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Coffee: Machines and Brewing Methods
Confessions of a Brikka Lover

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Enkerli
Senior Member

Joined: 1 Aug 2004
Posts: 711
Location: Montreal, Qc
Expertise: I love coffee

Espresso: (At cafés, not at home)
Grinder: Hario hand grinders
Vac Pot: (Moka Pot) Bialetti Brikka
Drip: Steep and release pour-over
Roaster: iRoast-2

Posted Mon May 22, 2006, 10:38am Subject: Brikka Blog!

Fellow BL Daigo Tanaka has created a blog on the pleasures of Brikka coffee.

Alex http://enkerli.com/

Gate
Senior Member

Joined: 4 Feb 2006
Posts: 244
Location: South Carolina
Expertise: I love coffee

Espresso: La Pavoni Romantica EPG-8
Grinder: Mazzer Super Jolly
Vac Pot: various
Drip: too many to recall
Roaster: Four FreshRoast+8's

Posted Tue May 23, 2006, 1:04pm Subject: Re: Confessions of a Brikka Lover

I've got to quit reading this stuff! I got involved in Turkish coffee (you're one of the main ones to get me going, Ken), which I enjoy a lot now, and it looks like I'll be trying to find a Brikka. But this discussion between the two of you is more interesting than most of the books I've read lately. Gatewood

Enkerli
Senior Member

Posted Tue May 23, 2006, 1:21pm Subject: Getting Involved

And you might be surprised to learned that this conversation even generated a larger amount of primate emails! ;-) Well, it'd be nice to have more people in the discussion. As it turns out, that blog on Brikka pots already has a few members. Thing is, with the Brikka, that you don't really need to commit. Achieving decent coffee with a moka pot is much easier than with the "Turkish" methods or with an espresso machine. Plus, a Brikka pot is relatively inexpensive and not that hard to find.

Alex http://enkerli.com/

Posted Tue May 23, 2006, 2:39pm Subject: Re: Getting Involved

Well, I'm looking! By the way, I'm beginning to think coffee and music are related. Way back in the 60's, I majored in music at IU. And that was when I bought my first espresso pot. The terrible little stove-top aluminum ones. That's really what has kept me away from the Brikka until I read these posts. That was some awful coffee! But I drank it, and thought I loved it. Still have the pot, to remind me of my "salad days."

Enkerli
Senior Member

Posted Tue May 23, 2006, 3:04pm Subject: Coffee and Music

So... Did you use to go to Runcible Spoon on Kirkwood or to Bear's on 3rd Street? ;-) Soma opened during my first year in Bloomington, back in 1998-1999. We, ethnomusicologists, were on the other side of campus from the music village, erm, school. Intelligentsia's Matt Riddle worked at some coffee shops in B-town before becoming such a big coffee star. Here are some of my own (awkward) reflections on coffee, music, and beer: Click Here (enkerli.wordpress.com) No idea why your moka pot produced terrible coffee. Care to elaborate on the taste? Some people perceive a metallic off-flavour from moka pot coffee that has been brewed at too high a temperature, IMHO. Of course, you also need fresh quality beans to produce decent coffee on any moka pot.

Alex http://enkerli.com/

Posted Tue May 23, 2006, 8:25pm Subject: Re: Coffee and Music

Those places weren't there in the early 60's! I'm old, you know! Spent much of my time in The Dandale (later changed to The Stardust) and Nick's Old English Pub. I think Nick's is still there. Great place. Loved drinking beer there and listening to Brubeck. And that was when Brubeck was new! Ah, nostalgia! I don't remember Bear's, but I lived on 3rd street, in an awful apartment. As for my moka pot, I didn't think it was so bad at the time, but if I remember correctly, it did have a metallic taste. I'm sure I did everything wrong, but I was giving it all I had, anyhow. I don't think it's worth resurrecting, do you? I do still have it. There was some little coffee shop I remember across the street from Nick's but don't remember the name. That's where I got my first taste of espresso. Thanks for the url! I'll enjoy reading your reflections. I've never tried to associate coffee and music, but I've often thought espresso was like haiku poetry. I'll ponder the music connection. For sure, I do need to practice with my La Pavoni as much as I did on the piano! And a Brikka looms large in my future.

