# beans for cappuccino



## rosco29 (Jun 6, 2011)

Afternoon all,

I'm hoping I could ask for some suggestions for beans that work well with milk based drinks like cappuccino as that's what I mainly drink. I've just got a brand new Silvia and rocky grinder. I also got some Costa rican beans from happy donkey which are ok but I'm looking for something a bit stronger as I find these too weak even after varying the grind.

I'm very new to all this so any help or advice would be so appreciated.

Thanks

Ross


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## CoffeeMagic (Aug 7, 2011)

Depends on the flavour characteristics you are looking for. I would try a Sumatran - lintong or mandheling. Better still try blending some Costa Rican and Lintong as a 50/50 mix.


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## MikeHag (Mar 13, 2011)

So many to choose from. One of the most popular is Formula 6 blend from James Gourmet Coffee. Order online and they will be roasted and despatched the same day.

Strength does not primarily come from the beans though, it's what you do with it. As you learn more you'll become able to tailor the drink to your prefered extraction.


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## rosco29 (Jun 6, 2011)

Thank you for your replies guys. I have a feeling this if going to be an expensive habit. I've got through 250g of Costa Rican beans from HD in two days mostly from trying to dial in the grind so I'm stuck on some 6 month old beans from Costa for this weekend anyway. The formula 6 look interesting so I'll give them a try. When I find a bean that will give some strength & body and works well with milk then I'll end up getting hooked on that bean and will probably stick with it for some time.

Cheers


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## dwalsh1 (Mar 3, 2010)

Try this. Nothing fancy but I go through bags of it for cappas.

http://www.bellabarista.co.uk/coffeebeans/proddetail.asp?prod=59&cat=32


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## dwalsh1 (Mar 3, 2010)

As above in case the link doesn't open.

1kg Izzo Vivi Verde Roasted Coffee Beans from Bella Barista.


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## Monkey_Devil (Jul 11, 2011)

I'm quite fond of Blake from hasbean, its quite chocolaty in milk









Oh and its ok, you'll spend much less on beans soon. I spent a fortune whilst getting familiar with my machine and grinder


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## seeq (Jul 9, 2011)

Tesco original beans £2.99 ideal for grinding in


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## mike 100 (Jul 15, 2010)

Coffee Bean Shops Mocha Guatamala... perfect for cappuccino's or latte's

Regards


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## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

Hi Ross

Do you have a decent tamper?

This is a key tool to use and will transform most shots from mediocre to above average.

Shots prepared using the plastic tamper that comes with the machine will not be anywhere near as good


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## rosco29 (Jun 6, 2011)

Hi Glenn,

I most certainly do. I got a motta tamper at the same time when buying the silvia. So far I've tried happy donkey costa rican, JGC Formula 6, Hasbean blake, JGC Chapin blend and I'm currently using lusty glaze from hands on coffee but I'm struggling to get a decent shot that I'm happy with. Before I got a silvia I was used to coffee from costa or Nero so thought I at least could hope to make myself a capa that was similar or better but it's just not happening for me. I've tried so many different variables and still no look. I was starting to think maybe I've just wasted the best part of £700 on an espresso machine and grinder but I know that this machine is capable of producing good espresso so guess I can only put it down to use error. I've had the machine for approx 7 weeks now so still trying to get the right bean and find that sweet spot.

Cheers

Ross


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## fatboyslim (Sep 29, 2011)

rosco - for me I can quite happily make a latte or cappuccino better than most chain coffee shops. The skill is getting your extraction right.

For me the beans don't really matter when put through milk, although I can appreciate some beans taste better in cappuccino than others, its all about the shot.

The main thing that helped me was started to dose precisely (weighing the beans and grinding only that specific amount).

If you videoed an extraction I'm sure people could more easily offer advice.


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## rosco29 (Jun 6, 2011)

Fatboyslim,

I think it's down to my technique. Every shot I pull it tastes really bitter. I am using a dark roast from drury at the moment. I only drinks caps or latte and whilst I like a fairly strong drink I don't like a lot of bitterness, which I seem to get, sometimes it may taste a little burnt. I don't know which bean to turn to and feel like I'm going through bags of coffee and still not getting a shot that tastes decent. Could you suggest a bean for me? There is so many to choose from and I don't want to give up hope. On a last attempt can a too fine of a grind produce a bitter taste over a coarser grind even if the tamp was ok and the shot looked good when poring into the shot glass?

Cheers

Ross


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## james10 (Feb 28, 2011)

Am I being thick? Because I went on that bellabarista website and those izzo vivi verde beans doesn't have a button to purchase them / add to cart


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## MikeHag (Mar 13, 2011)

Ross, since you have invested in decent equipment I'd recommend a small further investment in training. I see this forum as a compliment to training, not a substitute and a good 3 hour session in your own home is the best way to get making good espresso-based drinks. Your choice of beans isn't your problem, it seems to me.


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## jimbow (Oct 13, 2011)

It is difficult to tell for sure but from the bitterness you describe, it sounds like your espresso is over extracted. Try grinding more coarsely and weigh your coffee.

As a general guide to get in the ballpark, start with 14g of ground coffee (you can vary the weight later to suit your tastes) and aim to produce double the weight of liquid espresso (again you can vary the ratio later to taste) in 25-30 seconds. If the shot pours too fast then grind finer and if it pours too slowly then grind more coarsely. Most importantly, how does the espresso taste? If it tastes bitter then grind more coarsely and if it tastes sour or overly acidic then try tightening the grind.

