1:3 — Stranger brews, drinkware, and latte art

Edition No. 18

1 Fun Thing

As the Stranger Things new season begins, we tip our hat to this groovy 80s themed show. Did you know 906 boys and 307 girls were auditioned for the children's roles! The Duffers cast our favourite Gaten Matarazzo (Dustin Henderson) after watching his first audition tape.

3 Coffee Facts

1. Drinkware can significantly alter how you experience a drink. The size, material, shape and thickness of the lip play an important role in how your beverage cools, hits your tongue and palate, and how aromas are funnelled into you nose. Sounds ridiculous? Try drinking a good red wine out of a champagne flute and a Burgundy glass and spot the differences. For coffee, try the Kruve EQ glasses while you’re at it.

2. Brewing espresso with light roasted coffee isn’t easy as they don’t give up their soluble material as readily as medium and dark roasts. So here’s 3 ways to better extract those light roasts — a) pull longer ratios; b) ensure your brewer has good temperature stability, and brew at higher temperatures; c) ramp down the pressure as your shot progresses as these pucks lose integrity quicker.

3. The physics of textured milk interacting with espresso to create latte art is very interesting. Milk is first poured from a height so it sinks below the crema to form the base, or canvas. The pitcher is then lowered to just a few cm above the surface of the drink. Pouring from this close means the milk foam sits atop the beverage, and allows for the creation of detailed art.

PS: We just released our latest review of the Picopresso on YouTube! It was double the effort because our laptop died mid-edit #1, so check it out if you have 12 minutes to spare…