[ajkjk]

I'm not the only person saying this: getting an espresso machine was the biggest QoL improvement from one purchase I've ever had. Although you do have to enjoy and be excited about manually making espresso. For me I specifically wanted to go through the process (grinding, tamping, etc) since being able to vary the result, pick the coffee, etc is part of the enjoyment, so a machine that uses Nespresso pods or the like was never a consideration.

You don't have to spend a lot of money really, but it is recommended to get a standalone grinder rather than a grinder+espresso combo because it means you can upgrade/replace the parts separately. Also most of your budget should go to the grinder, not the espresso machine, since that's the part where money gets quick returns on quality.

I bought a Gaggia Classic Pro machine (~425$), which is perfectly adequate if not the most attractive one, and a Sette 270wi grinder (~450$). They have been completely successful so I have no intention of upgrading.

[LesZedCB]

Nice! I got into espresso at the start of COVID with a Silvia and really enjoyed it. This year I started roasting my own coffee. I found a hottop 2k used on Craigslist for $600, and now I spend about $10/mo on coffee!

[ajkjk]

Not a bad idea, although I guess personally I don't mind my coffee budget particularly because it goes to local cafes that I like supporting. I also don't drink all that much (2 cups a day) so it's not much money to support my 'habit'.

[etrautmann]

2 cups a day at a cafe comes out to over $3k a year? Seems fairly expensive relative to brewing at home, but I take your point about supporting businesses.

[ajkjk]

Well I meant two cups a day at home, but yes I would still pay that. Cafes are good and I like them. Way cheaper than drinking at bars, for comparison, also.

[LesZedCB]

Yeah it's not really a money saver, I already upgraded my roaster, but it is really fun and satisfying. The are ways to start for like $20 if you ever become interested.

[SauciestGNU]

I've been roasting for about 12 years now. I still use the second roaster that I bought 10 years ago, a Behmor 1600. The unit cost under $400 new, and I get my coffee for about $8/lb max including tax and shipping. I have absolutely saved money, probably thousands of dollars over the course of this hobby. And I've become proficient enough that I can produce coffee that I prefer to anything sold commercially I've been able to find.

That being said, I am considering upgrading my roaster to the Aillio Bullet, which costs around $3k, so that would probably put me back in the red for this specific hobby.

[LesZedCB]

i highly recommend the bullet! the batch size is great and the data logging and responsiveness with the induction heating is pretty amazing. i wasn't planning to upgrade but a local one went on sale for 2500 and i couldn't pass up the opportunity.

[karakot]

I've been drinking good espresso for many years (locally and freshly roasted beans, good grinder and espresso machine, etc), then moved to aeropress and been sticking with americano for the last year. Now, I'm trying not to drink any coffee for a month to check if it's the reason I'm getting extremely anxious lately.

[ajkjk]

I've been down that road but have more or less convinced myself the coffee wasn't the problem. Although I don't drink _all_ that much. Coffee does seem to make it a bit harder to be self-aware, though .. like your energy levels are higher but they leave less time for the kind of boredom that causes you to have thoughts about stuff you've been avoiding thinking about.

[gtvwill]

Hell yeah! Congrats on getting into the world of coffee.

Go check out https://gaggiuino.github.io/#/ if your into tinkering.

Your gaggia is about 250 to 300 bucks away from walking all over $3k+ machines. :)

[digianarchist]

That’s exactly my setup. I swapped out the pressure valve and added a temperature PID controller. It’s a great unit.

[getToTheChopin]

I've got a late 1990s Gaggia which is still going strong (with regular maintenance).

It's a great little machine!