Comments on bread, coffee, chocolate, yoga: finally a real vibiemme manual

Looks like 1st Line has now made the manual availa...

2008-01-20T06:50:00.000-08:00

Looks like 1st Line has now made the manual available online.

http://www.1st-line.com/manuals/Viebemme_guide7a_press.pdf

ebohling:you're too kind. lemme do your wife a fav...

2007-12-18T20:30:00.000-08:00

ebohling:

you're too kind. lemme do your wife a favor -- and turn her onto my latest choco-find the vivani 85% organic. omigod. the break could be cleaner, the snap crisper, but i'm not complaining. . . .oh no. not at all.

http://www.vivani.de/P_Tafeln_Feine_Bitter_85_e.html

f

i'm so glad i discovered your site! i love how you...

2007-12-18T20:21:00.000-08:00

i'm so glad i discovered your site! i love how you write...reminds me of my favorite read, heather armstrong (dooce.com). anyone that can put coffee and porn together gets my vote. LOL. expect another two loyal readers (me and my wife who is a bread and chocolate whore...like our son apparently: http://ebohling.com/index.php/bryce/entry/learned-or-in-the-genes/).

ebohling:i wouldn't call it corruption. . . i woul...

2007-12-18T20:00:00.000-08:00

ebohling:

i wouldn't call it corruption. . . i would call it evangelizing the romance. specialty coffee is the most beautiful and romantic beverage, after all!

f

true, a seasoned barista should be able to make a ...

2007-12-18T19:44:00.000-08:00

true, a seasoned barista should be able to make a godshot with almost any machine (with the right bean and grinder). however, as much as an espresso snob that i am, i will never care to take the time to be that good. yes, shame on me. so, i need an equalizer for my laziness. just like a buy high-end camera gear to take great/decent photos. and of course silvia/rocky will find a wonderful home with one of my spro newbie friends...and i will corrupt him like i was corrupted. ;)

ebohling:i am always reminded of barista goddess s...

2007-12-18T18:44:00.000-08:00

ebohling:

i am always reminded of barista goddess sherri johns, who once pulled perfect shot after perfect shot from a krups home machine.

true, the equipment must meet certain basic parameters, and more machine usually means better consistency and blah blah blah.

but at the end of the day, once you have a semi-decent machine, it's all about barista skills. mad skillz.

having said that (shout out to mike white here) go run over to espresso parts and upgrade. but do pass dear silvia on to someone who will love her so they too can experience the life-changing passion of high-quality specialty espresso.

f

that's a bummer (but understandable) about the man...

2007-12-18T18:26:00.000-08:00

that's a bummer (but understandable) about the manual. unfortunately i live way over "to the left" (oregon), so would probably purchase a machine closer to home.

while silvia has been a good machine, but like two buck chuck (wine at trader joe's), my palate has outgrown silvia. and not that i still can't get incredible shots from the girl, just that it takes a lot of work, time, and still get great inconsistencies. so i'm looking for a machine that is more efficient and consistent. which probably means a double boiler, but have not totally ruled out an HX machine. just a few of my thoughts: http://ebohling.com/images/tmp/EspressoMachines.jpg.

howdy wong & ebohling:you get your espresso staine...

2007-12-18T18:17:00.000-08:00

howdy wong & ebohling:

you get your espresso stained hands on the manual by buying a caesar from jim p. at 1st line. it's for customers! i have a showroom demo model, but despite having been lugged around to a gazillion shows and on the trade floor, he still looks brand new, which isn't surprising because he's built like the most handsome tank you've ever seen.

why replace silvia if she makes great coffee for you? before mindlessly trading up, i always recommend you evaluate your true lifestyle and get the best machine for you.

i know, i always inject that note of caution -- and then shamelessly enable upgraditis by enthusing madly over all of caesar's fantastic features.

such as his endless steaming power, his gleaming beauty, the fact that fresh espresso drips in globs from him like motor oil. . . it's coffee porn, really.

there is no perfect espresso machine. you have to find the one that best fits your lifestyle, as i've said. my advice to both of you is to call jim p. yourself and do the deal, or visit his showroom in joisey.

hth,

f

How do you get your hands on the manual? And would...

2007-12-18T16:28:00.000-08:00

How do you get your hands on the manual? And would you buy Caesar again? I just started looking at it today after I thought I had narrowed my decision to 2 double boilers: Expobar Brewtus II or La Spaciale Vivaldi II. I've been researching for ***HOURS and HOURS*** on a replacement for Rocky/Silvia, but it's so hard to pick one...doesn't seem to be the perfect machine out there. And I'm hoping the next purchase will be it for quite some time.

hey, I have a VBM super too. Is it possible to tel...

2007-12-18T07:02:00.000-08:00

hey, I have a VBM super too. Is it possible to tell me how I can get my hand of one the Manual.