..

[commandre]

hi all. i've found the cafe roma to be capable of pulling a very nice shot indeed... i've also found it easily capable of pulling undrinkable horrors. this definately seems to be related to the grind, because it varies between each bag of ground coffee i bring home. when it's too fine it just dribbles out slowly (i've found a satisfactory brew-time to be 15 seconds or so.. that's relatively fast i know..) it's pretty frustrating since i don't have a grinder yet so i'm at the mercy of whoever grinds the coffee at the place i buy it.

perhaps if i told them a setting? do grinders have a standardised measurement of the fineness? i tell gloria jeans to grind it up for "commercial espresso" which i've found to be perfect for the last three bags, but the one i have now of the same grind is turning up awful coffee. i also like the coffee zarraffas have, but i don't know what to tell them to do for the grind. the last one i got i told them GJ's do it for me at "commercial esp" and the guy said ok no worries, but that turned out horrible coffee, no matter how i tamped it. any hints there?

and does anyone know what tried and tested grind is for the cafe roma?

much appreciation!

 

[CCafe]

Sounds like your bulk grinding your espresso. Get a home espresso grinder, here’s a list you can start with http://www.1st-line.com/machines/home_mod/indxgrnd.htm.

Bulk grinding will never produce good espresso. Grinding your coffee before you take it home helps it go stale faster. That coupled with certain conditions will require you to change the grind to keep your consistency.

 

[wanda]

I agree that the Breville pulls a nice shot. Since you're not grinding at home, I will suggest a pre ground espresso that we enjoy - Pilon Gourmet. I've found that the store grinders vary a great deal and, so far, I'm pleased with the Gourmet version of Pilon. Can't stand their regular stuff though.

Do you find the grinds easy to remove when you're brewing another shot after the first? Wondering if I'm doing something wrong because I can't get them to just drop out, no matter how much tamping. No big deal, just wondering as it makes the process yet a little messier.

 

[commandre]

ccafe - i don't agree that bulk grinding will *never* produce good espresso. i'm at the end of a 200 gram pack now and i just drank a great coffee. i've definately had better, but i've had equal or worse from many cafes. thanks for the site, having a look. 'm on the lookout for a grinder but finances don't yet permit.

wanda - i stopped trying to bang the used grounds out after using it early on, i just leave a small bowl & teaspoon near the machine. i've found that when i have coffee ground too fine, the remainder in the brew basket is usually quite wet (it will flow over the side if i tip it) but when it's ground just right and producing nice coffee it's drier and more solid. seems once you get to a certain fineness it starts to burn *real* bad

i got my last bag from gloria jeans ground up at 3.25 (0.25 over their "commercial espresso" setting). i have to pack it down more firmly than normal (i usually just press it down enough to form a surface) but i haven't had a dud coffee yet

i read something that said when using small machines it's best to brew first, froth second, because after frothing the water in the boiler is left a lot hotter than brewing temperature. i tried it once and actually ended up with a not so good coffee. i always run a few seconds of water through the brew-head before brewing anyway. lots of steam comes out oftern. if i don't do that before brewing the coffee gets *real* burned

 

[wanda]

wanda - i stopped trying to bang the used grounds out after using it early on, i just leave a small bowl & teaspoon near the machine.

Sort of what I do, except I use a paper plate. I was hoping there was a better solution.

I also run a little water through prior to brewing, mostly to get everything up to temp. I haven't noticed lots of steam being discharged until I've brewed at least 2 double shots and frothed a container of milk.

Overall, I'm very pleased with the Breville.