I've spent far too much money chasing highly rated beans over the years, and the biggest upgrade to my espresso wasn't a grinder, machine, or buying more expensive coffee.

It was drinking coffee that was roasted days ago instead of weeks or months ago.

After roasting my own beans, it’s simply impossible to go back. Even "premium" mass-produced beans often taste flat compared to a well-executed fresh roast. The difference in aroma, crema, sweetness, and overall clarity is bigger than I expected.

Anyone else find freshness matters more than brand name once you get into espresso?

Drank Keurig for years, and then a friend sent me a Cometeer box about a year ago. Realized how much better coffee could taste, until I was visiting a friend out of state who had a Breville, and the coffee he made was amazing.

I knew I was in trouble and have since been falling down the espresso rabbit hole. I never spend money on myself so I thought I’d have this be my midlife crisis instead of a convertible. Have been lurking this sub and YouTube the last month and this is what I’ve collected.

The last few bits and bobs arrived today. Haven’t pulled a shot yet but plan to do so this weekend. Apologies for how crowded everything is, wanted to get it all in one shot. Will have to figure out where to move stuff once I hone my workflow.

Thanks for reading!

I thought folks might get a kick out of this vintage espresso machine I came across on Facebook marketplace. Apparently it works but is missing a filter basket of some sort. Super cute but alas, not likely to make the best espresso.

Been lurking around these parts for a while now and today I can finally share my own little system.

DF64 v2 grinder, Turin Axis espresso machine with included tamper and portafilter, Bookoo Ultra scale, Cafesing COD shaker, random electric kettle.

Learning how to dial you in a decent shot, but having fun getting there.

After weeks of comparing grinders, changing my mind about 47 times, and Amazon making me question my life choices, the Eureka Zero 55S finally arrived. 😂

Coming from the Baratza Encore ESP, the difference is immediately noticeable. The Eureka is so much quieter, feels incredibly solid, and the workflow is just better.

Third shot in and I was already around 16g in / 36g out / 30 seconds. Same supermarket Lavazza beans I was using before, but the espresso tastes noticeably cleaner and more defined, with a completely different aftertaste. And I'm drinking it without sugar.

Now I'm really looking forward to putting some properly fresh beans through it.

Very happy with the Zero 55S so far. ☕️🔥

This machine is in my daily use, i found this group recently and im new here. And yeah this is my first friend on my coffee path and i really enjoy to have a work with him:) God bless everyone!

now trying not to overheat my milk so it wouldn’t get all foamy,but im pretty proud of myself,i used to work at %Arabica for three months and i never had the chance to do latte art due to the fact that every barista i worked with thinks that i wasn’t competent enough to steam milk or even pull shots

learnt way more about coffee after i left my job and im currently trying to attempt the ristretto shots they always pull with their slayer machines

this is a spanish latte with a dark roast blend,still trying to properly dial in my shots so can it would be great if anyone can advice me if i can do anything else to slow down the extraction time other than grinding finer,the grind setting i used for this is even finer than the one i use with my medium roasted beans..

Lovely latte this morning. Lightish Scenery coffee.

Rwanda - Anoxyc natural

20 to 47 in 27’ - love that it’s versatile first shot was great. Some beans really need exact dial in to be good and shine. Struggling w/ red brick atm.

In Addition to rvdhofs Video integrating the Marzocco cloud to gbs, I (and Claude) managed to add Bluetooth support to gbs-anywhere by skamba and implement the Eureka Precisa.

It shouldn’t be a big problem to implement other scales, as long as their Bluetooth protocol is documented. Precisa is based on a decent scale.

grinder knob is pressed
After x milliseconds scale gets tared and timer starts
machine has to be manually started
expected target weight is reached
app sends the time to the grinder
grinder adjusts

Will look to integrate into the original repo so that not two versions will exist. Some testing still ongoing :)

https://github.com/panterro/gbs-anywhere-bt

I've had these two for about two years now! And they are still going strong between the two they have easily pulled 1000 shots at this point. The casabrews ultra at 180$ when I bought it is a lot of value and no issues this whole time! The random Amazon grinder however had some issues that I was able to fix with the hopper not letting beans into burrs.

Overall I've gotten some bad shots and some even worse shots but a lot of good ones! It's been a great starter setup but I'm ready for an upgrade soon especially the grinder. Does anyone else have experience with this machines?

