Personally, I have a Sunbeam espresso machine at home. (I'll post pics, if I remember to.)
There are a few things about making a good coffee:
1. Always use freshly ground beans, if possible.
- If you can't, make sure that you buy the beans freshly ground, only enough for a week, and keep them in an opaque container in a cool place (not the fridge).
- If you get *really* into it, you will need to determine the correct coarseness of your grind for the beans you use and your altitude. You may need to vary it slightly according to atmospheric pressure as well.
2. Always use a machine in which you actually fix the basket to the machine -- the automatic machines will _never_ produce as good a coffee.
- Any machine which is a 'Push here for a short' type won't produce the best coffee.
3. When you're pouring your shot, you want to go between 20 and 30ml -- you should stop the shot when you see the colour change in the shot as it pours.
4. When you steam your milk, make sure to get the correct angle for the 'whirlpool' effect in the milk. Your milk should be at the right temperature when you can't touch the palm of your hand to the side of the (stainless steel) jug for three seconds.
Other hints:
- Preheat your cups with warm water before pouring the shot.
- Keep your (empty) jug in the fridge, so that it's cold when you steam the milk in it. This will help you to achieve a nice silky milk texture.
- It's definitely worthwhile finding good beans. Here in Australia, the best of the best are the Five Senses beans (roasted here in WA), which are just fantastic.
- Always use filtered (or spring) water for your shot -- the shot is about 90% water, so if your water tastes bad, your coffee will taste bad.
- Soy milk is an abomination.
And yes, I am a coffee addict. And a coffee snob.