How fresh from roasting are you using your beans? I find that espresso can often be unpredictable if the coffee beans are too fresh. Try letting the beans rest for a few days before opening the bag and using them.


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## CoffeeMagic (Aug 7, 2011)

fatboyslim said:


> rosco - ...
> 
> For me the beans don't really matter when put through milk, although I can appreciate some beans taste better in cappuccino than others, its all about the shot.
> 
> ...


I disagree. There are beans that just don't come through milk at all and those that are generally too acidic for espresso.


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

I usually only get bitterness with a too course grind / too fast pour / blonde gusher....OR the roast is very dark....OR the temp is too high.

A short shot/ristretto via slightly too fine a grind produces a very sweet intense shot, thick and gloopy...tho thats based on my machine


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## Ian_G (Nov 10, 2011)

rosco29 said:


> Every shot I pull it tastes really bitter. ...... On a last attempt can a too fine of a grind produce a bitter taste over a coarser grind even if the tamp was ok and the shot looked good when poring into the shot glass?
> 
> Ross


Hi Ross The finer you grind the more bitter the shot. The coarser you go, the more sour. Also if your brew water is too hot you will get a stewed/burnt flavour. As a starting point weigh only 14 g of ground coffee and adjust the grind till you get 50 ml of espresso in 25 seconds. This will get you in the ballpark. From here you can adjust temperature, dose and time to get closer to your ideal. But remember to only adjust one variable at a time, otherwise you will never get to where you want to go.


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## MikeHag (Mar 13, 2011)

garydyke1 said:


> I usually only get bitterness with a too course grind / too fast pour / blonde gusher....OR the roast is very dark....OR the temp is too high.
> 
> A short shot/ristretto via slightly too fine a grind produces a very sweet intense shot, thick and gloopy...tho thats based on my machine


Agree with that, Gary.

But I also think it's difficult to discuss taste (bitterness, sourness etc) when our gobs aren't calibrated the same. In a non-professional forum such as this, my sweetness is someone elses bitterness, rightly or wrongly.


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## rosco29 (Jun 6, 2011)

Hi guys,

Ok, so I wanted to give you all an update as I've just made myself a capa and I'm quite pleased with the result I've just got, so it looks like things may be looking up. So, to start with I clearly had several things wrong. I'm currently using a dark roast from drury. It's called Espresso reale coffee. I ordered it online on Monday and it arrived yesterday. Not quite sure how fresh it is as there is no date stamp anywhere on the bag. Anyway, first of all it appears I was grinding a little too fine, hence the bitterness. This happened a few weeks ago because I wanted to get the true zero point on my rocky grinder to be the zero which is shown on the hopper so I removed the hopper and the top burr. After giving it a good clean I put it all back together and managed to get as close as possible to the zero Mark on the hopper where the burrs just started to touch. After I put everything back together the first fatal mistake I made was to not adjust the grind setting based on this new zero point. So when I got home today from work I fired up the silvia with a full tank of fresh cold water let her heat up for half an hour. I adjusted the grind and went too notches coarser. I'll admit I haven't got any scales yet so I'm just eye-balling the dosing into the preheated portafilter, using some wdt and finishing with a good firm and level tamp. After temperature surfing and a quick flush I locked the portafilter into the grouphead, hit the start button and began timing a 25 second shot. It was almost 6 seconds before espresso began to emerge from the portafilter. One thing I noticed this time was there was a steady even flow which began to pick up speed at around the 20 second Mark. It didn't drip slowly or unevenly like it did before. Even the smell of the shot was nice. Previously the smell was a little burnt. The crema looked quite good too. Some of you may also have read on another thread that I was previously struggling to get good microfoam. It really does pay to listen to others advice and get the milk as cold as possible before steaming. I had even resulted to buying a 3 hole tip which just made things worse. Anyway, after putting the stock 1 hole tip back on I started with very cold milk, approx 34f and managed to create fantastic microfoam. The milk literally doubled in quantity, without a big bubble in sight and it appeared to be foam right to the bottom of the pitcher....result! And finally for the taste test. Well....no bitterness like I was experiencing before. The coffee shone through the milk just as I was hoping it was. It was a fairly strong taste with a little bite, which is just how I like my coffee. I'm feeling much more positive about it all now. I know I need to invest in some scales and may even treat myself to a naked PF! Sorry for the essay, I just wanted to share this with everyone. Thanks for all your advice and feedback. It's nice to be part of a forum where other members give their time to assist others in need.

Cheers

Ross

PS - should a single shot be 7 grams?


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## garydyke1 (Mar 9, 2011)

MikeHag said:


> Agree with that, Gary.
> 
> But I also think it's difficult to discuss taste (bitterness, sourness etc) when our gobs aren't calibrated the same. In a non-professional forum such as this, my sweetness is someone elses bitterness, rightly or wrongly.


Hard to define 'sour' and 'bitter' but think of this :

Brush your teeth with minty toothpaste...then squeeze and lick a grapefruit skin/pith = clear bitterness to 99% of folk

Let a pint of milk go off and swill it round your mouth = clear sourness to 99% of folk


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## MikeHag (Mar 13, 2011)

Completely... but I do suspect that often on here people say bitter and mean sour, and vice versa, especially if they haven't been drinking straight espresso very long. It can be tough to relate an espresso taste to a grapefruit or off-milk at first. We're predisposed towards saying 'bitter' until we have drunk more and for longer. Just a thought


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