Espresso (contd.)
Every machine is a little different. Experimentation is the key. So be sure that the coffee is level. If it is not you will be providing a path of least resistance for the water to go through. - Turn off the machine or move the cup away as soon as you see the streams of coffee coming out of the machine have become thin. If you keep going after this point, you're just pumping bitter over extracted garbage into your cup. The more you run out, the worse it will taste. If you want a longer drink, make a double, or add hot water to your espresso (an Americano). - Espresso should be served immediately. Ideally, the crema on an espresso should be all one color and preferably a very light honey color. If the crema has dark streaks, then the beans you have may have been burnt too much in the roasting process. Alternatively, the temperature on the machine itself could be set too high, and the coffee's being burnt by the water there. If there's uneven crema, then either the coffee has been left sitting too long after being ground, or the dose in the handle hasn't been tamped down firmly enough.

Vacuum
The buildup of steam in the lower bowl forces the water up into the funnel, where it mixes with the ground coffee. A quick stir wets the grounds into the water, and a small amount of water left behind in the bowl keeps the steam coming and the temperature constant. Brewing continues for 2 minutes (it can go longer but you don't get any more flavor) and we then take the siphon off the hotplate. With no more steam being produced, a vacuum forms in the bowl, which sucks the brewed coffee down through the filter. This gives a great cup of coffee and is quite fun to watch. The Cory pots use an interesting glass filter. It fills the hole that coffee is pulled back through via vacuum after the heat is removed. I honestly do not know exactly how it works but it is able to keep sediment almost completely out when using finely ground coffee. This is the most efficient method of keeping sediment out of the final coffee that I have ever seen with the exception of paper filters. Unlike paper the Cory filter doesn't trap any of the oils in the coffee. I would highly recommend trying to find one of these filters if you have a vacuum pot of any type. Unfortunately Cory is not longer making the part but there seem to be a number of them available. Please don't shoot but Vacuum pots also make good tea. Cona (the original) in England, Hario in Japan, Hellem in France and Yama Glass in Taiwan and Bodum make vacuum pots. Cory & Silex used to make them in the U.S. and Sunbeam also made a metal model with built-in heating.

Percolators
Percolators violate most of the natural laws about brewing coffee. * Don't over extract the oils and flavor. Percolators work by taking coffee and reheating it and throwing it over the grounds over and over and over again. * Never reheat/boil coffee. This destroys the flavor. For best flavor, boil the water, pass it over the grounds and retain the heat. Don't reheat it. Violating these rules may not sound like much, but these are about the only rules there are. The effect of a percolator is to keep passing boiling water/coffee over the grounds until there is no flavor left and the flavor in the coffee is so dead that it's a worthless waste. A percolator has two main parts, the first is the outer jug and the second a coffee basket through which passes a hollow stem metal tube. This combination sits within the jug. Water is placed in the jug, rising through the hollow stem tube as it is heated. It then falls, under force of gravity, through the coffee which is placed in the basket. The resulting liquor is ready to drink in 8 to 10 minutes of this percolating action from cold and can be poured directly from the jug. To ensure the coffee is not stewed, caution is required in strictly observing the brewing time. Percolators are a very good means of making a goodly quantity of flavourful and aromatic coffee. Any coffee of the appropriate grind may be used.
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