# Bean Advice For A Novice



## Billy Goat (Nov 6, 2016)

Hi,

I have finally made my mind up to invest in a Sage Oracle, but now the even harder choice I have to make...what beans and where is the best place to buy them?

As I previously admitted I am a complete novice and have no knowledge of the coffee world. All I do know is of all the major high street chains Cafe Nero is my preferrred choice. I mainly drink double shots of espresso but like milky drinks too, hence the choice of the Oracle.

I live in the North East and would like to use a local supplier such as Pumphreys or Ringtons, but I am open to suggestions.

Also if you can give some guidance on the machine set up, that would be a great help. I've gone through every available video on YouTube, but it's hard to get that type of info.

Many thanks,

Billy Goat


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## benjbob (Apr 25, 2016)

Hi @billyGoat,

For my self alot of what i know is self taught watching youtube videos and luckily now im in the hospitality industry so get to play with some real big coffee boys now.

I actually roast my own using different beans from alot of different places but before that i used to buy from rave coffee, northstar roaster in leeds, la bottega milanese thats in leeds aswell. I have the duel temp pro so the model way down from yours combined with a sage grinder (unfortunately all i can afford) and it produces nice espresso and steams milk oright for milk based drinks so using an oracle you shouldn't have a problem







. Good thing about loads of different roasters you can chop and change until you find one you like. Check out loads of websites to get the freshest beans and Check out the taste notes and pick something you like the sound of then build on that









Loads of books, loads of videos, loads of shot pulling and lots of learning









Theres also events like cup north or london coffee festival (im going next year)


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## benjbob (Apr 25, 2016)

Oh and i haven't actually set up an oracle but the duel temp is basically a plug and play. I use 18g of coffee at an extraction time of 25-30 seconds (not including prefusion) for around 40-45g liquid which may may not be enough for some but i like it like that


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## AL1968 (May 3, 2015)

Can't help with the machine set up but a few recommendation for beans would be Has Bean Extract Coffee and Rave Coffee now this is where you disappear down the rabbit hole and the fun begins. I've had my R58 machine for 18 months and its taken me that long to decide on which beans/country I prefer I now stick with Columbian and Nicaraguan. Rave Coffee have some occasional good deals offering discounts.

In summary the fun bit is try as many suppliers as you can as each one will roast slightly differently, even with the same variety of coffee, the same bean roasted lighter or darker can taste totally different.

Then the next problem is most single origin coffees have a limited supply so you'll just get in to one and the supply runs out!

I applaud you for trying to stay local but I've found you're restricting your choice and may be missing out on a gem, so have a look at all the suppliers listed under the beans section on this forum, order what takes your fancy and enjoy!!


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## CrashEd (Oct 31, 2016)

^ Great advice!

I've only just started the 'journey', but I'm slowly working my way through an order from Rave Coffee. There is a wide selection from those guys and the coffee is roasted freshly every day. My order came the following day (order before 8am) and the prices are good. The coffee that I've tasted so far is excellent!


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## 4515 (Jan 30, 2013)

Your current preferred bean of choice from the high street is dark roasted. When you start trying beans I would suggest that you don't limit yourself to dark roast only. Get the hang of your equipment and then try medium and light roasted beans and decide which you prefer. If its dark roasted that you prefer then Coffee Compass have some great beans to add to the mix.


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