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Having trouble dialling in an a new bag of beans with breville barista express. I've been using the 18g in -> 36grams out at around 25 seconds but it I'm having issues where at grid setting of 3 it chokes the machine and at 4 it gets to 36 grams in 21 seconds (tasting a bit too sour/acidic for me)? Should I up the dosage to 19 at grind setting of 4 or tamp lighter when I grind at 3? Trying to save some coffee from unnecessary pulls. I'm using a crema coffee tamper and lever puck thing.
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Sep 24, 2020 23:07
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| # ? Apr 28, 2024 11:45 |
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Simply adding more grinds won't get rid of the sourness, as you're asking it to do more work (extract more) when it's already struggling with the current dose. How many shots did you pull at 4? How dark is the roast on your beans? You could try pulling a longer shot, say 40g yield at grind setting 4 and see what that's like. I'm not sure how brew temp is managed on an Express, but you could also try upping your shot temperature, which would make it extract more in a shorter period of time. I'm not sure what tool you're talking about, but if one of those things is a distributor, stop using it. They lower extraction and will make sourness problems worse. Just tamp, pressure shouldn't matter too much, as long as it's consistent between shots.
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Sep 25, 2020 00:29
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Yeah I'm using a distributor and tamper in 1 - https://www.cremacoffeepro.com/products/53mm-tamper-distributor-combo , why does it lower the extraction? I really like using it over the tamper stick my machine comes with. I only pulled one at 5 (initial dial), then a 3 and then a 4 which I drank but decided to see what else I should try. I don't think there is a way to set temp on my machine.
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Sep 25, 2020 00:38
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You should definitely keep using the tamper part of the tool, just not the distributor side. I don't pretend to understand the fluid dynamics at play, but it's been studied pretty comprehensively at this point, and they always seem to lower extraction by a significant degree. They were created by a guy who wanted to score max points in barista competitions for getting a perfectly level coffee bed each time, and they do a great job of that, just not much else. They don't seem to really distribute the coffee any better than just normal tapping or even Weiss Distribution Technique tools. It's almost certainly not the thing that's causing your sour coffee, it's just not going to help any, and it's probably making them extract a little worse too. If you can't adjust brew temp on your machine then make sure you're waiting long enough for the machine to heat up before pulling the shot. More heat leads to higher extraction. Also, you could try decreasing your dose? Although there's probably a minimum amount you should put in that basket to avoid other problems. You didn't mention the roast level of your beans? Is it a lighter roast than you're normally used to brewing? Edit: Here's some evidence on the impact of distribution tools on extraction: http://socraticcoffee.com/2016/12/examining-the-impact-of-the-ocd-on-total-dissolved-solids-extraction/ Gunder fucked around with this message at 01:02 on Sep 25, 2020 |
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Sep 25, 2020 00:56
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Gunder posted:Not for 2 drinks in a row, but the first shot of the day definitely needs a flush. Thank you, this confirms my workflow. I just leave my machine on but I cooling flush if it’s been more than fifteen minutes since my last shot.
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Sep 25, 2020 05:21
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Roasting coffee smells incredible wth why wouldn’t you want to smell it 24/7
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Sep 25, 2020 06:32
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Wafflecopper posted:Roasting coffee smells incredible wth why wouldn’t you want to smell it 24/7 I’d have trouble sleeping because when I smell coffee I want to wake up and drink it. I think it would probably mess with seasoning other food too if it was strong in the kitchen for a long time. I’m sure you could get a coffee scented candle for the bedroom though.
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Sep 25, 2020 16:15
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Looking for a solid coffee machine with a timer. My partner and I drink coffee first thing in the morning and it would be nice to wake up to coffee instead of having to make it ourselves. We'd prefer if it had a reusable filter and was less than $100, and could make coffee for 4-6 people if necessary. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!
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Sep 25, 2020 16:19
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Thanks folks for suggesting the 4:6 method for smaller pourovers-- I've been getting pretty good results with it. One thing I've altered: I have a Capresso Infinity which produces a lot of fines (esp. with African beans), and the 4:6 method seems to drive the fines up onto the walls of the filter which was leading to some slightly watery coffee. I started adding in a Hoffmann/Rao spin after the final pour which washes the fines back down the walls and produces a flat bed for only the last portion of the pour. This occasionally drives the last drawdown a little over the target :45, but has really improved my cup. I think since the fines are only in the slurry for the last 30 seconds or so it prevents them being overextracted, but it brings the strength back up to where I want it.
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Sep 26, 2020 17:34
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I wouldn’t worry too much about the drawdown time. As long as you’re waiting for the water to pass through the bed, it doesn’t hurt that it runs a little longer than 45 seconds. When I was brewing with an Ethiopian this past week it would take much longer due to all the fines. Much slower than the Guatemalan I’m brewing now.
