First thing first. When we talk about grinders, we are talking about BURR grinders and NOT blade. A blade grinder is like your blender… they have spinning blades. Basically they CHOP your beans, they don’t really grind.

Here are what burrs look like.

And if you want to make good coffee at home, having a proper burr grinder will change your experience of coffee drinking. The only way to make good coffee is to grind them just before you brew them.

Here is the M5 grinder. This is commercial quality and is a excellent grinder. Cost around RM2500 to RM2700.

This is the Isomac Professional Home Grinder. An excellent home grinder. Able to grind fine enough for very nice espresso and flexible enough to grind coarser for Aeropress, Moka Pot or french press. Cost is aroung RM1200. Check out further review HERE.

An espresso machine of GOOD VALUE does not need to be the best looking, have the biggest boiler or most advance in technology and etc.

When we consider something of GOOD VALUE, we are considering its’ total package.

Let me introduce to you now… not just an espresso machine of good value but of GREAT VALUE.
Truly one of the best you can find in Malaysia.

The Nuova Simonelli Oscar.

Why is it consider an espresso machine of Great Value?

1. It is a Heat Exchanger espresso Machine.
With a Heat Exchanger (unlike single bolier machine) you can brew and froth milk at the same time. Meaning there is no need to boiler’s temperature to go up and down like those Gaggias or Silvias.

2. Industry Standards Group Head and Portafilter
Comes with a 58mm Brass Portafilter, it is heavy and offer good heat retention. Unlike those from Krup or Delonghi machines where their portafilters are made of lousy aluminium, DO NOT HIT ANYONE with it. It is strong and hard enough to crack your skull.

3. Powerful Steam
When you want to make silky sweet, velvety and creamy microfoamed milk, you will need powerful steam. And the Oscar does not fail. With the correct technique, you can make excellent microfoam for your cappuccino.

4. Big 2litre boiler

5. Big 2.3 litre water tank

6. ABS Plastic Body
Makes it easy to clean and light enough to move it around by yourself.

7. Excellent Price of RM3,800 only.

It is the combination of good professional features, seriously built and affordable price that make it an espresso machine of GREAT VALUE.

What is the downside?

- No hot water dispenser (With such low price, you might as well get yourself a thermo flask.

- Not Stainless Steel
A Super Sexy Machine THIS IS NOT. For those who likes their machine shiny and heavy like superman, forget about this machine. You can get the Vibiemme Domobar Super for around RM9000.

Summary:
This is an excellent home espresso machine that fits the budget and yet can make great coffee. And not just making 2 cups, but capable enough to serve a small parties. No problems making 20 to 30 cups of coffee in an hour.

I would say it can even serve a small cafe if selling coffee is not your main business.

The internal parts all look well built.

Espresso extraction looks tight.

Good enough to pour latte art.

Held @ Berjaya University College of Hospitailty in Berjaya Times Square, Malaysia Coffee Blogger, KF Chan andcafe owner, Sum Leong was part of the panel.

Read the stories below.

Excerpts from KF Chan:

About Moses
He is a friendly guy. That is not a surprise at all. Trained in the art of PR. But make no mistake, he knows about coffee. That means what you see in his program is not just someone reading from a script.

He is a barista too. Better than most behind the bar in any cafe in Malaysia for sure. During the demo, he paid attention to grind adjustment, paid attention to extration rate, froth milk correctly on the 3rd attempt and manage to pour latte art too.

Excerpts from Wee Chuan:

Hahaha, I got served by Moses Chan!…
He must have learn lot more from the professional baristas that he met in the programme. The tamper he used was my Impod tamper, recommended by Mark Prince in his CoffeeKid website.

Excerpts:
First, Moses Chan went to Cafe Europa in Copenhagen, Denmark where he met ¹Martin Hildebrant, the 2001 WBC champion.

During his interview with Martin, he was introduced to specialty coffee and Martin made him a signature drink that is popular with Cafe Europa’s customers.The steps of making are as below:

1. Get a martini cocktail glass and pour simple sugar syrup as base.

2. Pour in a shot of espresso.

3. Shake the whipping cream in a shaker till achieve a consistent creamy & silkiness. Pour the cream into the glass.

Go and read the rest at Wee Chuan’s Blog, including the visit to illy’s factory.

The popular Hong Kong actor / coffee lover, Moses Chan has a coffee program called Coffee Confidential that is currently airing over in Astro.

Channel: 311
Day: Sunday
Time: 9pm

If you don’t have Astro Chiness Channel, follows the summary every week with Coffee Blogger, Wee Chuan.

Excerpts:
Episode I brought Moses Chan to Indonesia where he experienced Kopi Luwak.

So what is Kopi Luwak & why it is so great?¹Kopi is the Indonesian word for coffee. Kopi Luwak comes from the islands of Sumatra, Java and Sulawesi (formerly Celebes), which are part of the Indonesian Archipelago’s 13,677 islands. (Only 6,000 of these islands are inhabited.)

Check out the stories about Caffeinees from here and there. Look promising.

There are really very few choices when it comes to Home Espresso machine in Malaysia.

1. Nuova Simonelli Oscar
Price range: RM3800 to RM4000

2. Rancilio Silvia
Price range: RM2800 to RM3200

3. Gaggia range
Price range: RM1100 to RM2500

Next time when you go to any cafe, DO NOT SETTLE FOR LESS. If they charge you more than RM6 for a cappuccino or cafe latte or espresso, demand quality from them. Make life hard for them. Why pay so much if you are gonna get crap drinks. Might as well made them at home.

Ask them:

1. Is your coffee  beans fresh? How fresh?

2. I want silky smooth cappuccino, not those with soap bubble foam.

3. I expect crema on my espresso. And don’t settle for extration of espresso that is less than 20 seconds.

When you pay premium, demand quality.

Story of a second-hand espresso machine.

Another Old Machine with new owner.

That’s the spirit man. Pushing all the way to make excellent killer coffee at home. If only we can see such enthusiasm in the cafes where barista really walk the extra mile to make us great coffee in Malaysia.

Check out these stories on Latte Art in Malaysia.

1. The Story – Latte Art on Coffee

2. The Practice – DIY