where to get good Italian espresso coffee beans in Dublin?

elmolesto

Try www.coffeebeans.ie they have a good selection of coffee.

antoniosicily

the pre-ground coffee from lavazza is pretty good (I like it); I think that any grinder can made a decent coffee, the big deal is with the beans, so you should get good (and toasted) beans. The toasting part is important.

If you use a grinder, please DO-NOT-CLEAN it, or you will lose everything related to coffee!

rockbeer

antoniosicily wrote:

I think that any grinder can made a decent coffee

Not any grinder can make a decent espresso. It has to grind fine enough and uniformly enough for the espresso process (water forced through the grinds under pressure) to work properly. Basically, it has to be a burr grinder of reasonable quality. You'll never make espresso with one of those whirly blade grinders.

Any developments on the coffee/tea/bitterly divided hot drinks community forum?

Mr Magnolia

rockbeer wrote:

Any developments on the coffee/tea/bitterly divided hot drinks community forum?

No word yet. Hopefully some of the Admins will get time to have a look soon, I'm sure they'll let us know when they get a chance....

Gran Hermano

I'm looking to purchase a Gaggia MDF grinder as a pressie for the
folks. I got my own one from Amazon UK before they stupidly stopped
shipping kitchenware to Ireland.
Price in shops in Dublin seems to average €230 but I've found this site
http://www.italy-outlet.co.uk/en/i/cat2.html
which has them in stock for €175 + 15 shipping
They stock both the 110 and 220 v models.

Don't suppose anyone here has purchased or has any experience
in dealing with them?

Their website lists an address in Cork:
Netrade Ireland
14 Penrose Warf, Cork

Anyone know anywhere else that'll ship to Ireland at a reasonable price?

rockbeer

Gran Hermano wrote:

Anyone know anywhere else that'll ship to Ireland at a reasonable price?

Espresso Coffee Shop
http://www.espressocoffeeshop.com/
are currently doing the MDF in white for €159.00 plus €20.00 shipping to Ireland. The much nicer black one is €175.00. If you spend over €300.00 the shipping is free.

No connection & not dealt with them - but I've heard good reports and they consistently seem to offer some of the lowest prices on this kind of gear.

If you do order from them I'd be interested to know how you get on.

Another place you could try is http://www.myespresso.co.uk/ - they have the grinder for abut the same price. You'd have to enquire about shipping but they sent me my Rancilio Silvia for a very reasonable €30.00 or so and were good to deal with.

Good luck,
Bruce

Gran Hermano

Thanks for the links Bruce.

I've just spent the afternoon on Too Much Coffee checking their
forum for grinder info and reviews on online retailers.

I've happened upon good reviews on the Iberital MC2
http://www.happydonkey.co.uk/shop/product.php?productid=2618&cat=0&page=

Happy Donkey seem to have it at a bargain price of 99 sterling.
I've just mailed them and asked them for delivery rates to Ireland.

Now I have the whole MDF vs MC2 debate to mull over once I get
shipping pricing!

rockbeer

By all accounts the MC2 is an excellent grinder for the money. However it's worth considering the use it's going to be put to. The MC2 has an infinite (stepless) grind setting control, which allows very accurate fine adjustment. This is great for espresso, but not so good if the grinder is intended to be used to grind for more than one type of machine, as it's takes an age to make major adjustments to the grind size. In other words, if your folks will be grinding for cafetiere/drip pot/mocha pot as well as espresso, the Gaggia is a far better bet.

There's lots of discussion about the MC2 on the alt.coffee newsgroup. Decisions decisions... Happy reading

Gran Hermano

Well I've ordered the MC2 for what I believe is a bargain price of
GBP 99. Only bad part is shipping came in at GBP 35. It's still
cheaper than purchasing here in Ireland and the other UK sites were
showing the MC2 for an average price of GBP 165 + shipping.

From the reviews and feedback I've seen on TMC I'm looking forward
to getting my hands on it! I'll probably keep the MC2 for myself and give
the folks my MDF along with a monthly coffee subscription from
ristrettocoffee.com. That should keep them happy.

