I've really only been into coffee since February 2005. I'm 16 now and I have been completely consumed from head to toe by the coffee bug and baby am I lovin' it or what?! I started out finding recipes for Starbucks Caramel Frappuccino, and soon, thanks to espornographers, I had a Gaggia Espresso in the house. Later, I bought a Super Jolly and have been doing some minor tinkering ever since. I now work at the Elysian Room in Vancouver. I hope you all enjoy reading my blog and leave some comments!

Sunday, January 15, 2006

CLOVER IN DA HOUSE!


Well, it's been a great day of work. I arrived to see a fat chunk of engineering on the counter. I was immediately attracted to its digital display, stainless steel panels, and reminiscence of what I've been waiting monthes to see in real life. I knew we had a Clover, and it hadn't escaped my mind, but I was so excited I think that time stopped and I forgot what I was there for. All of a sudden, bam! I worked constantly with no downtime to try the Clover for a few hours, at which point we went nuts with that motherfucker.

Wow... I loooove it. Nothings perfect, but the bar has been raised substantially. It truly is able to do what espresso was supposed to be able to do: brew a cup of coffee for the order, fast and especially for the single customer. To sum it up quickly, its a French Press minus the guesswork... period.

Before reading further, please watch this video.

Now, allow me to take you through the process.

1. Grind coffee to a slightly finer than french press grind, using your new Ditting grinder
2. Press brew button, assuming volume (8oz, 10oz, 12oz, 14oz, or 16oz), temperature (adjustable to 1F I think), brew time, and other parameters such as the time the plunger pauses before going back up once it has been separated from the coffee, are properly tuned.
3. Dump the coffee into the brewing chamber as the plunger goes down.
4. Watch it, feel it, love it.
5. Use Clover-spec squeejee to swipe away the dry puck into grinds bin.
6. Wipe the top of the machine.
7. Savour the flavour!

It produces a cup very reminiscent of French Press. It seems to add a level of clarity. This could be the same idea behind a flat brew profile in espresso. With less brewing time, your end brewing temperature (just before plunger/serving) is closer to the initial temperature, you get more clarity. Kenya Karagato, Colombia Classico Cauca, Panama Carmen Estate and some Nicaraguan we had worked out very well, very similar to press style. What can I say? This thing is a winner.

2 Comments:

Blogger The Artist Formerly Known As JakeTheCoffeeLover said...

I've gotten too impatient with trying to match the French Press to the Clover to do any true experimentation myself... does that answer your question?

11:15 PM

 
Blogger The Artist Formerly Known As JakeTheCoffeeLover said...

Thank you very much, Matthew!

12:27 AM

 

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