Wife got it for me for Christmas and I’m just getting around to posting.
Man. I’m enjoying this thing!
It is simple, elegant, and is capable of producing espresso that equals, in quality, that of machines costing thousands of dollars.
Manually-operated, lever-actuated espresso presses aren’t new, but the 58 is the first, that I’m aware of, that solves the problem of brewing temperature, which exists in this class of espresso brewers.
In order to brew proper espresso, temperature is critical. Depending on roast level of your chosen beans, brew water temp of approximately 195°F - 205°F is needed, similar to brewing drip coffee. And the problem with manual espresso presses is that they must be preheated quite thouroughly using boiling water, often a couple of times, to prevent the brew being underextracted.
With the 58, Flair solved this problem by integrating electric preheating of the brewhead! And it only takes about 5 minutes. However, if I have time, I will often let it preheat longer than that in order to preheat the portafilter and puck screen as well, those steam from the kettle can also be used to do this.
Another really cool thing about the 58 is that it uses a 58 mm portafilter (hence its name), which is the standard size for commercial espresso machines. That means that one can use any of the myriad of porta filter, baskets, tampers, and other accessories that are designed for commercial espresso machines.
i’ve been playing with it for about a month now, and I’m in heaven. I can make café quality espresso at home!
Another huge benefit, from my view, is that there’s almost zero maintenance. With electric espresso machines, there is the need to descale. But with this, there’s really nothing to descale. I guess it’s possible that over time, some deposits could accumulate on the piston, but it’s a simple affair to pop it out and hit it with a toothbrush and some Cafiza. I’m told that it’s good to apply a light film of DC111 to the o-rings (very easy) from time to time, which I will do.
But, yeah, this thing is FUN to use, and makes some absolutely delicious espresso!
Its really a “BITOGer’s” espresso maker, I think!
Accessories I’m using with it so far include the 1Zpresso X-Pro S manual hand grinder, Timemore Black Mirror Mini scale, OXO adjustable-temp gooseneck kettle, Normcore 58mm dosing funnel V2, and MHW-3BOMBER auto-leveling tamper (it came with a palm tamper, but the auto-leveling tamper is more consistent as well as quicker). Also have a no-name WDT needle distribution tool I got from Amazon.
Highly recommend, if you’re a coffee nerd such as myself, want excellent, cafe-quality espresso at home, and don’t want to spend thousands of dollars to get it!
Man. I’m enjoying this thing!
It is simple, elegant, and is capable of producing espresso that equals, in quality, that of machines costing thousands of dollars.
Manually-operated, lever-actuated espresso presses aren’t new, but the 58 is the first, that I’m aware of, that solves the problem of brewing temperature, which exists in this class of espresso brewers.
In order to brew proper espresso, temperature is critical. Depending on roast level of your chosen beans, brew water temp of approximately 195°F - 205°F is needed, similar to brewing drip coffee. And the problem with manual espresso presses is that they must be preheated quite thouroughly using boiling water, often a couple of times, to prevent the brew being underextracted.
With the 58, Flair solved this problem by integrating electric preheating of the brewhead! And it only takes about 5 minutes. However, if I have time, I will often let it preheat longer than that in order to preheat the portafilter and puck screen as well, those steam from the kettle can also be used to do this.
Another really cool thing about the 58 is that it uses a 58 mm portafilter (hence its name), which is the standard size for commercial espresso machines. That means that one can use any of the myriad of porta filter, baskets, tampers, and other accessories that are designed for commercial espresso machines.
i’ve been playing with it for about a month now, and I’m in heaven. I can make café quality espresso at home!
Another huge benefit, from my view, is that there’s almost zero maintenance. With electric espresso machines, there is the need to descale. But with this, there’s really nothing to descale. I guess it’s possible that over time, some deposits could accumulate on the piston, but it’s a simple affair to pop it out and hit it with a toothbrush and some Cafiza. I’m told that it’s good to apply a light film of DC111 to the o-rings (very easy) from time to time, which I will do.
But, yeah, this thing is FUN to use, and makes some absolutely delicious espresso!
Its really a “BITOGer’s” espresso maker, I think!
Accessories I’m using with it so far include the 1Zpresso X-Pro S manual hand grinder, Timemore Black Mirror Mini scale, OXO adjustable-temp gooseneck kettle, Normcore 58mm dosing funnel V2, and MHW-3BOMBER auto-leveling tamper (it came with a palm tamper, but the auto-leveling tamper is more consistent as well as quicker). Also have a no-name WDT needle distribution tool I got from Amazon.
Highly recommend, if you’re a coffee nerd such as myself, want excellent, cafe-quality espresso at home, and don’t want to spend thousands of dollars to get it!