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Sep 26, 2020 17:59
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Anyone else participating in the online coffee tasting this weekend with Mr James Hoffman? They've sent a sample grind size but im probably going to waste a lot of beans dialing it in, would have been nice to have a grinder settings guide for some if the more popular home grinders.
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Sep 28, 2020 22:02
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MonkeyLibFront posted:Anyone else participating in the online coffee tasting this weekend with Mr James Hoffman? They've sent a sample grind size but im probably going to waste a lot of beans dialing it in, would have been nice to have a grinder settings guide for some if the more popular home grinders. I thought about doing so, but ended up forgetting about it until it was too late. Oh well. I thought they were going to send out grind size references for getting the correct size? My understanding is that cupping is usually done with a pretty coarse grind. Edit: Missed your part about grind sizes. Gunder fucked around with this message at 14:50 on Sep 29, 2020 |
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Sep 28, 2020 22:46
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Gunder posted:I thought about doing so, but ended up forgetting about it until it was too late. Oh well. I thought they were going to send out grind size references for getting the correct size? My understanding is that cupping is usually done with a pretty coarse grind. I have a spare kit if your in the UK I could probably post it.
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Sep 29, 2020 17:03
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MonkeyLibFront posted:I have a spare kit if your in the UK I could probably post it. Thanks for the offer but I’ll pass. I’ll do it next year.
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Sep 29, 2020 17:33
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Thanks for the advice Gunder. I've managed to track the problem down primarily to timing - I was timing the shots from when I first would see a flow, but timing from when I push the button (as per manual....) yields way better results if I aim for the same 20-30 second pull. Also my puck prepping was not good either, I'm finding if I take out the portafilter and give it some side taps while griding helps a lot to get rid of the mountain of coffee you get otherwise.
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Sep 29, 2020 18:24
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paberu posted:Thanks for the advice Gunder. Yeah, part of what I hated about the Barista Pro was the mess involved when grinding into the portafilter. I think I eventually got a cheap filling funnel and just held the portafilter, with the funnel attached, underneath the grinder and let the grounds fall into that. Ended up with a lot less mess.
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Sep 29, 2020 19:02
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That's actually on my next acquisition list along with a bottomless portafilter.
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Sep 29, 2020 19:09
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paberu posted:That's actually on my next acquisition list along with a bottomless portafilter. Hah, I was about to recommend a bottomless portafilter. The visual cues were very helpful to me in figuring out what I was doing wrong when pulling shots. Also the shot pulls look nice so you can impress friends/partners.
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Sep 29, 2020 19:18
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Breville bought Baratza for $60 milion https://www.fool.com.au/2020/10/02/breville-asxbrg-share-price-higher-on-us60m-baratza-acquisition/
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Oct 2, 2020 04:07
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Interesting. I hope they manage to maintain their rep for quality grinders and excellent support.
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Oct 2, 2020 04:20
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I just bought a Rancilio Silvia (v1) and the Rocky grinder. They're 15 years old but have seen very light use. I've got zero expreience with Espresso machines. I plan to descale the Silvia and replace the group head gasket. What else should I be on tye lookout for? It's fully functional but I haven't looked inside it yet. I would like to reduce the mess I make and also be able to dose more accurately. Got any suggestion? Currently I grind straight into the basket and eyeball the dose. The base of the grinder measures 10 × 10 cm and I was thinking of having a small scale there permanently and grind straight into the kind of dosing cup you can place the group head over as a lid and just flip to fill the basket. Or can you recommend any more efficient, accurate or less messy method?
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Oct 2, 2020 13:10
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Sigmund Fraud posted:I just bought a Rancilio Silvia (v1) and the Rocky grinder. They're 15 years old but have seen very light use. I've got zero expreience with Espresso machines. Rocky doser or doserless? I struggled a lot with this exact problem when I had one (doserless) and I never came up with a great solution. If I was still using it I would probably try single dosing directly into the portafilter with the aid of a funnel (maybe the decent funnel, maybe something cheaper off amazon). The problem with that is that the rocky retains a lot of grounds, so you’ll probably want to weigh the portafilter before and after to make sure you’re getting the desired weight out. Use the drop of water trick to keep static under control to reduce the mess somewhat. Good luck! Despite their sometimes frustrating inconsistencies, you’ve got a machine and grinder that are capable of producing really good espresso together. They’re great for learning and can be a lot of fun if you like to tinker.
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Oct 2, 2020 14:25
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I replaced my group head gasket with a silicone one it didn't cost much more then the rubber one and is supposed to have a much longer life. The previous rubber one lasted about a year before it started getting hard as a rock and kept having to move the portafilter over more and more to lock it in.
