Rancilio Silvia re-visited... · Tuesday August 22, 2023 by colin newell
Long time reader Bert M. checks in with his Rancilio Silvia story!
Way back in 2007 we published this treatise on the Rancilio Silvia espresso machine — it has since been read about 600,000 times.
A Local coffee enthusiast, Bert M., took it all to heart and set out on a journey with this great Italian coffee maker – here is his update!
Hi Colin!
Just re-read the Rancilio Silvia article and thought I would give you an update.
On your recommendation I received my Rancilio Silvia and Rocky In March 2008. Silvia worked perfectly until I had to replace the pump about 2 years ago. Most of the chrome has peeled off the group head cover. Waiting for one of the new black group head covers. Silvia still works perfectly.
These following photos when the machine was about 13 years old.
Untouched photos of the 3-way valve disassembly (picture at right) before I realized it was the pump.
I thought maybe the 3-way valve was plugged up. – Whitfield Food Services (Victoria) replaced the pump for me – Fast, reasonable priced service there!
Thirteen years of following your recommendations for cleanliness obviously paid off. I shared these photos with a Toronto area service tech and he was amazed.
Two years ago I started using IMS precision basket and screen – it really improved the quality of the shot but they were not always great.
Picture at left – original group after 13 years of usage.
A few months later I gave my Rocky to a family member and purchased a Eureka Oro Mignon XL grinder with 65mm burrs. 3 shots and it was dialed – in and another really noticeable upgrade in taste quality. (“Let the grind do the work as you taught me”).
The biggest change with the grinder is consistency of quality shots. Every shot, and I mean every shot, is excellent. You were right again when you said, “Spend your money on the grinder.”
We drink Americanos – splitting the double shot and adding about 4 ounces of water with 2-3 teaspoons of 18% cream. Three times a day. Brita filter for the water for 15 years. No desire for lattes, cappucinos etc.
Method:
-Minimum 30 minutes preheat machine and portafilter before pulling the shot
-Hit brew switch till heating light comes on.
-Remove portafilter when heating light goes off.
-Then grind for 7.6 seconds and tamp. Use 7.8 seconds when the coffee approaches 2 weeks.
We still purchase Half-Caf Fantastico every two weeks on your recommendation!
-Portafilter into group head at 1m 30sec after heating light goes off.
-Pull shot for 31-36 seconds although 90% of time it is 33 seconds.
-Remove and flush group head and portafilter immediately until heating light comes on.
-Add water and cream to coffee.
-About 15 seconds after heating light goes off, flush group head with first a bit of steam followed by the water for a few seconds and use Pällo brush to quickly clean screen area. Wipe all carefully with dry cloth.
-Reinsert portafilter to be ready for second shot in about 10 minutes.
Boil all parts with ½ teaspoon of Granny’s dishwasher detergent every month and rinse rinse rinse. Back flush with same and only get a hint of colour in the water that comes through and then backflush with clean water about 10 times.
We have enjoyed perfect coffee every time.
Thank you Colin!
All the best.
Bert
National and International Coffee day · Friday October 1, 2021 by colin newell
We talked with CBC On The Island host Gregor Craigie, Sam Jones (2% Jazz) and Carsen Oglend of Drumroaster Coffee on the subject of National and International Coffee day. Click on the above link for the audio or download the file below.
International Coffee Day Interview
For most of us, coffee is a very personal experience, integral to the rhythm of our workday.
Caffeine, the active ingredient in every cup, awakens us to the possibilities of the day and the ritual of coffee preparation brings a sense of order to our often chaotic existence.
This is the essence of National Coffee Day – an almost hallmark celebration of our love affair with the steaming mug.
Whether taken black, with cream and sugar, a double-double or a single
ounce of espresso, coffee is our anchor.
I love my coffee. You love your coffee. Take it away and what’s left?
Thousands of miles away, coffee farmers tend the Earth and watch the sky for hints as to what the growing season might bring.
