What was I thinking?

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Endo

What was I thinking?

Post by Endo »

Anybody have a classic "Fail" they want to share?

Here' s one I tried today (I'm sick today so that's my excuse). :oops:

For some reason I wanted to try and make a very sweet and creamy capp. Not my preference, but I have a friend with a sweet tooth and was in the mood to push the envelope. I added a tablespoon of raw sugar and a cap of Jameson Whiskey to a cup and pulled a shot into it. I then found some 35% whipping cream and tried steaming it to make my Irish uber-capp.

PUKE!! Now I'm more really sick. :pukeright:
JmanEspresso

Re: What was I thinking?

Post by JmanEspresso »

Man, frothing that cream must have been LOUD AS HELL!

Ive attempted to froth heavy cream before. It is loud.. LOUD.

I do enjoy frothing Half and Half to make a 4oz drink.. Double/Ristretto Shot, in a 4oz cup, with frothed H&H, makes one delicous drink. Quite creamy.

But, heavy cream on its own, is too much. I honestly dont even like the way it tastes just out of the fridge. Its too thick. Makes me also, want to puke. Add whiskey to it, and its a sure thing. Puke, that is.

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I have a what was I thinking "fail". Whenever I go into the local Bux, I always watch the machine extract the espresso. And, it's always got a thick looking crema. So, at one point, a person i Knew worked there, so I had them hook me up with a 1/4lb of the espresso blend they use in the machine.(apparently, the stuff they "pull" with, is fresh roasted. Ive seen the bags, and they're roast dated. 5lb'ers... anyway) Got back home, loaded up the grinder with the incredibly burnt coffee, pulled a shot.. and what'dya know! CREMA! It pulled like any fresh coffee would. It wasn't thin or watery, it was espresso.(this was on my Anita, btw)

Sip. YUCK! Good lord, it was so incredibly gross I could not believe it. Had I not seen the beans before hand, and only saw the shot in the cup, I wouldnt know what the heck happened. It tasted like the shot was pulled on a machine that handt been cleaned in years, and that the beans were the lowest grade, defect rich beans they could possibly find. It tasted SO BAD, that I could NOT believe then Starbucks was even serving it.

I have never cleaned my machine, OR my mouth, as long or as vigorously, as that day. After the cleaning was done, I pulled a shot of 14 day old Toscano.. normally that would be DONE, and not worth drinking for me. It was the most glorious thing in the world.

Not only was the an incredible FAILURE, but three things happened that day. 1)I truly learned how much I appreciated specialty coffee. 2)Starbucks became dead to me, with NO chance of redemtion. 3)I bought an Aeropress, so I would NEVER have to go into starbucks while away from home.
JohnB

Re: What was I thinking?

Post by JohnB »

I did a Google search of "Peter Deines 550 Mohka" & the only thing that comes up is your signature; over & over & over. So what is it??
Endo

Re: What was I thinking?

Post by Endo »

You need to search for the proper German spellings: "Mokka" and "Dienes".

Pe De Dienes Mokka 550 was made as a high end coffee grinder for Lorey, a famous store in Frankfurt Germany since 1796. Well made with a curved Beech hardwood box. The Mokka from the 1950's is rather rare with an external grind adjustment knob making it easy to change the burr for grinds from coarse down to extra fine espresso. (My Pede 435 doesn't go so fine).

History: The Pe De Dienes Company was founded by Peter Dienes in Remscheid, Germany in 1869. Peter Dienes had more than 12 patents on grinders and mills and invented what most now consider the best German coffee grinder mechanism. The German Pe De Dienes Company lasted until 1962.

A PeDe 550 Mokka sold last year for $75 on E-bay. (Probably bought by the Orphan guy). Good find!
JohnB

Re: What was I thinking?

Post by JohnB »

Ok so its an old hand mill. You could have just said that. :lol:
JmanEspresso

Re: What was I thinking?

Post by JmanEspresso »

Endo! THANK YOU!

I, like John, have done a couple searches on the 550. Of course, even though I own the damn thing, I was spelling it wrong(goes lovely with "fail" aspect of this thread!)

thanks for the info!

one of the reasons why I LOVE this grinder so much, is because of the adjustment knob on the back. Heres a pictures kinda showing it.

"Worm Gear". Its the best picture I could get, because to show the rest of it, Id have to take apart the grinder fully, and Id rather not.

Rear Adjustment Knob

Frontal Viewage, which shows the "unique" logo. The full logo didn't make it through the restoration, but I kinda like that its only the Stag thats left. Keeps it unique ;-)

And lastly:
Bean "Hopper". Many other grinders have this "feature", so Im told. Other grinders, again, so Im told, are just wood inside. Im not sure what the "white" IS.. I THINK it's porcelain, but I have an easier time believing it's bakelite. Endo, do you know if it's really porcelain? I read it somewhere, but I cant remember where I read it, or if it was even talking about PeDe grinders. Regardless, its apparently supposed to aid in the feeding of "espresso roast" beans, because its very smooth, any not porous like wood. Idk.
Endo

Re: What was I thinking?

Post by Endo »

JmanEspresso wrote:Im not sure what the "white" IS.. I THINK it's porcelain, but I have an easier time believing it's bakelite. Endo, do you know if it's really porcelain?
My guess would be Bakelite (mine has it too). Bakelite was also developed by a German company and used quite extensively in the 50s. If it's good enough for billiard balls, should be good enough for a grinder feed. Stronger too.

It's a very nice grinder. Let me know if you encounter another one for sale. How much did you pay (if you don't mind saying)?
JohnB

Re: What was I thinking?

Post by JohnB »

The bean hopper on my 2 year old Zass Knee Mill is porcelain so I'd think your old mill is the same.
Endo

Re: What was I thinking?

Post by Endo »

I'll have closer look at my PeDe tonight and let you know.
JmanEspresso

Re: What was I thinking?

Post by JmanEspresso »

I paid, I think 85 bucks, plus a few dollars shipping, from OrphanEspresso. I check there quite frequently,and Ive never seen another 550mokka. I was surfing their site when they posted it, and I bought it right there. Doug told me it was the fastest they ever sold a hand grinder! I had already missed out on 4 others, so when this once came up, I bought it immediately.
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