Coffee Technology on The Tour

[PatriciaK]

Things are rougher and tougher down in Napoli . OK OK I've been known to change out the grappa for a shot of Jameson's or Bailey's on occasion!

Another favorite is a caffè marocchino, which is espresso, chocolate, liquor (Bailey's, in my case), and cream all layered into a little glass - stir and enjoy!

Italians don't like milk in their coffee after breakfast, but you can have liquor in it ANY time .

 

[Art Deco]

I enjoy moonshine brandy whenever it is available, but I don't like the few commercial apple/peach/mystery fruit brandy that I tried when I was more inclined to try stuff.

 

[kmccune]

As suggested.. The right grind, roast and process are all important.
If I have a medium roast, I typically grind finer than with a dark (oilier) roast... Though both I would consider an espresso grind.
Grinding it fresh is a big difference maker too. As you know when you open a fresh pack of ground coffee it smells wonderful.. but by the time you get to the end of the pack you can hardly smell it. A noticeable difference.
I'm a bit of an outcast on this but I do tamp my moka filter tight and have never had a problem with it passing too slowly or clogging. Approx. 20 grams for a 3 cup
Also never fill the bottom with water above the valve... Just below the valve is the correct amount. I prefer ice cold water as it holds more oxygen.
And as @PatriciaK said.. As soon as you can hear it.. it's done and remove it from heat. My 3 cup takes 5 minutes on a medium flame.
This Alessi pot is stainless and very well made. I prefer it over aluminum. View attachment 112332

Aluminum cookware has problems all its own even after being raised on Aluminum percolated coffee,a person should make every effort to keep Aluminum from being transferred into things you ingest, there is this problem of Aluminum and Brain Plaques perhaps contributing to Alzheimer's. My wife loves to scrape the coating of of Her aluminum cookware with steel implements, can't convince Her any different. If it was up to Me my default cookware would be Iron,Glass and stainless steel.

 

[Art Deco]

Grappa in theory may be grape flavor... But the dozen or so times that it's been served to me in various regions of Italy whether in a restaurant or family/friend homemade concoction.. It's always been very strong with no flavor other than alcohol... Very far from a brandy.

Yes coffee in the US has stepped it up a bit... Even places like McDonald's are using high pressure extraction machines now. Where I absolutely loose it is with the poor carry over of naming... Especially Starbucks!!
Order a macchiato there and you'll get an abortion of more milk than coffee... and various other flavors.
The word macchiato translates to stained. So done properly it is to be an espresso stained with a dab of foth'd millk. Probably on the order of 95:5 respectively.
And don't get me started on a "Venti"!!

I don't even know the terms. I could get by in England and France with just three words for coffee ... Americano Nescafe and Large .

 

[kmccune]

Actually, I still have a sterno stove that would probably work. It's somewhere down in the basement ...

There are those little "rocket stoves or candle heaters, that can boil a quart of water, with their own set of problems( start a fire? no problem, keep a pack of dryer lint handy and use a few tufts with a spark from anything, flint, discarded lighter sparker thingy, gas torch lighter, 9 volt battery a single AA will work with a very fine wire or strip of aluminum foil, that's how the 'Homeys" used to light their nasty cigarettes in the "Joint"

 

[kmccune]

I only had a macchiato once . In a fancy restaurant in Rome, actually.
Probably the best pure coffee drink I have ever had. But I still like my Irish Coffee with irish cream and Jameson in the evening.
Maybe add a shot of brandy to a macchiato ... just to even it up.

I like Jameson, I cannot gag Scotch down, maybe thats the Irish part of my ancestry.

 

[Art Deco]

Aluminum cookware has problems all its own even after being raised on Aluminum percolated coffee,a person should make every effort to keep Aluminum from being transferred into things you ingest, there is this problem of Aluminum and Brain Plaques perhaps contributing to Alzheimer's. My wife loves to scrape the coating of of Her aluminum cookware with steel implements, can't convince Her any different. If it was up to Me my default cookware would be Iron,Glass and stainless steel.

Cast iron and heavy pottery are prefered, but stainless and composite metals are pretty great too. Aluminum makes great disposable stuff, but it's really not fit for daily use.

 

[Art Deco]

Things are rougher and tougher down in Napoli . OK OK I've been known to change out the grappa for a shot of Jameson's or Bailey's on occasion!

Another favorite is a caffè marocchino, which is espresso, chocolate, liquor (Bailey's, in my case), and cream all layered into a little glass - stir and enjoy!

Italians don't like milk in their coffee after breakfast, but you can have liquor in it ANY time .

Corrected with liquor, not diluted with milk ...

 

[PatriciaK]

I enjoy moonshine brandy whenever it is available, but I don't like the few commercial apple/peach/mystery fruit brandy that I tried when I was more inclined to try stuff.

Most grappa I've had has not been great, but in espresso, with 2 sugars, it's pretty good .

There was this one time, in a little restaurant in Corniglia, one of the villages of the Cinque Terre, though... After dinner the owner came out and offered my friends and I a taste of the grappa his grandfather made, just for the family. I don't know how the guy amended the distilling process, but that grappa was FABulous! Hot yet smooth and a tiny hint of sweet going down - I've never had any like it anywhere since!