Second only to fossil fuels, the coffee bean is the most traded natural commodity on the Planet.
Millions of families, in over 50 countries, toil on plantations large and small, mindful of the seemingly endless vagaries that effect their well being and success.
At best, farmers and their families earn 5 to 7% of the retail value of coffee – often as little as 2% in countries like Brazil, hosts of the highest output of our beloved bean.
And while we enjoy our first cup as our children trundle off to school, life in developing nations dependent on this powerful export,
often means pulling children from school to assist in much of the demanding work of harvest.
This is my essence of “International Coffee Day…” It is the respectful and mindful exercise of being cognizant of the effort and sacrifice that families make to get us our beloved coffee – and what we, the consumers, can do to improve the quality of life of coffee growers and their families.
Whether you decide to support direct trade, FairTrade Canada , organic coffees or Cup of Excellence programs (where the farm, family and communities more directly benefit from the fruits of their labour…), there are many things that we the coffee drinkers can do to advance the quality of life in the coffee industry.
It is a common refrain in North America where many coffee drinkers insist, “How can I possibly make a difference to a family or community half a World away?”
Well you can. Cup of Excellence programs, for instance, support direct trade where farms and co-ops sell directly to cafes and roasters, bypassing the seemingly endless sequence of middle people that take their cut. The extra money that goes to co-ops such as these builds houses, schools and even community health centres. These luxuries that we take for granted in Canada, are the difference between happiness and misery in coffee growing nations and you can make a difference.
But How?
- Buy sensibly – Do your homework
- Prepare to pay a fair price for your cup
- Support local – Canadian cities have lots of locally roasted coffees!
- Avoid store bought Mega Brands – you know the ones – don’t make me spell it out!
Colin Newell is a Victoria resident and coffee drinker, searching coast to coast to coast for that perfect cup of coffee – writing on the subject since 1995.
Commercial Drive Vancouver - Life in the coffee time-tunnel · Saturday February 1, 2020 by colin newell
My take on Here comes the Sun…” Colin and Sean McCool on Guitar and Vocals
Here-Comes-The-Sun-V14.mp3Way back in 2008, I popped into Cafe Roma on Commercial Drive in Vancouver – a cafe that has a lot of history for this part of Vancouver and for me, some fond childhood memories!
One sunny mid-week Spring day, Dave, a contributor to the CoffeeCrew.com website, and I sampled the espressos and cappuccinos and tasted some delightful locally baked treats.
It reminded me of a unusually hot June of 1968, some 40 years earlier, as I walked down East 6th Avenue, Vancouver, towards Commercial Drive.
This was the first trip off of Vancouver Island and what started as a day trip turned into an overnight adventure as mom decided to hook up with some cousins in the big city.
Mom, who grew up in a multicultural enclave in Montreal, Quebec, had brought me over to Vancouver for the weekend to visit the Pacific National Exhibition and to see a big city for the first time. And what a cultural shock it was for a 11 year old to see something so different than sleepy small town Victoria.
Mom’s cousins lived on East 6th Avenue around 3 blocks from Commercial Drive – a big old character house the likes of which I had never seen before. The original block of houses remain in Vancouver to this day and walking the tree lined sidewalks in 2018 is like a memory drenched trip through a time tunnel.
On a Saturday morning in June 1968 I started the day with my young cousin Dennis by heading out for an exploration.
Only in the late 60’s would it seem perfectly normal for a couple of 11 year olds to head out into the urban jungle for a look see.
Turning onto Commercial Drive on this sunny Saturday late morning, Dennis and I walked down wide sidewalks past Italian delis, corner grocers and bustling cafes.
The street was full of life. Everything seemed brighter, louder, busier and decidedly more fragrant. For a naive kid from small town Victoria, I might as well have been on another planet.
The aroma of strong coffee, cured ham and fresh fruit drifted over the concrete beneath my feet. I stopped for a moment in front of a busy cafe. It seemed to be packed with men, young and old, entangled in a circle of loud conversation and broad hand gestures. They spoke Italian, a language my Montreal raised mother used with me when she was displeased.
