OK, so this thing is a vintage stovetop espresso maker, or perhaps it’s just a coffee maker. I don’t know. It’s certainly unlike anything I’ve ever seen before: it’s all stainless steel, with a central reservoir shaped like a milk bottle. The reservoir is stopped at the top with a screw-in cap that seals it quite securely; there is tube-like path that starts at the bottom (inside) of the reservoir, goes up along the side, and exits through the arm coming out of the side of the reservoir. The arm holds a gruppa for the coffee grounds over a stainless steel carafe. So, clearly, one puts the reservoir end over the stove until the water boils and is forced up, through the arm, grounds, and voila.
I think.
Is anyone familiar with this type of stovetop maker and how to use it?
The holes in the gruppa, or the little basket that hold the grounds, are far, far too large to use with an espresso grind, or even a normal drip grid. Am I supposed to use a filter of some kind, or a really coarse grind?
I notice water bubbling out of the top of the gruppa when it’s brewing; is it useless to use this thing without some kind of grommet to seal the gruppa to the arm?
Duck Duck Goose: Thanks, but I’m afraid none of those fit the bill. The name on the maker is “Brevettata Vesuviana” (the model name made me a bit nervous firing it up). It’s at least 30 years old; I would guess older (I found it in an antique store). I’d already looked around on the internet and had been unable to find anything that even looks like it; like I said, I’ve never seen anything like it before, and I have about five other vintage stovetop makers (yes, it’s a fetish, and no, I don’t know why).
My understanding of stovetops in general is that they are often used with a very coarse grind, like percolators or even french presses, that the coffee should have an earthier taste and more oily texture. But I’ve never seen one with an arm extending away from the reservoir that forces that water down through the grinds like a drip machine.
Sounds like you’re missing your portafilter. Go here http://www.danny.mcnulty.btinternet.co.uk/newstuff.html for a picture of what it’s supposed to look like. It’s towards the bottom left of the page. Do you have the part with the bakelite handle?
Link to Vesuvania discussion on alt.coffee…http://makeashorterlink.com/?R2A456001....We probably have the highest concentration of coffee knowledge anywhere on the planet…
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The coffee maker is made by Vesuviana; “brevettata” means “patent.”
No espresso maker uses coarse-ground coffee; they use espresso grind, same as the big guys. It’s the fine grind that releases the oil, creates the crema, and permits the rapid extraction.
However, some of these things require a filter, in which case the gruppe is called a filter holder. In your case, however, I suspect you don’t have an espresso maker, just a coffee maker. To make espresso, you need steam at around 9 atmospheres.
Yes, you need a gasket. Get the measurements in mm and try SWEETMARIAS.COM or 1stLine Equipment online.
OK, let me clear some things up…First off, this machine is not a “true” espresso machine. No stovetop machine is an espresso machine. These are correctly called Moka pots. They make a strong coffee much like espresso and are commonly regarded as stovetop espresso brewers. Most of the cheap electric machines that you are going to find work on the same principle. While sold as espresso machines, they are more correctly a electric Moka pot.
Steam based brewers certianly DO require a coarser grind. If you put a fine espresso grind in one of these types of machines, you are running the risk of at best blowing the pressure valve. At worst, explosion.
You do have a stovetop Moka pot. It’s not a regular coffee machine. Like I said above, you’re probably missing your portafilter.
True espresso machines use a pump to force 195-202 degreee water through the coffee at 9 bar pressure. Steam should not and does not touch the coffee grounds.
You are going to need a gasket…Won’t find it at Sweet Maria’s or 1st Line though…Good luck…These were hard to find 10 years ago.
Quar
Thank you, everybody. This helps a lot. Quar: the first link you posted has a photo, one up from the bottom of the page on the right (not the left), that is very similar to this machine (mine doesn’t have a cord or a milk steamer wand). The photo is “salton.jpg” and is identified as a “Salton Espresso Machine.” Mine’s definitely not a machine, though; it’s stovetop. There’s a small, thin filter basket that fits into the arm with the bakelite handle very snugly; it’s the holes in that filter that are too big for finer grind. In addition, there’s a carafe that came with it that holds the coffee with a bakelite handle; it’s not shown in the image.
OK, here’s the easiest way to get to alt.coffee. If you’re Usenet aware, just fire up your newsreader and go to alt.coffee. You won’t find any discussion regarding your Vesuvania at the moment, but if you post your OT there, you’ll get tons of help.
If you are not a Usenet person, go to http://groups.google.com and type alt.coffee into the search box. That will bring you right to the newsgroup. You can then set the radio button at the top of the screen to search only in alt.coffee and then type in Vesuvania. You should get several pages of results. You can also post from the Google Groups. Alt.coffee is a pretty friendly newsgroup, don’t hesitate to join in.