Coffee Bargains

Krusty_Clown

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120231511#Comment_120231511

Just to circle back, I ordered on Sunday 12th, shipped on the 13th, and had my coffee on Thursday 16th. I ordered 3kg of green coffee (so can't comment on that coffee yet) and 1kg of roasted Raja Gayo, which is an Indonesian Arabica. Roast dates are printed on the labels, and this one was roasted on the 2nd February, which is 10 days after I ordered, which is about at the limit of what I'd expect from freshly roasted coffee, but at the price, is a pretty good trade-off. Coffee packaging is good (if not the best - I prefer thicker walled bags) and the coffee is very good. Medium, consistent roast, produces a great crema. I've haven't tried a single origin coffee from Indonesia, so not a whole pile to compare it to, but I would describe it as a good, if not particularly distinctive. Definitely will buy from them again, only if buying a couple of kgs of coffee (green and roasted). Based on the one variety I bought, wouldn't be as good as a wcc/d&d/3ff, but if you're looking for a main-stay for a milky coffee, can't beat the value. They also do blends (and custom blends - which is a nice idea). Biggest gripe: no mention of processing method.

Rating: 3/5 - cheap as chips for freshly roasted (if not spectacular) coffee

Danger781

Email from Cafe Velo:

You can SAVE 25% on coffee! AND when you buy 3 bags or more, you can get a FREE BONUS BAG of coffee! Use discount code "KIND25" at checkout!

4 x 700G bags for less than €60 is pretty decent. Assuming my free bag will also be 700g but it doesn't specify what size the bonus bag is. Even then at 3 bags it's still good value.

redlead

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120254869#Comment_120254869

So the normal price of the Costa Rica is 108 euro a KG? 50 percent off my arse. A bunch of cowboys.

2011abc

Jeez I dont know, I got into coffee to save money on the expensive whiskey habit I was curating .At this rate drugs could be cheaper ...

BoardsMember

We've settled on The Galway Roast as our day in/day out espresso bean for cortado type coffee. Tried a few others in Lidl, Aldi, Tesco, this seems to be the best of the lower priced ranges.

alec76

Bought Eureka Oro Single Doze

€500 delivered From Waterford.

https://coffeehouselane.ie/product/eureka-oro-mignon-single-dose-grinder/

I haven’t find anything cheaper across EU ( definitely spent few months of hunting ) . Normally it is €600-700 range. Got 1 kg of 1690 Blend for €23 as well ( They used to sell same at Aldi , it was very decent espresso blend) .

Initially very happy with the grinder ,probably too early to judge , gonna do some testing/comparison between Baratza Vario ( heavily modified : single doze , stainless steel burrs , Forte chamber , calibrated etc) next Weekend.

limnam

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120280697#Comment_120280697

Interested to hear the comparison.

I'm looking to upgrade from a stock vario

adrian522

Also interested in this, I'm still rolling with a Vario from 2009, showing its age and no longer able to go from Filter to espresso like it used to. I could opt to replace the burrs or keep the Vario for filter and buy a new espresso grinder.

alec76

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120282621#Comment_120282621

Have you tried to adjust the burrs first?

There is small hex screw ( 2mm Allen key should do the trick if I remember it right )

https://youtu.be/lUuhzJO29pU

Vario with the stock Ceramic Burrs not great for the filter , produce too much fines. Stainless steel Baratza Burrs produce much better uniform grinds , especially great for the filter , did not find any benefits for espresso but it is extremely slow ( if you grind 18g with ceramic Burrs in 15-17sec , it is 25-30 sec with Stainless steel.

adrian522

Yes I can adjust the burrs I don't think it has the range to do both. As you say I could get some steel burrs and just keep it for filter and use something else for espresso.

Newtown90

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120255718#Comment_120255718

I took the plunge and ordered some of their Brazilian Roasts - having recently started WFH it would be nice to have some cheaper beans as a bag doesn't last long at the moment in our house.

alec76

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120282536#Comment_120282536

Few differences between two

• Oro much faster
• Oro much heavier
• Oro quieter
• Oro creates silky texture/full body for espresso, balanced acidity/sweetness
• Vario thin/light body, more acidity, juicy
• Vario has bigger steps, sometimes you couldn’t get desired extraction time without playing with weight, not a problem with Oro as it is stepless

Haven’t tried with the filter yet , I presume biggest disadvantage of Oro would be switching from filter to espresso and back.

Ps. I am not compare to stock vario though ( baratza stainless steel burrs make some difference to taste too). Easiest and free mode you could make with the Vario is Flapper mode ( it creates fluffier grounds, but they fly all over the bench, couldn’t grind into portafilter anymore , unless with the dosing ring) . Oro makes same fluffy grounds by default.

https://espressoaf.com/manufacturers/baratza/vario_retention.html

Waesfjord

WCC have 10% off today using code WCCTEN.

skerry

I've had a Barista Express for a few years now and have been considering an upgrade for a while. Any suggestions on a machine that would be a next logical step up? Barista is great but the Steam wand is fairly wimpy. Looking at review of Rocket Appartamento, stunning looking machu e but a costly upgrade factoring in a grinder also

xDerp

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120318067#Comment_120318067

Lelit Elizabeth, Silvia Pro, profitech 300 are other options outside the e61/hx style

I got an Elizabeth recently and its a step up from my previous gaggia classic, there are some very nice features including pre infusion. Dual boiler is very handy, I did get 30 or so % off on a black Friday deal. Warmup time is pretty short if just making espresso.

cnocbui

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120318067#Comment_120318067

The Quickmill 03035 Pid Flow Profiling might be worth consideration. I have had the standard 03035 Pegasso which is basically the same thing without the flow control and PID and I think it's wonderful. Mine is 7 years old and is still working extremely well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZjZYOzIs9E

The grinder is as good as a standalone as the company has been making grinders since WW2. I found an annoying site, best-of-italy.com that has it for £861.30, but won't ship to ireland for some reason. I suspect I might be able to persuade them If I was after one. Cafe Italia here have My Pegasso for €1009.

