The Surf Report

Why blog when it's firing?

So that you can show all your friends who didn't make out how good it was. Sorry guys, but you missed it.

Wussies always surf the internet

Which is why it wasn't that crowded yesterday. Fine by me. I surfed El Porto, which is usually one of the most crowded places I surf, but yesterday, it was empty and good. Except for me being in them, so were the barrels.

I surfed on both sides of the high tide and just got the place going good and doing it's thing. Shacky shacky shack. Fun times. Glad I got it twice.

Today sucks.

Cardiff Christmas

We took the RV to San Elijo State Park.

DAY 1.
Waist to chest high lefts and rights at Turtles. I surfed a full moon hightide session in the morning and a reef exposing low tide in the arvo.

DAY 2.
Leopard sharks all over the inside. They were tiny and posed no threat. And so were the waves.

DAY 3.
More of the same, but different. We surfed at some little right hand reef near the river in Del Mar. It's was fun, but I was hoping for more swell.

DAY 4.
It was Christmas morning and new waves had arrived. We paddled out at Turtles in the late morning. It was fun, but the afternoon lowtide was so much more solid. Plus we saw a whale.

DAY 5.
It was to cold, so I just left and went to work.

GUT PUnCH

Yesterday.
Gutless high tide one foot Magnolia and packed with aggro dolphins.

Today.
Punchy mid tide three foot El Porto peaks packed full of nimrods from Downy.

Birthday Barrels

Yes. It is my birthday. And yes, I got some barrels. The northside of the pier had these little fun tubes just begging, maybe even calling for some person to just be inside them, and I was that guy today. More tomorrow. If you read this blog, then get out there; it's good. See you in the line up tomorrow.

Special thanks to the guy who gave me that set wave. Cheers.

Jas.

October

Not only because I was born in this month, but because the waves get so good, it is my favorite month. Today, three foot, crossed up swell with offshores. Me likey. Seventeen snaps to the car. Jas.

Freakin' brrrr

Okay here's one thing I don't understand, how is it I'm trunking it one weekend and I've gotta go with a full suit and booties the next? I understand there's tides and currents and tradewinds and barometric pressure and such. But c'mon.

There is one nice thing about the cold water though. It does seem to filter out the riff-raff. The folks that don't really want it tend to stay home clutching their warm blankies. Admittedly, I'm not sure if I have advanced enough to turn in my riff-raff card, but I do love surfing more than I hate cold water.

-Steve

Ride The Wild Froth

Coffee tastes great before a surf session.  Now if you don't like coffee or lattes or cappuccinos or any sort of steamed milk in your coffee the following probably won't be of interest.

Am I the last person to learn about frothers? I purchased a frother about a month ago and love it. My frother makes the absolute perfect frothy milk as good as Pete's and better than Starbucks coffee (oops...now I've pissed off Cassidy). Every morning I feel decadent in my kitchen drinking the perfect latte.

My frother looks like a coffee mug that sits on little electric plate.  You simply pour milk into the frother, push a button, and in 50 seconds you have perfect froth. There is a separate setting for steamed milk.  Then you simply rinse out the frother and you're done.  NO clunky metal arms that shoot off steamed that collect hardened milk that can only be scrapped off with a knife!

The brand I purchased is The Nespresso Aeroccino that runs about $90 at Sur La Table.  This brand is also sold at Williams-Sonoma and Amazon.com.  I swear I have no stock or family members that work for this company! Coincidentally, two days after I purchased my frother the LA Times ran an article in the food section about frothers.  I've copied the article below. The brand I purchased is mentioned among others so there are options.

-Greg

Got froth? We test home milk frothers for latte lovers

By Emily Dwass, Special to The Times
June 13, 2007

Photo Gallery

Chose your tool

Related Stories
-	Milk frothers: How they measure up

GETTING out of bed isn't always easy. OK, it's never easy. For some people, it helps to visualize a tall mug of coffee topped with billowing clouds of hot foam. In the not-too-distant past, the only way to get that kind of froth was by driving to your favorite barista or by investing in an espresso machine with a gizmo for steaming milk.

Clearly, plenty of sleepy souls want their lattes at home, because stand-alone milk frothers have been gaining in popularity. The newest , the electric Nespresso Aeroccino, has been flying off store shelves since it appeared last November. It seemed like the moment to put the latest generation of milk frothers to the test.

There are several types on the market. Some simultaneously heat the milk and froth it. Others just froth; you have to heat the milk beforehand or after. And frothing, which is simply putting as much air as possible into the liquid, can be achieved either via a whisking motion or by injecting steam. There are low-tech whisking wands and vessels with built-in heating mechanisms and whisks. One looks like a French press coffee maker; another sits on the countertop like some impressive attachment on a fancy espresso machine.

