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nwin posted:
Very cool. I'd love to hear your impression of it once you've had some time to play. This seems like the best single boiler with a PID out of the box for the money to me right now. Gaggia is great if you are willing to tinker, but the Go seems a fantastic machine out of the box.
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Dec 11, 2023 22:49
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VelociBacon posted:How do you like the espresso station? I need one pretty bad, the gaggia portafilter's tabs aren't at 3 and 9 but it looks like that wouldn't be a problem with that one? Haven’t had much interaction with it yet. But to answer your first question, the tabs don’t matter for this one:  Definitely wondering how the knock box is going to work. I never had one with my Robot, because the puck was always dry and the basket was easiest to just force the puck out over the trash can. Reviews said it was good because you don’t have to fish for your puck screen, but we’ll see. Link to product: IKAPE V5 Espresso Knock Box,... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CDPXDHG2?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
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Dec 12, 2023 02:41
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Pretty late notice, but Fellow’s having a 20% sale on a lot of things, both at Amazon and at their own website. I snapped up an Ode 2 grinder for $276. Sale ends in a few hours. If that’s too steep, the Baratza Encore, incidentally, is also on sale on Amazon.
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Dec 12, 2023 03:18
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They must be updating or discontinuing the Encore since I've seen it on sale in a bunch of places
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Dec 12, 2023 06:32
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Mu Zeta posted:They must be updating or discontinuing the Encore since I've seen it on sale in a bunch of places It’s kinda just always on sale at this point.
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Dec 12, 2023 06:38
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Pro tip: get rid of the hopper and get the single dose hopper.
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Dec 12, 2023 14:59
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Cannon_Fodder posted:Pro tip: get rid of the hopper and get the single dose hopper.
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Dec 12, 2023 15:19
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I liked it because you could use the "lid" as the dosing cup (vs the flat round disc that is the standard hopper lid. But I switched back because the Encore became the cold brew grinder and 100g of beans won't fit in the single-dose lol
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Dec 12, 2023 15:55
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Vegetable posted:I just researched this. It seems like a solution in search of a problem. If you get the bellows based single dose hopper it helps deal with the pretty significant retention.
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Dec 12, 2023 19:16
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amenenema posted:I liked it because you could use the "lid" as the dosing cup (vs the flat round disc that is the standard hopper lid. Pilfered Pallbearers posted:If you get the bellows based single dose hopper it helps deal with the pretty significant retention. You can use the single-dose hopper as a bellow and a dosing cup, plus it matches the rest of the machine. I won't argue, silicone bellows would def do a better job, but it's pourover not espresso so whatever.
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Dec 12, 2023 19:23
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I got my Sculptor 078. The hopper was loose, and I discovered it was due to whoever assembled the thing mixing up the two screws that hold it in place (they're of differing lengths). An easy fix, but not the smartest design choice nor does it bode well for QC. It came with a t-shirt, which is kind of fun. There was a customs fee, but they lied on the customs declaration so the amount was low. I can supposedly get it refunded if I email them about it. Put a bunch of old and cheap beans through it, then brewed my first cup. Quite happy with the results. Grounds looked nice and uniform, and the fines collector appeared to work as advertised. Popcorning does not seem to be an issue with the lid half-on. The RPM dial is not particularly accurate or responsive, but I doubt I will be using that feature much. I love the heft of the thing. Build quality seems excellent with the exception of the RPM dial and the on/off-button. They feel a bit cheaper and kind of tacked on. It grinds quickly and is a lot quieter than my old Uniform, but hardly as quiet as some of the reviews out there might lead you to believe. thotsky fucked around with this message at 17:39 on Dec 15, 2023 |
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Dec 15, 2023 17:25
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I was considering it but I can't get over how it looks. The shape's all wrong.
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Dec 15, 2023 17:34
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I love the shape. It's reminiscent of a kitchenaid or a skinny sowing machine. Even the big one is smaller than I was expecting, so I doubt there's much wasted real estate.
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Dec 15, 2023 17:37
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thotsky posted:I got my Sculptor 078. The hopper was loose, and I discovered it was due to whoever assembled the thing mixing up the two screws that hold it in place (they're of differing lengths). An easy fix, but not the smartest design choice nor does it bode well for QC. Where in the world are you? I'm waiting on one in the US and I'm honestly not sure if it's even shipped yet.
