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Talking about the heavy head itself, not the basket/mesh insert which is stainless. Ours were chrome-plated brass (Rancilio) but the insides were bare brass. Maybe after years of use and they were originally chrome? I don't think so though. So anyway the espresso would fall thru the insert and hit the brass head and get funneled into your cup. See the "naked" version below and voila, problem solved!
We have a dorky home unit and it's aluminum with stainless inserts.
We have a 'fancy' Dehlonghi machine. We came to rely on it so much I bought a spare. The spare needed a part and I was able to buy it and fix it, so I fell in love with the brand. The spare is now the North machine and the original lives in Mexico. The basket is definitely stainless, and the head is heavy enough to make me question why I stuck my foot out to break the fall when it slipped off the counter. It was fairly expensive, so I used to do a tabulation of how many coffee shop coffees I had replaced. I've had it for many years, now, so I'm far enough ahead I don't care about it anymore.
Talking about the heavy head itself, not the basket/mesh insert which is stainless. Ours were chrome-plated brass (Rancilio) but the insides were bare brass. Maybe after years of use and they were originally chrome? I don't think so though. So anyway the espresso would fall thru the insert and hit the brass head and get funneled into your cup. See the "naked" version below and voila, problem solved!
We have a dorky home unit and it's aluminum with stainless inserts.
I always thought those filter baskets were stainless steel, or that's what I remember.
Talking about the heavy head itself, not the basket/mesh insert which is stainless. Ours were chrome-plated brass (Rancilio) but the insides were bare brass. Maybe after years of use and they were originally chrome? I don't think so though. So anyway the espresso would fall thru the insert and hit the brass head and get funneled into your cup. See the "naked" version below and voila, problem solved!
We have a dorky home unit and it's aluminum with stainless inserts.
I had to look that up but it eliminates/reduces the ground coffee getting cooked quite as bad and yes since the baskets are stainless, the coffee's not running across some corroded oily surface. I like it.
So those "portafilters" that they make espresso through are bare brass on the inside (or aluminum or something else nasty). They need to be cleaned thoroughly daily to keep oils from building up and adding rancid notes to tomorrow's coffee...
...If the portafilter's cold when they put it up in the machine, that is a different problem with similar effects. It should be stored in the brew head so it's hot when they put the coffee in it, which means they need to work fast and not let the coffee sit on that hot metal for more than a few seconds.
I always thought those filter baskets were stainless steel, or that's what I remember. There may have been aluminum ones in some places I worked - it was a while ago.
I generally left the assembly in the brew head unless it got super busy, but if it got cold I would often run hot water into the basket under the open brewhead before filling it and tamping it. I usually steamed the milk while the shot was pouring.
So those "portafilters" that they make espresso through are bare brass on the inside (or aluminum or something else nasty). They need to be cleaned thoroughly daily to keep oils from building up and adding rancid notes to tomorrow's coffee. That usually means getting it clean right down to shiny brass. But of course now you've got filtered hot water hitting hot brass so it is going to take some metal with it... the solution is to start each day by wasting one or two shots and letting the brass get a thin layer of coffee oil built up again.
If they're over-enthusiastic about rinsing the portafilter throughout the day, that can remove that barrier as well. My assumption is that the barista went "oh, yup, I know what that's all about" and just did a new coffee from the "busy" head of the espresso machine and that solved it.
If the portafilter's cold when they put it up in the machine, that is a different problem with similar effects. It should be stored in the brew head so it's hot when they put the coffee in it, which means they need to work fast and not let the coffee sit on that hot metal for more than a few seconds. Those dorks who spend a minute tamping and futzing with it, then put it in the machine, get their milk ready, then at some point eventually push the button to pull the shot... no good.
That's fair enough, but it still seems weird to me that I lost the metallic taste but still can taste coffee.
My primary coffee hang out keeps the portafilter warm and has started using an auto-tamper so there is less faffing about after they grind the coffee. They also use naked portafilters. The previous owner still has his place in town called "Get Naked" for that reason and I have a Get Naked shirt from a place in Santa Fe that does the same. My place, and I think my main backups are constantly adjusting the grind through the day as the temperature and humidity changes. The guy who makes coffee at my punk barbershop (slogan "Get Buzzed") doesn't do that and the coffee can be erratic.
