Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler Any coffee geeks here?

I consider myself a bit of an espresso geek.

Gaggia Classic + Gaggia MDF Grider for me. Got 'em both on sale from WholeLatteLove.com about four years ago. Debated between those and the Rancillio Silvia + Rocky combo, but went with the Gaggia's because they were a little less $$$. I've used them to make at least a pair of double/triple-shot lattes every working day since I've owned them. One for me, one for my wife. It was about $700 for the machines. No, not inexpensive, but compared to what we would have spent on Starbucks or at other coffee shops, they've actually paid for themselves two or three times over by now.

I'm pretty good at consistently banging out shots that are nearly entirely thick & rich tiger-striped crema. Thought it took about 3 months of daily practice to hone in on the right grind & tamp pressure settings.

It's all up to the quality of the beans & roast. I'm pretty picky about my beans these days. I've got about four specialty roasters from whom I order beans; Northwest Coffee Roasting and Kaldi Coffee Company from St. Louis, MO, Metropolis Coffee Roasting from Chicago, IL, or Kind Coffee in Estes Park, CO. All four offer, IMHO, exquisite and flavorful beans roasted absolutely perfectly at reasonable prices.