A young couple caught my eye. They seemed disconnected from this humming umbilical of community.
A girl, likely in her twenties, wore a canary yellow sun-dress and her male friend, donned a wool suit. The suit seems softened by a few years worth of wear and somewhat sticky considering that it was a hotter than usual summer. Between his sips of strong looking coffee from an impossibly small cup and her demurely drawing from something that looked like a milkshake, they talked in a musical banter – words only they appeared to understand.
Dennis grabbed my shoulder and pulled me along. I looked back at the couple nodding and laughing. The girls hair moved up and down held in place by a daisy-yellow hair broach. Walking again, Dennis steered me into a green grocers hardly a door away from the cafe. With 90 cents in my pocket, a lot of money in 1968, I bought a chocolate bar, some pixie-sticks (fizzy candy in a paper tube) and a cola.
We exited the store and turned left towards the cafe again.
Caffe Roma is now buzzing louder as we strode towards my cousin’s avenue. The table where the young couple sat was now empty save for a cup and a glass. I spot them exiting onto the boulevard, hand in hand, her dress burning a permanent image into my mind, the itchy smell of his suit offering contrast. They vanished into a pulsating hive of urban humanity – a Saturday morning blend of shoppers, smokers, the odd smattering of fashionably clad hipsters and one wide-eyed child – me.
I look in the cafe window again flashing forward to the present. I stand outside of Caffe Roma on Commercial Drive and time has stood still just for me. The reflection in the window looks alternately young and slightly older.
Clouds pass by offering a broad selection of flattering light. CoffeeCrew contributing member Dave watches me for a moment before holding the door.
“Colin, let’s get some coffee…” he says.
The smells and sounds of the the Cafe and the street envelope me like an old gloved hand. For a moment I hold in my palm the paper tubes of fizzy candy and a half-eaten chocolate bar. Dave asks again, “What are you going to have, Colin?”
I order my usual when I am in a cafe for the first time – double espresso and a snack. In this case, they have very tasty looking apple turnovers. I get one.
The intensity of the Italian coffee and the tangy sweetness of the pastry are the perfect match. As I sip the beverage and feel the caffeine perking within me, I can almost hear the whispered conversations of the young lovers from so long ago at a nearby table. Where are they now? Have the years been kind? Most likely, their grandchildren are half-grown up, much as I was in 1968. I think about my marriage, now almost 2 decades in length, and how in places like these, time just stands still.
In the final moments before we leave for our next stop on the drive, the owner pops by to gather up our spent cups. I tell him the coffee is fabulous. His expression is priceless and without words – a combination of ‘of course it is son…’ and ‘I have a cafe to run today…’
As we step onto the still vibrant sidewalk of Commercial Drive, two ten year old boys approach on skate boards. One sails past me like a low flying seagull.
The other swishes to a stop and is immediately hypnotized by the activity in the cafe, the noise, the smells, the starling chatter of the old men.
The cycle continues season by season, year by year through the generations. We are thankful for our memories and the time we have ahead of us. Thanks for the memories Vancouver!
A few months later in 1968, Jimi Hendrix would play a stellar concert at the Pacific Coliseum and a couple of weeks before I arrived in Vancouver Robert Kennedy would be assassinated in Los Angeles during his presidential bid. Here in 2018, Caffe Roma is now part of the history books – but while in Vancouver, you can visit The Drive – Do so. You will be glad you did.
A Musical tribute…
My take on Here comes the Sun…” Colin and Sean McCool on Guitar and Vocals
Here-Comes-The-Sun-V14.mp3Sourdough Bread 101 - Chapter 1 - Cheese Bread · Saturday January 25, 2020 by colin newell
Welcome to 2020 – a New Year and hopefully lots of adventures on the blog – by the time you read this, you may have heard some of my fellow bread makers on the CBC talking about the resurgence of bread making at home. If you are just checking in now – as in today – well, that feature is still in development.