I tested six frothers, including all of the above types, ranging in price from $20 for a manual pump to $90 for that Nespresso Aeroccino. In assessing the machines I considered the quality and volume of foam they produced, speed, design, ease of use and ease of assembly and cleaning.

When it comes to froth, I looked for a fairly dense foam with plenty of volume and bubbles that had staying power in the cup. Experts say less fat equals more volume, so I used nonfat milk in all the tests.

While none was perfect, one stood out above the rest: the Froth au Lait. This gadget, which looks like a cross between an electric kettle and a blender, transformed one cup of cold milk into more than three cups of hot froth in four minutes. And what froth! It looked like mounds of clouds atop the coffee, with a velvety texture somewhere between meringue and whipped cream.

The only downside was that the Froth au Lait was a little tricky to clean, and it took up more space on the countertop than most. Though it didn't seem like something I'd use on a daily basis, it would be great to have to make lattes for my book club.

The Nespresso Aeroccino definitely is a cool new tool, because it can heat and froth the milk in one step in less than a minute. The problem? It can froth only half a cup of milk at a time, not enough to fill my mug. The quality of the foam was good, but the $90 price tag seemed high for a single-serving frother.

I was curious about the frothXpress from Capresso, a company known for its coffee machines and burr grinders. But it was extremely challenging to assemble. I went into panic mode as I studied the instructions, which included scary words like "upper red O-ring" and "siphon." When I finally connected the parts, the result was a lovely mass of hot milk and froth. And then it was almost as difficult to clean as it was to assemble.

Cleaning was an issue with all the models tested; it's essential to wash them immediately, before the milk residue hardens. Easiest to clean are pumps, because they can be submerged in water. Electric and battery operated machines are tougher to wash because they have components that shouldn't get wet. Inevitably, I managed to get water on parts that were supposed to stay dry.

Until the day the frother geniuses invent a compact, preassembled machine that quickly makes plenty of voluminous, luxurious foam, is easy to clean and doesn't cost an arm and a leg, I may just keep two in my kitchen. To bestow billows of foam on guests, I'll use the Froth au Lait, keeping it tucked out of sight in a cabinet most of the time.

For daily, single-serve frothing, I'd reach for the Bonjour rechargeable wand. It's sleek, well-designed, easy to use and in 30 seconds doubled a cup of heated milk into two cups of dense foam, which held up well when it hit the coffee.


Turn up the volume

The Froth au Lait Froth 'n Sauce, which looks like a cross between an electric kettle and a blender, has a 500-watt, 120-volt motor and a pitcher that holds 8 to 12 ounces of milk. It comes with two sets of whipping blades, one for froth, another for making sauce. Unlike the original Froth au Lait, whose pitcher is lined with nonstick coating, this pitcher's interior is stainless steel at the base.

What's the difference: Heats and aerates simultaneously. Two whips rotating in opposite directions aerate the milk. The heating/frothing cycle takes about three or four minutes, depending on the milk used. Shuts off automatically.

What we thought: Makes a lot of wonderful, creamy froth with incredible staying power. Assembly and operation of the machine is easy: Insert the whip, pour in the milk and push the "on" button. Cleaning is tricky: You have to wash the pitcher without getting the underside wet. Also, the countertop footprint is pretty big.

How much: About $65 on Amazon.com or directly from Froth au Lait, (310) 212-5345.


Constant companion

The BonJour Rechargeable Primo Latte Frother is a cordless wand-type frother; a sleek base holds the wand and serves as a charger for the enclosed batteries. The whisk rotates at about 14,000 rpm.

What's the difference: You heat the milk, then insert the wand for about 30 seconds. (Or froth first, then heat.)

What we thought: The BonJour performed consistently, doubling a cup of nonfat milk into thick foam, with just enough liquid below. Its ease of use and small countertop footprint make it a good choice for daily frothing.

How much: About $30 at Sur La Table, Williams-Sonoma and Amazon.com.


Mug shot

The Nespresso Aeroccino is a small electric machine — it looks like an oversized mug — with a chrome-finish exterior, a nonstick interior and a plastic handle. The unit attaches to an electric base. It comes with two whisks, one for making frothed milk, the other for hot milk.

What's the difference: This model, which simultaneously heats and froths, is designed to make individual portions. It froths half a cup of milk in 50 seconds or heats one cup of milk in two minutes.

What we thought: Though it's a handsome gadget that gets the job done, and the foam had a nice, full texture, there wasn't enough of it to top off my morning café au lait. And it seems expensive for a single-serve frother. It's tricky to clean without getting the underside of the milk jug wet, and the nonstick interior means you can't use a metal spoon.

How much: About $90 at Sur La Table, Williams-Sonoma and Amazon.com.


Bargain buzz

The Aerolatte steam-free frother is a wand-style tool that operates on two AA batteries.

