For this iced coffee we used beans from our Choc Lab Blend which is a darker roast and cuts through the milk for a more intense coffee flavour. However, our medium roast, the Four Paws Blend, is still perfectly suited for iced coffee and is ideal if you prefer an iced coffee with a little less intensity.
Recipe:
1. Pour a single shot of espresso into a tall glass. If you don't have an espresso machine and use another coffee brewing method at home, just add coffee liquid to suit desired strength.
2. Add 3 - 4 cubes of ice.
3. Pour in preferred milk or milk alternative.
4. Add a dash of vanilla extract. Around half a teaspoon.
5. If needing to sweeten, add some brown sugar to desired taste and mix.
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We have listed some different methods below for making a beautiful cup of coffee at home, so you can pick a method to suit your preference.
Home Espresso Machine
The home espresso machine is one of the most popular methods for making cafe quality coffee from the comfort of your own home. Brands such as the Breville Barista Express and Delonghi La Specialista Arte are great entry level machines to get you started. While a home espresso machine is a larger investment and will take up more space on your kitchen counter than other coffee brewing methods, the quality of coffee drinks that can be produced and the convenience of an in-built grinder and milk frother make this option a must for any coffee lover that wants the full barista experience at home.
Stove Top (Moka Pot)
A stove-top coffee maker, or Moka pot, is a classic espresso brewer designed for the stove cooktop. With a distinctive three-chambered structure, it utilises steam pressure to push hot water through coffee grounds, delivering a strong and aromatic coffee. Loved for its simplicity and durability, the Moka pot is a timeless choice for those who appreciate a rich and intense cup of coffee.
Drip Filter Coffee Machine
A drip filter coffee machine is an appliance for the home that efficiently brews coffee by dripping hot water over ground coffee through a filter, ensuring a smooth and consistent extraction. With programmable features, it provides convenience and customization for a flavorful cup of coffee. Brands such as Breville, Auspure and Sunbeam all make a quality and affordable machine for the home market.
Pour Over Coffee Maker
The pour-over coffee brewing method is a hands-on and precise approach to making coffee. It entails pouring hot water over freshly ground coffee in a cone-shaped device like the Hario V60 or Chemex. This method allows total control over variables such as water temperature, brew time and grind size, resulting in a clean and nuanced cup of coffee. Loved for its simplicity, pour-over allows coffee enthusiasts to customise flavors and experiment with brewing parameters using minimal equipment.
AeroPress Coffee Maker
The Aeropress is a compact coffee maker that brews rich and flavorful coffee through a simple process. Ground coffee steeps in hot water, and the plunger creates pressure to push the brewed coffee through a filter. This method ensures a smooth and full-bodied cup, making the Aeropress popular for its versatility, portability, and ease of use.
The All-in-One Convenience:
At first glance, the Breville Barista Express impresses with its sleek stainless-steel design and compact footprint. However, its true strengths lie in its all-in-one functionality. Combining a conical burr grinder with a semi-automatic espresso machine, the Barista Express aims to simplify the home brewing process, making it very accessible to first time espresso machine users.
Grind, Tamp, Extract:
One of the standout features of the Barista Express is its integrated conical burr grinder. This not only eliminates the need for a separate grinder but also gives you total control over the freshness and coarseness of your coffee grounds. The machine's digital temperature control and pre-infusion function further contribute to the extraction process, providing a balanced and flavorful espresso shot with each use.
User-Friendly Interface:
Navigating the Breville Barista Express is made easy, thanks to its user-friendly interface. The intuitive dials and buttons make adjusting grind size, dose, and extraction time straightforward. For those new to the world of espresso, the included pressurized portafilter offers a forgiving learning curve, allowing users to achieve quality shots without the need for advanced barista skills. There are also plenty of tutorials online for dialing in the extraction on this machine.
Steam Wand Mastery:
Steaming milk to perfection is an essential skill for any aspiring home barista, and the Barista Express does not disappoint in this regard. The steam wand is designed for optimal milk frothing, offering both ease of use and versatility. Whether you prefer a velvety microfoam for lattes or a dry froth for cappuccinos, you have the ability to froth the milk to your desired consistency.
