$$ Machine = Better Shot?

[PaulM]

Nice post John,

Well it's more complicated than that but the short answer is I might have a $2K machine someday but I'm pretty sure it's not going to be HX. I will get better results from it on a more constant basis because it will be more capable than what I have now. The key part being that I am able to get the maximum potential out of what I have now so the machine is actually the limiting factor for me at this point.

I would just add that, at least given my own experiences, it is possible to have more than one limiting factor at a time. I realized this almost immediately when I first started pulling on my ridiculous FAEMA. I wasn't doing anything better, and my technique was not perfect (and is still far from it) but the improvement was significant and (almost) immediate.

Over the last few months I've come to realize we are all on totally different coffee and espresso journeys and as such our ideas of something like "better shot" are perhaps light years away from each other.

I've now got serious doubts that the majority of conversations like this one mean anything at all because we are most certainly not even talking about the same things. 

That's a great way to put it. If we don't share the same vocabulary it is impossible to communicate. An ancient problem, but one that I agree is particularly relevant here. I imagine that if we were all in the same room, with the same roasts, and the same machines, we would all actually agree a whole lot more than we seem to online, from great distances, working only from our own private experiences.

[John F]

I imagine that if we were all in the same room, with the same roasts, and the same machines, we would all actually agree a whole lot more than we seem to online...

I have become somewhat afraid of finding out if that is true or not. 


John F

[PaulM]

Oh, don't be! I think that is the single most serious fault of online forums like this one, about which we can't do anything, and even given the ridiculous amount of "mystique" that has been superimposed over making decent espresso, on this forum and others, I think it is all basically surmountable with a few face to face experiences.

Just my $.02 of course....

[mp]

I have become somewhat afraid of finding out if that is true or not. 

John F

LMAO ... thanks for the gut wrenching laugh John!

[mp]

Oh, don't be! I think that is the single most serious fault of online forums like this one, about which we can't do anything, and even given the ridiculous amount of "mystique" that has been superimposed over making decent espresso, on this forum and others, I think it is all basically surmountable with a few face to face experiences.

Just my $.02 of course....

I think that would be the best leveler.  Everyone is tasting the same bean, roasted the same way, done on the same machine, maid by the same Barista, with the same water, at the same atmospheric temperature and humidity, ground on the same grinder.  You may get some subjective differences in opinion ... but I bet if you have 20 guys there probably 15 out of the twenty would agree whole heartedly on the grading.

And that is my 2 cents worth.

 :icon_thumleft:

[John F]

LMAO ... thanks for the gut wrenching laugh John!

You are totally welcome.


John F

[staylor]

Just walked through the front door 45mins ago (and went straight to the espresso machine power button), John thoughtfully put fresh milk in the fridge so I'm about to pour a four ouncer. Hopefully it will be an outrageously good cup o' mystique. ;-)

[John F]

Hopefully it will be an outrageously good cup o' mystique. ;-)

Just stay out of that drip blend...


John F

[staylor]

Noted. ;-)