Atomic Coffee Machine Vs Otto aka The Little Guy 

Thanks for your comment. I was interested to read about your dosing 'double tamp' method. You probably know this already, but just for the benefit of anyone who reads the comments.... Double tamping as you described, will make it harder for the water to make its way through the coffee. Putting this another way - you need greater pressure for the same amount of coffee to come through. Sometimes, more pressure = better coffee because more of the the oils are extracted from the grind. However...if you are not able to increase the heat source (and thus the pressure), you may inadvertently be getting less oils etc from your grind by double tamping. A well adjusted commercial machine dispenses just the right amount of coffee to make the perfect espresso. If you add more coffee you potentially change the taste of the coffee by making it stronger. Less experienced baristas may choose to use a spring loaded tamper so as to avoid over tamping the coffee. Assuming you have the correct grind, the harder you tamp the greater pressure you need. With the OTTO and the Atomic, heat source is crucial. Not enough heat ,means not enough pressure for the perfect extraction extract. For example, when camping and using either a disposable gas aerosol or a standard refillable gas canister, the pressure reduces as the gas runs down..making it almost impossible to steam milk well....quite aside from the quality of the coffee coming through. The question of whether to tamp or not, and how hard to tamp, is of course wholly dependent on your grind. A courser grind needs more tamping. If you over tamp a finer grind, nothing will come through your Otto or Atomic because these machines cant' generate enough pressure. As the ambient temperature changes, a good coffee shop will adjust their grind to account for this. Last and probably least, somebody once pointed out to me, that the OTTO was designed so that the time taken to heat the machine up, was exactly the correct time required to make the perfect espresso. This implies that if you make a 2nd coffee with a warm machine, it will potentially be over extracted compared to the first coffee. All the best from sunny England. Mike

Hi Mike. I am aware that this is the case regarding dosing using a normal coffee machine. It seems though (and don't ask me why) things are different with the little guy (Otto). The following is copied from the manufacturers website. If you are using your own ground coffee - Use the normal basket (not the Supermarket Basket) we recommend between 22 and 24 grams of coffee; it will depend on the roast profile you use and how you grind your coffee. Double tamping is the best way to get consistent double shots. Measure your coffee out, fill the basket and tamp. Then top up the basket with the remaining coffee and tamp again. The pressure for tamping should be quite forceful. Also with my cooling method the unit is cold before being reused. Happy brewing. PS yes I do have a clue, I was a barista for over 10 years.

@@Marty_Lucero_Palmer Thanks for the update and I hope you continue to enjoy that Otto for many years to come. Mike

Thanks for your comment. Yes you are right - the Atomic is far more sensitive to how much water you put in....and also the quality of the heat source. Mike

What a lovely way of putting it. You've reminded me that I haven't used ours in a while. Doe you put freshly ground or pre-ground in your machine? Mike

@@scottitonline He lives in our caravan so I just buy pre ground from a local roaster for convenience when we travel.

Thanks for your comment - yes you are right. If they ever open the borders to Australia again, I might try that. Mike

… or a rocket stove of some kind.

That is a great idea - nothing nicer than waking up and starting the day with an Atomic coffee. Do you already have a machine because genuine machines are getting quite hard to come by. The only place in the world you can get a new original machine is Bon Trading in Sydney. Don't be fooled by a replica - they look nice but don't operate the same - see my last video. Mike

The problem with my alloy Atomic is that thetube inside are corroded.

The little guy is now available for AUD$999.

Not sure how you fix these pipes.

Thanks for your comments - and here are my observations/ answers: 1. The Otto works at a higher pressure and thus generally will extract more of the oils from the coffee which should in theory result in a better tasting coffee. 2. The Otto takes a fixed amount of water (eg you cant overfill it) which helps to get a consistent coffee. However...... 3. The Otto is designed to give the perfect extraction time from 'cold' eg a cold machine will take exactly the required amount of time to heat up and extract the coffee. The Otto weighs a ton and takes a long time to cool down so is not ideal for travel or making multiple coffees in quick succession. 4. I used to use LaVazza Rosa preground coffee in the Atomic which worked fine. Ever since buying the Sage grinder our Atomic coffee experience and been transformed and I would say that the coffee we now produce is on a par with the Otto. With the grinder, the coffee is a bit finer and 'damper' and you get MUCH less liquid coming through BUT the quality of what comes through is infinitely better. 5. The Atomic is far less sensitive to whether the machine is hot or cold when you make a coffee. 6. With the Atomic, you can in theory add more water for a weaker coffee...or to create more steam. Both machines are super sensitive to heat source. In general, the hotter the better, which is probably why Otto recommends induction - fast and hot quickly. If you try and use the Atomic with a gas camping stove where the gas is getting low, the results will not be good. Burning coffee is usually a result of the water being too hot and the coffee being over-extracted. Never had this problem with the Otto. With the Atomic people often put far too much water in and end up with over extracted nonsense. It is much better to produce a good small espresso shot and then add hot water to it. That's my take, but experience has taught me that peoples tastes vary. Mike

You are right!....I've cut down to just one cup a day...OK...sometimes two. Mike

The only place in the world you can buy a genuine new atomic is: www.atomiccoffeemachines.com.au/ These machines are hand made in Italy but only sold in Australia. NOT to be confused the replica "Bella Barista" or "Sorrentina" brand: www.sorrentinacoffee.com/ You make be lucky and find a good 2nd hand one on ebay. Mike

think you so much

@@scottitonline Atomic can still be bought...Otto is out of business and stopped a whilke ago - Atomic - you can buy from its website - Otto - can only bought used one..and I am selling one as I have 2..

@@lvd2001 Thanks for your comment. For many people, the most important difference between Atom and Otto is that the latter is made from Stainless steel. Some people believe that cooking in and drinking from aluminium utensils has the potential to cause harm to the human body.....Mike

@@scottitonline Yes.. My wife is a pharmacist.. She said that there are some studies found that dementia people having Aluminium element in their brains - That is why people automatically assuming that eating foods from Aluminium pots and pans making losing memories later.. Not sure that is true, However In coffee I found unless pure water is used - Otherwise element found in water and heat will built up in Alum surface - like pots and pans which can cleaned and washed - Atomic inside - can never be - so often it has to be cleaned with Chemical or acids - Not sure about the Otto. Btw - you had a wonderful collection of Atomic - I LOVE THEM - l did not realize there are so many different designs - May be I should have not sold mine or should at least keep one . Don't sell yours - Do you know 8Barista and Bacchi (I have a Bacchi not successful getting good coffe from it) ?

Thanks for your comment. Yes a Moka Pot is indeed a smaller coffee machine and I used one for years. However....there is a a BIG difference in the quality of coffee produced by a Moka Pot and an Atomic. Firstly the pressure is much higher and thus you get far more of the oils from the beans and secondly you can steam/froth milk on an atomic. We keep one in our camper van in Australia, one in France and one will be in our newly acquired Fiat 238 vintage van. Once you have used an Aomic and made beautiful coffee, it is difficult to imagine going back to a Moka pot. Mike

I take my Otto camping all the time

Thanks for your comment...although I'm not sure I understand what you mean. Mike

Thanks for your comment - where can you buy it? Mike