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Dec 15, 2023 21:40
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Me and a friends Sculptor 063s arrived in the US today. Built like a tank. No issues with mine, other than some minor UX annoyances (button should be in front, wish it was easier to eye changes to the grinder notches, beans can get stock in the hopper). Grind retention seems really low - way less messy than my Fellow Opus. Need to grab some cheap Costco beans to run through it, but I did my first 3 shots of espresso in months to just get a feel for what my Bambino can handle with a nice 1-minute pre-infusion - roughly the "1" notch. Edit: I didn't get any shipping notification from TimeMore themselves. Corb3t fucked around with this message at 22:23 on Dec 15, 2023 |
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Dec 15, 2023 22:20
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grahm posted:Where in the world are you? I'm waiting on one in the US and I'm honestly not sure if it's even shipped yet. Norway. I got a tracking number and everything. DHL at the start, then domestic mail service in country.
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Dec 15, 2023 23:06
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Corb3t posted:Me and a friends Sculptor 063s arrived in the US today. Built like a tank. No issues with mine, other than some minor UX annoyances (button should be in front, wish it was easier to eye changes to the grinder notches, beans can get stock in the hopper). Sorry, a 1 minute preinfusion?
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Dec 16, 2023 04:41
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nwin posted:Haven’t had much interaction with it yet. But to answer your first question, the tabs don’t matter for this one: Following up on a review for this espresso station. It’s fine I guess? The pucks knock out pretty easy and I like the shallow basket because I have a puck screen. I try to tap the puck screen out first but if I don’t, at least it’s not lost in a sea of pucks in a bucket knockbox. It’s good it has a place for the puck screen, but I usually put that on top of my machine so it heats up as well. I like the place where I put my portafilter in when it’s filled with coffee. I can put the dosing ring right on top, wdt, then tamp all in one position. I could just as easily do that with a rubber mat, but I’ve got kids and I can see them running off with the rubber mat, especially one that hangs off the side of a table. The things I don’t find myself using are the spare portafilter. I’m glad it’s there but I’m never not going to use bottomless, so….i just keep it there with the blind basket installed in it. It also sucks it’s a round cutout where my WDT goes, but the shape of my stand is an octagon so it doesn’t fit. That’s on me though-just need to get a new wdt with a better stand that will fit. All in all, it’s a nice space to organize my stuff. If I already had a knockbox or some other setup, I dunno if I would replace this with that, but since this was all new for me-it works.
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Dec 16, 2023 18:53
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Got the nanofoamer pro finally and it has in one go made better milk than I ever did with the wand.
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Dec 16, 2023 18:57
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Bandire posted:Very cool. I'd love to hear your impression of it once you've had some time to play. This seems like the best single boiler with a PID out of the box for the money to me right now. Gaggia is great if you are willing to tinker, but the Go seems a fantastic machine out of the box. It’s been great-no real issues except some that sprometheus brings up in his review. Issues: fit and finish. The drip tray corners are in need of some light filing/sanding. I haven’t and probably won’t cut myself on them but when you feel the edges it’s pretty noticeable. The other thing is the stainless drip tray on top definitely makes some noise when the machine is pulling a shot. If I push down on it or stabilize the cups, it will stop. Some people have put pieces of silicon to dampen the noise or stop it completely. It’s also a fairly small machine, and with that, the distance between the grouphead isn’t that large. The GCP faces the same problem, and is even smaller. Basically, if you’re doing anything more than an espresso cup and a scale, you need the bottomless portafilter. That’s really it. I was having issues steaming at first but that was a me problem. After I watched Hoffman video last night to get the correct location, I made steamed milk without issue this morning. Definitely capable of latte art. Other people had mentioned that getting a 4-hole nozzle is what mattered for them, so I stupidly have that on the way, but the supplied 2-hole works fine. I dialed in pretty quickly and haven’t had issues with shots. I use a niche zero which I understand has a pretty wide sweet spot. It’s good for two drinks at a time, one being an americano for the wife and then a cappuccino for myself. I saw reviews where people do two lattes every morning, so that’s possible. I don’t think I’d like this machine if I had 2 + friends over and everyone wanted a drink. Espresso shots would be fine, but anything else would have me wanting a double boiler. Edit: I also like the water tank. It’s in the back which doesn’t bother me since mine doesn’t sit under a counter. One person on Reddit raised a concern since the water flows from the bottom (as opposed to the gaggia or something similar which pulls the water up via tubes) and thinks it will leak over time due to an oring or something failing. I don’t think that though-my wife’s keurigs have used that setup and never leaked before. nwin fucked around with this message at 22:28 on Dec 16, 2023 |
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Dec 16, 2023 19:03
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George H.W. oval office posted:Got the nanofoamer pro finally and it has in one go made better milk than I ever did with the wand. Glad it works for you. I’ve read similar experiences from other people, but there are also concerns about its longevity. Some people on Reddit said that it broke after a week or ten uses, etc. How is it to clean? That was my concern.
