Solved: Getting a Decent Cappuccino

RJM62

RJM62

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Geek on the Hill
One of the very few things I don't like about living in the boonies is the difficulty in obtaining a decent cup of cappuccino. When I lived in the city, there was a late-night cappuccino bar within walking distance. Here, not so much.

Gas station cappuccino is, of course, basically undrinkable (aside from being too sugary for my DM-II). The the nearest real cappuccino bar I know of is about 37 miles away, but they close at 9:00 p.m., and a 74-mile round trip for a cappuccino is a bit excessive.

There's a pizzeria about 11 miles away that has passable cappuccino (and will even sweeten it with Stevia as long as I bring it with me); but again, like everything else around here, they close early. So if I want a late-night cappuccino while burning the midnight oil updating a server or banging away at some site or another, I'm out of luck.

Of course, cappuccino machines are easy enough to get, but the problem is that I'm your basic tightwad thrifty person.

Yesterday, I finally broke down. I'd been lusting in my heart for the DeLonghi BCO330T combination machine for months because of the highly positive reviews and my brother's recommendation; and in a moment of weakness, I tracked one down at a store a bit over 50 miles away, and rushed out to buy it before the temptation passed.

I'm glad to report that the machine exceeded my expectations. After only minimal reading of the manual, I was able to produce an excellent cappuccino last night on my first try, as well as a wonderful half-pot of drip coffee this morning.

Life is good.

-Rich
 

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Well, thats very cool indeed. Just think of the fuel saved and if you consider the cost of a restaurant bought cappuccino then your home machine prolly is "thrifty" in the long run.
 
I am impressed that you got such good results with such a humble machine.
 
When I was living in Los Angeles we had a cappuccino machine at work; very nice purchase I say.
 
I'm also very impressed. The machine performs much better than I thought it would, considering its low price.

In fact, the low price was one of the reasons I initially hesitated, as strange as that sounds -- my brother's recommendation notwithstanding. $179.99 is cheap for an espresso/cappuccino machine that actually works (commercial machines on the low end of the spectrum start at about $2,000.00 or so), but it would be a lot to pay for something that didn't work.

What nudged me over the "buy / no-buy" decision line was when the manager at Bed, Bath, and Beyond suggested that I buy it and use it for two weeks, with his promise that if I didn't like it, he would refund my money in full; so all I was risking was the gas.

-Rich
 
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I hope you used your 20% off coupon there! We bought a DeLonghi espresso machine several years ago at BB&B (ESAM3300), that coupon saved us around a hundred bucks. I have to say, it's been incredible. Espresso, cappucino, Americano, and it will even dispense hot water for tea of cocoa though we never use it for that. We never knew what we were missing before.

My only complaints are that the grinder is pretty loud, and about twice a year now it will spring a leak. The internal tubing connections are made with O-rings and little spring clips. All metric, of course. Every once in a while we'll notice it peeing on the counter top, and find a little spring clip broken. Vibration, I guess. Anyway, I just bought a stockpile of O-rings and spring clips from McMaster-Carr and we're now set for he next 10 years or so.

You're entirely correct -- it's really nice to be able to get GOOD coffee without having to drive somewhere and shell out way more than a cup of coffee should cost.
 
RJM62 said:
$179.99 is cheap for an espresso/cappuccino machine that actually works (commercial machines on the low end of the spectrum start at about $2,000.00 or so), but it would be a lot to pay for something that didn't work.
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The commercial ones work a bit differently. They have a boiler with a pressure pump to resupply water. In the morning, you have to heat the whole thing up, and it takes a while to build enough pressure for the first cup. Some people with more money than brains go out and buy a professional machine and then get upset if they can't just instantaneously get a cup of coffee. The consumer grade units just have a little heating element that turns the pressurized water into steam.

I have a Krups, this current one lasted 10 years so far. Before that I had another Krups that lasted 10 years (before it left me along with my ex).

