Posted by: jbauer
Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 09/12/2006 00:10
Anyone know what I'm talking about? Any CoffeeGeeks lurking here?
- Jon
- Jon
Rancilio Silvia and Rocky.
Posted by: djc
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 09/12/2006 13:56
Yep. I just bought a new Macap M4 and Vivaldi II a couple of weeks ago. My caffeine intake has gone up considerably. 
I upgraded from a 12-year old Estro Profi (aka Saeco Rio Vapore, or Starbucks Barista), so it's a big improvement. What do you like to drink?
--Dan.
I upgraded from a 12-year old Estro Profi (aka Saeco Rio Vapore, or Starbucks Barista), so it's a big improvement. What do you like to drink?
--Dan.
Posted by: jbauer
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 09/12/2006 14:10
Dan,
Wow, that's some nice stuff. I'm JUST getting into it. Been reading like a mad-man. Only got my Rocky so far, and am waiting for my Silvia to arrive...
I've been playing around with making good press pot, and I'm planning to make epsresso's and latte's, mostly.
We have 2 extremely good coffee roasters/brewers in SF - Ritual Roasters, and Blue Bottle. Drinking their stuff has really inspired me to get into this. Plus, working from home full time means I need to be able to make a good cup without having to go to one of those places daily...
- Jon
Wow, that's some nice stuff. I'm JUST getting into it. Been reading like a mad-man. Only got my Rocky so far, and am waiting for my Silvia to arrive...
I've been playing around with making good press pot, and I'm planning to make epsresso's and latte's, mostly.
We have 2 extremely good coffee roasters/brewers in SF - Ritual Roasters, and Blue Bottle. Drinking their stuff has really inspired me to get into this. Plus, working from home full time means I need to be able to make a good cup without having to go to one of those places daily...
- Jon
Posted by: djc
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 09/12/2006 15:35
Jon,
The Silvia/Rocky combo sure is a classic. The Silvia looks especially nice with its recent facelift. Like the empeg, these machines offer lots of opportunity for hacking and upgrading along the way, adding to the fun and geek-appeal.
We have some good cafes and roasters here in Chicago, too. I walk past Intelligentsia every day, as well as a cafe that stocks beans from Metropolis across town. I use Intelligentsia Black Cat most often (hard to beat 2 lbs for $14 on 2 lb-tuesdays!).
I may get into roasting my own someday, but for now I'm still learning the art of grinding and pulling a good shot. I don't drink many milk drinks, so it's hard to hide a bad shot. My favorite things about the new setup so far are the quietness of both the M4 and the V2 compared to the machines they replaced, and the direct-plumb line on the V2. It's been fun playing with it over the past few weeks.
I've been reading more at home-barista.com than CG lately. The CG forums are just slow enough to try my patience. Good information at both, though.
--Dan.
The Silvia/Rocky combo sure is a classic. The Silvia looks especially nice with its recent facelift. Like the empeg, these machines offer lots of opportunity for hacking and upgrading along the way, adding to the fun and geek-appeal.
We have some good cafes and roasters here in Chicago, too. I walk past Intelligentsia every day, as well as a cafe that stocks beans from Metropolis across town. I use Intelligentsia Black Cat most often (hard to beat 2 lbs for $14 on 2 lb-tuesdays!).
I may get into roasting my own someday, but for now I'm still learning the art of grinding and pulling a good shot. I don't drink many milk drinks, so it's hard to hide a bad shot. My favorite things about the new setup so far are the quietness of both the M4 and the V2 compared to the machines they replaced, and the direct-plumb line on the V2. It's been fun playing with it over the past few weeks.
I've been reading more at home-barista.com than CG lately. The CG forums are just slow enough to try my patience. Good information at both, though.
--Dan.
Posted by: andym
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 09/12/2006 18:48
Wow, and I thought the IT related threads are full of jargon and TLA's
Posted by: jbauer
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 10/12/2006 14:48
Yeah, I've read about Intelligentsia - sounds like a great place. I see that they offer a class - have you done that?
I agree - the CG forums can be so damned slow. I'll check out home-barrista. Thanks for the tip.
- Jon
I agree - the CG forums can be so damned slow. I'll check out home-barrista. Thanks for the tip.
- Jon
Posted by: jbauer
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 12/12/2006 20:16
Ok, I have much to learn.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonbauer/320725687/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonbauer/320749047/
- Jon
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonbauer/320725687/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jonbauer/320749047/
- Jon
Posted by: wfaulk
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 12/12/2006 20:31
If those idiots who work at Starbucks can figure it out, I'm sure you'll have no trouble.
