May want to try one before buying. At that budget, there are a lot of compromises.

If you don't have a grinder, get one first. Then a brewer or a few brewers, eg Moka Pot, Dripper, Aeropress etc.

But if you're dead set on a machine, lowkl's suggestions are spot on, unless you get one used.

+1

+1 I came from a Breville grinder to a 58mm flat burr grinder. Should have saved my 1.6k (that I spent on the Breville) from the start and gone straight to a commercial grinder.

So chiahau you got a grinder already?

Soz, haven't been on here almost 2 weeks. Yes I've got a Breville BCG820 which I used for Aeropress for 6 months, and now use a Fiorenzato F4e Nano for espresso, from Coffex, around 3k I think.

Breville served me well, until I started espresso and just couldn't get the consistency I wanted. It's now cleaned up and stored for the rare occasion I whip it out for an Aeropress

The Fiorenzato is what the rest here have said is the sweet spot, 58mm flat burr, doserless. There's still retention, but with my routine of brushing and forcing air through the top using my palm, much less retention vs the Breville. Less clumpy too. Here's a shot before tamping :




Attached thumbnail(s)

+1 I'm getting my fortnightly supply from Meng too. He's from Penang but ships too.

+1. Fellow freezer as well, but I use recycled glass jars. You're right about them staling faster, I try to finish mine in 3 days after taking out from freezer.

100% of Malaysia Boleh!

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.

Did you manage to grind fine enough to choke the machine? Perhaps the grinder can't grind fine enough.

E61 group user as well. I'm a beginner so I'm still using my scales for grinds and measuring output. I found it was impossible as a newbie to be consistent without a scale. But once I bought a scale, I even found out that my tamping was off 50% of the time since grind size and weights were locked but extraction time was all over the place.

LittleGhost is right about steaming. Also, YouTube the Oscar, I'm sure you can find some videos from WholeLatteLove or Seattle Coffee Gear.

This post has been edited by LazyJin: Apr 24 2016, 08:42 AM

I'd suggest you spend your money on the freshest beans you can find, and the best grinder you can afford, and then lastly whatever you have left on the brewer or machine. Here's a useful video : Home Barista's Buyer Guide

As an overall guide : Home Barista

If I had 1k I'd get a Hario dripper or Aeropress or Moka Pot. I'd probably even go cheap and get a Hario hand grinder as well. If you're near a Parkson, check out their coffee section, usually near the cooking section, which should be pretty well stocked with Hario branded items.

This post has been edited by LazyJin: May 9 2016, 10:53 PM

Google disagrees Caffeine Content vs Roast Level

"If you measure your coffee by scoops, light roasted coffee will have more caffeine. Since the beans are denser than a darker roast. However if you weigh out your scoops, darker roasts will have more caffeine, because there is less mass."

Affordability is subjective as others have said. If you're just starting out, go cheap and work your way up. Some ppl are happy with Charbucks, some are happy with more commercial roasters like Coffex, some are happy with online websites like beanshipper.com, blaqcoffee.com etc, some also get from homeroasters like ymeng85. If you already have a favorite coffee place, try their beans too.

A few pages before this wshazi shared a list of coffee suppliers so that should help.

Here it is:
This post has been edited by LazyJin: Sep 21 2016, 03:32 PM

My humble 2 cents:

Most people who hand brew will prefer beans that are roasted for filter coffee, meaning not for espresso.

Since you're hand brewing, try some beans that are roasted for filter coffee. Trying is never cheap, you'll spend lots of money if you're searching for what you like. And what you like changes as your coffee appreciation improves.

Beanshipper.com has a drip pack, with 8 packs from 4 different kinds of coffee beans roasted for filtered coffee, 2 packs each. It's RM30, not cheap, but refer to paragraph above.

How about you tell us where you're at most of the time, ie stay / work / study / hangout. Maybe there are good cafes near you. The best baristas and roasters are very helpful with newbies. Some run classes on coffee appreciation.

Another reason to visit good cafes is to know what some of the best baristas in Malaysia are capable of brewing with what kind of beans. Try different cafes, different origins, different brewing methods, and watch them do it, chat with them. Then practise practise practise.

After that you'll be throwing away that Starbucks card for life

(P/S: I still keep my Starbucks card...but that's another story altogether)

(P/P/S: Ah you're in PJ. Not sure about DU, but The Roast Things is not that far away. Beam in Sri Damansara is 20 mins away. Pulp in Bangsar if you feel like a hipster for the day...Three Little Birds are decent. Just to name a few)

This post has been edited by LazyJin: Sep 21 2016, 11:17 PM