Key for these things to last is to use water that that is low in calcium and the occasional pack of powdered muriatic acid :yesnod:.
 
Jeanie said:
Well, thats very cool indeed. Just think of the fuel saved and if you consider the cost of a restaurant bought cappuccino then your home machine prolly is "thrifty" in the long run.
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Add what you won't be spending at starbucks.... (and we think AvGas by the gallon is expensive...)
 
That's cool Rich. I really enjoy a good cup of coffee so may have to invest in one of these or similar. Thanks for the report.

As others have said, the payback period will be relatively short considering gas prices, and the cost of coffee at "gourmet" coffee shops.
 
Sigh. I've returned from the land of cheap cappuccino, to the world of Starbucks as of last night.
 
Sac Arrow said:
Sigh. I've returned from the land of cheap cappuccino, to the world of Starbucks as of last night.
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Welcome home. You can get their authentic drip coffee in SF at a hole in the wall on Clement if you miss the condensed milk THAT much.
 
AggieMike88 said:
Add what you won't be spending at starbucks.... (and we think AvGas by the gallon is expensive...)
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The nearest Starbucks is at a state college ~50 miles overland, so the round-trip by car comes to about $16.00 for gas. I'm not crazy about Starbucks, but sometimes when I'm in town anyway I'll stop by to make believe I'm young again... sigh...

-Rich
 
kimberlyanne546 said:
Welcome home. You can get their authentic drip coffee in SF at a hole in the wall on Clement if you miss the condensed milk THAT much.
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Oh, no, I don't do condensed milk. Just drip coffee, no milk, no sugar.
 
Some cappuccino observations since I first purchased the machine:

1. Double cappuccinos (cappuccini?) should be limited to two per day -- three at the most -- unless they're made with decaffeinated espresso. Or you like buzzing around like a demented bee. Whichever.

2. The best balance of flavor and frothiness is obtained by using Land-O-Lakes Fat-Free Half and Half. (Cheap store brands are NOT the same.)

3. The colder the milk, the better the froth.

4. A pack of Stevia and a couple of drops of vanilla extract in the milk prior to frothing makes for a nice change of pace.

5. Cappuccino machines tend to attract new friends, especially when the nearest place to buy a cup is >10 miles away (and overpriced, to boot).

6. After using an acid solution to clean and decalcify a cappuccino machine, run clean water through it for at least three or four additional cycles after the water comes out clear, before using it to make coffee again. Trust me on this one. Really.

7. If the machine's instructions say not to tamp the coffee grounds down, then don't tamp the coffee grounds down. Trust me on this one, too.

8. If you disregard No. 7, then when you try to remove the brewing assembly after brewing your espresso, you may learn that quite a bit of back pressure can accumulate in an espresso machine. You may also learn that espresso grinds get quite hot.

9. Medaglia D'Oro decaffeinated espresso isn't bad at all.

10. If the instructions say to thoroughly clean the frothing wand tip after every use, then thoroughly clean the frothing wand tip after every use. In fact, get into the habit of removing the frothing wand tip and tossing it into a cup of hot water after every use, just so you don't forget to thoroughly clean it. If you do forget to thoroughly clean it after use, really nasty things happen to the milk that remains in the tip. Don't ask me how I know.

-Rich
 
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On yachts there is invariably an expensive Miele or other push button super floof cappuccino machine. It is also invariably broken with a cheap DeLonghi on the counter next to it. The owners/guests never know the difference in what they're drinking.
 
Henning said:
On yachts there is invariably an expensive Miele or other push button super floof cappuccino machine. It is also invariably broken with a cheap DeLonghi on the counter next to it. The owners/guests never know the difference in what they're drinking.
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I'm actually amazed at how well the cheap DeLonghi works, considering that there are no consumables from which the company might otherwise generate continuing revenues.

I've noticed that I have to run the cleaning solution through it every 60 - 80 uses, however, which is probably because of the spring water here. It's mechanically filtered and UV sterilized, but neither removes the minerals from the water.

