you can try ikea's coffee beans first only rm12.90/250gm bag, the cheapest around

but you need to put some sugar cos quite bitter

i don't take sugar leh .....
any reasonable online coffee bean seller ?
in KL lazy go around also prevent addict

A few forumers here have tried beans from me before so I'm not here to chop you lol
Good quality freshly roasted beans do come with a certain premium but you do get what you pay for.
You could try the Ikea suggestion first and then compare to what I can offer and see if the difference is justifiable to the price

btw what type of milk with low lactose n fat and suitable for coffee ?

I always use fresh milk but if i need to use lowfat, i will add a bit of evaporated milk to mimic the creaminess from fresh milk😂

For the brand my favourite will be dutch lady and marigold

Btw me also nubis.. No fancy machines like all the pros here. Using hario hand cranked coffee grinder, french press and battery operated milk frother 😂

U bought from coffex?

LOL he doesn't. He sources raw ingredients, in this case green coffee beans, from overseas. He then roasts them using his two coffee roasters, at his home. Then he sells them to other coffee lovers. Prices are very reasonable for what you get.

But since you're just starting off, just buy what you can readily get. If you're close to Coffex, go visit their showroom and try the coffee.

Just start with whatever you can find. Along the way you'll let your taste buds decide whether Coffex or Ikea or a random home roaster or any other commercial roaster gives you the best cup.

Hi SonnyCool,

I am also a Poemia owner/user, so this is what I use/do:

- I usually order my beans from Mister Coffee , which is based in Johor. They ship by courier to your doorstep for orders more than RM 60. Their espresso blends range from RM 35 to RM 49 for 500gm, which is pretty comparable to supermarket coffee beans while being much much fresher. Unfortunately they don't print the Roast date but I estimate the beans cannot be older than a month....much much better than Ikea. They also ship fast & reliable...never had to wait more than 3 working days to get my order.

The other source I use is Lebistro coffee (pls Google for the website I forget); based in Penang. These people roast *on order* so super fresh and also they even ship a single bag for free! My only issue is they currently only have a Sumatra blend, which regretfully is not my favourite.

- Once you open the bag, remember to use it up within 2-3 weeks. What I do to keep it as fresh as possible is to re-bag it in thick sandwich bags (best so far from Aeon Jusco) in about 150gm per bag...approx 10 double shots. Since I make about 3 cups a day, I open a new bag every 3-4 days

- I grind 15.5gm per cup, which fills the Poemia portafilter nearly to the brim. Using the provided plastic scoop /tamper, I just press down lightly so that it's easier to clip in the machine. For pressurized filters such as this, you are not to do a real tamp.

- you have to trial & error the grind size, but around course sugar I'd what I aim for. Do not try to match professional espresso machine grind fineness as it will have bitterness problems... you can check out a YouTube by Seattle Coffee Gear on this.

-So far I've been unable to get a specialty cafe grade shot from the poemia; but I primarily blame my cheapo China 600N grinder for it. Nevertheless I can now get consistently better coffee than Starbucks or Coffee Bean and even Espresso Labs. Not bad for RM 1.50 of beans & a RM 750 espresso machine!

Enjoy your coffee!

thanks bro ....
i did spend my whole week end for understand what is coffee machine, grinder and bla bla bla .... hopefully i won't get addict on it

Still got my caffe grande i bought from coffex and since u mentioned it, im eager to try ymeng85's home roasted coffees.. At the moment im towards beans with nutty taste characteristics and through his selling thread, there's actually one type of beans that may suit my taste bud.. 😊

This post has been edited by Bujal.x: Apr 4 2016, 12:38 AM

Where is your source?

Here
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Made_in_Italy
http://www.internationallawoffice.com/News...y-designations#

This post has been edited by patryn33: Apr 4 2016, 03:30 AM

Cause i do international logistics ....
U know how many product is actually makr in malaysia ?
cool i love ur wiki sources

This post has been edited by SonnyCooL: Apr 4 2016, 03:45 AM

Your wire, metal and such China no doubt not even USA does that. The 51% rule comes to play in eu, and you pay for the QC. Play by the rules no fine since there are establish laws to use make in Italy however loose it may be.

As for 100% USA close but not really the rules complex
https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-ce...de-usa-standard

There is a reason why Prc shy from their own products when given a choice go for German or Italian made.

I am not concern with made in Malaysia.

This post has been edited by patryn33: Apr 4 2016, 07:27 AM

Is this brand any good? --> Morphy Richards
Thing, is never heard of the brandm but seem that it is established. and a product of UK

Saw one selling in Lazada:
http://www.lazada.com.my/morphy-richards-1...ed-2369652.html

You should try to PID and depressurize the portafilter. It really make a different in the taste and making real crema. Also get a good 53mm tamper from eBay. I found out with 53mm stainless steel tamper, I can get a good level and compact puck from Poemia. Also, with PID and steam control, I get better temperature control and very powerful steam that almost never run out (unless you dry out the boiler which shouldn't happen if you only steam less than 150mL milk). Personally, I feel after the mod, it should be very good for a single boiler machine. Off course cannot compare to HX or double boiler machine as those machine are at a different level.

This post has been edited by pierreye: Apr 4 2016, 09:42 AM

Yes! Yes! This is exactly what I want to try.

