J.L.Hufford Supporter Forum > Coffee & Espresso Machines > Coffee/ Espresso Machine Reviews > Jura-Capresso
J.L.Hufford Supporter Forum > Coffee & Espresso Machines > Coffee/ Espresso Machine Reviews > Jura-Capresso |
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rhschu Guest
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My first question is really directed to Hufford_Technical. On the second, however, I would welcome any comments. I am considering purchase of either a Jura-Capresso F7/F9 or S7/S8/S9. As a result, I have been reading as much information as I can find on these machines, including the very informative material on your website. I have two questions. One concerns an apparent inconsistency that confuses me. Some of the materialon your website indicates that the F series (Frank’s) “thermobloc is made entirely of stainless steel”, while each of the S series (Sam’s) two thermoblocs “is made of aluminum with a stainless steel lining.” In other places it indicates that the F series has an aluminum thermobloc with a stainless steel lining. I know that in either case the water does not come into contact with aluminum but they are not inexpensive machines and inconsistencies concern me. The second question concerns temperature. I certainly wouldn’t call myself a coffee “expert”, whatever that is. I do, however, like a good cup of coffee, both American and Espresso, with its many variations. I have never done comparative tests because I don’t have access to the equipment, but the theoretical difference in taste between coffee that is brewed at 190 degrees and at 182 degrees eludes me. Is there any verifiable scientific reason why coffee brewed at the former temperature would be of sufficiently better quality to justify one coffee “expert” labeling the S9 as the standard against which he reviews other automatic machines and the F9 a dud? I suspect not but I would value your comments. Thank you. |
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hufford_technical Administrator
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Thank you for your participation in the forum. According to Capresso, the S series thermoblock comprises aluminum with an inner stainless steel coating. The benefit of aluminum is that it has a slightly quicker heating-up time than pure stainless. Since stainless lines the channels of the thermal block, however, there is no worry about premature block corrosion. For more information on how this can happen, click here. With regard to the F series, according to Capresso, the F series thermoblock is composed entirely of stainless steel, which again means no aluminum-to-water contact. We appreciate your attention to the details on our site. If you find any inconsistency between our website and what I have written above, or between certain pieces of information on different pages of our site, we would love to know the offending page(s). You may email our webmaster at webmaster@jlhufford.com. Regarding temperature, let me add a little information that may help you make a more informed decision. As you know, there are competing theories about what is the best temperature for brewing espresso. Connoisseurs claim to be able to distinguish even a fraction of a degree of difference in flavor between coffees brewed at different temperatures. However, it is generally the case that water that hits the coffee (and stays in contact with the coffee) at around 200 degrees (F) is ideal. There will be dissenters in both directions, of course. But, you will notice that most of the brew temperatures listed on our site are below 200, particularly with regard to the super-automatic espresso machines. That is because we measure the temperature of the coffee as it comes out the spout. We do this for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is that it can be a little deceptive if we listed the temperature that the water in the boiler/thermal block gets up to prior to coming into contact with the grounds or just as it comes into contact with the grounds. For most quality super-automatic machines today, it is as easy as the work of a little thermostat that tells the unit when the water is ready to brew. And that temperature is always usually 200 degrees. The real temperature differences in today's machines involves the temperature at which the water actually intermingles with the coffee grounds, and a fairly good measure of this is the temperature of the coffee as it leaves the machine. Obviously, this method has problems, though, as other variables enter into the equation. For instance, some super-automatic machines have their brewing chamber located farther from the spout then others. All things being equal, the farther from the spout the brewing occurs, the cooler the coffee will be at the spout. In addition, the material used to deliver the brewed coffee to the spout, as well as the composition of the spout/brew head mechanism (and specifically the material of the chamber that holds the ground coffee/water mixture) itself will alter the temperature of the brewed coffee. Note that the F9 has a die-cast metal group head which should theoretically maintain appropriate temperature better. However, as you can see, this is not the case in practice. All in all, though, we like this way of measuring temperature because it is the least confusing of all the ways to present temperature measures to our customers. It sounds like you already know that there is a range of "correct" brewing temperatures, and we hope other members will share their preferences. Please let us know if we can be of future assistance. --JL Hufford Technical Team |
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philograd Member
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Regarding the question about brewing temperatures, in my experience the best temperature for brewing a tradition, crema loaded, European style espresso with a semi-automatic machine is about 199 to 201, maybe 202, degrees. You get the best flavor extraction with a tall crema at that temperature. |
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kkid31 Member
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FYI, real espresso coffees are made with semi-autos, philograd! But, the best supers are capressos S machines. 200 is the best temp methinks!  Also, don't get caught up in the temp deate when it comes to supers, that debate is only for non-super machines~Good luck! K-KID |
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bud Guest
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Never mind . . . we've decided to get the S9 Avantgarde . . .  Last edited on Sun Sep 25th, 2005 02:46 am by |
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