The Tamp or No Tamp Discussion

An interesting topic has come up with growing frequency on espresso forums that I find very interesting.   Is tamping the espresso grounds into the portafiter really necessary?  Some people have proposed that tamping is not needed.  The reason being that 9 bars of pressure is certainly more than anyone ever tamps by hand.  A simple 30 pound tamp is no match for the powerful 9 bars (126 pounds per square inch, give or take) delivered by a good espresso machine.  Seems simple enough.   You can just let the pump do the tamping for you, right?  However, at the same time, I find this discussion a little annoying.  The annoyance comes from the basic flaw in logic of the premise of the debate, if it can even be considered a debate.   I don’t think it is a real debate based on the fact that I don’t think anyone out there is really pulling shots without tamping.  The flaw that I find disturbing about this line of reasoning is the good old mixture of apples and oranges.  The Tamp/No Tamp issue, to me, sounds a lot like saying,

“You should eat an apple every day, because oranges are so full of vitamin C, and you body needs lots of vitamin C”

I do not believe that the pump pressure delivered by the espresso machine is any substitute at all for the force applied by tamping the ground coffee.  The reason is because the tamping pressure of your arm is a directional force, and the pump pressure creates an artificial atmosphere pressure inside the portafiter.   Let’s look at these two kinds of pressure.

-Atmospheric pressure

Atmospheric pressure is the force that our air exerts because it is carrying the weight of all the other air on top of it.  As the upper layers of air squeeze in on our layer of air, everything in our layer becomes squeezed also.   So if you fill a balloon to the brink of explosion while standing at the top of a mountain, what will happen if you bring it down to sea level?  The balloon will shrink as the thicker layer of upper air squeezes in on it.   Likewise, a balloon filled at sea level will pop if you try to take it up the mountain.

-Directional pressure

When you tamp you espresso, you press down with what is called foot-pounds. You apply a force in a particular direction.  This action moves the particles of coffee closer to one another, displacing the air that is trapped between the particles of you fluffy coffee grinds.   You can push a car up a slight incline by applying enough foot-pounds in the direction of the incline. But if you increase the atmospheric pressure around the car, it will not move up the hill.

The purpose of tamping is to get the air space out the coffee grounds, and hopefully to create an even thickness of coffee with an even density throughout.   If you do not tamp, the pump pressure will raise the atmospheric pressure inside the portafiter to something near 9 bars, but that will not remove space between the fluffy grinds, it will simply push water into that space.   If you have uneven density when the grounds are dry, you will have uneven density when they are wet.  This causes uneven extraction, which in turn, causes bitterness and bad after taste in espresso.  Perhaps you have one of those grinders that creates a near perfect distribution of even density coffee in the portafiter.  How nice for you, (no seriously, that is nice for you), but that is a whole nuther topic.

Another factor that I have heard brought into this subject, inevitably, is the expansion of the coffee in the portafiter.  The case is sometimes made that the expansion of the coffee in hot water provides the force needed to “seal off” the puck in the portafiter.  If the puck is swelling, the theory goes, and the compartment inside the portafiter is now relatively smaller than it was when the coffee was dry, doesn’t that give you the squeeze on the puck to remove space between the fluffy grounds?  If we refer to Illy’s glass portafiter tests  we find that the puck actually shrinks under pump pressure.  This is for the same reason that the balloon shrinks when you take it down the mountain. Let’s look at two kinds of coffee expansion.

-Gaseous expansion

When you make a pour over with fresh coffee you may have noticed that the grounds seems to almost double in size when hot water is added.   This is mostly caused by the sudden release of lots of CO2 bubbles.  In the portafiter environment, however, this gas is not allowed to bubble outwardly, and becomes dissolved in the liquid coffee to be release later as the foamy cream, so no puck expansion there.

-Expansion by absorption

There is a physical growth of each individual coffee particle due to fact that coffee is porous.   The cell structure of the bean is such that the coffee can absorb water into each cell, thereby expanding a tiny bit as the water takes up a little space, and the cell walls soften and become flexible.  If you have ever done any fine woodworking, you know you have to compensate in many ways for the fact that wood will always swell in humidity and shrink when it gets dry.  Don’t you have a drawer at home that is always sticking in the summer, but opens more easily in the winter?  Well, again, according to the Illy experiment with transparent portafiters, the coffee is not allowed to swell until the pump is turned off.  So, no expansion there either.

So the conclusion that I have drawn is: the physical compaction that we induce by tamping to increase our chances of creating even extraction is something that we can only get from physically tamping with a tamper, and a push from either a mechanical device or one’s arm.  The pump pressure provides an entirely different kind of pressure that serves it’s own purpose, but it is no substitute for tamping.

