# Square mile red brick?



## totallywired

Hi

Went to Kaffeine Thursday....AWESOME flat white! Ordered some red brick as that's what they use. Been playing around with it but just can't seem to get any punch out of it. I have a Gaggia classic with La pavoni (obel) grinder. For the last 4-5 months I've been using The Bean shops's blend67 and had some absolutely brilliant coffees, rich dark and strong. Heard lots of good things about the red brick and loved what I tasted in the cafe. Just getting a very milky tasting drink. Any suggestions? Getting a 2oz shot in about 22 sec from 18grams of beans.


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## mike 100

Oh dear! Just about to start on a bag of Red Brick (tommorrow) which is a new one to me, was looking forward to it.... now not so sure!


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## funinacup

Red Brick is lovely, give it a try.

Totallywired, I'd be aiming for a slower extraction to bring out more intensity









Try tightening the grind a touch and see how you get on.

Sent from my Galaxy S using Tapatalk


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## stavros

How old are the beans? Square Mile's bigger bags don't fit through my letterbox and unbeknownst to me the bloke in the shop below my flat had my parcel in his possession for a few days. By the time I got hold of them I only really had a few days of them at their freshest. At their best I found them delicious, the almost perfect balance of gloopy chocolate/nutty goodness and fruity bite that I love in the best blends. However I did find they dulled rather quickly as they aged and I began to rue the fact I'd not had them the moment they were posted. I would buy again if I was sure I could get hold of them quickly and get through 350 grams in the ten or twelve days they were at their best.


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## jimrobo

Have to agree. I find them to be the best blend I've had when I receive them but they do deteriorate extremely quickly. Within a couple of days of me opening the bags. I have noticed the bags aren't resealable like most bags though


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## totallywired

Thanks for all the tips guys. I've now slowed it down to about 35sec and it's a bit better. Maybe I'm just used to such strong coffee and find this a little weak. Got one bag left so see how I like it by the time that's finished. One thing I have noticed is the Blend67 I've been getting is a very oily bean that gives a superb crema and great taste. Everyone has different taste eh?


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## RoloD

I went into Salt in Covent Garden today and they told me that Square Mile have changed to formular of Red Brick. It's now a 2-bean blend - the previous version was causing problems, something about too muc lime in one of the beans. The new version is supposed to be easier. Anyone else confirm this?

Anyway I had a very nice espresso there.


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## jimrobo

The one I had was 3 according to the bag?


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## mike 100

Latest version is indeed a 2 bean blend 60% El-Majahual (El Salvador) 40% Capetillo Y Anexos (Guatemala)

Mike 100


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## stavros

How is the new Red Brick? I'm thinking of my next purchase.


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## garydyke1

RoloD said:


> I went into Salt in Covent Garden today and they told me that Square Mile have changed to formular of Red Brick. It's now a 2-bean blend - the previous version was causing problems, something about too muc lime in one of the beans. The new version is supposed to be easier. Anyone else confirm this?
> 
> Anyway I had a very nice espresso there.


We went in there last week on our London visit, top friendly guys. They let us go behind the machine and have a look etc. The old Red brick was being used...they mentioned it wasnt to a lot of peoples taste. We found it pretty sour


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## mike 100

I found it OK, better with a longer extraction time, more flavour comes through, but on the whole not as good as I was expecting, it also needs using quickly as it seems to fade rather fast, still worth a go though.


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## rodabod

garydyke1 said:


> We found it pretty sour


Hi, new member here.

I found the same; while my PeDe hand grinder didn't quite get it quite fine enough (thus making it even worse), I found the acidity so high that it was undrinkable unless served with lots of milk. I also tried skipping the first few seconds of the pour.

By comparison, Monmouth's espresso blend is tasting balanced (and great).


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## 2003-wood

I bought a bag of Red Brick online and was very excited to receive it in the post.

When you include postage it becomes pretty expensive to buy.

Having nearly finished the bag I have to say I was disappointed with the coffee flavours -

but I thought I payed for it so I may as well use it!

I found the overall flavour too fruity and a bit nauseating which isn't very enjoyable.

I thought my grind quantity may be too large

so I reduced it, this gave me less creme and a milkier latte/cap -

When you mix this with the fruitiness - for me it just does not work.


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## thomss

I often pick up a bag from 9Bar coffee which is just near me and quite like them.

5.5oz Flat white is the most milk based drink I'd go with personally but quite like them in an Americano.


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## joshcole

Way over-rated in my humble opinion. Try the Algerian Coffee store in soho


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## aaronb

joshcole said:


> Way over-rated in my humble opinion. Try the Algerian Coffee store in soho


This thread was over 2 years old?


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## sjenner

I have been buying their "SweetShop" blend for a while. This is usually made from two Ethiopian coffees, a fruity one and a chocolaty one, the particular varieties have changed two or three times in the three months that I have been buying it.

Having dived into the world of espresso coffee a couple of years back, I am now pretty sure that I am never going to be able to discern flavours like some of the people on here...

So I have decided to stick to this blend for the foreseeable future. I load a couple of bags into my Nino, and then use it, when it looks like I am down about a bag, I chuck another one on top. I get a reasonably consistent dose of coffee (aimed at around 18g) from the Nino, and a great pour.

And everyone that used to rely on me to operate the HG1/L1, now use it and the Nino themselves, with reasonably reliable results.

I realise this is perhaps saying more about me and my grinder (and perhaps my smoking habit) than it is saying about Mr. Hoffman's beans, but his Sweetshop seems to be pretty consistent at the moment...