Enkerli
Senior Member

Posted Tue May 23, 2006, 9:37pm Subject: Bloomington

Gate Said: Those places weren't there in the early 60's! Posted May 23, 2006 link 'Figures. The Dandale (later changed to The Stardust) Wasn't that the one Boilès had? That might have been in the 70's, though. Nick's Old English Pub. I think Nick's is still there. Great place. Yup, still there. I don't remember Bear's, but I lived on 3rd street, in an awful apartment. Right on the other side of the street from the music school. It's actually where all the students in music hang out. They have a small coffee counter which belongs to Runcible Spoon. Runcible Spoon is a café/roaster/restaurant off Kirkwood, by the Monroe County Library. It was already a venerable institution by the time Soma opened. Their espresso wasn't as good as Soma's. A Starbucks opened right by campus, in one space that used to be a great bar. Bricks were thrown in the windows at the time but *$ is still there. One place which is relatively surprising in terms of coffee is Bloomington Bagel Co. (several locations, including one close to the library). They don't do the kind of espresso people might be looking for but their coffee in general is decent. As for my moka pot, I didn't think it was so bad at the time, but if I remember correctly, it did have a metallic taste. 'Figures. It really doesn't need to be that way. But a lot of people probably think that metal is part of a moka pot's taste profile... As for resurrecting it, it's probably not worth it as regular moka pots are quite inexpensive and would require less maintenance (heavy cleaning, gasket changing...). I do need to practice with my La Pavoni as much as I did on the piano! Ah, the art of espresso making! A good machine like that has a lot of room for experimentation. Ken and you do have a lot in common. Which means that you should also start roasting! ;-) If you do end up getting a Brikka, my advice would be to do a few runs with water only and use the pot in the morning, before espresso. By the way, where in South Carolina do you live? With my family, we used to spend vacations on Hunting Island, which truly was a wondeful place.

Alex http://enkerli.com/

Posted Wed May 24, 2006, 5:41am Subject: Re: Bloomington

I think Bear's must be what used to be the Chatterbox Cafe, where we hung out when I was a music student. It was kind of attached to a music store, where we bought all our music. Now, that's the old music building. The VERY old music building. Don't know if it's still there. The big round building was new when I was there. I can't think of anything else on third street. I live in Rock Hill, SC. Sorry, not near Hunting Island. I'm in a ho-hum town, but only about 25 miles from Charlotte, so there's lots to do and we can fight boredom by going to Charlotte. The beach isn't that far away, nor are the mountains. And, yes, Ken and I do have a lot in common, it seems. And I do roast! I couldn't do otherwise! So, the Brikka I wind up with will have the advantage of fresh beans.

Enkerli
Senior Member

Posted Wed May 24, 2006, 6:02am Subject: Roasting for Brikka

So you do roast! Nice! Which method do you use? As we probably said in this thread, the Brikka (and other moka pots) may be less sensitive to insufficiently degassed beans. It's been my experience that freshly-roasted beans take less time to achieve their peak in the Brikka than as espresso. There might be a very good chemical explanation for this. Actually, it might even be physical, with the negative effects of blooming being counteracted by the moka pot brewing method. If you do experiment with different roasts in the Brikka, be sure to keep us posted!

Alex http://enkerli.com/

Posted Wed May 24, 2006, 6:07am Subject: Re: Roasting for Brikka

I have three small roasters. FreshRoast Plus 8. They are each different in the roasts I get, oddly enough. One of them requires overloading to achieve a roast that's dark enough to suit me. I do like a dark roast. I have been known to pull shots from still warm beans, but usually I only can wait a day to try out a new roast. It's called impatience! My husband can wax eloquent on the subject! Unfortunately, these little roasters do so little at a time, that I can only get two doubles and a single out of one roast in the La Pavoni. So, they never have time to really rest. No problem for me, as I am greatly enjoying the espresso. So, the fact that the Brikka isn't as sensitive to freshly roasted beans is a huge plus. Because there's no way I'm going to wait!

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