Any pointers on how to install a PID for the Poemia? I was looking at putting together a DIY PID following this Arduino project, but while I'm not adverse to trying out some electronics project, the demands of getting into Arduino as well as figuring out how to piece it together as per this project is pretty daunting.

I have kinda given up steaming milk using the Poemia; as you know without the temperature control the heater is a simple thermostat, meaning zero additional heat until it drops below the threshold. What I do is completely vent the first time the steam light goes on (to remove the trapped water & to clear off the remaining low pressure steam), then let it boil up again. This at least gets about 80ml of milk to 60+C in one go. But the microfoam is pretty sad; very inconsistent, with large bubbles most of the time.

Will definitely try to depressurize the portafilter this coming weekend, after I get delivery of a tamper. But I still feel my grinder tak boleh pakai lah... tried hand grinding a dose using the trusty Hario Skerton... much better woh. Except not practical to grind 3 cups (48gm!!) before rushing to send kids to school in the morning. The 600N produces pretty OK grounds BUT towards the end it often spits out a huge clump of fines! Been banging my head on how to motorise the Skerton, but so far no joy. As per gurus advice on this forum, the only sure bet is to plonk down serious cash for a commercial grinder. Sigh.....

i love your knowledge ....

Arduino is complicated if you have no idea how to connect the I/O and upload program into the board. Going with PID such as Sestos PID or Omron PID(higher end) would be easier. If you are comfortable cutting and connecting wire then shouldn't be too difficult. I follow the instruction from Gaggia Classic PID DIY guide. You also need a small 12v 0.5w LED transformer if you want to use Alarm 1 for steam control. By doing this, you will solve the low steam pressure problem as the PID manage to stabilize the steam around 120 degree celcius. Now I can get very good microfoam and keep the swirl going.

I went thru your pain before, using Porlex hand grinder. My problem same as you going for 2 cups very tiring. In the end, go for Macap M4 grinder as I think this is going to hold me for further upgrade for quite sometime.

Just some simple guide on how to PID using Sestos temperature control.

1. Trace the main wire to the rotary switch which use to select either brew or steam. Cut both N and L wire (Leave the ground cable connected to boiler). Use a wire connector to connect back both wire and also tap the wiring out to the PID (make sure you get a PID that run on 220/240v). Once you turn on the switch, it will turn on the PID.

2. Disconnect and remove the brew thermostat from the boiler. The wire that you disconnect should be connected to SSR Relay. You will use the PID to control the relay to turn on the boiler. Put the thermocouple (either K type or PT100) at the place where you remove the thermostat and use the existing clip to clamp it to the boiler. Leave the steam thermostat switch as we'll later tap the wiring to the alarm. I can't remove the brew thermostat as it'll somehow mess up with the steam ready light.

3. Connect the wire from thermocouple to PID. Set your temperature to around 94 to 96 degree and run autotune. After it's done try it out.

4. Optional. If you want to use the steam alarm, connect 2 wire parallel to the steam thermostat wire to 12v LED transformer. The 12v output +ve will be connected to alarm1 NC (normally close as you want it to connect when alarm is below steam temperature) then out to the SSR relay trigger. Remember to use a diode on the positive output on both alarm output to SSR trigger and from PID brew control +ve output. This is to prevent DC voltage back to the PID relay output. Set the Alarm high to 122 degree celcius as this will help maintain the temp around 118 to 120 degree celcius. What happen the temp is above 122 degree, it will disconnect the 12v relay from the LED transformer thus turning off the boiler.

I use this diagram for connection.

http://www.skenedesign.com/Silvia/

Note D1 and D2 is diode 1 and 2. J1 is where you connect the alarm NC and COM. SSR is the trigger relay output from PID set temperature. Note the +ve and -ve for DC output. AC output doesn't matter which is L or N.

This post has been edited by pierreye: Apr 4 2016, 06:09 PM

pierreye,

MUCH THANKS!!

Your input is invaluable! I will dump the Arduino idea and just follow this approach. The wiring diagram is not too complicated; should be able to follow. The idea of using the alarm circuit to trigger the steam control is brilliant.

I have found some PID controllers on Lazada which looks similar to the Sestos PID. Have to compare specs but just in case, where did you get the Sestos?

You still use the Pannarello wand?

Thanks once again!!

You need to make sure it come with AL1 output. The correct model is D1S-VR-220. Search for Sestos PID SSR thermocouple from eBay (Less than USD 40). Also you do not need the screw in type thermocouple. A short probe will do. 25A SSR will do. Correction that the 12V LED transformer should be connected to steam thermostat wire.

Yes, I'm still using Pannarello wand. No issue to get microfoam. Just make sure the wand is just below the milk and tilt at an angle. You will see the milk swirl around the pitcher and hold. Slowly adjust the depth when the milk start to expand. If you get too much froth then the wand tip is too shallow. No microfoam will be due to the tip too deep.

Glad to help out another Poemia user. Pretty good espresso machine after mod for less than RM 1k. You can get 53mm tamper from eBay too.

Sestos PID + SSR + Probe
http://www.ebay.com/itm/291346125690?_trks...K%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Tamper 53mm
http://www.ebay.com/itm/201476126930?_trks...K%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

This post has been edited by pierreye: Apr 4 2016, 06:11 PM