I originally went for Quickmill as I have a thing for value for money and products that last and after doing some research on that topic settled on them. I calculate I have put 60Kg of beans through the grinder in mine and its still purring away. One thing I love is the really fast warmup. 1 minute and it reaches operating temp, but they recommend waiting for 2:30, which is usually what it takes me anyway with the pfaffing about I do.

Bawnmore

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120320061#Comment_120320061

That's interesting. I'm looking for an upgrade from Gaggia Classic/Sage Grinder Pro and that looks lovely. I get the energy to start researching every so often and then other priorities take over. Let me know if you were thinking of going for it - shipping 2 to Ireland might be more interesting for them than 1 on it's own.

Bawnmore

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120320254#Comment_120320254

Available here for about €950 delivered - https://www.lagondola.it/en/espresso-machine/quickmill-steel-model/quick-mill-espresso-machine-03035l-pid-flow/.

skerry

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120319731#Comment_120319731

After doing some research online since I posted here last night I'm seeing the Elizabeth pop up quite a bit as a recommendation. I'm thinking its more the grinder on the Barista Express that's holding back my coffee than anything else. Seeing as I will need a grinder if I upgrade my current machine I'm think I might research a decent grinder, buy one, and then use that as further justification for eventually upgrading the machine :)

What grinder are you using with your Elizabeth? Just looking at the Eureka ORO Mignon single docs grinder posted by @alec76 above and can get this delivered for 480 at the moment. Wouldn't want to spend more than 500 on a grinder but presume I can get something far better than what I have for that budget

skerry

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120280697#Comment_120280697

How you finding the grinder a month on? I'm looking at either the Oro or the Specialitia. I'd be coming from using the grinder on my Barista Express so I'm gonna guess either of these would be a big upgrade on that. I'm veering towards the Oro as I rarely drink more than one coffee a day.

Any idea if they've revised the Oro since release. I read some reviews and they were saying first batches were quite loud.

xDerp

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120320647#Comment_120320647

I'm using a nodded mazzer super jolly (single dose frankenstein job). I've no complaints but the oro looks tempting!

alec76

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120321832#Comment_120321832

Great grinder , the best I’ve ever had :) Definitely at this price I won’t be looking at Specialitia.

Took it apart , checked burrs alignment ( ink method ) almost perfect, left it without shimming.

( Stock Vario was very bad btw) .

Retention impressive , didn’t find any grounds stuck inside the burrs . My modified Single Dose Vario had plenty grounds stuck between the burrs and the carrier.

As for the noise level , it is quieter than Vario and definitely much quieter than Sage Pro grinder ( which I also have, unfortunately).

ps. Where did you find it for €480 ?

Originally I was looking for chrome version, couldn’t force myself pay extra €40 for it . I guess it is time to go for white Lelit Bianca now :)

skerry

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120321974#Comment_120321974

Good to hear. Is the Specialitia inferior grinder? My basic research led me to believe the difference was only in the single dose vs larger hopper but closer inspection shows the burrs are wider diameter in Oro.

Got a fit of looking at machine upgrades over the weekend but I think I'd see a big difference in espresso quality by upgrading grinder (which I'll have to buy a stand alone anyway if I upgrade machine down the line) and keep using Barista Express until I get around to full machine upgrade.

Haven't ordered it yet and definitely veering towards Oro as its rare I'll have more than one coffee a day. I drink mostly milky coffees but with better espressos I think I'd drink them more often. 480 is from same site as you had linked but a 10% discount flashed up when I went on the site and surprisingly it worked on grinder, thought it would be just coffees etc.

FileNotFound

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120289008#Comment_120289008

How did you find it, using aeropresses in work and looking for a cheaper kick than the usual Irish prices.

Can’t sustain the cost of 3fe etc, with the work lads smashing through it haha

Newtown90

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120323262#Comment_120323262

Haven't opened them yet ( tomorrow I'd say ) - still rounding off a bag of Columbia from Eleven14 Coffee Roasters.

The coffee came very quick from the Netherlands in fairness - discount code for a descaler and cleaning tablet with the next order and all!

FileNotFound

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120323982#Comment_120323982

Thanks, thanks won’t be ordering for a few weeks as have a few kg to get through, any feedback on them once you’ve tried would be very much appreciated.

Krusty_Clown

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120323982#Comment_120323982

Also interested. How old were the roast dates?

Newtown90

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120330299#Comment_120330299

I ordered the 25th of Feb, Roast Date on both were the 24th and they were delivered on the 02nd of March... With Feb being a 28 day month i think that was quite good.

alec76

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120331085#Comment_120331085

I’ve ordered 1st of March , delivered 6th of March , roasted 23 of February.

1 kg Yirgacheffe

1 kg South America blend

1 kg Madrugador blend ( arabica + robusta)

Haven’t tried it yet

ps. ( 2 of those days were Saturday and Sunday, so seriously impressed with the speed , they might based at DPD hub altogether)

alec76

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120331138#Comment_120331138

Tried South American blend, not bad , medium roast, medium body,good crema, taste like typical Colombian, more or less similar to specialty Coffee from supermarkets IMO.

ps. I found quite difficult to dial between the beans with Oro compared to Vario .I like the coffee taste by Oro much better though, grounds more consistent too.

I don’t think it is possible to quickly switch between the beans with Oro ( one type for morning another for the evening etc), too much waste. It might get better hopefully ( practice etc)