Day 5 with the Rancilio Silvia

Oh Silvia, where have you been all my life?

Illy whole bean espresso roast, 8oz. Pricey, seemed a little like a difficult bean. I could pick up some great notes but there was an undercurrent of bitterness. Used these on days 0-2, never got really great results. Perhaps not the friendliest of bean for newbies like myself, started to taste better as I improved my technique.

Castro Cheesery House espresso roast. Yum! Got a whole pound of their dark house roast for only $6.75, half the price of the fancy Illy stuff. I have gotten really amazing results on days 2-5 with this — such that after the morning coffee, I am experiencing terrible cravings throughout the day for another cup. It is currently 12:37AM PST and I am still thinking about coffee. Perhaps these beans are a little more beginner friendly; I am not getting any of the bitterness or acidity that I got out of the Illy stuff, just the smoothest, most unforgettable coffee I’ve ever made.

I must acquire some Blue Bottle beans and give those a shot (pun intended), though I wonder if I’ll see similar results to the high-end Illy beans I had. From my understanding different beans will have different optimal extraction temperatures and grind sizes, perhaps my setup and technique is a little off and I just got lucky with the Castro Cheesery stuff.

I’ll note that the resources on-line for learning to use one’s shiny new friend are excellent. In particular, Whole Latte Love (from whom I ordered the machine) have a good series of articles, and Rancilio Silvia-specific links are available elsewhere on the Internets, too.

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Published:
5.9.07 / 2am
Category:
Food and Drink