Build Quality and Durability:
Investing in a coffee machine is a commitment, and users expect their purchase to stand the test of time. The Breville Barista Express boasts a sturdy build with high-quality materials, instilling confidence in its durability. Regular maintenance and care are essential, but with proper attention, this machine has the potential to be a long-lasting fixture in your kitchen. Personally, we have been using a Breville Barista Express for 2 years now with no issues what so ever.
The Price Tag:
While the Breville Barista Express offers a comprehensive coffee-making experience, it comes with a price tag that may give some potential buyers pause. However, the cost can be justified by considering the machine's multi-functionality, build quality, and the convenience it brings to your daily coffee ritual at home. If you're not in a rush and happy to wait for a sale such as Black Friday, you will be able to save a considerable amount off the standard price of the Breville Barista Express.
Conclusion:
In the realm of home espresso machines, the Breville Barista Express stands as a compelling choice for those seeking a balance between convenience and control. Its integrated grinder, user-friendly interface, and impressive steam wand make it a valuable investment for both beginners and experienced coffee enthusiasts. While the upfront cost may be a consideration, the overall experience and the potential for mastering the art of espresso at home make the Breville Barista Express a worthy addition to your kitchen.
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]]>While Faithful Hound Coffee is based Adelaide, we ship our beans Australia wide and offer two delicious blends to get your hands on, our Four Paws Blend and Choc Lab Blend. We focus on small batch roasting using specialty, high grade coffee beans. For a medium intensity coffee with beautiful chocolate and berry notes, try our Four Paws Blend. However, if you prefer a stronger, more bold coffee experience, try our Choc Lab Blend.
1. Zimmah Coffee
Based in Hobart, Zimmah Coffee is a boutique roastery focusing on roasting high grade coffee beans for their blends and single origin coffees.Drop in to their cafe and roastery or order beans online. Try their Devil and the Deep blend for a bold and full bodied coffee experience.
2. De Lacey Coffee Roasters
Another great coffee roasting company based in Hobart, De Lacey Coffee Roasters focuses on small-batch roasting, emphasising the unique flavors created by their Loring roaster. They offer a range of blends and single origin coffees that can also be ground to your requirements on order.
3. Villino Coffee Roasters
With a cafe situated in the heart of Hobart and their roastery located in Moonah, Villino Coffee Roasters is a haven for coffee enthusiasts in the Hobart area. Order beans online or stop into one of their cafes or roastery to pick up a bag and grab a coffee beverage while you're at it.
4. Tasmanian Coffee Roasters
A local favorite, Tasmanian Coffee Roasters is located in Kingston, Tasmania. One of the few roasters in Tasmania with the Australian Certified Organic (ACO) accreditation, they offer a large range of coffee beans to suit your brewing style and taste preference.
5. Ritual Coffee Roasters
If you're in Launceston, be sure to check out local roasters, Ritual Coffee. With a great variety of single origin coffees and blends to choose from, order online or picking up from their roastery.
6. Cheeky Devil Roasters
Located in Kingston, Cheeky Devil Roasters is a boutique roastery providing ethically sourced and fair trade coffee beans that can either be ordered online or at Salamanca Market. They are also doing their bit to help out the local Tasmanian Devil by donating one dollar from every kilo sold to the Save the Tasmanian Devil program.
While we roast our coffee out of Adelaide, we ship our beans Australia wide and offer two delicious blends for you to get your hands on, our Four Paws Blend and Choc Lab Blend. Both blends are small batch roasted using specialty, high grade coffee beans that perfectly suit espresso style coffee machines, French press or stove top methods. For a medium intensity coffee with beautiful chocolate and berry notes, go with our Four Paws Blend. For those who prefer a stronger, more intense coffee experience, check out our darker roasted Choc Lab Blend. Our coffee also helps to support local dog rescue shelter, Scruffer Lovers.
With cafes located in Fitzroy, the CBD and Chadstone, house hold name in specialty coffee, Industry Beans, are not only serving beautiful coffees with a focus on single origins, but also great food options if you're feeling peckish. Hop online to check out their wide selection of coffee beans on offer. You can't go wrong with the Fitzroy Blend.
