Bialetti Brikka

[Frosty]

As a Brit my hot drink of choice is a well brewed cup of strong tea (with milk) accompanied by a dependable Mcvities Wholewheat Digestive. However there are days when I fancy a nice espresso.

I've heard good stories of the Bialetti stove top coffee makers but am torn between getting the standard "Moka" or the "Brikka", which reportedly makes a creamy cup.

Any experience of using either model?

 

[SiBurning]

I've been meaning to get a Brikka. I love the Moka Express pot.

You talked me into it. With any luck, Bialetti will get it here some time before the new year. If they do, I'll compare and contrast and report back.

Meanwhile, the normal aluminum Moka Express makes wonderfully rich coffee. It's my favorite brew method, although variety is the spice of life. I'd love to have one in stainless steel and not worry about aluminum, but fear the heat storage and transfer of aluminum is really necessary. Maybe one day they'll join the 21st century and make a version of aluminum with a stainless interior, but I'm not holding my steam.

 

[fleshdunce]

I have not tried a Brikka but I have a Mokka pot and it works great. I don't use it all the time but I like to have variety and the Mokka pot definitely makes a different and great cup of coffee. It is almost like espresso but not quite exactly..something inbetween espresso and coffee. Plus for the price you don't have much to lose.

Also if you're interested in making coffee liqueur a Moka pot is great for doing so. I have done it a few times myself now and it has turned out absolutely delicious. I used the following directions to do it if you're interested

How to Make Delicious Coffee Liqueur

 

[Frosty]

Thanks guys. Took the plunge and ordered a Brikka...

 

[SiBurning]

My first cup does resemble espresso in a number of ways. It's a much more concentrated cup than the moka pot. Very much like some crappy watered down supposed espressos I've had. It seems like the grind matters as does getting exactly the right amount in the portafilter filter. It looks like I used too little, just filling it without packing it down, and the coffee tasted sour. I'm guessing the water came through before building enough pressure, so it probably wasn't hot enough. It also came through like a 1/2 second shot, but its supposed to be about 3 seconds. Looking forward to comparing notes.

 

[PaulUK]

I bought a brikka last year while on holiday in Italy.
I can confirm it does make a "creamy" cup. If you want it for a creamy espresso then I'd recommend it.

..it was dirt cheap in the Italian coop supermarket

 

[Frosty]

Siburning got the brikka yday. Like you I got mixed results- not as frothy as I'd hoped and it may be due to the amount of coffee or it's grind. I'll have another go tomorrow and post pics

 

[SiBurning]

I've had the Brikka for a while now. Maybe it's my technique or the pot, but I'm not happy. It does produce something that tastes like espresso. It even produces a fleeting froth. But the result is unsatisfactory as espresso or coffee. In espresso terms, the Brikka produces a 2 second shot, while a Moka pot is a 30 second shot. The resulting Brikka drink is a weak, sour shot. While the Moka pot doesn't taste anything like espresso, it does produce a delicious, thick, concentrated coffee.

The froth is a fleeting, thin, bubbly thing, rather than a crema.

And it doesn't survive long enough to get into the cup.

 

[StillShaving]

Sounds like you greatly favor your Moka Express over the Brikka? Are they supposed to function similarly or are they really different? On Amazon the Brikka was described as a Percolator, hence my confusion about the two devices. I have been thinking about getting a moka express or similar device, to try brewing coffee yet more more way.

 

[SiBurning]

The difference is the Brikka has a weight over the top of the spout that forces the steam pressure to stay in the bottom until some point is reached at which the weight lifts and the water is forced through the coffee rather quickly. There's no weight in the Moka, so the pressure is only contained by the ground coffee, and the steam forces the water through the spout and coffee more slowly. The result is rather different between the two pots.

Technically, they're both percolators. From wikipedia

A coffee percolator is a type of pot used to brew coffee. The name stems from the word "percolate" which means to cause (a solvent) to pass through a permeable substance especially for extracting a soluble constituent.

 

[Jasonian]

The difference is the Brikka has a weight over the top of the spout that forces the steam pressure to stay in the bottom until some point is reached at which the weight lifts and the water is forced through the coffee rather quickly. There's no weight in the Moka, so the pressure is only contained by the ground coffee, and the steam forces the water through the spout and coffee more slowly. The result is rather different between the two pots.

Technically, they're both percolators. From wikipedia

Semantically (based on the idea that word definitions are set by popular use.. hence the idea of "semantic drift"), neither is a percolator.

They are moka pots. One is just a modified version.

Moka is acceptable. Percolated coffee is swill.

 

[SiBurning]

Semantically (based on the idea that word definitions are set by popular use.. hence the idea of "semantic drift"), neither is a percolator.

They are moka pots. One is just a modified version.

Moka is acceptable. Percolated coffee is swill.

Talk about not seeing the forest for the trees. (Meaning ME)

No, the coffee these things make are nothing like a typical percolator. The Moka Express makes amazing, rich and delicious coffee. Percolators are indeed swill in comparison.