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Dec 16, 2023 19:04
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E: ^^^ I show cleaning here! I am once more posting a mostly-commentary-free video of full Flair workflow from start to finish: episode 2: Latte with new Nanofoamer Pro https://youtu.be/SSssyZA7DKg?si=SQTAuyOIwJtNvNNz Now with 1 bonus guest and 100% more artistic flourish! 200% of 0 is 0 First impression if the foamer is a good start, a bit too foamy but very consistent and easy. Biggest benefit is the ability to foam small amounts. Clean up is a pain but I'm okay with it. Lots of variables to play with so I expect I'll be even happier as I tinker! BrianBoitano fucked around with this message at 19:38 on Dec 16, 2023 |
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Dec 16, 2023 19:34
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Cannon_Fodder posted:Sorry, a 1 minute preinfusion? Yeah so I installed a $5 dimmer switch mod on my Bambino so I typically pull a manual shot with the pump's power reduced, pause the machine when I see first drops, wait 1-2 minutes while prepping/cleaning, then do a slow ramp of pressure for a sort of manual flow controlled shot. Inspired by espresso methods outlined here. Here's my post about it: Corb3t posted:The dimmer mod was a success, and looks pretty clean: Corb3t fucked around with this message at 19:43 on Dec 16, 2023 |
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Dec 16, 2023 19:38
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Just wanted to say that I'm loving my gaggiuino, amazingly consistent even just sticking the provided profiles.
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Dec 16, 2023 20:26
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Cleaning is maybe the goofiest bit. The pitcher is a bit smaller than I thought so you can’t get your hand in super good to wipe it down. Bottle brush and say wiping it with a cloth with 3 fingers will do the trick.
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Dec 16, 2023 20:38
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nwin posted:Profitec Go Very cool. That kind of sounds like my suspicion that it's a GCP with most of the desirable mods already included. Glad you are enjoying it Corb3t posted:Yeah so I installed a $5 dimmer switch mod on my Bambino so I typically pull a manual shot with the pump's power reduced, pause the machine when I see first drops, wait 1-2 minutes while prepping/cleaning, then do a slow ramp of pressure for a sort of manual flow controlled shot. Inspired by espresso methods outlined here. I've been thinking about doing a dimmer mod on my GCP too. I guess I didn't realize how simple it was. Sounds like cake compared to the PID install I already muddled through.
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Dec 17, 2023 00:21
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HELP I'm roasting this washed Nicaragua in my Gene Cafe and the roast is kind of stalling. I get about 12.8% loss at 13 minutes at 440-442F, and 13.2% at 15:00. I want to get it a little darker, but I'm concerned about going too much longer. The color matches City+ pretty well. I'm concerned about losing flavor, as everything else I've done with this roast profile really drops off in quality past 15:00. Do I just keep going till the color looks closer? I tried a couple batches with 2:00 on the cooling cycle because the chaff is tenacious, and a couple just immediately dumping it into a cold colander and then into a cold baking pan, but no real difference in results. I did a bunch of a fairly similar Chiapas last week and with the same roast profile it lost weight super fast and that 13:00-14:00 time range was apparently a really critical threshold because 14:30-15:00 was not great and went to 16-17% loss in seconds. Pushing up to 450F and then dropping back down to 445ish for the remainder didn't produce great results.
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Dec 17, 2023 05:51
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Nanofoamer Pro trip report update: each attempt is better than the last. Just did attempt #4: Trader Joe's 2% milk: 110 ml with a splash of heavy cream, setting 1, let it go 5 seconds after the "done" beep. (I'll buy whole milk later, 2% is what we keep on hand for the young un) It's not pretty, but that's my skill. It's the best in the prior 40 lattes from a variety of steamers / wands. So the texture is great and it is the best in the world at low-waste frothing. With all my prior tools, doing 110 ml meant chunky cappuccino texture and/or splash everywhere, even when trying to use a spoon as a restrictor. I'd usually have to make 150 ml (Nanofoamer v1) or 200+ (Bellman or Sanremo F18). I hate waste, and while 3yo usually doesn't mind it added to his drink cup, that's annoying to get it from him / out of the fridge and fenagle it open. With the Pro, I end up with about 10ml extra at the end vs 50-100ml extra. The shot mirror on the other hand is an absolute dog turd. Its gimmicky "clip on your cup" feature is super finicky, but even if it were easy the angles are bad - I need my mirror to be pretty low, not at the lip of the cup, so I can see the portafilter as close to straight-on as I can. And the cherry on top is that the mirror is dark. Here it is next to a freebie mirror from a toddler carrier. Swapped the position to show it's not just a trick of the lighting. 