3. Seven Seeds
Long time veterans in the Melbourne specialty coffee scene, Seven Seeds have been pioneering the way since 2007. With cafe locations in Carlton and the CBD, and an epic range of coffee beans to purchase and brew at home, these guys are a must for any serious coffee lover.
One of our favourite roasters in Melbourne, Rumble Coffee, are roasting up some seriously delicious coffees out if their Kensington roastery. Stop in to order a coffee or pickup a bag of freshly roasted beans. You can't go past the Haymaker blend!
5. Code Black
With cafe locations spread across Melbourne and a HQ Roastery in Brunswick that you can't miss, Code Black are synonymous with the Melbourne specialty coffee scene. If you're heading into the roastery, be sure to check out their beautiful and shiny Loring S70 coffee roaster through the roastery window inside the cafe.
6. Market Lane
Specialty coffee roasters, Market Lane Coffee, have some of the most beautiful coffees on offer in Melbourne. With a number of cafes located around the city and a wide variety of coffee beans to choose from and order online, this is one roaster that cannot be missed.
OGs of the Melbourne coffee scene since 1989, Jasper Coffee are still roasting up some of the best coffee available in the city and are a must try for any coffee enthusiast. Duck into one of the four stores they have across Melbourne and feast your eyes on the huge variety of coffee beans they have on display for purchase.
]]>Over very own freshly roasted coffee beans will suit the espresso style of your DeLonghi La Specialista perfectly. Try our Four Paws Blend for a well rounded medium intensity blend or try our Choc Lab Blend if a bolder, stronger coffee is more to your liking.
Located in Brunswick, Melbourne, Code Black Coffee Roasters produce some seriously good beans. Try their 3056 Blend which is their signature espresso blend and perfect for the home coffee machine.
3. Seven Seeds
Also located in Melbourne, Seven Seeds Coffee Roasters have multiple cafes across the city so you're never far away from a good coffee. For home use try their House Espresso Blend for a well balanced, great all round coffee.
Roasting out of Sydney, White Horse Coffee have a great variety of specialty coffee beans on offer. Look no further than their White Knight Espresso Blend which is the staple of their roasting line up.
Based in Newcastle, NSW, Glitch Coffee Roasters have a great line up of coffees to try on the home espresso machine. Go for either their Haywire or Broasters blends, you can't go wrong.
Roasting out of Perth and with a large variety of coffee blends to choose from, Brew Coffee Roasters have something to suit every coffee lovers palate. We recommend starting with their Voodoo Blend for a great espresso coffee.
]]>Roasted locally in the western suburbs of Adelaide, we offer two delicious coffee bean blends for you to get your hands on, our Four Paws Blend and Choc Lab Blend. Both blends are small batch roasted using specialty, high grade coffee beans and perfectly suit espresso style coffee machines, French press or stove top methods. For a medium intensity coffee with beautiful chocolate and berry notes, go with our Four Paws Blend. For those who prefer a stronger, more intense coffee experience, our Choc Lab Blend will be right up your alley. Our coffee also helps to support local dog rescue shelter, Scruffer Lovers.
2. B3 Coffee
B3 is a great Adelaide based specialty coffee roaster focusing on small batch roasting and sourcing high quality coffee beans. They have a cafe in Blackwood where you can try their coffees or purchase some beans to take home. Try their Seasonal Blend for a great drinking coffee all year round.
3. Dawn Patrol
Starting out in Kangarilla and now located in the McLaren Vale, Dawn Patrol offer a wide variety of specialty coffee beans to try and are one of our favourite local roasters. If you're looking for a top notch espresso blend, give their Cheetah or Toucan espresso blends a go.
With a big focus on offering high quality coffees that are both traded in a transparent and sustainable manner and traceable back to their producers, Monastery is a must try for coffee lovers in Adelaide. If you're not sure what to try first, their Seasonal Blend is a great starting point.
5. HARK Coffee
With cafes in both Rose Park and Brighton, duck in for a great coffee or grab a bag of their beans that have been air roasted to bring out some of the delicate coffee flavours you may have not experienced before.
