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Issue link: http://baristamagazine.epubxp.com/i/96027
Alexandra Littlejohn Wholesale Account Manager Verve Coffee Roasters, Los Angeles, California Alexandra loves: The professional mini scale (www.vervecoffeeroasters.com) Perfect for any professional or beginning barista! With all the tools out there I think having an accurate, sleek, portable scale for espresso is a necessity— and it fits under any portafilter! I love this scale for trainings and dialing in on bar. It allows for consistency more than anything else. The digital face slides in and out and fits in your back pocket like an iPhone. It also has a 2,000-gram maximum, so you can weigh your input and output with the same scale! Uses AAA batteries. 'Nuf said. This scale is gangster. Jesse Harriott Roaster & Shop Operations Manager Sunergos Coffee; Louisville, Kentucky Jesse loves: The American Weigh SC-2KGA Digital Pocket Scale 2000g x 0.1g (www.americanweigh.com) The AWS SC-2KGA is a very versatile scale that we use every day in our shops. Whether we're brewing a Chemex for friends to share, weighing coffee doses in a portafilter, brewing by the cup, or checking espresso yields, this scale does it all. It has a 2,000-gram capacity in one tenth of a gram or one thousandth of an ounce readability, never turns off while brewing, tares efficiently, responds quickly to weight change, has a small footprint (4 inches by 4 inches), comes with an AC adapter, or takes two AAA batteries (no more button cell battery hunts). It's also very affordable. I only wish it were waterproof. Johnbruce & Rebecca Haslett Co-owners/Baristas Pacific Grind Café, Lincoln City, Oregon JB & Rebecca love: The under-$10 hardware store "knock tube" Quick, clean and cheap—and you can make it yourself in no time. Placed into a small add-on countertop at our shop, it's at hip level just below the grinder and just to the right of the tamp area. This makes for a smooth motion from machine to single-whack dump. Another of the perks about this knock tube is how clean it keeps the whole portafilter dumping process, from machine to pasture. Not only does it keep the counter clean as it shields flying grounds, but the attached tube directs all grounds neatly down into the three-gallon pail below. Since we have local farmers pick these up to compost, we estimate that we save dumping about 150 pounds a week of wet grounds into our trash system. Last but not least is that this thing is cheap, cheap, cheap! There are only two parts to buy: An appropriate length of three-inch PVC pipe, and a 3-to-4-inch "reducing coupler." Attach the two and simply drop through a counter or other solid surface in an appropriately sized through hole, and knock away! 62 barista magazine