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Oct 2, 2020 14:46
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If you're using a grinder that holds onto a lot of grounds, make sure you purge the grinder with a gram or two of beans before you use it each time. This stops you from getting a load of old grounds in your portafilter which will cause your shots to run really fast.
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Oct 2, 2020 17:01
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I just poured some Huehue flavored rum into my Groundwork cold brew and I'm having an excellent Friday. Anyone else celebrate good news with spiked coffee?
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Oct 2, 2020 22:30
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Name that cocktail the Hope Hicks
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Oct 2, 2020 23:32
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I've been a nespresso user for about 3 years and had a pretty mediocre opinion on it. It obviously brewed up an espresso-like coffee that was better than the lovely drip feed I'd been accustomed to in youth, but the flavor palette was basically negligible from those nespresso pods beyond the more radically out there varieties. I'd also further like to elaborate that I'd never even really 'gotten' coffee even in cafes, as I'd usually get a blended drink or something with milk therefore mitigating a ton of the actual act of tasting the coffee. Just recently I found myself with a free moka pot and did it all up following james hoffman's steps. I know I'll get some looks but I did test run the pot with some of Starbucks Blond Sunrise because I wasn't about to go spring for a 20 dollar bag + a burr grinder to test out if there was really something to this. The verdict was: it was wholly flabbergasting. What came out genuinely did not even taste like 'coffee' in the layman sense, there was no sense of that burnt note of what the average person thinks of when they think of 'coffee', it honestly felt more like a wine in consistency and general brain feel. It had that winey variety of positive astringency and attempting that obnoxious aerating slurping even made me instantly catch the 'tasting note' on the bag (chocolate) very heavily. It seriously confused the hell out of me because it really didn't feel like I was drinking coffee at all. On a less positive note, I feel that was the obvious 'the first time's always the best' because it hasn't felt that amazing in the subsequent times since. I still wasn't entirely ready to spring wholly into the lifestyle yet so I just sprang for a 12 dollar bag from the supermarket along with a manual burr grinder (the latter I quickly realize is a mistake lol) The bag I got is Intelligentsia's house blend, and on the first few tastings I would have conceded maybe it was a mistake since it came out ridiculously sour or bitter or the like, I'm still confused on which it was as it would either be a problem of under or over extraction by my understanding. I've been actually increasing the coarseness of the grind (as I had initially started with the smallest dial) and it has been improving a bit. I don't get much of the apple, and instead of mandarin I get more of a lemon level of tartness. The mouthfeeling-ness of chocolate comes through when the coffee starts to cool. I might try to do it up in a pour over next time to see if it might just be a wrong fit for the moka pot style. well that was my sort of lengthy monologue on My First Time, hope there's a future in this because it genuinely is a fun interesting field of things to experience
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Oct 5, 2020 09:00
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Congrats on joining the coffee club. If you want to experiment with other brew methods, a pour-over setup is pretty inexpensive. Something like a Kalita Wave 185 is pretty easy to brew with and pretty cheap too. There are tons of brew recipes out there for it as well. Which manual grinder did you get? If something is tasting like lemons, then you probably under-extracted it a fair bit. I'd try grinding finer. I think you need a pretty fine grind for a Moka Pot. Coffee is really cool, and if you're anything like me you'll have spent a few thousand pounds on your new hobby by this time next year! Edit: The glass Wave is a bit better than the steel one, btw. It sucks up less heat and appears to stall a lot less often. Also, if you're grinding for pour-over, that manual grind process will go a lot faster! Gunder fucked around with this message at 12:10 on Oct 5, 2020 |
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Oct 5, 2020 12:02
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Also try out a French press sometime! I've fallen in love with Hoffman's French press method (although I don't quite understand why it works). A good chunk of the brewing methods seem pretty easy to get started with. My biggest one time expense was definitely my grinder and of course I'll always be spending money on beans. I haven't gotten into espresso though.
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Oct 5, 2020 12:21
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I find Hoffman's technique a touch too complicated But the lesson of weighing beans and water + ratios + timing was the big take away for me I cbf scooping out the grounds so I just plunge at the 4 minute mark  Close enough for jazz for the missus and me in the morning, I usually chuck frothy milk on-top of it too.
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Oct 5, 2020 12:34
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Anybody have a “recipe” for Third Wave Water? It definitely makes a huge difference in my coffee but it feels silly to pay 15 bucks for 30 cents worth of nicely packaged/dosed minerals.
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Oct 5, 2020 14:12
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Really funny. I’ve been drinking that Starbucks blonde sunrise because it was $6/bag while my grinder is getting repaired and it’s not absolutely awful for preground Starbucks poo poo.
