Me and my Brikka.

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Me and my Brikka.

Postby walts » Mon Jul 15, 2013 5:22 pm

I love my Bialetti Brikka. I really do. But that doesn't mean it hasn't given me my fair share of problems. I mean.....what grind would you think it likes best for making a shot of espresso (please humour me) even if most coffee afficianado's would deny the Brikka being able to ever affect such a creation. Well I have been running through just about every setting of which my beautiful Krups GVX2 grinder is capable, from the coarsest to the finest and so far have not failed to fill my shot glass with the most flavourfull beverage, complete with 5mm of crema. I can see that smile on your face as you read that. Yes?

What started out to be a test of what grind could give me the most realistic espresso, has changed into a quest to see which grind would give me an espresso without a slop of grounds in the bottom of the glass. I have been brought to my knees and have to say that it doesn't seem that I will ever get that elusive espresso without some grounds in the bottom of my glass, because whatever setting I use, the grounds are there. I guess other coffee lovers get the same, depending on what method they use to brew their daily shot. But is there any stove top coffee maker, not bringing in those that use paper filters, that is capable of delivering that coffee without a trace of grounds? I would love to know. Not that I have any intention of ditching my Brikka, oh no, that would be nothing short of criminal. I am just curious. Anyone out there care to enlighten me on this fascinating aspect of coffee creation? Regards Walt.
Bialetti Brikka 2 cup Mokka Pot.
Rival.PP25. Popcorn roaster.
Krups. GVX2 Coffee Grinder.
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RE: Me and my Brikka.

Postby bruceb » Mon Jul 15, 2013 8:46 pm

Properly ground coffee, regardless of the fineness of grind or brewing method, contains a very large range of grinds, from powder to coarse chunks. This is true no matter how one grinds and is desirable. It is in the nature of roasted coffee beans to break up into various sized bits no matter how you break, crush or grind them. The distribution of grind sizes follows a Gaussian or bell-shaped curve. The only way you can get rid of the fines is to sieve the coffee through a very fine sieve before brewing. This will not improve the taste in the cup and may actually be deleterious to the flavour. A mokka pot uses a very coarse screen that allows the fines to pass through much more than an espresso machine basket. I have known people who put a paper filter on top of the coffee in the mokka pot to filter out the fines. I don't recommend doing this, but rather suggest leaving a few drops in the bottom of the cup and reading the grounds like those clever folks do with tea leaves.
Three Francesconi (CMA) espresso machines - Rossi, San Marco, LaCimbali, Faema and 2 Mazzer Major grinders- CoffeeTech Maggionlino, Hottop, Alpenröst and HW Precision roasters.
I decided I needed a bit of a change so I roasted some Monsooned Malabar. That was a change!
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RE: Me and my Brikka.

Postby walts » Mon Jul 15, 2013 9:04 pm

Hi Bruce. Good to hear from you and to have my mind put at rest regarding the fines. Suffice it to say that I shall never give them another thought. Obviously, what you have said is nothing more than good sense. How can you grind coffee beans mechanically and not have the resulting coffee be made up of a multitude of different size particles? You can bank on it that I have slapped my wrist and vowed to take longer in pondering these coffee related problems before leaping in and showing my ignorance to all and sundry. Regards to you and yours. Walt
Bialetti Brikka 2 cup Mokka Pot.
Rival.PP25. Popcorn roaster.
Krups. GVX2 Coffee Grinder.
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walts
 
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Joined: Fri Oct 29, 2004 6:36 am
Location: Hull. East Yorkshire

RE: Me and my Brikka.

Postby bruceb » Mon Jul 15, 2013 9:48 pm

No problem, Walt. Very few people realise that this is the case. Many think that an expensive grinder actually has a smaller range of grind sizes. That is not the case and as I said, would not be desirable. Really glad to hear that you are enjoying your coffee.

BTW, I ran out of roasted beans one time a few years ago and swore that it would never happen again. Image
Three Francesconi (CMA) espresso machines - Rossi, San Marco, LaCimbali, Faema and 2 Mazzer Major grinders- CoffeeTech Maggionlino, Hottop, Alpenröst and HW Precision roasters.
I decided I needed a bit of a change so I roasted some Monsooned Malabar. That was a change!
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RE: Me and my Brikka.

Postby zix » Wed Feb 19, 2014 2:45 pm

Hi walts,
Because of a recent lack of proper espresso machines @ home, I dug out the Brikka again the other day. I still like it :) And with the Lido grinder and a super fresh, newly home roasted coffee, the magic is still there. Good to see that some things stay the same in this ever changing world.

That's all, basically.

If you want to, try roasting some yourself, so you can get it REALLY fresh. Like the same day, or 2-3 days after. I would suggest a Yirgacheffe, roasted into second crack. You might be surprised.

additional tips: Grind coarser than usual with a fresh yirgacheffe, or you may choke the Brikka. The Yirgacheffe is like that.

Have fun with the Brikka!
‹• Bezzera B3000AL • Strietman ES3 • Chemex • Cona C size • Aeropress • Vev moka • Bialetti Brikka • Espro • Cezve • Bacchi Espresso • Arrarex Caravel •
• HG-1 • Lido 1 & E-T • OE Pharos •
• oven • hot air gun • Behmor •›
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