# Coffee Compass Sweet Bourbon



## m4lcs67 (Mar 16, 2014)

I have been enjoying Brighton Lanes for a while now, but I called Coffee Compass last week inquiring about personalised Christmas coffee gifts and spoke with the owner, Richard. What a lovely man. Very, very helpful. While we were talking he mentioned Sweet Bourbon, so I have tried some and it is yet another brilliant coffee. really good. Well that is another great coffee to add to my list of favourites. If you haven't tried it then you need to. You won't regret it.


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

What does it taste like?


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Sweet bourbon by chance? I drink it all the time, along with their Mediterranean Mocha which is also superb!


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## slas111 (Mar 25, 2014)

Dave was it sweet bourbon you give me?

I've binned the packaging but I'm going to order some

it was lush:act-up:


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

What does it taste like !


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Paul, it was either sweet bourbon or mediterranean mocha........old age and I cannot remember now. Try some of each, they are both really good


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## m4lcs67 (Mar 16, 2014)

Rich and full bodied. An excellent coffee with great depth of flavour. I am still not qualified/experienced enough to offer a detailed review, but it tastes great to me. Since I started my coffee journey the Brighton Lanes is the number one, but the Sweet Bourbon is most definitely up there.


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

m4lcs67 said:


> Rich and full bodied. An excellent coffee with great depth of flavour. I am still not qualified/experienced enough to offer a detailed review, but it tastes great to me. Since I started my coffee journey the Brighton Lanes is the number one, but the Sweet Bourbon is most definitely up there.


You don't need experience to tell us what you think it tastes of . You can't be wrong ,as you tasted it .,give it a go l no one is marking whether your right or not









So you drinking it as espresso or in milk ?


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## m4lcs67 (Mar 16, 2014)

Hi Mr Boots. As a Cappuccino. I have tried my hardest, but I just cannot drink black coffee. I have certainly given it a really good go and have really, really tried. I may be slated as a philistine by some, but that's the way it is. One good thing to come out of it however is my milk texturising technique is totally nailed now. No hit or miss as to whether it is going to be right anymore. Bang on the money everytime now. Semi skimmed or soya. Sorted.


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Good to hear. So what does it taste like.

Perhaps try some other beans that may be a bit sweeter as a non milk drink. Your fav beans in milk are on the darker side of roast . perhaps a nice yirg like the one from foundry


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Stop being blinkered Bootsie, and buy some........


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## m4lcs67 (Mar 16, 2014)

I certainly am preferring the darker roasts. Since I read the post from CamV6 a while a go regarding Brighton Lanes having an authentic Italian flavour, I have rarely changed, but the Sweet Bourbon was/is a nice change.


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## Spazbarista (Dec 6, 2011)

Mrboots2u said:


> You don't need experience to tell us what you think it tastes of . You can't be wrong ,as you tasted it .,give it a go l no one is marking whether your right or not
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Probably tastes like coffee


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

Worst thread ever ever


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## ronsil (Mar 8, 2012)

jeebsy said:


> Worst thread ever ever


Why is that jeebsy?

Not all of us enjoy exploring the outer world of coffee. Some of us like the real coffee flavour:exit:


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

We have strong recommendation to try a coffee without one adjective about what it tastes like despite several requests


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## ronsil (Mar 8, 2012)

Coffee can & does appeal to some people without them being able to put into words the reason why.


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## Obnic (Jan 14, 2014)

ronsil said:


> Coffee can & does appeal to some people without them being able to put into words the reason why.


Do frustrated mumblings, gesticulation, face palms and suppressed expletives count?


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

So what did it taste like?


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

Milk


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

OK here is an idea.

If the op wants to try and expand their vocabulary of taste. If they don't its no hassle , it is really just a friendly suggestion.

Pull you shot

Steam some milk

Taste a little of the steamed milk on its own .

Taste a little of the cappuccino.

Taste the steamed milk again.

What differences are there?

In a basic language does it taste of

Sweet, sour, bitter, creamy.


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

froggystyle said:


> So what did it taste like?


That is a very subjective question. Is the person or persons to whom you direct your question, actually able to tell you? Is their equipment and personal skills good enough to get the best out of. Do they drink risitretto, espresso, macchiato, cappuccino, flat white, or even home made frappuccino? All these things to think about hey!

Much simpler if you answer the question with, I drank it, or I poured it away..........


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Standard!


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

How was your meal out the other day Mr Kidd ?

" I ate it , I wasn't sick and it came out my bottom the next day"...


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

The fact you didn't pour the shot away hardly gives a ringing endorsement.


