Thursday, February 17, 2011

Bialetti Photos

I ordered a 1 cup Bialetti Moka Express from Amazon after reading a blog post on Jerome's Bikes. When the package arrived, I opened it and was surprised at just how small the little Bialetti actually was. It's a true one-cup espresso maker. I've made about four or five cups of espresso at this point, I'm still trying to work out the proper grind but so far everything I've made has tasted great.

The Bialetti 1 cup Moka Express. It's tiny, my little girl thinks it's adorable.

The top portion unscrews, you add water to the bottom container and place coffee in the basket.

I ground the coffee a bit too coarse. I should have added a little more as well.

After about 5 minutes it was ready to serve.

It turned out weak this time around.

It still tasted great.

9 comments:

  1. When you've had it for a while, I'd appreciate a follow-up on how the aluminum is holding up. I think many of the reported problems might be associated with people just letting coffee sit in the bialetti for a long period.

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  2. You need to put some more coffee in the filter cup, I'm thinking. At least I do anyway. I fill it to the brim and tamp it down ever so slightly. I'm glad I purchased the three cup and I find myself wishing I'd purchased the six cup. Good stuff.

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  3. Yeah, you need to fill it up to practically the "line". i'd advise against "tamping", but I usually shake it until it settles. You want the grind to be on the fine side.

    The Stumptown website recommends using near-boiling water in the reservoir, though I never do.
    http://stumptowncoffee.com/guides/3

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  4. Thanks for the report, Myles. Do you believe this would be a good piece of gear for mid-ride coffee stops? Hopefully, it'll work well with a Trangia stove.

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  5. Snap - http://yeahyeahyeahyeah-yeah.blogspot.com/2011/01/red-wine-lips.html
    No tamping here.
    The little one will come touring, but I'd love a larger one for home. Then I can get rid of the espresso machine.

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  6. You have sold me sir, I will get one today.

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  7. I didn't get any instructions with espresso maker and I haven't done as much research as I should have to brew the best cup. I just gleaned some info from the product reviews on Amazon. The first couple of times I used pre-ground coffee, Pike Place Roast from Starbucks. I was thinking that the grind was too fine as there was silty, sediment in the bottom of the cup, although it did look right as it was brewing-crema wise. I had read that Illy makes a special grind for these espresso makers that is a little coarser than the grind for automatic drip coffee makers. Next attempt will be with a slightly finer grind and more coffee in the basket.

    I've got a question for you guys that own one of these, do you remove the pot when it initially starts bubbling after the the top container is full or do you wait until it stops bubbling. I've read different opinions on this.

    Steve A-I'll let you know but please tell me where you read about these problems.

    Twister-I agree, more coffee next time.

    Adventure-Thanks for the link.

    Pondero-I think it would be a great item to take along on a ride. It's a simpler process to brew a cup of espresso than to deal with a French press. The one cup size is very compact.

    Placid Casual-That is fantastic photo you took. I think I'll buy a 6 cup for everyday use.

    Dan the Man-Cool. You can brew an espresso while you're building your wheels.

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  8. Glad you're enjoying it!

    Steve, I'd heard that too. I think it's a matter of cleaning it out right after each use.

    It's a bit of work to go through, but like many things in life, the finer things take a little more effort. So worth it!

    Cheers!

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  9. Myles,
    I may have the same one, though I bought mine at a TJ Maxx or some such store. It works great.

    Your photos are very nice! Very tastefully done!!

    Peace :)

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