Saturday, July 12, 2008
Slight Change to Super J
It seemed like I was spending as much time brushing away stray grinds as I was actually drinking coffee. It was getting to me. So I decided to use a used aluminum can to help clean up the doser a little bit. There was a flat metal piece that went over the doser's exit chute to keep grinds from falling directly out of the doser when grinding. Stray grinds would stay on top even after thwacking away 5 to 6 times. Those grinds would just stay up there taunting me. So I figure the use of the upper star on the doser was to determine the dose amount with each pull of the doser lever. This is only effective when the doser is full when in use in a busy cafe setting. Not really effective when only grinding per shot. So I removed the upper star and the pesky flast metal piece. I used the tall aluminum can to help deflect the grinds from just going for the now exposed exit chute. Works pretty well so far. Only downside is that it is now a little harder brushing the grinds away from the grinder's exit chute. Much cleaner though, less stray grinds to brush away. Will use this until I get the necessary bits for a doserless mod I've been eyeballing in the forums.
More Super Jolly Cleaning
I decided to deep clean the Super Jolly this time around. Got some Grindz and took off the lower burr and just scrubbed away some more.
I marked where the upper burr carrier was for consistency.
Looking down at the bottom burr. Doesn't look too bad does it? Just scrub away and run some Grindz too maybe.
But after removing the lower burr, this was what was caked on below the burrs. Nasty looking stuff. Don't know if this was all from me grinding or maybe some of the old user's too.
Top portion of the lower burr. The three clumps are from the three upright thingies that push the grinds out of the grinding chamber.
Some of the grinds that was cleaned off.
I'm thinking I should use the Grindz and deep clean at least once a month to keep from getting stale rancid cofee grinds and oils stuck in the grinder.
I marked where the upper burr carrier was for consistency.
Looking down at the bottom burr. Doesn't look too bad does it? Just scrub away and run some Grindz too maybe.
But after removing the lower burr, this was what was caked on below the burrs. Nasty looking stuff. Don't know if this was all from me grinding or maybe some of the old user's too.
Top portion of the lower burr. The three clumps are from the three upright thingies that push the grinds out of the grinding chamber.
Some of the grinds that was cleaned off.
I'm thinking I should use the Grindz and deep clean at least once a month to keep from getting stale rancid cofee grinds and oils stuck in the grinder.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
What about the coffee?
Now after the cleaning and simple mods, what about the coffee?
The seller kindly supplied some beans he roasted along with the grinder. A Brazilian bean.
Tried it in a press pot first. Wasn't too sure about grind settings so I grinded too fine and steeped too long so the coffee was overextracted and bitter. Makes a good looking cup though. A ton of mud at the bottom too.
So out came the EC 701 and I went on to try and dial the Super Jolly in.
After a few tries. I believe this shot came out about one and a half ounces in about 27 seconds. Should have stopped the shot sooner as the blonde spot in the middle indicates. Was getting inconsistent shots most of the bag. The seller later informed me that those particular beans were tough to work with. Good thing I ran out or else I'd still be trying to dial it in. Still working on my espresso palate so don't have a comment on how this shot was. Maybe a bright flavor profile?
Tried my hand at some art. This one in a Starbucks Christmas season cappucino cup. I think I've measured the size of the cup at about six ounces. So this had a double shot with four ounces of steamed milk/foam. There's a heart in there, really, there is. It's not a mochaccino. It was a bitter brew. The milk barely cut through it. Still working on a routine with my espresso machine. The dark ring around the edge of the cup is an indication of high brew temps. The taste in the cup confirmed it.
So what now? I will to to the Klatch and Intelligentsia and taste some of their straight shots so that I will have something to go by when I make some shots at home. Will also get some Belle espresso beans and maybe some Black Cat from Intelligentsia and I have some Sweet Maria's Monkey blend greens to roast too. Will use the shots from the Klatch and Intelligentsia as a baseline and anything I make that doesn't taste like those will immediately be spit out and thrown into the sink. Just kidding. This stuff is expensive. I'll drink it all. That's what I did with the shot and the bitterccino in the pictures.
The seller kindly supplied some beans he roasted along with the grinder. A Brazilian bean.
Tried it in a press pot first. Wasn't too sure about grind settings so I grinded too fine and steeped too long so the coffee was overextracted and bitter. Makes a good looking cup though. A ton of mud at the bottom too.
So out came the EC 701 and I went on to try and dial the Super Jolly in.