Sourdough – My starter goes back to around 2008 – as handed to me in a ziploc bag by friend and colleague “Corey” – despite my best attempts and neglect, I have yet to kill my sourdough starter.
We’ll call this chapter 1 on the subject despite the fact that I need to offer a complete tutorial on sourdough breads and starters — that is, if you are not inclined on looking up a myriad of resources about the subject online and on YouTube.com. But, for my own edification, I should really write it all down in my own words if only to get a better understanding of the subject. It’s not rocket science but things can go awry if you don’t observe a few cautions about the subject. Anyway – let’s get to it with this little recipe.
Ingredients
50 g OR ¼ cup Sourdough starter
365 g OR 1 ½ cup + 1 tsp warm water
280 g OR 2⅓ cups bread flour
200 g OR 1¾ cups all purpose flour
20 g whole wheat flour
Option: Use 500g bread flour and skip the variety of flour types.
9 g OR 1 ½ tsp fine sea salt
Optional – 50 g OR ⅓ cup sliced pickled Jalapenos
135 g OR 1 heaped cup Sharp cheddar cheese cubed into ¼ inch
Optional – 12 g OR ¼ cup minced chives
Instructions
In a large bowl add starter and water and mix well.
Saturday evening – Add all purpose, whole wheat flour and bread flour combine everything and set aside for 30 minutes -
Me – I actually just used all bread flour – but mixing up the different grain types is ok.
Add salt and mix again and set aside for another 8-12 hours in a room with an air temperature of 17-23 Degrees ©
Sunday morning – mix in cheese, jalapenos and chives then shape and transfer to banneton or steel bowl.
Proof at room temperature or in fridge for 4 – 8 hours.
Pre-heat oven to 450F. Transfer the dough to a suitable oiled steel or glass (pyrex) bread pan.
Bake for 10 minutes at 450F and then reduce the temperature to 425 F and bake 25 minutes.
Bake until loaf develops a golden colour + when you tap the loaf it makes a hollow sound or registers 95C-210 F internal temperature.
Cool the loaf for 10-15 minutes – cut it into slices and enjoy.
Colin Newell has been a Victoria resident and coffee expert for 25+ years and dabbles in food and cocktail culture.
It's National Coffee Day (almost) and what's up with that? · Thursday September 26, 2019 by colin newell
I was talking with Brad Plothow, VP of communications at Womply.com in Lehi, Utah this morning.
Womply, in its simplest terms, is a company that analyses market trends based on transactional commerce data – you know, credit card and debit transactions – who’s making them and what they are buying or selling.
And do they know coffee! At least who drinking what, when and how much.
And some of that information surprised even me! As a coffee drinker who sips the same amount of coffee, year around, it was interesting to look into the lens for more granular data on consumption trends.
- Which are the busiest days of the week at your average cafe.
- What is the busiest time of the year for cafes.
- What is the average amount of sales for the average cafe in North America
Not surprising, coffee house consumption tends to swing upwards later on in the week – and you guessed it, Friday is the busiest day at the campus, urban or office cafe when folks are rewarding themselves for a week well done!
Ironically, while Christmas shopping season in North America may be the busiest of any season year around, coffee drinking drops significantly in January (as resolutions kick in…) and then consumption slowly returns to “normal” in February!
You can read the entire article over here
My take-away: Womply.com is a creator of small business software that provide valuable market data and trends on consumption based on meta data from credit card transactions – very fascinating stuff.
National Coffee Day – without too much of a dig-down, I am assuming that the industry has created this date to “pay back” their valued clients with a free cuppa Joe. Me, I like to pay for my fancy coffees and I think in a city like Victoria, Vancouver, Portland or Seattle, you might be hard pressed to get a free serving of the good stuff. Dunno. Results may vary.
Meantime, enjoy a great cup of coffee every day of the year!
Colin Newell is a Victoria resident and coffee expert who has been writing about cafe culture for 25+ years – now that’s a lot of coffee!
