Almost two weeks ago I posted an article on my most recently bought Espresso machine, the Saeco Aroma with a couple of hidden defects. Once things were sorted out with the seller and the necessary parts were ordered I could finally get to work.
Saeco Aroma – Hidden defects [updated]
As you might have guessed i snagged up another espresso machine. I was told the machine started leaking water after being descaled and that somehow it wouldn’t switch off anymore. Having seen some of the pictures of the machine before committing to the sale it seemed like an easy fix. When i picked up the package it came in this afternoon it all went south though.
Isomac Giada – cleaned and repaired [Updated]
A little over 2 weeks ago i got my hands on another little project. I’ve been interested in the inner workings of espressomachines for a while now and i was looking for an easy machine to start tinkering with, preferably with as little electronics as possible. I found one on eBay that fit the bill and needed some work.
This Astoria grinder needs help
With this Astoria badged Mazzer Super Jolly i’ve started a new category on my blog. You will find this and my other current projects under, you guessed it, “Current Projects“. I found this grinder locally on a classifieds website. The seller didn’t specify which brand or model it was, but i recognised its shape immediately. The grinder was cheap enough but somehow it was still listed after being on that site for about a month. When i asked the seller if he still had it for sale i was quite amazed he still hadn’t sold it yet. It did look quite beat up, but these grinders are known to stand up to just about any kind of abuse…
Butlers loves Disney. And so do i.
Apparently Butlers loves Disney. I share that common interest so when i was at a Butlers store in Aachen last week i picked up a new cereal box (yes i managed to contain myself and not buy their entire Disney range). Excuse me for the lousy quality of photography here but i just had to share these.
Butlers loves Disney.
New Donald Duck cereal box
New Mickey Mouse short film [updated]
[update] Apparently Disney didn’t like it too much that their latest Mickey Mouse short film ended up on YouTube.com. You can watch the video directly on www.disney.com. There is a possibility that Disney won’t show it to you unless you’re in the United States. If you are in the US and Disney still won’t let you view it, here’s a direct link to the 1080p version: Mickey Mouse – Croissant de Triomphe.
Mickey Mouse – Croissant de Triomphe
I’ve been a big fan of anything related to Disney for years. This morning apparently Disney released a new short film with Minnie, Mickey and Daisy.
Mickey Mouse Croissant de Triomphe
Even though the video is entirely french you don’t need to actually understand any of it to know what is going on, exactly like the older shorts. Obviously the drawingstyle is quite different from the original / older short films and i’m not quite sure that i like it yet, however i do love the fact that Disney is releasing new material again with their original set of characters.
And apparently Disney appreciates pretty espressomachines as well, about 17 seconds into the film there is a quite good representation of a Victoria Arduino Venus Bar.
Victoria Arduino Venus Bar
Obviously Disney holds all the copyrights to their characters and movies / films in this post. Upon request i will delete the direct link to the video even though it is quite easily to find in the source of their page.
Descaling a La Pavoni Professional
Every now and then your espresso gear will need cleaning. You wash the portafilter and baskets after every use, clean the driptray at least once every few days (i hope) and wipe down the rest of the machine every so often. But what about the inside of the boiler? You can’t just reach in with a brush and start scrubbing around. Well you could but it’d be a lot more trouble than i would want to go through. Especially on a Tuesday morning before (!) i had my first espresso.
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New Design and Background Photo
As some of you might have seen already i’ve changed the design of my blog from the classic “Twenty-Eleven” theme to the recently released “Confit“. While Confit was originally intended for (small) restaurants etc. it does still lend itself quite good for a regular blog like mine too. The theme comes standard with a background picture displaying a beautiful glass with a beverage of some sort (sorry people i have no knowledge of alcoholic drinks whatsoever) that i changed out with a picture i took myself:
Like i said before new pictures are to be taken with an actual camera, instead of my iPhone. As it turns out the overall tone of the picture compliments the colorscheme of the theme quite well.
This might be a shorter post than the ones i post usually but rest assured i have a couple of long drafts still waiting to be buttoned up and posted.
Wishing everyone a happy 2013!
I’m grabbing this opportunity to wish all of you a happy and prosperous 2013, with lots of good coffee and food, successful tinkering projects and hopefully a couple of interesting posts.
I have a couple of New Years resolutions as well, first of all I’m going to make pictures for this blog with my actual camera again instead of using the one on the back of my iPhone (I have a few drafts that have iPhone pics still though). I’ve also decided to post more on here and on the other blog I run.
Restoring a used and abused Mazzer Super Jolly
I’ve been looking for ways to get more consistant shots of espresso from my La Pavoni Professional and one of the few things that kept holding me back was the quality of the grounds. Knowing full well that my Nemox Lux was already producing the best grounds it could, I started looking for a new grinder. I found my grail in Italy, read on for the full story.
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