 

[Art Deco]

Probably a bit big for on tour unless you are a total coffee crack_head as I... but the base De'Longhi pump espresso machines have a small footprint and can make an excellent cup. They have a few different pump machines under $100. This is my everyday machine and use it more often then the moka.
It definitely makes a richer espresso with a nice head of crema and has a frother for milk which I prefer as my first cup

View attachment 112399

I go a bit long on my afternoon espresso... But it's still richer then from a moka.
View attachment 112400


I typically totally indulge with my version of a macchiato... known locally as a gionnicchiato
View attachment 112403

Ok, you and @PatriciaK convinced me on the expresso vs percolator question. The shiny new Moka pot stays out on the countertop now. But for the van, I am still considering.
A comparison... https://www.homegrounds.co/french-press-vs-aeropress/

 

[PatriciaK]

Ok, you and @PatriciaK convinced me on the expresso vs percolator question. The shiny new Moka pot stays out on the countertop now. But for the van, I am still considering.
A comparison... https://www.homegrounds.co/french-press-vs-aeropress/

Remember to throw away the first batch of espresso you make in that new moka pot!

 

[Art Deco]

Remember to throw away the first batch of espresso you make in that new moka pot!

Already did. Threw the next three or four out before I figured out the coffee grind and water proportions. But it's all good now.

 

[PatriciaK]

Already did. Threw the next three or four out before I figured out the coffee grind and water proportions. But it's all good now.

Great! Now, the last remaining item is to learn how to make a nice "schiuma"!

When you put the pot on the heat, leave the top open. While it's heating up, put a little spoon or two of sugar in a small cup. As soon as the coffee starts coming up through the tube, pour a little of the coffee - a bit less than an amount equal to the sugar, on the sugar. Close the lid and put the pot back on the stove. While it's finishing, whip that coffee and sugar together with a spoon until it looks like a frothy brown cream (that's the schiuma!). When the coffee is finished, plop a spoonful or so of the schiuma in the bottom of your coffee cup, add the coffee, stir a bit, and enjoy . You can also put a little dollop on top, if you want - voila - Il vero caffè Napolitano!

 

[Art Deco]

Great! Now, the last remaining item is to learn how to make a nice "schiuma"!

When you put the pot on the heat, leave the top open. While it's heating up, put a little spoon or two of sugar in a small cup. As soon as the coffee starts coming up through the tube, pour a little of the coffee - a bit less than an amount equal to the sugar, on the sugar. Close the lid and put the pot back on the stove. While it's finishing, whip that coffee and sugar together with a spoon until it looks like a frothy brown cream (that's the schiuma!). When the coffee is finished, plop a spoonful or so of the schiuma in the bottom of your coffee cup, add the coffee, stir a bit, and enjoy . You can also put a little dollop on top, if you want - voila - Il vero caffè Napolitano!

First time for a recipe on an eBike forum? And Italian vocabulary?

 

[PatriciaK]

First time for a recipe on an eBike forum? And Italian vocabulary?

There's no traveling to Italy anywhere soon in my future, so I gotta use it somewhere !

 

[Art Deco]

There's no traveling to Italy anywhere soon in my future, so I gotta use it somewhere !

You and @Gionnirocket could do a tourist guide to good coffee in both English and Italian ...

 

[Art Deco]

View attachment 102554View attachment 102554
AEROPRESS. Is awesome bicycle or motorcycle.

 

[Art Deco]

Grappa in theory may be grape flavor... But the dozen or so times that it's been served to me in various regions of Italy whether in a restaurant or family/friend homemade concoction.. It's always been very strong with no flavor other than alcohol... Very far from a brandy.

Yes coffee in the US has stepped it up a bit... Even places like McDonald's are using high pressure extraction machines now. Where I absolutely loose it is with the poor carry over of naming... Especially Starbucks!!
Order a macchiato there and you'll get an abortion of more milk than coffee... and various other flavors.
The word macchiato translates to stained. So done properly it is to be an espresso stained with a dab of foth'd millk. Probably on the order of 95:5 respectively.
And don't get me started on a "Venti"!!

A "venti" I think Starbucks is trying to get a patent or trademark? on some of it's menu phrases like that ?

 

[PatriciaK]

A "venti" I think Starbucks is trying to get a patent or trademark? on some of it's menu phrases like that ?

Hard to imagine they could patent a word that simply means "twenty" in Italian - that would be linguistic/cultural theft !

 

[billmeek]

But for the van, I am still considering.
A comparison... https://www.homegrounds.co/french-press-vs-aeropress/

I often use a moka pot when at home, but normally use an Aeropress when traveling on 2 wheels. Rather than using paper filters, I prefer a stainless steel filter. I've been using this one almost 10 years:

Amazon.com: Stainless Steel Coffee Filter Disk for use in AeroPress Coffee Maker: Permanent Coffee Filters: Home & Kitchen

Shop ABLE BREWING EQUIPMENT at the Amazon Small Appliance Parts & Accessories store. Free Shipping on eligible items. Everyday low prices, save up to 50%.

smile.amazon.com

While that specific item is no longer sold, I believe this is the same item:

Amazon.com

There are also a lot more filter options than when I first bought it.