…and matching Pullman Barista Tamper handle

Remember… you saw it here first!

EDIT: 16th Jan, 2012 7:53pm

Now that I have used these, I am in luuuurrrrrve….

Quick story: I got home, warmed up the machine preceeded to grind, dose, tamp and lock in the new PF. Cup under spouts, press manual and go for the milk. Start pouring milk in to the jug, hear crash, bang, boom, coffee everywhere – WTF!!    I figure the lugs on the naked PF are not as worn as on the original so I didn’t lock it in as hard as I should have – that and I didn’t want to force this one and break the wood my handle is Muscles afterall….. 

The PF feels heaps better in my hand and will take a tad getting used to the new balance of it. Scared of scratching or bumping it but even after the disasterous first use I described above there was no damage done. As for the tamper, it feels great. I liked the balance and total weight before but for now it seems a bit better with the new handle. I find a bottom heavy tamper is easier to center when resting on the grounds ready to use as it kind of levels itself out (if that makes sense..?).

Anyway, here is a pic of them with the machine:

And one of my shrine for good measure:

Looking at the last pic I find myself searching for other things that could be made out of wood! AM, what have you done?

With coffee, most will agree that consistency is key.

Here are a few nifty gadgets that I have employed and that have made a difference in my cup. I have listed them in order of most beneficial to least for a home-barista. So if you could only have one or wish to aquire these independently over time I would start with number 1.

1. Calibrated Tamper

I started with a plastic piece of s#%t tamper that came with my first espresso machine and it wasn’t long before it got upgrade to a generic stainless steel one. Then, different machine, different tamper. A few machines a lot of research later and I was the proud owner of a tamper made to size to suit a Synesso basket – life was looking pretty good. That was until one day when I thought hard about it and realised that I had no way of knowing how hard I was tamping. Some people may argue that it doesn’t matter anyway but to me, If I knew I was tamping within a given range and was doing it consistently then I could look to improve other areas to improve my pours.

A quick search of the usual coffee forums and google and I was on the Espro website checking out their calibrated tamper.

Specifications from the Espro site:

• 30 pound force actuation, factory calibrated
• subtle, but satisfying click will not disrupt tamped grounds
• solid 1 lb tamper weight, perfectly balanced
• stainless steel base and anodized aluminum handle
• black handle in flat bases (53, 58 mm) & convex bases  (49,  51, 53, 58 mm)
• red handle available only in convex base (57 mm)
• find what size you need here
• 1 year no-questions-asked factory replacement warranty

As you can see above, the tamper is preset to delivery a tamping force of 30 pounds. I bought the 58mm version with a convex base and used it religiously, 6 to 8 times a day for close to a month before switching to a different (better fitting) tamper. The best part of it is that muscle memory doesn’t not take long to form, so after switching tampers I found that my tamping was a lot more consistent. (Even though this is not a perfect fit for the VST baskets I use it will stay close to my machine so I can check my tamping force every so often.)

2. Digital Scales

Once I had my tamping force under control I figured that accurately dosing a consistent amount of coffee in to my basket would be the logical next best step. I happened to have a pair of scales sitting aroud the house not being used, bonus, so I claimed them for my espresso needs.

When it comes to scales for use with making espresso you don’t need anything fancy. These scales were dirt cheap and bought on flea-bay for around $10 with free postage from China and they have a resolution of 0.1 of a gram so they are more than accurate enough for my needs. You could get scales with a higher resolution but I doubt it will make much of a difference.

As I grind on demand I weigh each dose before throwing it in the hopper of my grinder. I simply put a small espresso cup on these scales and pour beans in from my zip-lock bags. If I happen to pour more than needed I simply take a few beans out – couldn’t really be any easier.

This whole process of weighing my coffee before grinding has eliminated another area that had room to cause issues, now my dosing is consistent.

Some will argue that the dose is more important than the tamp but I disagree.

3. VST Precision Filter Baskets

The whole concept behind these baskets is consistency so it was only appropriate that I give them a go. They bring consistency through improved manufacturing standards and traceability. These are reletively new on the coffee scene and there is a heap of material out there for you to read, check out CoffeeGeek, Home-Barista, Crema Coffee Forum etc and you will have many days worth of reading ahead of you. The whole concept behind these baskets is consistency so it was only appropriate that I give them a go. They bring consistency through improved manufacturing standards and traceability.

Features from VST Site

So far it appears that people either love the VST baskets or the hate them – there is no in between. I have the 18gm and 22gm ridgeless versions and I certainly don’t hate them so I guess that means….

4. Dosing Tools

Now these I was a bit iffy about. I figured they wouldn’t make any real difference and that I could simply use a credit card or similar to scrape off any excess ground coffee before tamping. In fact, I did try that a few times and didn’t really notice any extra consistency coming my way, just what appeared to be more wasted coffee going down the drain. It was the acquisition of the VST baskets that made me take a chance on the dosing tools – many people on the coffee forums had stated that they were using number X dosing tool with VST basket X and were getting great results. I very recently ordered the set of 3 from www.coffeeparts.com.au and am still finding out what works best for me so I won’t say much more than they seem to do a better job than I expected.

Here is what is written about them on the CoffeeParts site:

• Another unique, innovative set of tools developed by Scottie Callaghan, Australian Barista Champion 2007 and the World Latte Art Champion 2006.
• This set is an abbreviated version of the Professional Barista set, aimed at providing the home barista better control over dosing, the most challenging variable in the espresso making process.
• Included: 3 Double sided pieces numbered 1 (flat) through to 6 (most curved)

These are available in 3 sizes. 3 pieces, 1 through 6, 15 pieces, 1 through 30, 40 pieces, 1 through 40.

If you are in Australia and are looking for a set of these, you will find them on www.thingscoffee.com.au and www.coffeeparts.com.au

A short while ago I got a naked porta-filter from Breville for the BES900 (BES900XL). I am really liking using the larger 22g VST basket and can fit it without a problem when using the naked PF. Another bonus (and the real reason for me ordering the naked PF) was that I was now able to ship the stock PF off to a mate for a custom wooden handle to be fitted. The way in which the Breville PF’s are manufactured made it quite difficult for the work to be done but it didn’t stop him…

Here is what was posted on the Crema Forum by AngerManagement re the work that was done for me…

OK…
1: Remove with care, the end cap = you will chip the handle 

2: Gut the inside of the handle – lots of silastic 
3: Lots of sweat and tricks and chemicals to weaken the bond between the Silastic and the SS and the Bakelite type material.
4: Then use pulling power and not a punch… Err the rubber does not like some of the chemicals.. Soz M.

5:  Then we pull it down and have a closer look at the main bits and you can see the configuration.  Now imagine that the handle is pumped full of a good bonding agent and then the handle is pressed in and then left to cure..

Yep…  A big saw next time…  Drill and tap to 10mm..
However for M I had already started on the handle… So it is yet to be bonded but you can see the expected outcome below.

AND
Note: Handle to get a tad more polish…

Great work AM!!

In the transcript above I am “M” that he is referring to. Feel free to view to the original thread on the Crema Forum and why not sign up while you are there. If you or anyone else are interested in custom woodwork like this for your espresso equipment send AngerManagement a PM on the Crema Forum or contact me on here and I will pass on your details – I am sure you will not be dissapointed.

As you can see I took the opportunity to have a matching handle made for my Pullman Barista Tamper - what a pair they are!!! You can expect a follow up to this post and quite a few more pics when these items are back in my posession.

I couldn’t have wished for a better outcome and cannot wait to put them to use.