(Slayer’s 1.4 gallon dedicated preheat tank supplies buffered 193 degree F water to brew & steam tanks)

In newer generation espresso machines, brew temperature stability is achieved through three features:  independent, but relatively small brew tanks, PID for temperature control, and a supply of pre-heated water to each brew group.

On most machines with independent brew tanks the main water inlet to the espresso machine comes through the steam tank, and there is no cold water inlet to brewing.

On these machines, the steam tank supplies pre-heated water to each brew group through a heat exchanger (HX) that draws heat from the steam boiler and distributes it to where it’s needed. This happens in real time as you pull shots. During peak periods this hot water draw can be as high as 12-16 oz per minute.

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(Pieced together from conversations in noisy places while over caffeinated. . . and augmented as required)

“Slayer espresso machines are showing up now in real cafes all over the place.

Melbourne, San Francisco, Kirkland, Ann Arbor, and Calgary.  Soon more will be showing up in New York, Germany, Vancouver BC, New Zealand, Portland Oregon, and beyond.

For us this is the beginning of something very exciting.  Introducing an espresso machine specifically designed for the expert user, that enables variable pressure brewing for flavor profiling.  On the way, we have sampled hundreds of coffees.  What we have found is almost all coffee benefits from the lower pressure, pre-brew phase that Slayer pioneered.

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(more images)

One nice thing about building Slayers in Seattle USA is that there is no shortage of great coffee roasters willing to try out a new thing.  In fact, not surprisingly it’s primarily the most artisanal roasters of extremeness that have taken notice.

Proximity like this also means that there is no shortage of great coffee to dial in for flavor profiling.  We have tried quite a few of the local greats.  Zoka’s Paladino, Vita dal Sol, Stumptown Hairbender, and Vivace Vita & Dolce.

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Recently some commentators have lumped Slayer into a category with La Marzocco and Synesso.  I don’t really mind this, because the comparison reflects the fact that Slayer defines a new category of equipment: ultra-traditionals.  These other machines play in the premium range, but Slayer is perhaps the first purpose-built machine for the Third Wave.  It is by design the ultimate traditional barista machine.

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Coming to terms–finding the right words!

Espresso machine manufacturers like to lay claim to a tradition of hand-made espresso machine manufacturing.  Maybe you’ve noticed this too.

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Does anything provoke stronger feelings and louder opinions right now than the mere mention of pressure profiling?  In specialty coffee, I don’t think so.   For this reason alone the topic merits some discussion here.  It also merits discussion as Slayer is on the verge of introducing a machine that takes full advantage of brew pressure deltas, by which I mean the ability to brew coffee with more than a flat pressure profile, to enhance coffee quality.

Since this is a blog about the broader aspects of our industry, and not simply an advertisement for Slayer, I want to reflect on my own relationship with brew pressure profiling first, then relate it to Slayer.  So here goes. . .

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Third Wave Coffee: Direct & Specific

Why would you even think of building the Apple in a market where IBM is effortlessly kicking out products designed by the world’s leading IT experts and most capable computer scientists on the planet – not to mention a time when Atari and Commodore are already well on their way to delivering everything that the home user could ever want?

The answer to that question is the same for Apple as it is for Slayer.

It’s because our needs and aspirations as individuals are not defined by the power of an established brand or the influence of gurus and seers telling us where our boundaries are. Our needs and aspirations are the province of our imaginations alone. And in seeing if we can do something better and more artfully than it’s ever been done before, we are apt to surprise ourselves at what we can accomplish. Even out of a modest start something great could happen.

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The Slayer espresso machine sports some remarkable design–in my admittedly biased opinion.  One reason for this has been the involvement of artisans and craftsmen from a range of disciplines from lost-wax sculptural metal casting to knife-making to rapid prototyping through SLA models.

In building the Slayer, we augmented our own knowledge and experience by seeking the help of specialists in each of the disciplines we needed to bring our vision of the World’s Greatest Espresso Machine to reality.

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One of the challenges of developing a product from scratch is converting improved concepts of function into new physical forms that are robust and practical–and anticipate the brewing needs of the growing boutique coffee segment.  Traditional European manufacturers of equipment have a huge stake in equipment fashioned to perform a particular way.  Most notably the “Italian Tradition” of espresso brewing. 

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I’m not one to keep my mouth shut, so the last year and a half have been a struggle for me – especially the last several months. 18 months of planning, arguing designing and delays. Stressed, yet excited as hell to finally give birth to the fruits of of our labor.

We feel that some times you need to throw the baby out with the bath water and simply start over…so thats what we’ve done. Over 2 years ago we started with pages of notes on whats wrong with machines today and lists of what our dream machine would do. We interviewed countless baristas & cafe owners and started building our own versions of what we called Frankenbots. We tested our theories with the ultimate end goal of creating a true barista machine. Read the rest of this entry »