I've started using a tap-mount filter for coffee water. That might reduce the cleaning frequency a bit.

-Rich
 
RJM62 said:
I'm actually amazed at how well the cheap DeLonghi works, considering that there are no consumables from which the company might otherwise generate continuing revenues.

I've noticed that I have to run the cleaning solution through it every 60 - 80 uses, however, which is probably because of the spring water here. It's mechanically filtered and UV sterilized, but neither removes the minerals from the water.

I've started using a tap-mount filter for coffee water. That might reduce the cleaning frequency a bit.

-Rich
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Right, the issue is calcification and mineral scale. More expensive machines actually measure resistance and tell you when by need. Depending on the water it's 40-400 cups. You can also run some vinegar through it now and then and just keep it clean. When they are bad I'll run glacial acetic through. Trying to keep a supply of tablets on board a travelling boat isn't a great protocol.
 
RJM62 said:
Some cappuccino observations since I first purchased the machine:

1. Double cappuccinos (cappuccini?) should be limited to two per day -- three at the most -- unless they're made with decaffeinated espresso. Or you like buzzing around like a demented bee. Whichever.
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ROFL! Yep. BTDT.

RJM62 said:
9. Medaglia D'Oro decaffeinated espresso isn't bad at all.
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Was surprised to see that brand name... many moons ago, their instant stuff was awful but WAY better than anyone else's instant stuff, when working multiple jobs and an overnight shift... or six in a row...
 
Almond milk makes a superior cappuccino froth. It's probably the best of all the milk-like materials that I've tried, actually, and has a nice, slightly nutty flavor that complements the espresso.

Please note that the attached cappuccino froth was made from Blue Diamond Unsweetened Almond Breeze Vanilla Almond Milk, with a pack of stevia added before frothing. I add the stevia because it's supposed to be good for my DM2, more than for the flavor (although it does sweeten it nicely).

I don't know if omitting the stevia would affect the frothiness of the froth, so YMMV.

-Rich
 

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Here is a little tidbit that few people know about. Decaffeinated coffee will send your cholesterol count through the roof, roughly 30% higher on average.

I use a Bunn commercial coffee maker at home. It just makes drip coffee through a basket. The key to a great cup of coffee is more about the temperature that it is brewed, than the coffee you use.

If coffee is brewed at the right temperature, all but the most discerning connoisseur would be hard pressed to tell the difference between freshly ground vs from a can.

After I've opened a can, I keep it in the freezer. That maintains it's freshness fairly well.

This is the coffee machine I have. http://www.cw-usa.com/equipment-commercial-coffeepotbrewers-bunn-pourover-vpr.html

Living in San Diego, with it's incredibly bad tasting and hard tap water, I only use distilled water in my machine. I opened one up I had been using for years, it's water tank was about one third filled with a kind of yellowish rock formations that had been leached out of the tap water I was using.

Rohr Industries in San Diego was fined big time for dumping that exact same stuff into San Diego Bay. Apparently it contains all sorts of bad stuff when it becomes solidified like that. Mercury, copper, lead, medical byproducts, etc.

-John
 
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John Baker said:
Here is a little tidbit that few people know about. Decaffeinated coffee will send your cholesterol count through the roof, roughly 30% higher on average.
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I read that somewhere a few months ago. Apparently there's some curiosity whether the caffeine itself lowers cholesterol, some other compound in the coffee raises it when the caffeine is removed, or if it's something about the decaffeination process itself.

Whatever the case, I've stopped using the decaf except once in a while late at night. I keep it around mainly for guests who prefer it.

John Baker said:
Living in San Diego, with it's incredibly bad tasting and hard tap water, I only use distilled water in my machine. I opened one up I had been using for years, it's water tank was about one third filled with a kind of yellowish rock formations that had been leached out of the tap water I was using.
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Yeah, I noticed the water was pretty foul when I was there last year. It was probably the worst water I'd ever tasted, except for when I lived in Long Island for a few years. In Long Island, we had a cartridge-type water filter in the line, and the cartridges lasted maybe a month before they were clogged with black gunk. Scary.

