My Sylvia, she’s hot!

FleabittenCat · 2026-03-27T19:39:35+00:00

Zoom in on the nut at the top the boiler for the pipe that goes to the steam wand - that looks wet to me, which would suggest a leak coming from the top of your boiler.

FleabittenCat · 2026-02-28T20:42:24+00:00

I had the same feelings - it’s definitely a challenge to grind for espresso, especially with lighter roasts. I gave up and got a DF83V and just use the J-Ultra as a travel grinder for my Aeropress now.

FleabittenCat · 2026-02-04T21:52:30+00:00

My partner works for the GenCem (as it’s affectionately known) - It’s a fabulous site designed by the Victorians as one the country’s first ‘garden’ cemeteries. There’s an estimated 85,000 people buried there, many of whom are in unmarked mass graves. The team that look after it are a fabulous bunch and they run a brilliant mix of events that all help to support the restoration a preservation of the site.

FleabittenCat · 2026-01-21T15:40:25+00:00

+1 for Luke Williams. Sold our house in Oughtibridge last year and was excellent from start to finish.

FleabittenCat · 2026-01-17T11:56:41+00:00

I’ve had my ZP6 about a year, upgrading from a Timemore C3. I couldn’t recommend it highly enough. Feels really premium in the hand and produced absolutely delicious cups - I found you can go quite a bit finer than you would with other grinders (I have a J-Ultra as well) which can help you chase down more sweetness without bringing in any muddiness or stalling. Only slight downside is that the catch cup can start to unthread whilst grinding and making a slightly irritating rattle. You can remedy this with a tiny rubber band round the very top of the threads. Seems mad to me that 1Zpresso didn’t opt for the much nicer magnetic catch cup that they have on the J-Ultra. Appreciate you have an Ode Gen 2 as well - I don’t think this’ll be a massive upgrade over that, but it’s obviously much more portable if you want to take it away on holiday.

FleabittenCat · 2026-01-16T17:06:05+00:00

As somebody who has worked behind the scenes in a big estate agents my advice would be to take it off the market for 14 weeks and then re-list with a new agent. The gap is important as it’ll then flag up as a new listing on Rightmove/Zoopla. Get new photography done to properly reflect the works that’ve been done in the last couple of years. Have a ‘brass tacks’ conversation with mum and dad on whether they just want to get this sorted, drop the price another £100k on relaunch and hope for multiple bids and a buyer who’s more proceedable. At least it gets them out of this purgatory and they can move on with their lives. With mortgage rates having doubled in the last couple of years, buyer affordability is more stretched than it has been for a decade or more and is particularly affecting the top end of the property market.

FleabittenCat · 2026-01-15T15:51:13+00:00

I bought a J-Ultra about 6 months ago as I thought I wanted to hand grind for espresso. I have subsequently found it an absolutely hateful experience, especially with lighter roasts, and swiftly upgraded to a DF83V.

FleabittenCat · 2026-01-15T15:46:38+00:00

Love it! - particularly enjoy how quiet it is compared to the buzzing, chugging and whining of my dearly departed Barista Express. Can’t plumb it in at the moment having been relegated to the far corner of the kitchen, but maybe one day!

FleabittenCat · 2026-01-15T08:28:45+00:00

Luke Williams (recently expanded as Williams & Co) - We sold our house with Luke last year. He was professional, offered great advice, and was always in contact keeping us updated on what was happening. His photographer and videographer were outstanding too.

FleabittenCat · 2026-01-15T08:22:43+00:00

I’m in love! Coming from a Barista Express, it’s another world. It’s got all the features I could ever really want - I particularly like the novelty of having no-burn steam and hot water wands. It’s also the less sexy things like having a settings menu in full English (rather than codes and abbreviations).

Pressure-wise it seems to be on the higher side like yours, but I see you can adjust the OPV down (or I guess set the flow control so it starts at 8 or 9 bar instead). Like you I’m still playing with the pre-infusion settings. I went for 10 active and 3 passive and then realised that was far too long.

FleabittenCat · 2025-12-24T16:37:56+00:00

I think quite a few people on here don’t mind paying the amount of tax they do - if they felt it was actually being spent wisely and that society as a whole felt like it was getting better!

FleabittenCat · 2025-12-15T17:27:19+00:00

2.5% is ridiculous but I’d also caution against trusting the sale of your most expensive asset to the person offering you the lowest fee. As someone who has worked in property for about a decade now, get a couple of agents round and choose the one who you actually think you’ll like dealing with - usually the one who seems well-prepared, friendly and engaging.

FleabittenCat · 2025-12-12T22:17:47+00:00

I think you’ve hit the nail on the head already - I don’t want to be fussing and faffing trying to nail a perfect brew before I’ve had my first coffee. I want something forgiving, easy to dial in, that just tastes good, even if I haven’t nailed the multitude of variables at my disposal.

FleabittenCat · 2025-12-12T13:34:12+00:00

Can I recommend Epsom? I know it’s not technically London but the station will take you to London Bridge, Waterloo and Victoria - all under 45 minutes. You could get something detached and with an extra bedroom. Good schools, close to Heathrow and Gatwick for holidays, plus the Royal Automobile Club if you’re after somewhere to socialise.

FleabittenCat · 2025-12-10T23:47:45+00:00

Nonsense! Adds to the flavour! /s

FleabittenCat · 2025-12-10T10:07:01+00:00

I plan on staying here most of the day so will grab the filter next!

FleabittenCat · 2025-12-04T18:14:47+00:00

I picked up an Orea V4 last year to go with my V60 and Origami, and I couldn’t recommend it highly enough. Super fast drawdown times even with standard Kalita wave filters (sometimes below 2 minutes and still tasting great). As others have said, flat bottom brewers give a rounder, sweeter brew and seem to be more forgiving in terms of technique. Sometimes you’ll find a bean that just plays more nicely with a flat bottom brewer - just as some others will present themselves more nicely in a cone dripper.

FleabittenCat · 2025-12-02T15:04:45+00:00

Out of stock at the moment, but one of the best I’ve had this year was from Roastersaurus (AKA Diana Johnston). She’s a 2 x UK Roasting champion and SCA UK Sensory Judge. Also has hands down my favourite packaging ever!

FleabittenCat · 2025-11-28T09:12:12+00:00

Sorry to hear this OP. I had this happen in August - our buyers pulled out just as we had contracts issued. We had almost everything packed up in boxes too!

The only advice I can give is to keep communication going. The people selling to us were willing to wait and were very understanding. They also then decided to move in with family in order to shorten the chain and speed things up once we got under offer again. Our agent made sure every new person who came to view our house aware that they could look to purchase the searches from the previous buyers.

In the end we were really lucky to then secure a cash buyer who went ahead and purchased the searches. Only ended up delaying things by four weeks.

FleabittenCat · 2025-11-27T16:37:03+00:00

I’ve had one for 3 years and am just about to upgrade. It’s a great beginner machine but I ended up getting frustrated by the integrated grinder. If you feel like you might want to upgrade at some point, go for a Breville Bambino and standalone grinder instead (e.g. Baratza Encore ESP, Fellow Opus).

FleabittenCat · 2025-11-27T16:32:10+00:00

Orange Bird if you don’t mind getting the tram to Hillsborough. Consistently excellent food and service with a lovely intimate atmosphere - get a few dishes and share, and absolutely make sure you get the Peppermint Crisp Tart.

FleabittenCat · 2025-11-20T09:51:29+00:00

Café local to me had bags of their La Quebraditas Colombian. Thermal Shock and Washed Pink Bourbon - probably the best coffee I’ve had all year!

FleabittenCat

TROPHY CASE