I might also give Volcano Coffee a try in the future as they are fairly local too, but they are more expensive than SquareMile... Their bigger bags make the beans look expensive initially, but a quick calculation suggests that they are in and around the average price.


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## El Cabron

I didn't think much of Red Brick either. Nor Sweetshop. My regular buy is Climpson & sons Baron, and i've tried Square Mile, Londinium and other London roasters and i can honestly say that Baron beats anything i've ever bought. I liked Unions Revelation but for me, Baron beats anything.



totallywired said:


> Hi
> 
> Went to Kaffeine Thursday....AWESOME flat white! Ordered some red brick as that's what they use. Been playing around with it but just can't seem to get any punch out of it. I have a Gaggia classic with La pavoni (obel) grinder. For the last 4-5 months I've been using The Bean shops's blend67 and had some absolutely brilliant coffees, rich dark and strong. Heard lots of good things about the red brick and loved what I tasted in the cafe. Just getting a very milky tasting drink. Any suggestions? Getting a 2oz shot in about 22 sec from 18grams of beans.


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## jjprestidge

Red Brick is usually darker than other Square Mile offerings and requires a largish dose on most machines. Had it on in the shop in the early days, but much preferred their Reko and other SOs.

One thing to bear in mind is that their biggest customers are London shops, so the coffee does seem to work better on RO water.

JP


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## Southpaw

SM sweetshop was the biggest fail I've had from any bag of proper coffee.

I'd try it in a shop but wouldn't waste my time again at home.


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## jeebsy

Southpaw said:


> SM sweetshop was the biggest fail I've had from any bag of proper coffee.
> 
> I'd try it in a shop but wouldn't waste my time again at home.


Sweetshop is one of my favourites. Just a bit expensive for everyday use.


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## jjprestidge

Southpaw said:


> SM sweetshop was the biggest fail I've had from any bag of proper coffee.
> 
> I'd try it in a shop but wouldn't waste my time again at home.


That's surprising, as Sweetshop has been quite a well balanced coffee in its recent iterations.

JP


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## garydyke1

Never under estimate the impact on cup profile from using different water(s).


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## Southpaw

jjprestidge said:


> That's surprising, as Sweetshop has been quite a well balanced coffee in its recent iterations.
> 
> JP


 we're talking about a year ago, but I doubt it is vastly different



garydyke1 said:


> Never under estimate the impact on cup profile from using different water(s).


I'm certain it was me that caused it but I didn't have the patience to keep trying.


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## AussieEx

garydyke1 said:


> Never under estimate the impact on cup profile from using different water(s).


Having relatively recently moved from Scotland to Norwich, and subsequently switched to Volvic, I concur.

And I really enjoyed Sweetshop recently (my first try). Started off super-bright and mellowed through the bag. I probably should have let it rest a few extra days, but I'd run out of the previous bag so...

Red Brick has been more inconsistent lately, probably because of this: http://www.squaremileblog.com/2014/11/25/changing-red-brick/


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## Spukey

I love red brick. I use it alot as i can get it from a cafe where i live so use it when waiting for coffee deliveries. One reason why i really like it is that it is really nice as straight espresso and as a flat white. I sometimes find my favourite espresso beans don't always transfer well to milky drinks, this obviously doesn't bode well when the wife only drinks milk drinks.

Ideally i could do with two grinders haha


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## sjenner

jeebsy said:


> Sweetshop is one of my favourites. Just a bit expensive for everyday use.


It is the equivalent of £7 for a standard bag from another roaster, £10/350 x 250 = £7.14, and the coffees are both of good quality, many blends (like RedBrick) have a hefty component of something cheap and cheerful included, which enables a lower price... I don't mean cheap and nasty, competitive prices can result from economy of scale, or different tax regimes etc., RedBrick works out at £5.70.

I don't know whether it is in the nature of Ethiopian coffees particularly, but I find it quite forgiving when used by some of the less experienced users in my house. As I wrote earlier, the Nino has meant that everyone now feels confident in walking up to the pump and making their own coffee... This did not happen with the SJ or HG1.


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## crlbt

What recipe are you using for current red brick? I just bought two bags, made several sink shots. Last one was 19g in VST 18 basket -> 36g in 30 seconds. In flat white it was very sour and ashy. Temperature is 94 like they recommend. Will try to grind coarser to make 36g in 25 seconds. Any thoughts? Don't really want to waste the whole bag dialling in.


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## shrink

crlbt, I used to try their own recipe and it was terrible and a friend of mine helped me sort it out.

The problem is that they rely on a recipe that works on the much harder London water. They always seem to be able to extract just a bit more out the end of a shot than we can up here north of the border.

I switched to 19-20g in the basket, aiming for just 30g out, in around 28 seconds at 94 degrees. Since changing to just wanting 30g out, the shots have been sweet, rich and tasty as hell.

In fact I now find the roasts from Square Mile so consistent that it's such an easy coffee to work with at home. Great pours, grinds without clumps, and repeatable results.

So basically your issue is that you're just pulling the shots too long for your water. Shorten the shots up and you'll get on better. 19g would probably be best stopped at about 28g with 30g being the absolute max

I'll be sticking to red brick for a while now, clearly quite a high quality coffee and IMHO a reasonable step up from the likes of Rave signature in terms of roast consistency.


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## Scotford

Even on an EK I pull RedBrick at a1:2 ratio


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