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## Spazbarista (Dec 6, 2011)

It tasted of meat.


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

jeebsy said:


> The fact you didn't pour the shot away hardly gives a ringing endorsement.


Of course it is! It means I liked it and could not give a flying tinkers cuss if you do or not (meant in the politest possible way of course!)


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Spazbarista said:


> It tasted of meat.


You mean cheese

The Mighty Boosh - The Cheese Song in HD!!!!:


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

dfk41 said:


> Of course it is! It means I liked it and could not give a flying tinkers cuss if you do or not (meant in the politest possible way of course!)


All that gear and the extent of your critical judgement is 'mouth' or 'sink'?


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## Spazbarista (Dec 6, 2011)

No. Meat.


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

Lovely bit of roast squirrell


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

This is what Coffee Compass say:

http://www.coffeecompass.co.uk/shop/sweet-bourbon-espresso-blend-500g.html


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Spazbarista said:


> No. Meat.


Usual arrangement?

Hillary Briss Butcher:


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## m4lcs67 (Mar 16, 2014)

aaa


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## PeterF (Aug 25, 2014)

I personally did not like it, too overpowering and acidic. It's a great coffee but I prefer Coffee Compass Java Jampit


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

Acidic...getting dangerously close to a taste related adjective there


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## Sean (Jun 20, 2014)

It is entirely possible, of course, to simply know for certain that you enjoy one thing over another (even coffee, heaven forbid!), without being able to quantify it or explain.

I couldn't for the life of me taste a bean and tell you if its acidic, fruity, smokey, bitter, sour or beefy! Perhaps bitter is the easiest to pick out, followed by sour. Maybe it will come with time, maybe it will never come to some. If you're enjoying the journey, keep on peddling. I can very rarely pick out a tasting note.

For the record, I've tried various beans for Rave, Hasbean and Coffee Compass and have been most pleased with Coffee Compass. Jampit Hit is amazing and I too, loved the Sweet Bourbon. Brighton Lanes not so much. And I can't wait to place my next order. Just don't ask me why!


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## 7493 (May 29, 2014)

I'm inclined to agree! Picking out individual flavours is very difficult I find. But I love Jampit Hit, less impressed with Brighton Lanes or indeed Mocha Java. Will have to give the Sweet Bourbon a try. Also impressed with Bella Barista's Gaslight. Remains to be seen if it stays as dark as the samples.


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

No one has even used the word coffee!



Sean said:


> I couldn't for the life of me taste a bean and tell you if its acidic, fruity, smokey, bitter, sour or beefy!


My palette isn't great but that I could do.....fruit, floral, smoke, chocolate, spice are obvious ones and about my limits (unless there's something massively obvious like blueberries going on).

Not expecting 'an initial blast of nougat with tobacco, followed by a blast of dill flowing into bergamot and hibiscus with a gooseberry finish', but some sort of ballpark description would be nice.


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## Obnic (Jan 14, 2014)

Yeah, I don't know about 'flushes of orange sherbet and hibiscus flower' either but this is helpful I think.

View attachment 10066


And this because it distinguishes between tastes and aromas.

View attachment 10065


For the most part I start with:

Sour - sweet - bitter - bland

Then:

Milk - dark chocolate and types of sweetness: molasses, dates, golden syrup, vanilla etc. And fruit notes winey, cherry, blueberry etc

I did however once have a cup of coffee with Glenn that undeniably tasted of Terry's chocolate orange.


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

jeebsy said:


> 'an initial blast of nougat with tobacco, followed by a blast of dill flowing into bergamot and hibiscus with a gooseberry finish'


Have you pinched that from one of Boots posts?


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

Roast level plays a part, irrespective of what you might claim to prefer, but if the beans are darker roasted, they can still be sweet, chocolatey, nutty, tobacco, leathery, liquorice etc., but flavours tend to be more centred around traditional "coffee" (some would say "roast") flavours, less sweet & acidic. Lighter roasts can let more distinct, sweeter, fruity flavours through. I drink coffee at all roast levels (well, within reason) & enjoy it at least somewhat, but I too find it harder to pick out distinct, identifiable flavours from darker roasts...but even a dark roasted Yirgacheffe should still hit you with some berry/fruit flavour.

If you're buying HasBean and not getting any of the flavours (at least one, if maybe not all listed), it's not the beans, it's something adrift in how you are brewing it.


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

froggystyle said:


> Have you pinched that from one of Boots posts?


Everything tastes of coffee and chocolate , would you prefer I post that


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

froggystyle said:


> Have you pinched that from one of Boots posts?


