Gaggia - Tradizione in Continua Evoluzione

Instructional training

Hi Francesca

Do you provide coffee making instructional training?

Ben

Hi Ben,

Yes, with each home espresso machine we sell, we give a free training coupon which entitles you to attend one of the scheduled home coffee machine training sessions in our showroom. We also run training sessions on commercial machines for those who want to increase their knowledge or refresh their skills. With all installations of commercial espresso machines, instruction and training is given on the installation of the coffee machine. Finally, check out our online videos given by our MD, David.

Hope this helps
F

Getting a great crema

Dear Francesca,

I can’t get any crema when I make the espresso. I'm buying ground coffee from my local supermarket. What am I doing wrong!?! Help!

Erica

Hi Erica,

There are a few common causes to the problem of not being able to get a good crema on espresso.

Firstly, the ground coffee needs to be ground for an espresso machine if it's going to give you a chance of crema from the espresso. Much pre-ground coffee that you buy is for generic use, in that it's designed for use by multiple brewing techniques, including drip, fresh press or espresso machine. The ground coffee for espresso machines should have the consistency of salt rather than sugar. This is why it's a good idea to try and use your own burr grinder so you can regulate the consistency better.

Secondly, if the coffee has already been ground for some time, it may have lost a lot of its freshness and vibrancy; it's almost impossible to get any type of reasonable crema from old ground coffee. Look for a roasting date on the packet – not all coffee has this on the packaging, but some does.

Thirdly, make sure you have enough coffee in the group handle. Use the scoop tool that comes with the coffee machine to measure out 7g for a single shot or 14g for a double.

I'd recommend that you come along to one of our training sessions if you can, as it will help you identify and troubleshoot problems that occur from time to time. Like a lot of things, the solution is simple when you know where to look.

Hope this helps
F

Steam pressure problems

Dear Francesca

I can’t get much steam pressure from my Gaggia, what could be the problem?

Regards
Paul

Hi Paul,

Most of the time, a drop-off in steam pressure ( from what it was when your machine was new) is the result of a build-up of limescale from hard water. First of all, I recommend that you try and run descaling solution through the coffee machine. This will help to break down the lime. We sell de-scaling power sachets, and if you live in a hard water area it's worth using these once a month to alleviate the effect of limescale or calcium building up in the boiler and pipes. If the problem persists then you should drop it in for a service and further investigation.

Hope this helps,
F

Machine servicing

Hi Francesca,

What happens if something goes wrong or if I need to get my espresso machine serviced in the future?

Joe

Hi Joe,

If your Gaggia coffee machine breaks under the 1 year warranty period then we'll fix it under warranty. However this only applies to coffee machines bought from Watermark. If you need to get your Gaggia serviced during the life of the coffee machine then you can send it to us or drop it into us and we usually have it serviced in a couple of days.

Hope this helps,
F

Showroom

Hi Francesca,

Do you have a shop or showroom so that I can see the coffee maker before I buy it?

Dave

Hi Dave,

Thanks for your message. Yes, you can come to our showroom in Citywest, Dublin 24 (you can print off directions here). We generally demonstrate the different type of machines by making a couple of coffees and try to match your needs, budget and price.

Ciao
F

Cup warmers

Hi Francesca,

I'm interested in buying a personal coffee machine and I came across a "cup warmer" function. How important is this function with regards on the qualilty of espresso? Thanks.

Kind Regards,
Daniela

Hi Daniela,

Great question; pouring an espresso into a cold cup reduces the temperature of the coffee dramatically, and accordingly the experience (drinking cold espresso makes me sad!!). The cup warmer function (as the name suggests) helps to make the cup warm and maintains the temperature of the coffee. If you want, you can also rinse the cup out with hot water from the coffee machine before you make the espresso shot, this helps to instantly heat the cup. I’ve also found that small thin china cups warm up much faster than large heavier cups.

Hope this helps
F

Americanos

Hi Francesca,

Perhaps you could tell me the difference between a black coffee and an Americano coffee?

Thanks,
Jess.

Hi Jess,

Thats a good question – for a lot of people a black coffee and an Americano are the same thing. I think the answer seems to vary depending on where you're from. In Italy, an Americano coffee is an espresso shot with hot water added. Adding hot water reduces the intensity of the coffee for those who prefer less intensity to their coffee (not me though!).

However, I've often seen ‘black coffee’ on menus here, and I've noticed that this can be made from a filter or cafetiere, or – like the Americano – made by an espresso machine.

Hope that helps...

Ciao
F

What milk?

Dear Francesca,

Do you recommend full fat or low fat milk when making cappuccino?

Mike

Hi Mike,

It depends whether or not you're winning the fight with your waistline! I tend to choose low-fat generally, when I go to the supermarket, but I think full fat milk tastes better, especially Irish milk. From the perspective of making good quality cappuccino foam, it's important to choose a milk that's high in protein and taken cold from the fridge.

Ciao
F

Which machine to choose – a personal take

Hi Francesca,

What Gaggia do you use?

Ian

Hi Ian,

My parents have had a Gaggia Classic for the past 15 years, and it works really well – I had my first coffee from this machine, so I'm more than a little attached to it. I've used it for years and I love it.

In Dublin, I use the Gaggia Baby Dose in red, with an MDF grinder and a knock out base unit. It makes really fantastic coffee, and looks really cool. I also recently gave a Gaggia Espresso Colour to one of my friends as a wedding present, and she really loves it.

Hope that helps!

Ciao
F

Glossary of espresso terms:

• Americano | A coffee drink made with an espresso shot and hot water. The hot water should be no hotter than 90 degrees centigrade.
• Barista is the Italian name for the person who makes and operates the coffee machine (with skill!) Boiler is where the water is heated to create steam pressure and hot water for brewing the espresso shot.
• Brewing Temperature | The temperature at which the hot water is released on to the ground coffee. Consistency in the brewing temperature is important to get a full and even extraction of coffee flavour and should be generally be from 90° - 92° centigrade. If the temperate is too cold, then the coffee flavour will be weak and lack its full taste, if it’s too hot them the natural sugar in the coffee beans burn and the coffee tastes a little one dimensional.
• Brew Time | The time it takes to extract a shot or double shot of coffee, typical extraction time for a 40 ml shot of coffee is between 22- 28 seconds. If your shot is coming out much slower than this then the coffee flavours are burning in the group head. If you shot is coming our much faster than this then you are likely not getting a full and even extraction of favour.
• Caffe Latte | A coffee drink made with an espresso shot, steamed milk with a thin layer of foamed milk on the surface. The texture of the milk foam should be smooth and velvety. For larger sized cups a double espresso shot may give a better balance of flavour.
• Cappuccino | A coffee drink made with an espresso shot (1/3 of the drink volume) and with foamed milk (1/3) and steamed milk (1/3). There is a tendency in many coffee houses to serve Cappuccino with smooth milk foam rather than large bubbly milk foam. As with Caffe Latte, it might be better to serve a double espresso shot for larger cup sizes to get a better balance to the coffee.
• Crema | The golden honey coloured texture at the surface of the espresso shot. The crema is made up of little bubbles created as the water has been forced through the coffee shot at 9 / 10 bar of pressure. The Crema should have a good consistency and colour. Some people use a ‘sugar test’ to judge the quality of the crema by pouring some sugar on to the crema to see if it has the strength and density to hold the sugar on the surface for a couple of moments before dissolving into the body of the espresso.