Philly TNT November

Its already time for the TNT number 2 for Philadelphia. We had such a good turn out last month, about 25 attendees and 10 competitors, that we have to build on the momentum. There will be more money (the more competitors, the more prize money), more prizes, and more beer.

TNT Philadelphia

Come and join the first TNT Philadelphia

You can check out more details here

Here is a little bit about Helios, the coffee shop where I last worked behind the counter as a Barista before working on the roasting company side of things.

The Aurelia’s Temperature- now i get it

Nuova Simonelli has done two things really well.  They managed to make a “Temperature Stable” heat exchange espresso machine.  The Aurelia is so good about hitting a consistent brew temperature that it passed the WBC technical specifications and practical testing.  The other thing they have done well has been to keep their web site and marketing material elusive enough about what keeps the Aurelia temperature stable as to make it actually hard work to find out exactly how it functions.  From the web site I was able to gather a handful of slightly misleading information (I do not think it was intentionally so), and anecdotal information that I gathered from industry insiders alluded to the finesse of the “heat exchange environment”; double speak.

Tommy Galagher, Counter Culture Coffee’s full time NYC equipment technician, and I spent a little time with Lou Barba,  N.S. East region sales rep, and drilled him about the Aurelias plumbing.  This was a very illuminating conversation that answered the questions that have been gnawing at me for quite some time.

When I had first blogged about the mysteries of temperature stability in the Aurelia, I had to speculate and extrapolated from the scant information disclosed on the N.S. web site.  My misinterpretation lead me to the conclusion that there was a large reservoir of water in the group head itself that served to mix super heated HX water with cooled water at just the right ratios to get a good brewing temp each time.  It turn out the is no “reservoir” in the group head.  I believe that the web site wording was simply referring to the heat exchange chamber itself.  But there is mixing of hot and cold water in the group head.

Here is what happens.

-Cold water from the inlet passes through a brass restrictor (Gicleur valve) before entering the heat exchange.  Because it is cold, the valve will not accumulate calcium and lime deposits as readily as hot restrictors of the same material.  This slows down the passage of water through the whole system, but maintains the pump pressure.   This also accounts for some of the Aurelia’s soft infusion.

-Some of the cold water bypasses the heat exchange and is routed directly to the group head where it passes through another Gicleur valve.

-The rest of the cold water passes through the heat exchange, and it is super heated to a temperature above the boiling point.   Set your steam pressure higher and HX water gets hotter, set the steam pressure lower and it goes down.

-The super heated HX water will always be the same temperature so long as you do not loose steam pressure and you do not flush large amounts of water through the group head.  The flushing will introduce new cold water into the HX and will take a little time to super heat it again.  Tip for the Barista, alternate drawing shots on one group, then the next, to keep each individual HX at it’s hottest at all times.

-Super heated water goes to the group head and passes it’s own Gicleur.  The two group Gicleurs can be fitted with the different orifice sizes, ranging from .4-.6mm (if I remember correctly), to mix different amounts of hot and cold.  This is how you can set your final brew temperature.  N.S. recommends a short two second flush before drawing a shot.  This will bring in enough brew temperature water to pre-heat the group head without cooling off the HX.

-The hot and cold water blend is injected at an angle into a small cavity within the dispersion block where it swirls in a circular motion to blend thruroughly before passing through the dispersion screen.  Some blend water passes into the pre-infusion chamber.  This water is released onto the puck of coffee just before the full pump presure is reached inside the basket.

Cold water is blue, super hot water is red, brew temperature water is purple

My first Scace test on an Aurelia, which I wrote about last year, gave me the impression that Aurelias are just like any traditional heat exchange machine.  The brew water was super heated and too hot for espresso.  It cooled with continuous flushing to achieve the desiered temperature.  That particular machine was assembled and shipped to the US long before the competition spec machines had been refined and tweeked.  I believe that this older machine had the steam presure set high (raising the super heated temp), and did not have very restrictive Gicleurs.  The larger valves would let the water pass much quicker through the system, allowing the HX water to fluctuate greatly in it’s temperature range.  With lower steam presure and smaller Gicleurs, I think older machine could be set hit just as stable and acceptable of a brewing temperatures as the competition machines.

I find the same basic configuration of mixing cold and hot water at the group head in my old E-91 Faema.  The technology is not that new.  The finesse is in mixing very precise quanities of hot and cold, and the ability to control the steam pressure (now using PID algorythms in the new competition spec Aurelias).  The Solution is simple and elegant.  Sorry if made the Aurelias sound less then crafty in my first post about them.

MANE Barista Jam Report

The third annual MidAtlantic- NorhtEaster Barista Jam has come and gone. Troy Reynard of Cosmic Cup in Easton PA, and Gerra Harrigan of New Harvest Coffee in Providence Rhode Island have once again put on the largest, longest, most “star studded” Barista Jam in the North America. I am fortunate enough to have this event in my region, and as such I have gotten to participate in an intimate and exhausting way for the last two installments. Here is how it went down.

