I think your opinion on Doom 2016 having artistic merit is valid, even if I disagree. I’m not so pretentious I think I’m an arbiter there.

This article is about a studio that just finished DLC for Doom Dark Ages, the third game in that same vein. It took a lot of time from devoted professionals. So did Whiteout Survival and FIFA. Is this DLC an example you would choose to hold up to others as video games as art?

Microsoft isn’t getting in the way of id’s art. id is getting in the way of id’s art. Some video games are just games.

Claiming Microsoft is stifling art here is disingenuous. And it’s not a claim id’s management hung their hat on in the article, they focused on the human side. The headline, meaning the writer, did that.

The front facing sides of the pan manufacturers don’t know thickness because it impacts but isn’t performance. Steel mix of the cladding layers, thickness, and 3/5/7 layer construction inform the real performance factors: heat distribution, rate of heating, weight, and tendency to warp. ATK measures most of those things fairly well. I just skimmed a review on YouTube from Prudent Reviews that looks valuable, too.

You may be undervaluing the lid. There is a practical difference between a perfectly fitted lipped lid and a compatible lid that’s close.

You are correctly valuing the hole in the handle and the helper handle. Past a certain point of performance convenience is more important than better performance. If it’s hard to lift or stuck in a drawer you won’t use it as much. Same goes for weight, I have a cheap Yoshikawa saucier that I use constantly because it’s extremely light and good enough.

I would be more worried about warping on an induction cooktop than about riveted vs welded construction, or even a pan’s finish. My Matfer carbon steel frying pan has a welded handle that I think would survive use as a war club, but the cooking surface is warped. I’m not careful with it, but your peers might be no better.

In general All Clad deserves its strong reputation. Made In is also good, but I’ve used less of their stuff. I’ve tried a few stainless pans from other higher end brands and I don’t think they’re appreciably better. All on gas, sadly for this discussion.

If it isn’t already your plan, consider buying different tiers of pans based on your needs. Were I starting from scratch at home I’d skimp as mercilessly as necessary on everything else to afford one great frying pan. It does 90% of the work, it should get most of the budget.

I have incredibly mixed feelings about this.

On one hand, Microsoft is indefensible. From any perspective, how they're treating their employees is unfair to those people. Not a revolutionary sentiment.

On the other hand, I can't clutch my pearls too hard for id the company. This isn't the studio making Commander Keen anymore. Doom 2016 was technically impressive and well designed, I played some of it. But I didn't finish it and it didn't make me feel much. It was a throwback to an era in gaming that was emotionally very simple. Find gun, see thing, shoot thing, repeat. Video game candy at best, Flaming Hot Bacon Cheesefries at worst. Then they made the same thing for a decade. id isn't Supergiant, Dogubomb, or Larian.

So framing layoffs at id as Microsoft not understanding art or games feels too far. I think Microsoft understands the kind of games it wants id to make just fine and they'll continue to squeeze studios to shit out robotic find gun, see thing, shoot thing, repeat games. The Microsoft studios are largely husks that haven't made art in a long time.

This is all academic for id's employees. Whether it's art or not, they make something people enjoy. Their skills and efforts are being exploited mercilessly because their love for video games gives them a tolerance for abuse they wouldn't have to put up with as, say, accountants. As I mentioned up top, I have mixed feelings and wish those people the best.

Tango's a different story. Again, indefensible.

Have you A/B tested the steamed water thing? Almost anyone else I’d have ignored the suggestion out of hand, even from him I’m incredibly skeptical.

I feel your pain. It’s a struggle to find good decaf. Even amazing third wave roasters usually fall very short. My usual is Counter Culture’s Slow Motion, which is good, but it’s kind of boring.

I want some decaf in my next Brandywine purchase. Their manipulation in all four or five of their coffees I’ve tried has been really artful and they have a broad product selection. I’m hopeful it will be better than most.

Is Luminous better enough than what else you’ve tried that I should try it myself?

I’ll share the link in the post.

Thank you. It has a tiny bear in it.

That looks really nice. As much as I like boutique coffee, I'm also a big fan of an inky, oily Italian espresso.

Your setup seems pretty solid. Since you've gotten into espresso relatively recently, is there anything you're considering changing and what, if anything, would you have done differently?

Do you leave your Flair on the countertop? I've considered getting one, but I always come back to thinking it's got a pretty substantial footprint, both while resting and when I would move it around to get leverage.

It's an efficient, considered routine that is giving you results you like. You're brewing and drinking fresh, no time on a hot plate. You've messed around with pour speed, saturation, and bed distribution and dialed them in to match your preferences. I'd assume it's well made coffee.

If you don't grind your own beans that might be a change that could dramatically improve your results.

but I can’t really control that very well with the spout of said kettle.

Unfortunately this is just kind of a hard limit with non-gooseneck kettles.

You can do a lot to try to mitigate your issues, whether that's transferring the water to something with a finer spout or different stirring technique. But a pourover setup benefits from a gooseneck. It lets you get the tip of the spout closer to the bed, which lets you control how heavy the flow is into the bed, which lets you control how aggressive the disruption of the bed is with your pour. Without the ability to control that you just have one fewer way to control your coffee brew, and it's a particualrly crucial method of control. The limited aperture also helps control pour speed, which with normal kettles is precipitously difficult.

You could of course use a different brewer. An Aeropress, OXO Rapid Brewer, Clever Dripper, Moka pot, French press, and many other brewers are actually kind of a pain with a gooseneck, it's great to just dump water and go on those. But those aren't pourover and, generally, lack the control you'd get out of a full pourover setup.

I will say I think high end kettles are unnecessary. I don't use one. While it's certainly nice if a kettle hits a specific temperature accurately and quickly, I can boil water and let it cool down a bit before brewing. If necessary I do have accurate thermometers. I also tend toward lighter roasts, so the water being close to boiling is usually fine. It's a little less control, but well past the point of diminishing returns and not worth $150.

If the goal is just good coffee you could probably rig together something with what's on hand. You could also get a brewer that matches well to your current kettle. But if you're putting up with the pain in the ass that is hand grinding and you want to make coffee a hobby, you should prioritize eventually getting a gooseneck kettle, electric or otherwise.

I don’t think it’s partially likely the Tuni would be a huge step up in quality of grind vs that Cuisinart, which is largely in line with the other grinders I mentioned, but I do think it would make your workflow easier. Even with RDT those plastic box catch bins tend to be a bit of a pain with static. Any static mitigation beats no static mitigation. And a catch cup for espresso is definitely nice.