The water I have now is well water, and at the last place was spring water. Both are of primo quality, mainly because despite being well over a hundred miles north of NYC, this whole area is part of the NYC watershed and has been for generations.

The watershed restrictions are kind of a pain: Being in the watershed means everything from septic tanks, to what they put on the roads in the winter (sand rather than salt in most places), to where gas stations and car repair garages can be built, to where you can cast a fishhook, to how you throw out your garbage, is more tightly regulated. I actually had to sign a form stating that I understood and would comply with the regulations, take a verbal quiz, and obtain a permit, before being allowed to drop off trash at the dump transfer station.

On the other hand, the City picks up most of the cost for implementing whatever regulations or other environment enhancements that they require over and above the ordinary; and I have to admit that the annoying restrictions have indeed been effective at keeping the water in good shape for everyone -- not just those who draw their water from the reservoirs. And that makes for excellent coffee.

So you take the good with the bad.

-Rich
 
I use bottle water for all my cooking and drinking. I won't even feed city water to my animals, they get bottled as well. The city is almost ready to start mixing treated sewage water into the reservoirs. Every month or so they show some expert or other drinking a glass of the stuff.

I'm sure it will be OK at first, but what about twenty years from now? Old equipment, bureaucrats who attend their job doing little more than watching the clock.

It'll be another one of those "We certainly have learned from this mistake" explanations of why a thousand people died from drinking it, and why they should continue on with their good work of continually improving the people of San Diego's water supply.

-John
 
I feel your pain. I enjoy a good cup of coffee occassionally and I was at school one day and they sell "Starbucks Coffee" in the cafeteria so unknowingly I get a 16 oz cup. $4.36 later I was disgusted at the "coffee" they served.

I normally will only go to Starbucks if Im given a gift card btw.
 
You want dangerous water? We have relatives that live on a hog farm in northwest Iowa. I couldn't even stand to have ice in my tea... you could *smell* the farm fertilizer. It was by far the nastiest water I have ever seen a human being intentionally drink, and I've seen people drink Schlitz.

When they built their new house, they included a reverse osmosis system to clean it up. It's drinkable now.
 
bartmc said:
You read the list backwards, J'ville is better than San Diego, Pensacola had the worst. Panhandle FL does have some rancid water... There's a reason they sell water in bulk out of vending machines there. I wouldn't drink it and have had second thoughts about bathing in it.
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Dont throw the whole panhandle in with them. I live an hour away from Pensacola and our water is nice and clean.

I have no idea where PColas water comes from but ours comes from natural springs.
 
Important update:

the combination almond / coconut milk yields a froth with a nice, interesting flavor, but it's somewhat more fragile.

-Rich
 
RJM62 said:
Important update:

the combination almond / coconut milk yields a froth with a nice, interesting flavor, but it's somewhat more fragile.

-Rich
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Fragile? As in you can readily take advantage of it's full bodied characteristics?
 
Sac Arrow said:
Fragile? As in you can readily take advantage of it's full bodied characteristics?
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More along the lines of it being more likely to collapse when being transferred from the frothing vessel to the top of the espresso. It's more delicate and less firm.

The almond milk itself provides superior froth compared to dairy milk, but the addition of the coconut milk reduces the expansion coefficient quite a bit. I haven't measured it precisely, but I'd say the volumetric expansion coefficient of the almond / coconut mix is roughly one-third lower than that of the almond milk alone. I suspect that differences in the amino acid chains may have something to do with this, but that's just speculation.

I'll still finish using the half-gallon of almond / coconut milk, but I'm undecided as to whether the added flavor (which is pleasant and interesting -- but then again, I've always liked coconut) is worth the difference in froth volume and firmness.