My routine is something along the lines of 'get all the steps in order so I don't have hot water in the cup'. Mrs. I likes to hit the button and go, so when I'm done, I usually set up the next double and leave it in the machine, but it can be anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes before she hits the go button. I do know that I'm tolerant of a lot of stuff across a pretty wide range. I've worked in a lot of environments with everything from Bunn pots to coin op machines and usually shit hours, so you really wanted coffee. I can generally tell good and great, and when I get a bad cup it must be pretty bad.
I think I said somewhere here already that of all the $7 coffees I had in Ireland, none were bad but none were worth talking about. Bad capps are badâI can taste that, but weak or average capps are hot water. So I don't order them often. I can taste iced espresso pretty much always, so that's a solid option. I had one coffee that made me ask for a refill... just a house drip, maybe french press I didn't look... it was fantastic. Still â¬4 though and I think they charged for the refill. 5 Stars would buy again.
edit: Oh they don't do drip so they must have made me an Americano. It was great, whatever. Get the shakshuka.
Since I have the covid tongue, I don't really care anymore. If you have a routine that makes a cup that does what you want, there's nothing to judge.
My routine is something along the lines of 'get all the steps in order so I don't have hot water in the cup'. Mrs. I likes to hit the button and go, so when I'm done, I usually set up the next double and leave it in the machine, but it can be anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes before she hits the go button. I do know that I'm tolerant of a lot of stuff across a pretty wide range. I've worked in a lot of environments with everything from Bunn pots to coin op machines and usually shit hours, so you really wanted coffee. I can generally tell good and great, and when I get a bad cup it must be pretty bad.
So those "portafilters" that they make espresso through are bare brass on the inside (or aluminum or something else nasty). They need to be cleaned thoroughly daily to keep oils from building up and adding rancid notes to tomorrow's coffee. That usually means getting it clean right down to shiny brass. But of course now you've got filtered hot water hitting hot brass so it is going to take some metal with it... the solution is to start each day by wasting one or two shots and letting the brass get a thin layer of coffee oil built up again.
If they're over-enthusiastic about rinsing the portafilter throughout the day, that can remove that barrier as well. My assumption is that the barista went "oh, yup, I know what that's all about" and just did a new coffee from the "busy" head of the espresso machine and that solved it.
If the portafilter's cold when they put it up in the machine, that is a different problem with similar effects. It should be stored in the brew head so it's hot when they put the coffee in it, which means they need to work fast and not let the coffee sit on that hot metal for more than a few seconds. Those dorks who spend a minute tamping and futzing with it, then put it in the machine, get their milk ready, then at some point eventually push the button to pull the shot... no good.
I would let SFW make me a cup. I would also be ashamed for him to watch me make coffee in the morning.
I used to get a weird metallic taste from coffee sometimes. Like good coffee from good cafes. At one place I mentioned it to the head barista. She remade my coffee and it was much better. Went away with covid, so there's that.
Maybe you're not talking about espresso but:
So those "portafilters" that they make espresso through are bare brass on the inside (or aluminum or something else nasty). They need to be cleaned thoroughly daily to keep oils from building up and adding rancid notes to tomorrow's coffee. That usually means getting it clean right down to shiny brass. But of course now you've got filtered hot water hitting hot brass so it is going to take some metal with it... the solution is to start each day by wasting one or two shots and letting the brass get a thin layer of coffee oil built up again.
If they're over-enthusiastic about rinsing the portafilter throughout the day, that can remove that barrier as well. My assumption is that the barista went "oh, yup, I know what that's all about" and just did a new coffee from the "busy" head of the espresso machine and that solved it.
If the portafilter's cold when they put it up in the machine, that is a different problem with similar effects. It should be stored in the brew head so it's hot when they put the coffee in it, which means they need to work fast and not let the coffee sit on that hot metal for more than a few seconds. Those dorks who spend a minute tamping and futzing with it, then put it in the machine, get their milk ready, then at some point eventually push the button to pull the shot... no good.
I used to get a weird metallic taste from coffee sometimes. Like good coffee from good cafes. At one place I mentioned it to the head barista. She remade my coffee and it was much better. Went away with covid, so there's that.
: side eye : probably just me, but I had to read that 3 times before I didn't think she made you a coffee with covid in it and it tasted better.
Good coffee tastes good, average coffee tastes warm. I had several expensive cups of coffee in Ireland and exactly one was something I thought tasted good. The ones that aren't over-roasted and have some citrus etc notes, taste like they always did. So yeah it's weird.
I used to get a weird metallic taste from coffee sometimes. Like good coffee from good cafes. At one place I mentioned it to the head barista. She remade my coffee and it was much better. The metallic taste went away when I got covid, so there's that.
