# Trying to move on from french press and moka pot at home



## Sketches (Feb 28, 2016)

Hi,

Thought I'd post a thread even though I haven't decided anything yet despite some research. I drink a load of coffee but I tend to buy in cafes more than make my own. Unfortunately my first cup of the day is currently from a french press at home with pre-ground beans, I can drink it but could do better I reckon.

Thus far I realise grinder is key (leaning towards a EO Pharos) and I have no idea what machine. That's what I am here to find out I guess.

So... hello


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## h1udd (Sep 1, 2015)

Definately buy a grinder and start buying fresh beans from a roaster not supermarket ... That will transform your coffee drinking and give you loads of time to consider what machine you want

oh .... And hello


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## hotmetal (Oct 31, 2013)

Welcome. Nothing wrong with a French press - it's the preground coffee you need to get rid of. The OE Pharos is said to be very good if you don't mind the fiddling around. A Made By Knock Feldgrind would be good with a FP or an Aeropress too I suspect. Caveat: I'm going on what I've read - I don't have a hand grinder.


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## Sketches (Feb 28, 2016)

Hi,

Yeah the grinder is what I am looking at for the moment. So many options is making it all a bit confusing. I love espresso so will eventually want to get a really good machine so although I may not get it at the same time as the grinder I do want to buy a grinder which will be absolutely fine for that too. Would the Made By Knock be decent for that too?


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## hotmetal (Oct 31, 2013)

I just saw your other thread - so the thing is, grinders for espresso and grinders for brewed coffee are 2 different things really. Much to the vexation of many on here. If you're looking to get a decent espresso machine at some point, you might want to maybe spend £300 on an electric grinder and £500 on an HX machine. But there isn't really a grinder that will swap easily between 2 settings (despite manufacturers claims) so a lot of members with a penchant for espresso and brewed will have a hand grinder for brewed so they don't waste all their coffee readjusting the grinder back and forth.


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## Sketches (Feb 28, 2016)

Ahh, so perhaps jumping in with both feet is best then. What would you buy if you were me?


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## hotmetal (Oct 31, 2013)

A lot depends on what is available where you are I suppose - international shipping can deter forum sellers otherwise I'd be suggesting to keep an eye on the for sale section. If you're limited to buying new that means setting your sights slightly lower.


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## Sketches (Feb 28, 2016)

Yeah availability and prices are pretty bad here. I guess i could always get stuff forwarded from my mum in the UK which may help with the buy/sell forum. In terms of usage, basically just for myself not for entertaining and I am a bit of a geek so I am not afraid of a learning curve as far as the machine goes. In my research I came across the La Pavoni ones of course, the learning curve doesn't put me off and they do seem cheap used. That said I may not be thinking that through properly. Other things I spotted were the Puccini from them which I can get locally which was the main reason, but nobody seems to put much up on reviews from them and the ECM PID classic, also simply as they are stocked locally but i don't know much about them. After that locally the cheapest I have seen (in the admittedly few places I could find) was a Rocket cellini PID V3 but that is over a grand and just for the machine...


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## hotmetal (Oct 31, 2013)

Yeah Rockets aren't cheap - I got mine lightly used (well, ex-review) from the forum. You may well do better getting used forum stuff shipped to your folks' but then you've still got to ship it to Czech, but that's less of an issue as you can arrange it at your leisure.

Off topic now, I rode my motorbike to Plzeň to sample the delights of Pilsner Urquell at source. If only I'd looked at the rainfall chart before planning a summer bike holiday. Spent a lot of time in the underground passages and in bars avoiding the ceaseless rain! Happy days!


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## vietnamcoffee (Feb 19, 2016)

With my understanding, a French press can contribute you a best cup of coffee. However, you should be aware of the particle size of ground coffee powder. The particle sizes should not be too much fine. The level should be coarse (rough) and varying from 0.6mm to 0.7mm per particle.


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## Mrboots2u (May 10, 2013)

@Sketches what cafe's do you like then


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## Stanic (Dec 12, 2015)

Deleted


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## Stanic (Dec 12, 2015)

@ vietnamcoffee

really? and using a blade grinder?


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## 2bor2bru (Mar 7, 2016)

Lowest common denominator will always be freshly roasted beans, and a good grinder. For French press a coarser grind & not much skill can provide great tasting coffee. For espresso, much finer grind and more skill can also provide great tasting coffee. As stated above, difficult identifying grinder that can do both, albeit there are some rumours flying about the new Eureka Atom.


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