Not enough bmx tyre or Nazi pope for it to be one of boots's


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Funnily enough, i had a bacon sarnie this morning that tasted of coffee, strange!


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## CallumT (Aug 23, 2013)

@froggystyle coffee or coffea ?


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

Both.


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## hotmetal (Oct 31, 2013)

Assuming my coffee *making* skills are not at fault, I find myself linguistically challenged when trying to put my finger on, and describe, the taste of my espressos. A typical post from me might be "an initial blast of coffee with chocolate/almond notes, followed by a blast of milk flowing into a cup and drunk with a slurpy finish'


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## Edwin (Feb 20, 2011)

This is my favourite and I've tried a fair few over recent years...

I drink it as espresso, never with milk and have never, ever succeeded in making it taste "acidic", which sets it apart from half of the SO / blends I've tried. It has the positive qualities of a dark roast but with none of the rather overly-heavy richness/lack of life I dislike about all of the dark roasts I've ever tried. Most of them taste the same to me.

Stunning.


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## spune (Oct 3, 2011)

What's the blend?


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## 4515 (Jan 30, 2013)

I had a sample of this sent with my order so after the cries of 'so what does it taste like' I decided to chuck some in the hausgrind and give it a go at describing the flavours

I'm getting turnip, autoglym wheel cleaner and a hint of leslie crowthers left buttock

Back to the real taste test

Opened the bag and stuck my nose in - yep that smells roasty !

Wound the HG in by 3/4 of a turn and was there or there abouts with the grind

In the cup was the usual bags of crema that Id get from other CC beans

As a long black I'm getting loads of dark chocolate with a hint of milk in there. Acidity-wise, theres a hint of acidity running down the centre of my tongue but not excessive. I start off with a touch of bitterness and this is then soothed with smoothness in much the same way as the cartoon fire hose works in the gaviscon advert. As the coffee cools the mouthfeel is very silky smooth and the dark chocolate has changed into galaxy.

Not getting any friuts - theres a hint of leather and hazelnut in there.

Coffee flavour surrounds your mouth and doesnt want to leave the party. I'll be tasting this for some time !

I preferred this to their last DSOL offering but, for my tastes, would rank it below their Jampit


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## El carajillo (Mar 16, 2013)

Have to agree, not in same league as Jampit


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## 2971 (May 7, 2012)

I'm drinking the Coffee Compass 3-pack, looking for a Jampit replacement, and the Sweet Bourbon is one of the 3. So far, I would say it's my favourite of these, and I can definitely see myself buying more of it. Like other posters, I don't find it easy to identify tasting notes, especially with darker coffees, which to me seem much simpler, and certainly I would find it hard to describe the basic taste in more complex terms than "quite chocolatey", BUT I could be kidding myself here, I think I am getting an aftertaste that is something like ginger. Would be interested to know whether anyone else agrees with that. I am drinking it in cortados.

For calibration, these are my (very unsophisticated) thoughts on the other CC beans I've tried:

Jampit - loved this

Jampit Hit - somehow I just couldn't drink the stuff

Brighton Lanes - also couldn't drink this/make it work for me

Peruvian Tunki - loved this, couldn't make a bad coffee with it

Gusto Gold - quite drinkable but totally bland and inoffensive

Mediterranean Mocha - nice deep tastes, very moreish, but I'd pick Sweet Bourbon over it


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## 7877 (Aug 14, 2014)

I have to say that over the years I've almost exclusively bought from has bean, but recently been working my way around different roasters.

From CC I've just finished some mahogany roast jampit hit and am now on the sweet bourbon. I suppose it just goes to show how everyone's taste buds are different but for me both of these blends are too darkly roasted and I suspect have a tad too much robusta in them given the gallons of crema both seem to produce.

The Jampit hit, I actually disliked; the sweet bourbon is I think easier on the pallette but does have a pretty strong aftertaste. The trouble I have with both of them is picking out the different flavour notes, not something I generally have an issue with but I can only see that this must be down to the roast. So probably not ones for me!