-Rich
 
Just as an update to my earlier post...

After about five years of heavy use -- my wife and I drink a LOT of coffee -- we pretty much wore out the grinder on our De Longhi super-automatic. The replacement grinder is a new design that is QUIET compared to the old one! It's blessedly quiet, in fact. And it grinds a ton better as well, which means we're now getting very rich, very hot coffee with a beautiful layer of crema on it. It works better now than it did new. I'm thinking I may order a new pump and heater, just to make sure I can keep it going when the manufacturer discontinues parts support.
 
Just upgraded to a DēLonghi BCO330T. Any tips/tricks or hints?
 
Hi Rich, Thanks for posting this thread.

I am a heavy coffee lover. I probably drink between 10-20 espressos a day including the cafe conleche and cappuccinos.

I went through about 6 Mr coffee machines and making my own cappuccino at home. If you are like me eventually you might progress in coffee makers. It got to the point I was spending over $800 per month at Starbucks so one day sitting in a SB I looked on the wall and found the new love of my life. It was a Delonghi Magnifica 3300. It holds 1 ltr of water, about 11 oz of fresh coffee beans makes up to about 14 shots of espresso without refill and you can adjust the size of the shot .75-1.5 oz; three settings of dose of coffee grounds per shot and finally the powder granulated size of coffee (for humidity) to get the perfect pull every time. Now my home coffee is usually better than the drive through Starbucks.

Not everyone needs to have a Super automatic machine but I have a problem in that if I touch five items in the morning before my coffee I will drop 3 of them. So I needed a 1 touch coffee maker.

Here is a photo of it. I probably by about 4.5-6 lbs of espresso beans a month which is a great savings from the $800 per month I was spending. Although the list price on this first machine was $1699 I bought it on sale close out just after Christmas for $400 at SB.

After about 3 years I so loved it, I hated staying over night without it. I decided to have one at my girl friends house as I was spending significant amounts of time there, and one for my office. The 2nd and 3rd ones I bought I upgraded to the Delonghi Rialto which also has the milk hopper to keep in the refrig until you make your coffee and plugs into the front in seconds to make fully automatic cappuccinos and latte's and even froths the milk for you too. They are listed for $2499-3200 but you can find them refurb in new condition on ebay for $400. what a deal. I've had great luck with ebay.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/DeLonghi-Ri...all_Kitchen_Appliances_US&hash=item2ec4e0bc45

I recommend buying water although any filtered water is fine. I use filtered water at home or I buy 5 gallon jugs of filtered water delivered. If you can taste the difference it is worth the price IMO. Our city water is not bad so I am sometimes slow to refill the water bottles.

Finally, I found some of the best tasting coffee beans at 1 1/2 lbs for $9.99 at World Market furniture stores. They have at least 5 different espresso roasts for the same price. 24 oz $9.99.

My family and friends always buy me gift gourmet espressos from Italy or what have you but they are often to acidic or bitter no matter what adjustments I make on the machine. I recommend Amalfi Coast Espresso at World Market. Cannot beat the price or quality IMO. Good Luck. If you cannot get to World Market, Sams Club now has 2 lb bags of whole espresso for $16.99 and if you order online Seattle's best is not bad. Generally I do not find that price has any positive relationship to flavor or quality.

http://www.worldmarket.com/product/...56DC-957C-218221EB0CA5&clickid=mybuys_prod_cs
 

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HockeyMom said:
Just upgraded to a DēLonghi BCO330T. Any tips/tricks or hints?
Click to expand...

I thought I was going to open a espresso shop in 2000 so i went to las Vegas annual coffeefest and took a espresso seminar.

here are the basics of making espresso (by the way just as you have to have a good marinara to get good Italian food you have to have a good espresso to make a good cappuccino or latte).

Those $19 walmart grinders might not ever get you where you need to be for a perfect espresso. But you can try.

