The Reading Room

http://www.home-barista.com/forums/userpix/3413oe_3rd_shot_2_1.jpg" width="477" height="400" />   I have blogged in the past about the La Pavoni Lever espresso machine and my user experience with it. http://www.roaste.com/CoffeeBlogs/sontondaman/Revisiting-Pavoni-Manual-Lever Having own two of these machines ( one Euripicola and one larger capacity Profesional), my experience tell...

I thought long and hard before posting this thread since I am aware of how fragile street credibility can be and how easily it can be lost in the highly critical world of coffee connoisseurs.  I understand I may never...

  http://foter.com/img/photo/4/coffee-beans-2_l.jpg" style="display: block; width: 100%" class="foter-photo" /> cthoyes /Foter What would you do with a million coffee beans? Probably nothing quite as visually artistic as the mosaic created by Albanian artist, Saimir Strati. Strati, who has created mosaics that...

Have you ever wished you could visit coffee shops in other parts of the world? If your budget doesn’t allow for that, you can travel virtually and still learn some ways to spice up your normal coffee experience. Talk about...

 French press coffee produces a bold, full-bodied cup with no paper filter. This guide covers ratio, grind size, steep time, and how to fix common problems.

As a creature of pure habit, I had been content using big double baskets filled with fluffy coffee powder spilling out in wanton excess and crema filled shot glasses dripping gleefully down the cup onto the saucer below - I...

The paparazzi have been busy this week, following celebrities with coffee in their hands. Coffee in the hands of stars is HOT- not only in temperature, but as news. There are many “sightings” which frequently make the news in the...

Great coffee needs only a few basics, not a shelf of gadgets. Which coffee gear actually matters, what to skip, and why fresh beans beat any tool.

As I mentioned in the first part of this review, I had the opportunity to take the Bonavita BV-1800 automatic coffee brewer over to a friend's house to brew some test pots for comparison of time and taste results between this...

Coffee farmers grow the beans behind every cup, mostly on small family farms. Who grows your coffee, the challenges they face, and why it reaches your cup.

http://foter.com/img/photo/4/denver-post-warm-hands-warmer-heart-awww_l.jpg" style="display: block; width: 100%" class="foter-photo" /> ~ggvic~ /Foter My Google "coffee" feed always dredges up a few news stories in which coffee is only a tangential player -- that is, stories in which coffee is mentioned even though the...

I am putting the finishing touches on the second part of my Bonavita brewer vs. the Technivorm blog so think of this one as the half time show or intermission. I seem to be on a Melitta related theme lately...

Product review the Jennings pocket scale.  I love this little scale.  I use it many times a day and not just for coffee.  It has a few great features.  The model I have in mind is the Jennings JS150V and...

I thought it would be a good time to talk about my experience with the Capresso Infinity burr grinder. It's the time of year that we are buying gifts for a lot of people and we want to make sure...

http://www.coffeebreak2day.com/images/keep-cup.png" hspace="10" height="321" border="5" align="left" width="301" vspace="10" title="keep cup picture" alt="keep cup picture" />So, one of my favorite things about coffee people is that they are good-hearted and truly charitable in ways that go far beyond dropping a bill in...

Pulling espresso at home comes down to 5 variables: grind size, dose, tamp pressure, water temperature, and extraction time. Get all 5 right and every shot pulls correctly. This guide covers each variable, what it does, and how to diagnose a bad shot.

Coffee cup material shapes how your drink tastes and feels. How ceramic, glass, metal, and paper each change the cup, and which to choose.

A coffee gift basket is a safe, welcome gift for any coffee lover. The trick is filling the basket with things they will use. A basket of fresh, quality coffee beats a stale supermarket pack. Match the picks to their...

Coffee flavor profiles run from bold and chocolatey to bright and fruity. A simple map of profiles by roast to help you pick coffee you will love.

What is the big deal about water temperature - if you brew coffee with water that is too hot you just have to wait longer for it to cool down, right? Wrong - you use water that is too cool...