Located in the seaside town of Port Elliot, De Groot Coffee Co. should be on your list of go to cafes in the area if you're after a seriously good cup of coffee. With their coffee beans roasted on site, you can also grab a bag to take home!
If you're heading over the to Eyre Peninsula or just want to order some great coffee beans online, be sure to check out Port Lincoln based coffee roaster, Boston Bean Coffee Co.
Located on the east side of Adelaide in Kent Town, Cafetal Coffee Co. is a cafe and micro roastery specialising in coffee beans sourced from Colombia. Stop in for a great coffee made by the friendly team or pickup a bag of their delicious beans to take home.
]]>We would be remiss to not mention the two delicious coffees available from Faithful Hound Coffee Co, the Four Paws Blend and Choc Lab Blend. Both blends are small batch roasted using specialty, high grade coffee beans and perfectly suit espresso style coffee machines. For a medium intensity coffee with beautiful chocolate and berry notes, go with our Four Paws Blend. For those who prefer a stronger, more intense coffee experience, our Choc Lab Blend will be right up your alley. Our coffee also helps to support Australian dog rescue shelters!
2. B3 Coffee
B3 is an Adelaide based specialty coffee roaster and cafe focusing on small batch roasting and sourcing quality coffee beans. Try their Seasonal Blend for a great drinking coffee all year round.
A Newcastle based coffee roaster, Floozy Coffee produce some exceptional tasting coffees which are roasted on their state of the art Loring S7 Nighthawk. Try their Golden Hour Espresso Blend for a bright and fruity tasting coffee.
With cafes in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, chances are there is an Industry Beans café near you. Pop in for some great food and specialty roasted coffee. You can also order their delicious coffee beans online, like their Fitzroy Street Blend.
Located in Perth, Offshoot Coffee focus on sourcing and roasting some of the most exclusive and unique coffees available. Try their El Granadillo single origion coffee for some lovely flavours from this Guatemalan variety.
]]>To dial in your espresso machine and get the best extraction, this will take some trial and error and so be prepared to go through a few beans. The below process will also need to be repeated if you change coffee brands, as different bean varieties and roast styles will extract differently and need to be re-dialed in. For example, our Four Paws Blend will extract differently to our Choc Lab Blend.
When dialling in new coffee beans for your Breville Barista Express there are three main variables that need to be adjusted in order to achieve the best coffee extraction. These are the grind size, grind rate and tamping your coffee.
1. Adjusting the Grind Size:
On the left-hand side of your Breville Barista Express is a wheel with numbers that is used to adjust the grind size of your coffee beans. Adjusting the grind size either up (higher number, courser grind) or down (lower number, finer grind) will change how fast water flows through the coffee grinds when pulling a shot. Start by grinding at the number 10 position on the wheel and adjust either higher or lower depending if the coffee shot is under extracted or over extracted.
2. Grind Rate:
The grind rate is the amount of coffee grinds being discharged into the portafilter basket after activating the grind function on your machine. This can be adjusted by turning the 'Grind Amount' button to change the quantity of coffee being discharged. Adjusting this produces either more or less coffee and will affect the rate of coffee extraction.
3. Tamping
Tamping coffee is the process of increasing the coffee's density in the portatfilter basket by using the tamp supplied with your machine to press down onto the coffee grinds, compacting the coffee. This then affects the flow of water through the coffee when being extracted. The harder you press down, the more compact and dense the coffee will become making it harder for water to pass though. When tamping your coffee you want to achieve a nice even distribution of weight when pressing down so the coffee is evenly compacted. Try and remember the pressure being applied so you can replicate the same pressure or make adjustments next time.
To achieve the perfect coffee extraction with your Breville Barista Express, you will need to play around with the above three variables until the needle on your machine's pressure gauge sits somewhere in the middle of the dark grey area on the dial during extraction. Again, expect to go through a bit of coffee while changing each variable and testing. We find the best coffee shots are achieved when the needle on the pressure gauge sits three quarters high in the grey area as shown in the below photo.
Need some more coffee beans? Try our Four Paws Blend for a medium intensity roast or our Choc Lab Blend if you prefer a stronger coffee.
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