It was coincidental that Phase 2 (Heightened Alert) restrictions were kicking in on 16 May, and I received my delivery just before the lockdown-lite started. I had ordered the Sensory XL Box and chose eight different beans, each packed in small 100gm bags, allowing me to sample and compare flavours from various coffee origins over the course of a month.
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What exactly is the font used in the 1Zpresso JX-Pro grind setting dial?
The number “5” looks particularly interesting, with its prominent angles and truncated top line. Unfortunately, it looks quite similar to “6” and regularly confuses me, especially when I’ve not yet consumed my morning dose of caffeine.
The number “7” appears almost boomerang-like and given that the numbers are probably machine-milled, I’d imagine that carving its shape out of the hunk of metal would have been especially efficient.
Continue readingBlind taste test of single-origin beans from Mt Whitney Coffee Roasters
Over the past few months, as I was experimenting with new equipment and different brewing variables, I’ve been asking her to score the coffee on a scale of 1 to 10. But now that the scores have been consistently 8 or more, it was time to run a new experiment on her — a blind taste test to see if she could differentiate coffee brewed from beans grown in different countries.
Continue readingTetsu Kasuya vs Tetsu Kasuya
The Tetsu 4-6 is the go-to recipe that I use to brew my V60 pour over coffee every morning. But since Tetsu is now experimenting with a drastically different technique than the one he perfected in 2016, I thought it’d be interesting to conduct a head-to-head comparison between the two.
What will be the result of the Tetsu vs Tetsu competition?
Will Tetsu beat Tetsu?
Or will Tetsu beat Tetsu?
Continue readingBrewing freshly roasted beans from Tiong Hoe Specialty Coffee
I’d read about how good Ethiopian beans resulted in coffee with a prominent blueberry note, but I’ve always been skeptical. How can coffee taste like blueberry? But I finally understood after tasting it for myself. It had good balance and body, with a wonderfully floral scent and that amazingly addictive blueberry flavour.
Continue readingI think I’m going to stop buying coffee equipment now
Hobbies can get really expensive, really quickly and the trick is knowing when to stop after you start going down a rabbit hole. When it comes to coffee equipment, I think I’ve reached that stage where I’ve bought all the gear that I need to enjoy my daily morning V60 pour over and the occasional afternoon flat white.
Continue readingWelcoming the latest member of our V60 family
For the longest time, my pouring setup was to first boil water with our normal electric kettle and then transfer it to a small gooseneck jug for better flow control. It’s worked well so far and I’ve managed to get good tasting cups, especially after I upgraded my grinder. But it’s been bugging me that I don’t really know what temperature I’m actually brewing at, so I decided to finally get a temperature-controlled gooseneck kettle.
Continue readingTrading in the old Nespresso machine for a new Creatista Plus
My daily morning coffee is a cup of black V60 pour over and it’s usually enough for the day. But sometimes, during the late afternoon, I feel a bit sleepy and remember how nice a cup of flat white tastes. Especially one with a rich and creamy texture, topped with pretty free-pour latte art.
Continue readingHow to make coffee: The science behind the bean
If you’re interested in making and/or drinking coffee, this book is quite a useful and interesting read. It won’t make you a professional barista, but it will explain what goes into the making of a good cup of coffee.
Continue readingTaking the new 1Zpresso JX-Pro grinder out for a spin
I opened a new bag of Mt Whitney Costa Rica Estate Tarrazu and started on an iterative search for the best setting on the 1Zpresso JX-Pro, a process commonly known as “dialing in the grind”.
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