Gerra Harrigan, directing the Spro Down

The first day of the Jam involved unpacking the four Nuova Simonelli Aurelias from their shipping crates. Tommy Gallagher  Counter Culture’s technician in NYC, and I spent some time with the top off of one machine and speculating at the nature of it’s ability to hit a consistent brew temperature. Lou Barba from N.S. then showed up and gave us the the best explanation of the heat stability that I have heard thus far, and it truly is a simple and elegant solution. I can’t explain it in one sentence, so I will just leave it at that. Tommy was just fantastic, always keeping a positive and upbeat attitude, with a wrench and screw driver literally in his pocket at all times.

The crowd started thickening as Baristas began to arrive and tentativley playing around with the Aurelias and the Compak doser and doserless conical grinders. I was facilitating the Alternative Brew Station, which became the biggest draw of the weekend. Mark Inman was the key note speaker, poignantly illustrating the need for local flavor and personality in coffee business, and the evils of nationalization. Jay Caragay spoke about the commercial value of offering alternative brewing in a retail coffee business. I gave a short talk about the beauty and ironic simple complexity of non-automated coffee brewing, and challenged the Barista community to apply the same critical eye and skill level to brewing as they do to their espresso. Then it was a free-for-all.

Alternative Brew Station included varrious pour overs and siphons

I do not know of any other Barista event that involved such an expansive and Barista interactive brew station such as the one we created at this Jam. I brought several types of pour overs, the Takahiro kettle, French presses, and a siphon brewer, while New Harvest supplied us with Bodum Konas and an Areopress. A Compak bulk grinder was there for our use, and seems to produce a very nice quality grind. It also feels really nice, and has very little chaff fly-out. This was not a demonstration booth by any stretch of the imagination. If a Barista wanted coffee, they had to pick a bean, pick a brewing method, and create the final product for themselves. One after another they came and brewed. I encorged them to pick a method they had never used, and gave them throw weight and grinding suggestion. After a little talk-through of procedure and technique, they were on their own. Most of the results did not hit the bulls eye as far as flavor, but I tasted and discussed the results with each Barista. No one could complain that some famous Barista, using renowned coffees, brewed them a poor cup at this coffee event! We talked about what parameters could be altered to improve the drinkability for next time. As the three day event went on, the brews became better and better, until at the end we were brewing great cups almost every time.

Chris van Schyndel demonstrates the Barismo siphon technique.

Rob Stephen of Coffee Solutions and I are tasting siphon coffee

The Spro down was the big event for the first night, with entry fees benefiting the Grounds for Health Organization (groundsforhealth.org). The espresso sponsor, Barismo, provided their Soma espresso; a mix of a Kenya and two Guatemala coffees. This is a combination that I think punishes the ristretto puller, and benefits the Barista who is not afraid of a little blonding. The first place winner was a 16 year old Barista, Casey Killo, from one of our accounts, Perk On Main in Emmaus PA, and our very own Kim Elena Bullock took third place. The field was about 30-40 Baristas deep.

Devorah from Gimme! makes her shot for the Spro Down

Casey Killo wins the Spro Down, 16 years of age

Day two featured a Sustainability Panel that included Rob Stephen, Mark Inman, Jamie Shoenhut, Rik Klinfeldt, and Kim Bullock. The questions were pre-selected and were crafted, among other things, to illuminate many sides of the Direct Trade and Fair Trade issues, as well as the complications of organic farming and certification. Oswaldo Acevedo of Finca El Roble in Columbia was present as well, and the town of Easton officially named June 24th Oswaldo Day. Happy Oswaldo Day! Ellie Matuzak’s espresso extraction class proceeded Mike Love’s latte art class, and the day was rounded out with the latte art smakdown. The winner was a newbie named Mick from Boston Stok, with Tommy Gallagher coming in the top three with a daring single cup pour. Baristas were allowed to split their shot and submit their best of two pours.

The Sustainability Panel is put on the sopt

The last day seemed to descend upon us quickly. Rob Stephen from Coffee Solutions actually brought along roasted coffees with green defects for us to sample. This was a very illuminating excessive, as we never get to taste much in the way of defects at this end of the supply chain. Mark Inman lead a giant cupping, where there was actually only one person in the room who had never cupped. I brought all the cups, spoons and hot water.

The attendance was a little lower than organizers had hoped for, probably due to fewer folks being able to afford travel this year. But for those who did make the trip, I think they couldn’t have asked for a more informative, beneficial, and exciting time. Plans are already being made to improve the functionality of the Brew Station, as we now feel it is indispensable at this event. Can’t wait till next year!

