Porcelain and Aluminum Stovetop Coffee Maker - Traveling Road Show

[SJM]

Got a note from Josh; he is playing with the Aerolatte.  He wanted to know where to grab one.  Amazon has jacked the price.  Seattle Gear has best price, $45 shipped after discount on site.


http://www.seattlecoffeegear.com/aerolatte-porcellana-stove-top-espresso-maker


For those of you trying this coffee maker, it is great with a good Brazil.

B|Java

That must mean he liked it.  Cool.  I am looking forward to seeing how it compares to my stainless steel mokka pot.
And it reminds me that I should see if the mokka pot can save the Brazils I have tried from terminal flatness, which seems to be their signature when used in pourovers.

[jbviau]

I *do* like it! So far I've brewed 4 pots, and I find the process easy and enjoyable. I'm not someone who needs espresso at home, so this is a fine "close enough" concentrated brewed coffee to my taste.

I've never used a moka pot before, but I gather that the detachable top part/server is unusual in terms of design. I'm a fan.

Parameters:
- 17 g. of coffee fits just fine for me without going over the fill line.
- A grind between espresso and pourover does work well, as advertised, though closer to pourover like I ended up at on my first try was far from tragic tastewise.

Niggles:
- The coffee isn't all that hot. Maybe I'll experiment with pre-heating the porcelain server.
- Toward the end, the sputtering can make a bit of a mess if you're not careful and/or if you enjoy watching with the lid off. A glass server would be more spectator-friendly.
- The server's pour is a touch dribbly. For the sake of comparison, not any more so than the Kalita Style Set's glass carafe, and pours like a dream compared to the Brazen's.

Question:
- Re: coming up on the end of the brew cycle, before the telltale sputtering I mentioned it seems as if the flow rate increases. I've been turning the heat down at this point and then killing it at the sputter. How does this compare to best practice?

Coffees:
- I've had good results with Oak Cliff's Finca El Puente (Honduras), Klatch's El Salvador Orange Bourbon, and to a lesser extent Kittel's Brazil (possibly pulped natural). This last wasn't my favorite of the bunch, but it's also my least fresh coffee.

More details in a few days...

[BoldJava]

...
- The coffee isn't all that hot. Maybe I'll experiment with pre-heating the porcelain server.
...

Are you using a medium low heat or are you barreling in on high?  Vague memories tell me lower heat yields higher temp in the pot.  Don't ask me why.

[jbviau]

Plain old medium. Saw my first drips at around 9 min. in. I think you're right, as my first try with higher heat and first drips at 4 min. was a bit cooler.

[SJM]

When I hauled my moka pot out to revisit it, I checked online for information and came up with this guide which I think is pretty spot on:
http://stumptowncoffee.com/brew-guides/moka-pot/

I bring the water to a boil in the Aroma kettle and then pour it into the bottom of the moka pot. 

Susan

[BoldJava]

When I hauled my moka pot out to revisit it, I checked online for information and came up with this guide which I think is pretty spot on:
http://stumptowncoffee.com/brew-guides/moka-pot/

I bring the water to a boil in the Aroma kettle and then pour it into the bottom of the moka pot. 

Susan

Good guide except for this:  "It is incredibly important to pre-heat the water. If you don’t do this, the entire moka pot will get very hot and two bad things will happen. First — you will cook the coffee, which results in a bitter and thin brew. Second — your coffee will develop a harsh and noticeable metallic note..."

Using med-lo heat, I have never had a metallic taste nor a "thin cup" from a variety of alum, stainless steel - Bialettis and an Alessi.  I don't need the extra step of a kettle boil they are suggesting.

[SJM]

When I hauled my moka pot out to revisit it, I checked online for information and came up with this guide which I think is pretty spot on:
http://stumptowncoffee.com/brew-guides/moka-pot/

I bring the water to a boil in the Aroma kettle and then pour it into the bottom of the moka pot. 

