Coffee with the New Machine



I got lucky this weekend and got my hands on a workable digital camera (thanks to a writing client who wants coffee how-tos with pictures), so I thought I'd practice by sharing a little amateur coffee porn. This was my morning cup this morning:


http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7163/6666557207_0749430175.jpg" width="500" height="376" alt="coffee" />




Here are a few more photos of the process this morning.



The coffee in the bag:



http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7014/6666561333_a408505de4.jpg" width="500" height="376" alt="coffee" />



Sumatra Mandehling from Unique Coffee Roasters, bought here on ROASTe. Not a clue how many days post-roast because there's no roast date on the bag, but it makes a smoth, chocoate-y, nutty cup that's wonderful with cream and sweet on its own.



The Beans:



http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7009/6666560623_d9a8983baf.jpg" width="500" height="376" alt="coffee" />



The roast is a medium-dark roast, though Unique doesn't specify a roast level. It's a lot more even than it looks in this picture, dark enough that the beans are just showing a bit of oily sheen.



The grind:



http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7149/6666559889_e6a817f1b7.jpg" width="500" height="376" alt="coffee" />


The weakest part of my coffee making right now -- I'm stuck using a blade grinder. I make up for the unevenness by using 5-10 second pulses for 2 minutes or so. It could be finer, and I do get a little clumping, but it's pretty even and packs nicely.


 



Oops!



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Obviously not packed as evenly as it could be. When I get it just right, the coffee starts from both spouts almost at the exact same time. I got stream from one spout for almost 5 full seconds before I got:



Full engagement



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It's not perfect, and I'm not sure what I'd have gotten with a non-pressurized basket, but it looks pretty good to my uneducated eyes.


 



The finished shot



http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7146/6666557963_f3752c4e3f.jpg" width="500" height="376" alt="coffee" />


It's smooth, sweet and creamy -- but I like the Mandehling with milk, especially first thing in the morning, so...


Frothing the milk



Yeah. No picture for this because I put the cup down in the wrong place on the top of the washing machine (yeah, my coffee setup leaves something to be desired) and it tipped and spilled. By the time I grabbed it up and wiped up the spill, most of the froth was on the towel. Still --



The finished coffee - which I am currently enjoying:



http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7163/6666557207_0749430175.jpg" width="500" height="376" alt="coffee" />



Ta da! Even with pausing to take photos throughout the whole process, it took about 10 minutes from start to finish -- not a whole lot longer than I'd wait for the first cup from the automatic drip coffee maker. And the coffee is sooooo much better.



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