Adjust the grind to fine powder as fine as you can and still pump water through it to get the most crema. If water doesn't come through then you got it too powdery. Some days you can make it more powdery than others depending on the humidity. Humid days you make it more corse. Dry days you make it more fine.

You want a beautiful honey colored streem of espresso dripping out of the machine into the cup. When it is fully pulled there should be a yellow crema top on the entire cup of espresso. It should be 1/8" thick.

Crema effects quality of taste as your olfactory senses are paramount drinking coffee (or wine). as the tiny bubbles pop over the several minutes you drink it adds to your senses and pleasure. If you are not getting crema like that then you are either over extracting (comes out to fast) or under extracting coffee (doesn't come out fast enough).

control crema by pulling a shot in about 50-60 seconds. You say how do I do that the machine pump amount and speed is automatic? well the density of the ground powder coffee in the doser effects that.

second, when frothing milk do not move the wand around the whole container (froth cowboy) will froth. Rich is right, colder is better. I use whole milk as that is most of the dairy I get but 2% froths better as well.

Other tips, if you like zest add a tiny bit of 7 pepers spice mix from Sams club. Sprinkle a tiny bit on top of the coffee after you dampen it. Experiment with the amount. This gives a tiny tingly feeling as you drink your coffee.

This might not work well with milk added drinks but it is great if you love espresso straight with a spoon of sugar/splenda. If you use artificial sweetners experiment with them all as some do not taste good with coffee. I have good luck with spenda or aspertame but not with the pink stuff or the green stuff.
 
RJM62 said:
I'm actually amazed at how well the cheap DeLonghi works, considering that there are no consumables from which the company might otherwise generate continuing revenues.

I've noticed that I have to run the cleaning solution through it every 60 - 80 uses, however, which is probably because of the spring water here. It's mechanically filtered and UV sterilized, but neither removes the minerals from the water.

I've started using a tap-mount filter for coffee water. That might reduce the cleaning frequency a bit.

-Rich
Click to expand...

Our city water is soft and the water I buy is soft as well but I get at least 300-600 cups between descaler treatments. I am moving to the country with hard water and I don't think I will like the taste so I will stay with buying 5 gallon jugs of store filtered water at the grocery store for $1 per gallon. PITA as far as moving it around but the alternative is not that good.
 
I use a Nespresso machine ( Néstlé ).

They are very popular in Europe and in Israel.

It's worked flawlessly for the past 5 years...

It's extremely easy to use and maintain....works with coffee capsules ( espresso, lungo...)

There is a large choice of coffee varieties, all of them excellent...

Can't drink coffee at Starbucks - it's just total crap...and adding tons of sugar, whipped cream and caramel doesn't make coffee taste any better....
( no wonder they went bankrupt in Israel under less than a year...)

http://www.nespresso.com/worldofcoffee/
 
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Armageddon Aviator said:
I use a Nespresso machine ( Néstlé ).

They are very popular in Europe and in Israel.

It's worked flawlessly for the past 5 years...

It's extremely easy to use and maintain....works with coffee capsules ( espresso, lungo...)

There is a large choice of coffee varieties, all of them excellent...

Can't drink coffee at Starbucks - it's just total crap...and adding tons of sugar, whipped cream and caramel doesn't make coffee taste any better....
( no wonder they went bankrupt in Israel under less than a year...)

http://www.nespresso.com/worldofcoffee/
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I see them advertised here in the US all the time. They Look Convenient but I drink too much coffee to pay $1 per cup for those plugs. If I am going to have an investment in a machine to make great coffee I should be able to use any whole bean coffee I like and which works out to about 15-20 cents per coffee.

Secondly, I have some concerns about running 190 d F water through a plastic cup. With BPA and plasticizes leaching into foods and waters I just prefer avoid plastic food delivery systems. I avoided the whole Green Mountain coffees for the same two reasons. I guess I would tolerate one in a hotel occasionally but that is about the extent that I would use them.

Still I can see the attraction for some. They are pretty and simple and you say good.
 
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