Susan

Good guide except for this:  "It is incredibly important to pre-heat the water. If you don’t do this, the entire moka pot will get very hot and two bad things will happen. First — you will cook the coffee, which results in a bitter and thin brew. Second — your coffee will develop a harsh and noticeable metallic note..."

Using med-lo heat, I have never had a metallic taste nor a "thin cup" from a variety of alum, stainless steel - Bialettis and an Alessi.  I don't need the extra step of a kettle boil they are suggesting.

I don't know if it is or isn't necessary  (I use a stainless steel pot),  but I do it and the results are good. The Aroma heats so fast that the "extra step" is negligible.
Of course it is very possible that B/J is right and Stump is wrong, but you might just try it to see if it changes your results in the cup in any way  -- positive or negative.

[BoldJava]

...
Of course it is very possible that B/J is right and Stump is wrong...

Didn't say they were wrong; don't care for that kind of framing.  Coffee is too dogmatic already <grins>.  Suggested that in my experience, the extra step was unnecessary if one pays attention to heat.  When it returns, I will do a comparison for cupping result.

[SJM]

...
Of course it is very possible that B/J is right and Stump is wrong...

Didn't say they were wrong; don't care for that kind of framing. 

Right you are!!!
There are no "sides" here....
My bad...

Susan

[jbviau]

I haven't tried pre-heating yet but will tomorrow. What I *did* try was brewing up some Verve Gesha in the moka pot today. It performed better than expected! Syrupy, juicy, but not puckery whatsoever. As you might expect, these beans have a very light roast on them, so that's encouraging to me in terms of the range of coffees this thing can handle.

[jbviau]

Ok, update: this will be moving on to Todd (ecc) tomorrow via USPS Priority. I'll post some final thoughts soon. Thanks again for the opportunity!

[BoldJava]

...
Order:
JBViau,
ecc,
HeadChange and,
SJM and

back to Dave

[ecc]

The Aerolatte stormed into Carmel yesterday, but didn't have the chance to play with it until this afternoon.  Josh stuck in a couple of Honduras samples from Oak Cliff (thanks!) so I was all set.

Heated up about 400ml of water in a pouring kettle, and popped the Aerolatte on a scale.  Got 8oz (240ml) of water just off the boil into the bottom.  Awfully close to the overflow valve.

Aerolatte hits the stove, pour the fine ground coffee (used a little tighter than paper drip) into the pre-heated basket (poured the water in through it) and finger distributed along with a light tap.

The top of the unit went on easily, and off we went, with the stovetop power set to 4 out of 10.

[ecc]

Once it got started, it didn't seem like it took more than a few minutes to steam all the water out of the bottom, I will have to do a better job timing it next time.

Although the aesthetics were pretty much on, I wasn't expecting much out of the cup.  I was pleasantly surprised, big body, reasonable acidity, and quite a bit of nuance.

Cleanup was a small struggle with hot bits, the top went right into the sink, and a had to tap the lower parts a little sideways in the sink to get the filter cup out.  A quick tap over the trash, and a rinse under the sink.

A little concerned about the long term maintenance of the little metal transport tube, I know it is easy to shoot steaming water through it to clean it, but it and the little section under the top filter screen could get some build up.

First look score:  7

Extermely picky coffee toy scoring:
10 - No way it leaves the house again, buying a replacement to ship on
8-9 - It's twin is already on order
7 - Want one
5-6 Wouldn't pass it by if it was discounted
4 Wouldn't pick on my friends for using one
3 Flawed but interesting
2 Facepalm
1 Would rather drink instant

[jbviau]

I haven't tried pre-heating yet but will tomorrow...

Before I forget, I did try this and came away unimpressed with the time it saved me. Still took 4 min. on med. heat to make my coffee. Maybe I was too slow in transferring water from my Bonavita kettle to the moka pot? Anyway, I wouldn't pre-heat in the future.

Todd, glad she made it to you unharmed. I wonder if you could use a Steamy Wanda-type tool to clean inside the metal tube?