A newbie to coffee!

chris85

Hey all, so I am a newbie to coffee making. Have always liked the taste of a good coffee. Anyways got a present at xmas of a Delonghi EC152 such as in link below.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Delonghi-EC152-Espresso-Coffee-Machine/dp/B003U2SLI8

At present I am trying out making cappuchinos and got some ground coffee to use. I am liking testing out how to make my coffee better but I am not very much up on how its all done.

If anyone has pointers for a newbie to improve the coffee making and testing experience would be happy to hear.

I know a lot of the choice of coffee would be down to taste in terms of what roast to go for so there is an element of hit and miss when testing different coffees i guess. Do most people grind there own or get ground.

I suppose just a bit of general discussion for any other new baristas out there!

sealgaire

you didn't get many replies! Id be interested in this myself

Hunchback

I have the same model as you do. I actually cannot CANNOT get a nice crème (or whatever it's called) on top.

It does not produce the type of espresso that you would pay money for in a restaurant.

I bought Lavazza, so it was ground already, so the problem is not to do with the setting s on the grinder meaning that the beans are ground too large. Having said that, the water does pass through the coffee too quickly. I make coffee every day in the restaurant where I work and the average run-time for an espresso is around 25 seconds, give or take a few seconds, whereas with this machine it is around 5 or 6 seconds to produce this much espresso.

Anyone have any suggestions as to what I could be doing wrong?

colm_gti

I presume these have a pressurised portafilter basket? Try increasing the dose and/or tamping harder.

You will always get better results grinding your own coffee though.

zubair

I've had the same model and used it for around a year, although mine had a slightly different body, only difference was cosmetic. It's a good beginner machine. It's not really clear from your post if you're having difficulty with pulling a good shot but here are some pieces of advice.


It uses a pressurised portafilter so you should be seeing a crema on most shots, good or bad.

I found to get the best results I had to use the double basket and I would drink both shots or add them both to an americano. Should take 25 - 30 seconds to pull a double shot, used to take me 24 seconds with this machine.

Let the machine heat up for 15 minutes. When ready to pull a shot run some water into a cup and wait for the ready light to come back on.

Use the scoop supplied to level and tamp and a final tamp with the plastic one attached to the machne.

Grinding your own beans will give you fresher, tastier coffee no need to go nuts just yet and start ordering coffee roasted 3 days ago but try to get away from preground coffee. I would recommend getting a burr hand grinder/ mill to start with becasue its cheap and get some of the roberts roberts 3 star beans (Dunnes) or their cafe italiano beans.

Hunchback

Fantastic advice Zubair. I would give it a shot next time I am at home (could be a while) and will report back with findings, but I already have a good feeling about what you are saying because I would not have waited for 15 minutes for the water to heat and further I don't use non-ground beans as you suggested.

Mmmmm, I need a coffee now. Alas the place where I will be staying for the next 6 months only does freeze dried misery in a jar.

dillonmr

don't be disheartened practice and some basic tips and you can get some pretty decent results from entry level machines; learning on these types of machines will give you the skills and techniques to take to the next level...

1) preheat the machine (With the port filter in!!!) - this is key with any machine no matter what the cost (if you a morning coffee person worth getting a timer on the plug so it comes on before you get up and is well warmed).
2) preheat your cup, do this by running water from the machine into it without coffee.
3) get your grind right, ppl often neglect to consider the quality of the coffee they're using when making coffee. tbh you could talk about grind for pages and pages so I'll keep this short. If you have a grinder with variable coarseness (ideally a burr) you'll need to "dial in" the machine to the coffee you're using, this can take some time but essential it means varying the coarseness until you get a shot running to the right volume in the right time (usually 25-28secs). If you are grinding yourself only grind as needed, the fresher the grind the better the shot and the more of the creama you're looking for. If you haven't a grinder and are looking to buy one, get one thats compatible to the machine you're using and ideally a burr one. If you haven't a grinder, I'd suggest buying your coffee from a good coffee shop who can grind it, then its worth storing it in the freezer which should make it stay fresh longer.
4) fill your portafilter with grind, you want to have a consistent grind here with minimal clumping. level off with your finger, worth giving it a knock to clear out any airgaps etc what will frankly ruin a shot.
5) tamp. you're prob using a plastic tamper that came with the machine and there's northing wrong with this (despite what ppl might tell you). Apply even pressure (you want to press 30lbs) (youtube tamping techniques). Its important that you do this level. Once tamped DO NOT knock the side again.
6) lock the portafilter in and place the preheated cup under it
7) pre-infusion - press the shot on for about 2-3secs only, this will wet the puck.
8) run your shot - again should take about 25secs.

9) foaming milk - tbh you'll find this harder to do on a entry level machine then pulling decent shot. But again its not impossible. Your machine lacks a bit of power thats needed to steam but its doable. If I were you I'd steam before pulling the shot as you're working from a single boiler. you're prob best you watch some youtube vids on technique here as its easier to learn by seeing then by reading.


in regards to maintenance, keep your machine clean, regularly flush it and descale it to keep the inners in good order.