Rockbeer I hear you on the MC2's ease for adjusting easily from
coarse to fine grind but as I mainly drink espresso or espresso
based drinks it's not an issue for me. (You don't want to know
how much reading up I did on the MC2 yesterday!)

http://www.coffeegeek.com/reviews/grinders/iberital_grinder
http://www.coffeegeek.com/forums/worldregional/uk/75667
http://www.happydonkey.co.uk/mc2review/mc2review.htm
On teh off chance anyone else is looking for a grinder

Gran Hermano

http://pie.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?forumid=929
The forum is go!

Mr Magnolia

Gran Hermano wrote:

Well I've ordered the MC2 for what I believe is a bargain price of
GBP 99. Only bad part is shipping came in at GBP 35. It's still
cheaper than purchasing here in Ireland and the other UK sites were
showing the MC2 for an average price of GBP 165 + shipping.

Did you go for the normal or the automatic version Gran Hermano?

Gran Hermano

I went for the automatic. As I'll be using it 99% of the time for
grinding beans for my espresso machine it suits me better.
- the auto has a trigger button under the dispensing chute which when
you press the portafilter against it grinds and dispenses a set amount
directly into the basket. (You can adjust the amount it grinds/dispenses
to suit the size of your filter basket).

If you mainly grind for a French press or similar the other model may suit
you better as you'll be able to grind a larger quantity in one go.

Also, I'd rather just grind the amount I intend to use straight away.


Not sure if you had a look at my other post on it here, some other info you might
find of interest.
http://pie.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=53249884&postcount=2

Mr Magnolia

I use a french press, a machine, and an expresso maker (I use all three on a daily basis) so I reckon the automatic is the one for me once I master the different settings for the different units, though i'll be mainly use it for the expresso maker.

Not sure if you had a look at my other post on it here, some other info you might
find of interest.
http://pie.boards.ie/vbulletin/showp...84&postcount=2

I had a look at it alright, very informative btw.

Going to order the auto so. Thanks again

Gran Hermano

Be warned whilst I've been delighted with the results from the MC2 over
the last few days and am 100% happy with it, as Rockbeer mentioned
it is really not suited for quick adjustment from espresso size grind to
say French press size particles. If you drink say espresso say 99%
I 100% recommend it - it's easy and quick to adjust slightly to allow for
humidity or differences in beans but it'd be a pain of you were to alternate
frequently between completely different grind settings.

Mr Magnolia

Gran Hermano wrote:

Be warned whilst I've been delighted with the results from the MC2 over
the last few days and am 100% happy with it, as Rockbeer mentioned
it is really not suited for quick adjustment from espresso size grind to
say French press size particles. If you drink say espresso say 99%
I 100% recommend it - it's easy and quick to adjust slightly to allow for
humidity or differences in beans but it'd be a pain of you were to alternate
frequently between completely different grind settings.

Point taken thanks, I'll have a mull over it so.

Mr Magnolia

I think I'll still go for it Gran Hermano, I use the french press the least and I know from experience that espresso ground beans suit my machine fantastically

Gran Hermano

Go for it. I reckon you'll be happy - nothing but positive reviews about
it on toomuchcoffee.com either

Sure it'll give you an excuse to drink more espresso and enjoy the
good stuff. Just a note on when setting up - it takes about 15 turns of the
wheel for grinding setting before you can even notice a difference.
Have a big bag of cheap beans on standby for when it arrives, it'll
save you wasting good stuff when tuning the grind in.

I look forward to your feedback when yo get it..

(And we really should be having this chat in the coffee forum ! )

Mr Magnolia

Thanks, I'll let you know how I get on & thanks for the contact details

Antonin Yuram

I know I'm coming to this late but there's a great little spot on Chancery Street (next to M. Hughes's pub behind the Four Courts) called Mr Coffee (I think). Just a small shelf behind a shutter really but they sell some great coffee beans. Only open between 8am (or maybe 8.30) and 3pm but worth it if you can get there.

adox

The best online site I have found is www.hasbean.co.uk.A great selection of coffees and they roast them to order so they are very fresh.Anything bought off the shelf,even roasted beans are usually well past their best and a poor second choice.

With regards to a grinder,one of the better budget options surprisingly enough is the one that Starbucks sell.I have practically the same machine,although it has a Dualit badge on it,and it does a very good job.Fine enoguh for espresso and coarse enough for French press etc.Unless you are going to spend big money this is probably your best option.