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## Nod (Sep 7, 2013)

\ said:


> I have to say that over the years I've almost exclusively bought from has bean' date=' but recently been working my way around different roasters. From CC I've just finished some mahogany roast jampit hit and am now on the sweet bourbon. I suppose it just goes to show how everyone's taste buds are different but for me both of these blends are too darkly roasted and I suspect have a tad too much robusta in them given the gallons of crema both seem to produce. The Jampit hit, I actually disliked; the sweet bourbon is I think easier on the pallette but does have a pretty strong aftertaste. The trouble I have with both of them is picking out the different flavour notes, not something I generally have an issue with but I can only see that this must be down to the roast. So probably not ones for me![/quote']
> 
> I have been too nervous to post until now - worried about showing my ignorance - but I must admit I completely agree with this post. I found jampit from CC v darkly roasted and, however many shots I made it always seemed to leave a rather nasty after taste. It had a 'muddy' texture in the mouth and seemed too thick and not clean. It was nicer than the bella barrista beans we all got but was still not my kind of flavour so I gave the beans to a friend. I realise this is a popular bean and I suspect it might just be me but I thought I'd post my experience. I'm clearly a LSOL of man!


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

Nod, coffee is subjective. What I love, you might not and vice versa. The fewer people who like Jampit the better, as far as I am concerned! That said, if you taste a shot prepared on a big conical and a lever, you might change your mind!


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## Nod (Sep 7, 2013)

\ said:


> Nod' date=' coffee is subjective. What I love, you might not and vice versa. The fewer people who like Jampit the better, as far as I am concerned! That said, if you taste a shot prepared on a big conical and a lever, you might change your mind![/quote']
> 
> DFK... I would LOVE that! I've never had a lever coffee nor a big conical... Maybe that is the issue.. It is a shame we are opposite ends of the country or id be over in a heartbeat... Shame you can't email me a shot!


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## 2971 (May 7, 2012)

Nod said:


> I have been too nervous to post until now - worried about showing my ignorance - but I must admit I completely agree with this post.


I'm pretty ignorant too









Was it Jampit you disliked or Jampit Hit? Weirdly, I loved Jampit and hated Jampit Hit.


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## Nod (Sep 7, 2013)

\ said:


> I'm pretty ignorant too
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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## 7877 (Aug 14, 2014)

wintoid said:


> I'm pretty ignorant too
> 
> 
> 
> ...


For me it was specifically the Mahogany Roast Jampit hit...not saying it's a bad coffee, but it just didn't suit my taste buds! Marmite


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## Spazbarista (Dec 6, 2011)

Stuck a bag of this in the grinder yesterday.

Its a good quality coffee, balanced and rounded. But a bit lacking in personality.


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## Bigpikle (Oct 14, 2014)

I've got some of this roasted on 15/12 - any suggestions when its at its best? I have a few beans on the go so can wait a little longer if thats whats needed.

Thanks


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## CamV6 (Feb 7, 2012)

Oops relied on wrong thread


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## CamV6 (Feb 7, 2012)

A aargh bad day on the iPad !


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## 7877 (Aug 14, 2014)

I have remnant of a bag roasted on 3rd Dec which is still tasting fine. I think it was at its best round about the 14 day mark and I probably started it a little early.


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## Wobin19 (Mar 19, 2013)

Just opened a bag of this, I backed off the grinder a tiny amount as a first stab since this looks just a shade lighter than the Jampit I just finished. I also noticed the odd glisten of oil on the beans. Wow, this stuff is SUPER sweet, I tasted as espresso first and enjoyed it, but in a flat white, honestly it seems SWEET to the extreme, it tastes like I have dumped a teaspoon of sugar in there. So, for me, great as espresso, but add milk which is also naturally sweet, it's as step too far. Then again, perhaps I eat a danish with it, that might help! Yep, the clue in the the name of the been. SWEET bourbon. I finished the FW 20 minutes ago and can still taste it. If i had to describe it, I would say candied almonds with a very slight note of ginger as someone else mentioned that comes through afterwards.

Edit: Perfectly compliments a mince pie! Happy Christmas!


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## 2971 (May 7, 2012)

Wobin19 said:


> ... with a very slight note of ginger as someone else mentioned that comes through afterwards.


Wahey, that was me. Was really interested to see if anyone agreed.

However, I haven't quite managed to get this right as an espresso... a bit too full-on for me, but seems to love milk. So in a way I have the opposite experience to you.


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## Wobin19 (Mar 19, 2013)

I am going 19 in 32 out in 28 seconds. 93 brew. Interested to know others ratios on this one.


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## 2971 (May 7, 2012)

Not sure how helpful this will be but...

14g in 23g out in 30 seconds with a 5-8 second active preinfusion on my Cremina. Brew temperature, well hmm, I pull when the pressure gauge reads 0.9 bars, but not sure what that translates to at the group.

I ended up at 14g because the HG One seems to make this incredibly fluffy. A similar volume in the basket from another coffee would weigh much more.

Bucketloads of crema, and an amazing mouthfeel, but as I said it's a bit one-dimensional as espresso for me.


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

Your both doing same brew ratio roughy


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