Review on Flair Signature Espresso Maker - The Ultimate Manual Espresso Press for Authentic Home Brewing (Pressure Kit, Black) by Carlito Tardy

I've had Handpresso and Minipresso, tried Staresso and many others. none of them actually produced real espresso. Strong coffee, that's what they do, and it's better than weak coffee when it's an alternative - but no more! The Flair makes espresso as good or better than most domestic coffee makers, and for a lot less money! Even more impressive is that it delivers the most reliable and consistent results you will ever get from an espresso machine. The secret of its success lies in its simplified design, which simplifies the preheating of the brew group by eliminating unnecessary espresso brewing. The human-operated lever offers full control over the extraction process, creating the perfect feedback loop. If you grind your coffee too fine or pack it too hard, you can still save the day (shot), albeit with a little more muscle - your pump machine will just choke at this point. Now if you've ground too coarsely or not compacted enough, you can release the lever and still get 25+ seconds of extraction. Pre-infusion is a feature of high-end machines. Flavor can do that! Just start with a slow pull, with light pressure on the first 10-15 degrees of lever rotation, hold for 2-5 seconds, then finish the full 25-40 second pull as usual. Caring for the Flair is much easier than caring for a home car. No backwashing or descaling necessary! Poor extraction and bitter or rancid coffee are in most cases the result of a much-maintained machine. With Flair, you have direct access to all parts of the brew group, making cleaning easier and ensuring you get a consistent espresso flavor every time. Extraction within 25-40 seconds. Squeeze about 17-18 grams of coffee into a portafilter at 30-40# pressure (play with the bathroom scale to find out). Try a two-step process of loading the portafilter up, pressing down, then reloading and pressing down again, leaving room for the dispersion sieve. PREHEAT the cylinder and cup with rapidly boiling water. Only brew with water at 198-205 F (93-96 C) in the cup if you like HOT espresso. Darker roasts are usually best when the brew water is closer to 198F, and lighter roasts closer to 205F. Place the Flair next to a sink for easy cleaning, invert the portafilter and blow on the side of the spout to remove the washer, either knock the washer out by tapping a cutting board over the trash or scoop the used up Coffee out with your finger or wooden spoon. . If you have trouble removing the plunger from the cylinder, place the plastic tamper upside down on the counter and slide the cylinder from the top down until the plunger pops out. If you do, you'll be very happy with the Flair and find that it outperforms all portable and most home machines. If you can't get a ton of cream in a cup, you're doing something wrong - reread my instructions above! Tip: For lighter roasts, PREHEAT the cylinder several times - higher temperatures require higher temperatures. high score.