What's the difference: There's no option for recharging, and no base. You can heat the milk, then froth it, or vice versa. Either way you'll get good results.

What we thought: This affordable wand doubles the volume of one cup of milk in about 30 seconds, producing froth equal in quality to more expensive frothers. The battery cover is somewhat difficult to insert, and you have to avoid getting the battery compartment wet. Though a good value, it's not ideal for frequent frothers because it's not rechargeable.

How much: About $20 at Bed Bath & Beyond and at Amazon.com. Steam engine

Capresso frothXpress is a 1,220-watt electric steam frother that looks like the milk-steaming portion of a full-size espresso machine. It has a removable water tank and a thermostat.

What's the difference: Unlike the other devices, the frothXpress uses a pump and heating system to create hot steam that aerates the milk. Fill the water tank, then wait for the machine to heat up. After about two minutes a light goes on, letting you know it's ready. Place a cup under the frothing sleeve and hold down the safety steam button. Hot, foamy milk comes out of the dispenser. You can froth about 30 ounces of milk at a time.

What we thought: The frothXpress made a good volume of thick, bubbly foam that did not survive well on top of coffee. The machine is tricky to assemble, and the nozzle must be cleaned after each use, which was problematic: I followed the instructions, but some milk residue remained. You also need to "decalcify" the frothXpress several times a year. There are easier ways to create froth for your coffee.

How much: About $70 on Amazon.com.

Pump it up

The newly redesigned Bodum Chambord milk frother is a manual pump frother with a glass carafe; it resembles a French press coffee maker.

What's the difference: You place the lid with whip attached onto the glass carafe, then move the pump up and down about 60 times, which doubles the milk volume. Directions on the box tell you to heat the milk, then froth it. The reverse order is suggested on the Bodum website. I tried it both ways and got better results by frothing cold milk, then heating it for a minute in the microwave (but keep an eye on it, because frothed milk expands when heated). It can froth three-fourths cup of milk.

What we thought: This low-tech frother is easy to assemble, use and clean. It makes a lighter foam than the other frothers tested, with more liquid than you get with a wand. If you favor looser bubbles and more hot milk, the pump is a good choice. The glass carafe seems less fragile than some.

How much: About $20 at Sur La Table, Crate & Barrel and Amazon.

— Emily Dwass

Check out what Mother Ocean gave me for Father's Day.

Ah Father's Day. The one day a year we fathers can enjoy a completely guilt-free morning of surfing. Not that the rest of the days are spent wondering if my girls are going to become strippers because daddy decided to spend his Sunday morning in the water instead of reading Dr. Suess. Well maybe there is a twinge. But I digress.

Father's Day '07 was pretty honkin' nice. It had all the things I look for in an outing:
- A pleasantly surprising consistent waist to chest-high swell.
- Warm water (around here we cal 64-67 degrees warm)
- Slightly overcast conditions - keeps the crowds down and keeps me from squinting the whole time
- Tons of dolphins - For some reason I find surfing with dolphins comforting. At one point, one jumped out of the face of the wave I was trying to catch and that wasn't all that comforting.

At the last minute I decided to bring an underwater camera to record things for the blog, I'm glad I did. Check out the photos below.

So thanks for the great Father's Day gift Mother Ocean.

-Steve

BTW - That last shot is what I did with the rest of my Father's Day.

Check out the book review on Andy Martin’s new book, “Stealing the Wave."   The book is about the rivalry between two big wave riders Ken Bradshaw and Mark Foo.

Published: June 3, 2007

Surf rivalries are generally rather tame affairs, but consider the opening salvo in the war between Ken Bradshaw and Mark Foo, as told in Andy Martin’s new book, “Stealing the Wave” (Bloomsbury, $24.95). Bradshaw and Foo were the premier big-wave surfers at Hawaii’s WaimeaBay, and one morning in the mid-1980s, Foo “dropped in” on Bradshaw — meaning he co-opted his wave. Bradshaw flew into a De Niro-esque rage — You’re dropping in on me? — and exacted his revenge by clotheslining Foo and taking a bite out of his favorite surfboard. It makes charging the mound seem tame by comparison.

Bradshaw and Foo spent a decade snarling at each other, with casual slights in surfing magazines and confrontations at the beach. Martin describes Waimea in its pretourist state as a place of rigid social codes, where surfers enforced the decorum and a proper pecking order. And as he pushes toward the story’s tragic finale (Foo died while surfing at California’s infamous Maverick’s break while Bradshaw bobbed in the water nearby), Martin manages to make the two men seem like they’re battling not only for the hearts and minds of Brazilian groupies but for the fate of big-wave surfing itself. When hate seeps through the sunbaked haze of Hawaii, it is something truly majestic to behold.