After over a year and a half trying to decide whether I should or not, (that’s a long time trying to decide anything!) I got myself an espresso machine. They’re not cheap for what’s basically a coffee brewer, hence the indecision.
Anyway, so far the purchase has proven well worth it. Coffee in the mornings is now so much nicer. Not to mention stronger!I only have it a few days, so I’m still trying it out at any given opportunity. It’s my new toy! The one I got is a Gaggia Baby Class.
After reading the instructions that came with it, it really is easy to make a very nice espresso (creamy Guinness head and all) or a larger mug of coffee. It takes a few minutes to warm up so I turn it on before a shower in the morning and afterward, I have a lovely cup of barista grade coffee. Yum.
I’m still trying to get the hang of steaming the milk though. If all you want is frothy milk, it’s actually really easy, but I’m trying to get good a making this “microfoam”; basically really small bubbles in the milk which give it a rich creamy texture. Done properly the milk will pour from the jug like cream. It apparently sweetens the flavour of the milk, but what I want to be able to do is make the finished cup of coffee look really nice. Did you ever get a cup of coffee with a heart shape made out in the milk? That’s what I’m trying to do and it only works if you can get the milk to this creamy texture.Check out the video below for what I’m trying to do..
I’ve been doing a bit of reading up on the machine I have at various places around the net, and it seems that the steam rod on domestic Gaggia machines aren’t that great for making this microfoam, but in the video the guy is using the same rod as what’s on my machine, so I know it’s possible!
