I’m currently brewing in an Aeropress, and considering one of the lower end espresso machines.
But based on a few comments from James Hoffmann about him drinking filter coffee at home, I’m wondering if an espresso machine is something that people end up using every day, or if people are brewing with simpler methods and just making espressos when they’ve got time on the weekend or people over?
What’s your experience, did you buy a machine and it mostly just takes up counter space, or is it a daily source of joy?
I use a flair classic lever brewer, and it’s the only thing i brew coffee with on a daily basis. I use a French press or pour over when I have guests.
How long did it take to get consistent output from the flair? I love the idea, but the learning curve seems steep. Or rather the error potential.
Almost immediately I would say. It only took a handful of pulls to get a good feel for it. I did buy the pressure gauge with it from the get go, I would definitely recommend that. Getting the whole process of preheating the brew chamber and getting everything ready in a streamlined manner takes a little practice though.
I use a TimeMore C3 manual grinder, and it does an OK job, especially for the price. I’m probably going to upgrade it (at some point) since it lacks some resolution in the grind settings.
I’m getting better and more consistent shots with this than my old semiautomatic brewer (a delonghi something, can’t remember the model)
I also have a flair (flair 58, for me) and it took 3 30g shots to get the grind dialled in, I watched a few videos on good pressure profiles to follow and it’s easy to use any specific pressure
Mine has preheat and came with a pressure gauge. It would be much harder without a gauge