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Oct 5, 2020 14:26
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If you happen into a Starbucks with a Clover machine, try a cup from it. They are typically in the larger, nicer locations. The Clover is a kind of really cool made to order infusion brewer that makes something akin to a pour over. They usually have two different single origin coffees that are not burnt. Each time I’ve tried it I’ve gotten a cup that was as good as anything I’ve had from any small third wave shop. Most Starbucks don’t have them unfortunately.
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Oct 5, 2020 14:49
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Gunder posted:Congrats on joining the coffee club. If you want to experiment with other brew methods, a pour-over setup is pretty inexpensive. Something like a Kalita Wave 185 is pretty easy to brew with and pretty cheap too. There are tons of brew recipes out there for it as well. Which manual grinder did you get? If something is tasting like lemons, then you probably under-extracted it a fair bit. I'd try grinding finer. I think you need a pretty fine grind for a Moka Pot. 2nding the kalita wave recommendation, it's a very underappreciated device. It's nice to make pour overs without being punished for changing 1 variable slightly like the v60 does.
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Oct 5, 2020 15:11
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i own every Bionicle posted:If you happen into a Starbucks with a Clover machine, try a cup from it. They are typically in the larger, nicer locations. The Clover is a kind of really cool made to order infusion brewer that makes something akin to a pour over. They usually have two different single origin coffees that are not burnt. Each time I’ve tried it I’ve gotten a cup that was as good as anything I’ve had from any small third wave shop. What sucks is that Starbucks bought that Clover company and nobody else was allowed to use them and now most Starbucks don't even have it. I only tried it once and it just tasted like any other brewed coffee from Starbucks, but the brewing process looks really cool. Not as cool as a vacuum pot though.
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Oct 5, 2020 17:47
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If you're ever near a Mojo Coffee (which I think means either in Chicago or New Zealand) I'd highly recommend trying some coffee from their steampunk brewer. It is really tasty. I used to work across the street from a location and miss being able to hop over there to grab a cup. It is a neat device.
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Oct 5, 2020 18:41
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Today I tried a pour over trying to follow that 4:6 thing although I couldn't wrap my small brain over it entirely, I added 150g of water total to 25g coffee at 60 45 45 intervals and it came out near the same as the moka pot. I guess what I was tasting is some citrus-y acidity because with this I did definitely get a bunch of that side tongue tingle from it. I added a bit of milk and that seems to have transformed the palette and while I can't quite get the mandarin, the citrus note works really well with the milk and I now get that chocolate mouth feel flavor Gunder posted:Congrats on joining the coffee club. If you want to experiment with other brew methods, a pour-over setup is pretty inexpensive. Something like a Kalita Wave 185 is pretty easy to brew with and pretty cheap too. There are tons of brew recipes out there for it as well. Which manual grinder did you get? If something is tasting like lemons, then you probably under-extracted it a fair bit. I'd try grinding finer. I think you need a pretty fine grind for a Moka Pot. I'll be sure to pick that one up since the one I have is loads of jank, thanks!
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Oct 5, 2020 19:50
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Mu Zeta posted:What sucks is that Starbucks bought that Clover company and nobody else was allowed to use them and now most Starbucks don't even have it. I only tried it once and it just tasted like any other brewed coffee from Starbucks, but the brewing process looks really cool. Not as cool as a vacuum pot though. I used to work for a specialty cafe that had one, and I really loved it. Super easy and consistent as well, it’s perfect for Starbucks.
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Oct 5, 2020 20:33
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Mu Zeta posted:What sucks is that Starbucks bought that Clover company and nobody else was allowed to use them and now most Starbucks don't even have it. I only tried it once and it just tasted like any other brewed coffee from Starbucks, but the brewing process looks really cool. Not as cool as a vacuum pot though. mystes fucked around with this message at 20:39 on Oct 5, 2020 |
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Oct 5, 2020 20:37
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Futaba Anzu posted:Today I tried a pour over trying to follow that 4:6 thing although I couldn't wrap my small brain over it entirely, I added 150g of water total to 25g coffee at 60 45 45 intervals and it came out near the same as the moka pot. I guess what I was tasting is some citrus-y acidity because with this I did definitely get a bunch of that side tongue tingle from it. I added a bit of milk and that seems to have transformed the palette and while I can't quite get the mandarin, the citrus note works really well with the milk and I now get that chocolate mouth feel flavor 150g of water is way too little, no wonder your coffee came out tasting underextracted. The 4:6 method usually uses 300g of water per 20g of coffee. Gunder posted:Starting with 20g coffee and 300ml water:
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Oct 5, 2020 20:51
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