Hotels and Registration for the MANE JAM

If you are coming to the Jam in Easton, here some places you can sta

Mid Atlantic Northeast Barista Jam
June 23-25 2009
Hotel Information

Quality Inn
185 South Third Street
Easton, PA 18042
610-253-9131
Two blocks from Bank Street Annex, one block from bus station.

Lafayette Inn
525 West Monroe Street
Easton, PA 18042
1-800-509-6990
www.lafayetteinn.com
$99/night….ask for “Barista” rate….phone reservations only
Very nice bed and breakfast about a half mile from Bank Street Annex.

Comfort Inn
2555 Nazareth Road #106
Easton, PA
610-253-0546
About 2 miles from Bank Street Annex.

Holiday Inn Express
90 Kunkle Drive
Eaton, PA
610-923-9495
About 2 miles from Bank Street Annex.

Print out the registration form and fax or mail it in.

The MANE Jam is Coming Around Soon

The MidAtlantic NorthEastern Barista Jam 2009 is scheduled for June 23-25.  Come get some.   This year featuring the now legendary Nuova Simonelli Aurelia espresso machine!  The itinerary, as it stand now, is as follows:

BARISTA JAM ITINERARY
June 23-25 2009
Bank Street Annex
Easton, PA
TUESDAY
4:30-6:00 Registration/Reception appetizers, drinks, Grounds for Health
table, Alternative Brewing Technique table.
6:00 Welcome and Introductions- Troy and Gerra
6:30 Keynote- Mark Inman of Taylor Maid Farms
7:00 Green Coffee and the Q- Rob Stephen of Coffee Solutions
7:30 Stretch and get a drink…..
8:00 Spro Down
Sponsored by Barismo
$10 entry fee*
WEDNESDAY
8:30-9:00 Coffee and Registration/check in
The following is assuming 100 participants and use of upstairs with one
machine and room for 50 people and downstairs 3 machines and room for
100 people. Participants divided into Group A and Group B for
presentations upstairs.
9:00-11:00 Sustainable Development Coffee Roundtable: exploring the
journey of coffee from farm to barista.
Panel: Oswaldo Acevedo of Finca El Roble, Mark Inman of
Taylor Maid Farms, Rob Stephen of Coffee Solutions,
Jaime Schoenhut of Royal Coffee NY and Rik Kleinfeldt
of New Harvest Coffee Roasters.
11:00-12:00 Open Jam
12:00-1:00 Lunch at the Annex
1:00-2:00 Downstairs: Open Jam (A Group)
Upstairs: Espresso Extraction with Ellie Matuszak of
Coffee Solutions (B Group)
2:00-3:00 Downstairs: Open Jam (B Group)
Upstairs: Espresso Extraction with Ellie Matuszak of
Coffee Solutions (A Group)
3:00-4:00 Downstairs: Open Jam (A Group)
Upstairs: Latte Art and Milk Frothing with Mike Love of
Coffee Labs
(B Group)
4:00-5:00 Downstairs: Open Jam (B Group)
Upstairs: Latte Art and Milk Frothing with Mike Love of
Coffee Labs
(A Group)
5:00-7:00 Free Time- Eat, Nap…
7:00-10:00 BARISTA PARTY
Latte Art Throwdown sponsored by Coffee Labs
$10 entry fee*
THURSDAY:
8:30-9:00 Coffee
9:00-10:30 Downstairs: Open Jam A Group
Upstairs: Cupping with Mark Inman
10:30-12:00 Downstairs: Open Jam B Group
Upstairs: Cupping with Mark Inman
*entry fees for throwdowns to benefit Grounds for Health

Oh, the beauty of language!

You already know about the McD’s ad campaign for their new McCafe program.  Well how about the Starbucks ad campaign?  One of the many new images they are currently putting out is a full page magazine ad with a burlap background.  The ad reads:

“Starbucks uses 3% of the world’s best beans.”

My initial interpretation of its meaning was that they claim to use the top 3% of the highest quality beans.  But wait, that’s just what they want me to think!  Upon furthur reflection, I came to the following realizations.

Fact- Starbucks only purchases Arabica coffee.

Fact- Starbucks buys 3% of the world’s Arabica production.

Fact- The highest quality coffees in the worls come from Arabica varieties, and none of the highest quality coffees come from Robusta vaieties.

Fact- Not all Arabica varieties are harvested, processed, and treated with the level of care that produces great coffees.

So their claim is absolutely true, they buy 3% of the world’s “best beans”, Arabica beans.  This is not to say that the coffee they buy is at the top of the quality pyramid, they don’t make that claim at all.  So we can conclude that they do not buy at least 97% of the best coffees in the world, probably less, according to thier wording.