Coffee highlights from a visit to fabulous Melbourne
We’ve just returned from a fun family holiday to Melbourne. I had a bit more than a week without my own coffee machine and grinder and had the pleasure of using my brother-in-law’s Breville Dual Boiler and Breville Smart Grinder combination (thanks Rod). It’s great using a different set up as it reminds me how important familiarity is in any process requiring high levels of precision. I was able to produce top notch coffee shots with Rod’s set up but, unfortunately, only managed to produce high quality steamed milk once. It reminded me of the litres of milk that I went through when I was first learning to texture milk. Ah!!! The awful feeling of being a beginner again.
I also visited Rick Bond who customised my own coffee machine and also happened to design and build the excellent loudspeakers we have in our living area. Rick is known as the Coffee Machinist (http://coffeemachinist.com.au/) and does the most amazing work on coffee machines and grinders. The modifications he made to our coffee machine many years ago were the first iteration of what he is now doing with La Marzocco Lines Minis. The machine I used at the workshop is able to fully control flow from the group head via the machine’s paddle and, quite frankly, is the best coffee machine I have ever laid my hands on. The action of the paddle was beautiful, the sound of the pump was gorgeous, and the resulting coffee in the cup was excellent. If you’re ever considering ultimate upgrades/customisation then please reach out to Rick… you can’t go wrong!
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