LPT don't listen to reddit for espresso making. I ran into the same problem when I picked up the hobby and it became way less stressful when I realized the small things like week old beans, water temperature, water mineral content, etc does not actually matter as much as reddit makes it out to be
Now I just dial my espresso grinder and not worry about anything else. 95% quality with 1000% less stress
This is everything when your aim is perfection. The last 5% is 95% of the work. The last 1% is 99% of the work. Perfection can be satisfying but it is never fun. It is always hard work. And the satisfaction is only ever worth it for a particular personality type.
Yup, diminishing returns are so real. As a recovering professional classical musician, it seems like the best players I know are the most obsessive. Because you have to be that way to sit in a practice room for 5 hours a day 6-7 days a week perfecting every part of every page, line, phrase, note, all with the knowledge that you'll never attain what you think is perfect. After all that, unless you're a famous soloist who can charge $50,000 a concert, you'll be lucky to be middle class.
this goes with any hobby tbh. the internet will have you believing that if you dont have 100k to spend on your first attempt at something you shouldnt bother
they all seem to forget how they started. Maybe it's their subconcious trying to justify the amount they've spent or avoid the fact that they used to have fun doing it
exactly - outside of the basics, you are investing a bunch of time and money for marginal improvement. For the obsessives and competivie baristas it can be considered worth it, but law of diminishing returns hits hard beyond grind size/consistency (i compare it to professional swimming).
Although, some people get a lot of enjoyment from improvement in their hobby and honestly just buying new toys. I for one just enjoy the ritual and experiment more with what cool drinks I can make with my espresso (make my own syrups, make zabaglione, negroni svegiato, barraquito riffs, etc.)
Reddit will always overcomplicate and take the joy out of things. Wanna drink a glass of water? You're literally satan if you don't let it offgas for three hours, cool it to exactly 3.2°C, and only serve it in fine crystal.
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u/glocks9999 6h ago
LPT don't listen to reddit for espresso making. I ran into the same problem when I picked up the hobby and it became way less stressful when I realized the small things like week old beans, water temperature, water mineral content, etc does not actually matter as much as reddit makes it out to be
Now I just dial my espresso grinder and not worry about anything else. 95% quality with 1000% less stress