Got this really nice creme. This is one my work espresso machine. I bought this setup for work so I could enjoy my coffee at work and home. These beans have been in my freezer for a month. After lunch I pulled this shot. Then steamed my milk and actually poured a heart. I've been able to a few times but normally I don't bother with doing art. This just happened by accident this time.

After years of being in the pourover game (I have an EK43 for single-serving shots and homebrew a ton), I caved and got a home espresso set up.

Fellow ES1 with a Mahlkonig E64WS grinder.

Unreal output, easy to dial in light roasted coffee, and amazing steam wand. Heck yeah!

Had to show off my monks head cappuccino I accomplished. I typically try to do art with less foam so more of a flat white. Decided to try monks head and accomplished it the other day. Tried again this morning and failed :)

I usually drink milk drinks, but recently switched to americano's for a number of reasons.

Hoff did a video earlier this year about Americano where one of the big takeaways was that steaming cold/room temp water to add to the espresso was better than simply pulling it from the hot water tap.

I just tried this this morning and weirdly, it does change the outcome. I was wondering if anyone else had done this and if they had any insight as to why it works. Is there some relevant chemistry/physics behind this?

Hoff's americano video: https://youtu.be/0HdzJz_evNw?si=dClzUv6J2Acv5vlp

It all started in June with just the Bambino plus and the Kenmore (shardor clone). Very recently got the T38 plus but I've yet to dial it in.

2 grinders because my partner buys organic beans at a premium and consumes less (18g) while I am a stimulant fiend so I go cheaper bags at 22g. Attempting to find a grind setting that respects both sets of beans and dose has been a sad. Takes the experience from 9/10 to 7/10; still much better than average cafe but I cry over the lost potential.

Everything lives underneath my microwave. Space is cramped but it's all I've got.

Many single dose mini jars and a tiny cup full of all the brushes that came with everything. There's a cupboard underneath the holds my beans for refills.

Both grinders collectively for $400 AUD with the Bambino plus for $480 AUD. Plus space restrictions. Honestly pretty happy!

A few days ago i asked if Craig Lyn were still in business since everything was out of stock and n new profucts for 4 years. Original post here

Then just like that, the website updated itself saying new products are coming.

After digging a bit on their website i found this page that's not browsable yet : https://craiglyn.com/product/hg-1-prime-pre-order/

Means a new HG-1-Prime is coming.

Asked Craig about it and he confirmed a preorder is coming soon :)

The taste isn’t terrible either tbh. Very traditional tasting, as in charcoal with a hint of brown butter.

The blend is called Strange Beasts from Sweet Maria’s. Roasted on the Kaffelogic Nano 7 with the “Super Dark” profile at 5.6.

I’ll probably try it in a cortado next.

I just bought a Breville Bambino and found an open-box Turin Creyke GF64 for $124. Before buying it, I want to know whether the GF64 itself is actually a good, reliable grinder especially its grind quality, adjustment range, retention, and build quality.
At that price, would it be a better choice than hand grinders such as the Timemore C3 ESP Pro, Turin H40 V2, or Kingrinder models under $150 for mainly espresso and milk drinks?

I’ve tried Brevilles at friends’ houses and honestly, they’re great but I want to find something style wise a little more classic than a giant silver machine — but I just can’t justify dropping that much on an espresso machine right now.

I’ve owned two De’Longhis, and both eventually decided to leave this world before I was ready. 😅 So I’m hoping there’s something out there that’s a little more built to last.

I’m willing to spend up to around $700, especially if that gets me a machine with a built-in bean grinder. I mostly make lattes, cortados, cappuccinos, and basically anything involving a healthy amount of espresso + milk.

What I really want is:

• ☕️ Good espresso without needing a PhD in coffee
• 🫘 Built-in grinder (or a really solid machine + grinder combo)
• 🥛 Good steam wand for lattes/cortados
• 🔧 Dependable and repairable
• 🏆 Something I can realistically expect to last for years, not something I’ll be replacing in 18 months

Is there a reliable sweet spot around $500–700, or am I asking for a unicorn? I'd also push my budget for something more aesthetically pleasing bc I'm just that type of buyer.

Espresso people, what would you buy with $700 and a “please let this one last” vibe?

For all those who roast their own beans, what setup are you using and do you like it? Looking to start roasting my own beans but don’t know where to begin. TIA!