What do you get the espresso nerd who has everything? Has a Speedster on the counter? A Compak K10 Touch grinder as his primary grinder (see what I did there?)? Makes coffee the old school way in a balance brewer that is older than his grandma?
You get him something he doesn't have but trust me, will use - a complete set of Scottie Callaghan dosing tools. The 40 pack is crazy detailed. It features 40 differently calibrated sweeps to use in levelling the bed of coffee before tamping. Scottie is a former Australian barista champion and has popularized these tools all around Australia, and now in North America, at least one vendor is importing and selling these - 49th Parallel in Vancouver.
I own a set and trust me, I use them every friggin day, since they work especially well with the VST calibrated filter baskets. I generally use the #18 or #16 sweeps, but since I have the full set, I could, if I wanted to, use the #17 to really mix things up (heheh). Find out more about these tools direct from Scottie.
If the full set is just a tad too much, 49th also sells a 3 piece set for $40.
Column Description Whether it's up to the minute, happening this day, this week, or in the recent past, this column's goal is to present coffee and attempts to make the experience truly culinary. You'll find short reviews about past events, interesting coffees coming on the market, new and different ways to enjoy espresso and other brewing methods, and give an insight into efforts around the globe to make coffee a truly culinary thing. Column written by Mark Prince.