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Dec 19, 2023 00:20
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I’ve been using the nanofoamer pro for the last couple of weeks and having no issues either, works exactly like I’d hoped for with minimal effort and it’s quick to clean as well. I’ve got minimal latte art skills but the actual consistency of the milk always comes out great. It makes for some nice hot chocolate as well.
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Dec 19, 2023 02:18
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I just received mine and I've used it twice. How are y'all cleaning them, and how do you clean the screen components? All the warnings about not getting it wet are making me a little paranoid. Are y'all transferring the milk to another vessel? Also, also, mine came with some "free" latte are thing on Masterclass, but I cannot figure out how to use it. The QR code on the card is a dead url, and when I try to create an account on Masterclass it asks for a credit card-- which is a product I will never use. Anyone else figure out how to use that code?
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Dec 19, 2023 04:05
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I’ve just been rinsing it in the sink and holding it a slight angle, it’s easy enough to not get the bottom wet. I turn it around and 95% of the leftover milk rinses right out. Then I give it a little wipe on the inside where the milk residue builds up near the front, which comes off easily enough too. Same for the screen, I’ve just been rinsing it off after each use. I’ve given the whole thing a rinse/wipe with a bit of soapy water now and then but it doesn’t seem to need it much. I’ve poured straight from the nanofoamer when I didn’t feel like cleaning a second jug, but I’m also not pouring proper latte art where the extra consistency/control matters.
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Dec 19, 2023 06:27
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My cleaning is in my "first try" video above. Sponge and soap inside, soap and included brush on the screen. Popping it off is annoying but I do it. For some reason having kids turns you into an efficient dish washer.
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Dec 19, 2023 06:41
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I just wanna say that there are about a hundred alternatives to the nanofoamer that use the exact same technology and achieve the same thing. My wife's been using a non-branded one off Amazon for years. Also, my understanding is that the output is meaningfully different from using a steam wand. You're not actually steaming the milk so it doesn't break down the milk sugars in the same way -- or something like that.
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Dec 19, 2023 07:06
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I've tried 3 alternatives - Instant, Bodum, Maestri. None of them make as good quality, especially for low volumes (and supposedly for alt milks). The others did get the milk hotter, so closer to the real steam sweetness, so that point stands. The tech is different - it uses a screened impeller not a whisk, and its rpm speed is much faster. It makes a difference if you're going for latte texture, both on the tongue and for art. Best all around if you can learn it will be a steam wand (except not for small quantities). Nanofoamer gets you drat close for zero talent needed, which is honestly huge.
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Dec 19, 2023 07:38
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I have never failed at something so hugely as being able to make any kind of marking let alone art in a latte using the steam wand (e: not stab wound as it autocorrected to, I might work in ER too frequently) on my gcp. It just... Goes underneath the surface of the drink. I've looked at a thousand videos and read a thousand guides and I'm doing all the steps and with exactly the technique I see everyone else doing but I can't get it to work. The next step is to kidnap a barista and force them to do latte art with my machine to assess if it's even possible. I think I get more than enough steam pressure and I'm getting good microfoam but yeah I dunno. A mystery.
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Dec 19, 2023 10:59
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I had some improvement from posting a video here & on some espresso discord servers. A video will reveal a whole lot. But yeah, the local café is starting classes in the new year and I'm taking one. Can't beat in person coaching!
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Dec 19, 2023 16:18
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So with my lithium nanofoamer, to clean it I would just fill the milk pitcher with water and a drop of soap, let the nanofoamer spin around for a bit, and then rinse that out with water a few times. I clean my vitamix the same way. Any reason that method wouldn’t work for the nanofoamer pro?
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Dec 19, 2023 17:35
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That'd work to clean the screen but probably not the pitcher - the vortex created would clean the inside where it's going fastest but good ol' no-slip boundary conditions mean there's very little shear force on the cooked milk stuck to the bottom outside edge.
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Dec 19, 2023 18:18
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My NanoFoamer Pro will be here in a few days, but my hope is that my faucet's ~125F tap water is hot enough to power through any layer of milk when I rinse it out. My Bambino has a steam wand that works just fine, but it will be nice to fill the NanoFoamer up with enough milk for 2 lattes while I prep + clean other things in the kitchen.
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Dec 19, 2023 18:39
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Orphan Espresso is sold out/backordered on the Cafelat robot upper and lower paper filters. I'm kicking myself for not ordering several hundred of each the last time I bought a restock. The Aeropress filter paper can sort of replace the upper filter, although they are slightly large. No lower filter option without trying to cut out papers by hand. I'm guessing they've closed their storefront for the holidays, do any of y'all have an alternative for these filters?
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Dec 19, 2023 20:02
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