After a few tries. I believe this shot came out about one and a half ounces in about 27 seconds. Should have stopped the shot sooner as the blonde spot in the middle indicates. Was getting inconsistent shots most of the bag. The seller later informed me that those particular beans were tough to work with. Good thing I ran out or else I'd still be trying to dial it in. Still working on my espresso palate so don't have a comment on how this shot was. Maybe a bright flavor profile?
Tried my hand at some art. This one in a Starbucks Christmas season cappucino cup. I think I've measured the size of the cup at about six ounces. So this had a double shot with four ounces of steamed milk/foam. There's a heart in there, really, there is. It's not a mochaccino. It was a bitter brew. The milk barely cut through it. Still working on a routine with my espresso machine. The dark ring around the edge of the cup is an indication of high brew temps. The taste in the cup confirmed it.
So what now? I will to to the Klatch and Intelligentsia and taste some of their straight shots so that I will have something to go by when I make some shots at home. Will also get some Belle espresso beans and maybe some Black Cat from Intelligentsia and I have some Sweet Maria's Monkey blend greens to roast too. Will use the shots from the Klatch and Intelligentsia as a baseline and anything I make that doesn't taste like those will immediately be spit out and thrown into the sink. Just kidding. This stuff is expensive. I'll drink it all. That's what I did with the shot and the bitterccino in the pictures.
Simple mods to SJ
Some mods to the doser. I did the sweeper mod, but don't have any pictures of it. I just attached some velcro strips to the bottom of the sweeper to get at the stray grounds at the bottom of the doser.
Nipple mod. Used a spare baby bottle nipple to put on top of the nut on the doser. Grounds would get stuck on top of that nut when I'd grind. Will use an RC plane spinner next time. It is a sharper point on top and the nipple is absorbing some oils.
A little brass music wire on the exit chute to break up the grinds a little more to help with the clumping.
Attached the music wire to the doser cover so I can easily take it off when I have to sweep the exite chute.
Saw some posts where they had soldered some wire together, but the only solder I have is lead based and don't want to mess with that and food. So I just twisted the wire with a couple of needle nosed plyers and will stick with it for now.
Nipple mod. Used a spare baby bottle nipple to put on top of the nut on the doser. Grounds would get stuck on top of that nut when I'd grind. Will use an RC plane spinner next time. It is a sharper point on top and the nipple is absorbing some oils.
A little brass music wire on the exit chute to break up the grinds a little more to help with the clumping.
Attached the music wire to the doser cover so I can easily take it off when I have to sweep the exite chute.
Saw some posts where they had soldered some wire together, but the only solder I have is lead based and don't want to mess with that and food. So I just twisted the wire with a couple of needle nosed plyers and will stick with it for now.
Update: The wire set up above was too cumbersome. Made an easier simpler x pattern. The previous version just got more coffee stuck in the chute making it more cumbersome than useful. I also removed the nipple since it was just absorbing too much of the oils. Will get the spinner soon.
Sizing the bad boy
Just like the last time when I got my Rocky doserless (which I had to give up about a year ago) I will compare the Super Jolly to the poor old Krups burr grinder we got when we got married. It's still here, so maybe this time it will really be turned into a spice grinder.
The doser alone is taller than the grinder!
And a picture of the one who will inherit this guy.
Side by side. Slight height difference. hehe
View from the back. Gotta love those Ms! (Clean em for crying out loud!)
Cleaning the Super Jolly
Didn't really have much to clean. The old user kept it clean. Just some easy brushing here and there.
Brushed and cleaned upper burr. Not much work. Just some light work with a toothbrush. I need to get a needle or something to get the extra stuff off the screw heads.
Brushed and cleaned upper burr. Not much work. Just some light work with a toothbrush. I need to get a needle or something to get the extra stuff off the screw heads.
Lower burr. Since it isn't too bad, will wait til later to take it off for some thorough cleaning. Again, just a little brush work and need to get that needle for the screws.
The doser. This is where actually most of the stray grinds were stuck. Some behind the plastic between the plastic and doser body. Took it off and brushed, and wiped with a damp paper towel and all good.
After taking off the doser, just a very small amount of stuck grinds on the exite chute.
Super Super Jolly Jolly
Last week a package arrived.
Is it a TV?
TV dudn't look too good.
The shape is revealed.
And there it is. The Mazzer Super Jolly.
I got it used off of a coffeegeek member. Well taken care of.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)