Posted by: webroach
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 12/12/2006 22:19
Quote:
If those idiots who work at Starbucks can figure it out, I'm sure you'll have no trouble.
So why, specifically, are people idiots if they work at Starbucks?
Posted by: jbauer
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 12/12/2006 22:21
Oh no! Not another empeg BBS debate! Am I always causing a controversy?
- Jon
- Jon
Posted by: webroach
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 12/12/2006 22:22
Quote:
Oh no! Not another empeg BBS debate! Am I always causing a controversy?
- Jon
No, people making sweeping generalizations without any basis in fact are.
Posted by: webroach
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 12/12/2006 22:23
Quote:
Oh no! Not another empeg BBS debate! Am I always causing a controversy?
- Jon
On topic, though, congratulations! You've gotten a very nice setup going there!
Posted by: jbauer
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 12/12/2006 22:26
Quote:Quote:
Oh no! Not another empeg BBS debate! Am I always causing a controversy?
- Jon
On topic, though, congratulations! You've gotten a very nice setup going there!
Thanks. Any empeggers in the Bay Area (or visiting) are welcome to visit my coffee shop and be my guinea pig...
- Jon
Posted by: wfaulk
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 13/12/2006 14:15
Okay, revamped statement:
If those idiots who work at the Starbuckses near me can figure it out, anyone can.
There is nothing about working at Starbucks that directly implies idiocy, but there are verifiable idiots who do work at the Starbuckses I go to, and they can do it.
If those idiots who work at the Starbuckses near me can figure it out, anyone can.
There is nothing about working at Starbucks that directly implies idiocy, but there are verifiable idiots who do work at the Starbuckses I go to, and they can do it.
Posted by: DWallach
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 13/12/2006 14:25
Back in my dark days of graduate school, our department had a fancy Italian espresso machine, grinder, and they'd apparently even hacked the ROMs from the "American" settings to the "Italian" settings (whatever that meant).
I found that getting good espresso was pretty simple, but foaming the milk properly is where the art comes in. My officemate was able to consistently get a solid inch of foam floating above the top of his mug. His technique was all about keeping the steamer head at the very top of the milk, rather than just heating up the whole thing uniformly.
These days, I save espresso drinks for emergencies. One shot of espresso and I'll be wired for the whole day and have trouble getting to sleep.
I found that getting good espresso was pretty simple, but foaming the milk properly is where the art comes in. My officemate was able to consistently get a solid inch of foam floating above the top of his mug. His technique was all about keeping the steamer head at the very top of the milk, rather than just heating up the whole thing uniformly.
These days, I save espresso drinks for emergencies. One shot of espresso and I'll be wired for the whole day and have trouble getting to sleep.
Posted by: jbauer
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 13/12/2006 14:26
I agree that working there doesn't directly require idiocy, but I'm sure that this state of mind helps in 1) making all of their sub-standard, psuedo gourmet drinks and 2) dealing with their self-important, obnoxiously demanding, double parking, order barking, double soy latte drinking, spoiled rotten, BMW X5 driving clientele...
- Jon
- Jon
Posted by: tonyc
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 13/12/2006 14:50
Quote:
I agree that working there doesn't directly require idiocy, but I'm sure that this state of mind helps in 1) making all of their sub-standard, psuedo gourmet drinks and 2) dealing with their self-important, obnoxiously demanding, double parking, order barking, double soy latte drinking, spoiled rotten, BMW X5 driving clientele...
I probably got this link from the BBS at some point, but for the benefit of anyone who hasn't seen it yet...
Small, Medium, Large. (NSFW, language.)
Posted by: Ezekiel
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 13/12/2006 15:47
The milk just gets in the way.
My standard Starbucks order:
4-shot espresso.
Usually gets a reaction from the clerk too, which is fun. A 'regular' cup of coffee does very little for me.
I could care less what it looks like or what cup it comes in, so long as the espresso has a good flavor.
-Zeke
My standard Starbucks order:
4-shot espresso.
Usually gets a reaction from the clerk too, which is fun. A 'regular' cup of coffee does very little for me.
I could care less what it looks like or what cup it comes in, so long as the espresso has a good flavor.
-Zeke
Posted by: webroach
Re: Rancilio Silvia and Rocky. - 13/12/2006 20:37
Quote:
Okay, revamped statement:
If those idiots who work at the Starbuckses near me can figure it out, anyone can.
There is nothing about working at Starbucks that directly implies idiocy, but there are verifiable idiots who do work at the Starbuckses I go to, and they can do it.
LMAO!
Touché! And yeah, I can definitely sympathize. There are a few of those an the ones I go to, as well.