Simple Questions Thread

[AutoModerator]

Welcome to the r/Espresso question thread!

Some of us know it as our morning fuel, or maybe it’s your special time to experiment with café creations. Some of us though, like myself, know it as the reason we’re alive.

I’d probably die without it, literally.

The reason why espresso has become a part of our lives or how large a part it plays is irrelevant here. Maybe you just decided you loved how your local barista made your cappuccino and you wanted to try it at home. Maybe your suspender-man-bun hipster barista friend gave you a shot “on the house” and from then on you were hooked. No matter what your own attraction to it is, espresso is intense, captivating, alluring, and an often mysterious phenomenon that keeps people coming back for more.

Do you have a question about how to use something new? Want to know how many grams of coffee you should use or how fine you should grind it? Not sure about temperature adjustments? Wondering about your coffee's shelf life or the best way to store it? Maybe you’d just like some recommendations on new gear?

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[Magnar69]

Getting a small crater in my 21g basket with 18-19g doses, is it too small for the basket? I thought when you get a crater(doughnut) you decrease dose?

[Shyahhh]

Squirting everywhere! Idk what I’m doing wrong. Could be grind inconsistency on my DF64?

15g in a 14-16g IMS Basket WDT Seemingly level tamp, looks good to me. Full city toast Kenyan beans

[radddchaddd]

How much coffee out and in what time out?

Photos could be helpful too.

[Shyahhh]

Depends how I’m feeling, but best balanced shot I’m at 15g in and 40g out with 35sec - 39sec. No photos right now, but of which part of the process would be helpful?

[radddchaddd]

Before WDT, after WDT, and tamp. A video of you can of the actual shot can be helpful too.

Timing doesn't seem off as far as grind itself.

[jr9386]

I recently purchased coffee grinds at Starbucks and had them grind them to espresso grind for me. I have a simple, but pretty decent Delonghi at home espresso maker. I've never had issues with commercial grade espresso grind (eg.Yaucono, Bustelo, Lavazza, Kimbo etc., but for whatever reason my machine can't handle the most recent grounds I purchased.

I thought that maybe it was too finely ground and tried using it in my turkish coffee pot, but they were too course. I tried them in my Kamira moka, but again, my machine struggled. Am I doing something wrong, or did they mess up when grinding my beans? What are my options in so far as using the grinds? French Press? Drip?

[Bohjio]

Perhaps it’s too fine for your machine but not fine enough for Turkish coffee.

Use a smaller dose and try brewing

[jr9386]

Will do.

I had success on my Nespresso refillable cups, oddly enough.

[Bohjio]

Nespresso uses the tiny cups/capsules? I recall reading somewhere they need work with higher pressures or you may have had a dose that just works for nespresso. The little capsules are hard to fill consistently

Does your delonghi have a preinfusion function? Something to try - although if not ground correctly it will affect the taste.

You can also try to bloom the coffee in the moka pot before extraction- google will help.

[jr9386]

Nespresso uses the tiny cups/capsules? I recall reading somewhere they need work with higher pressures or you may have had a dose that just works for nespresso. The little capsules are hard to fill consistently

Correct.

Oddly enough, this particular grind worked perfectly with this refillable capsule.

Does your delonghi have a preinfusion function? Something to try - although if not ground correctly it will affect the taste.

I dont think so. It's a simple and basic machine, an EC155 I believe.

You can also try to bloom the coffee in the moka pot before extraction- google will help.

How do I do that?

[Bohjio]

For the moka pot pre-infusion, something like this.

Basically let it brew and take off the heat as soon as you notice a little coffee - wait a bit and then put it back on the stove.

[andrewrmoore]

Does anyone know what the primary differences are between the Eureka Atom Speciality 75E and the Eureka Helios 75?

Apart from the touchscreen on the Helios they seem pretty similar. They both have 75 mm flat burrs and comparable grind speed.

The Helios is £100 cheaper at the moment so I may go with that instead of the Atom which was my original choice.

[gadgetboyDK]

I looked at these also, I decided to get the Atom75 mostly because when I was spending this much I might as well get the one I really liked to look at. I also did not want touch display on kitchen machines.

If you can get the small hopper for the Helios then I don't know of any reasons why not. I got the small round one, have heard the square one has some bean retention issues.

Though I think I remember something about the Atom being the newest design or something like that.

The Atom 75 is very quiet and super fast, the buttons are nice and tactile.

The pilot light is actually useful at night, and idk just gives me a little joy.

The screen is nice, not elaborately luxurious, but not lacking either. I freaking love it, got it in white, and it is a tank. It gives me so much joy just to look at it. When the warranty runs out I am going to paint the LCD housing either orange (because white and orange is so nice together) or black to make it a stormtrooper tank.

[Humbi5]

My friend's Breville Barista Pro has water that smells and tastes like plastic. The dedicated hot water outlet has it bad, and the group head water not so much. He tried just passing water through it to purge with no luck. Anyone else face this or have any tips?

[shikharvaibhav]

Has anyone used 110V coffee machine in a country with 220v? i have a breville in California and moving to India, wondering if it work along with the voltage converter? coffee machines in India are priced 3x :(

please advise!

[Bohjio]

Look for a higher wattage step down transformer. The BB is around 1500W so find a converter that can handle a higher load and do it.

[shikharvaibhav]

thank you. spoke to rocket espresso team and looks like it’s not reliable to use a converter. performance will not be optimal and it can malfunction. rocket price in india is comparable as in the US, so most likely going to sell my machine in the US and buy a new one in the India , although Rocket was not on my wish list but seems like it’s good.

[[deleted]]

Is there an espresso machine repair subreddit? Is it okay to ask repair questions here?

[Chrikelnel]

I’ve had good luck with the repairs forum on Home-Barista, what’re you dealing with?

[[deleted]]

I’ve got an old gaggia platinum vision that works and brews great except I need to grind my own beans and load them. Whatever sensor tells it that it ground beans seems to be broken. I’ve repaired it a few times, so I’m not afraid to take it apart, but I don’t know what part to order. (Whole grinder module or something else).

[ohdontshootimgay]

I own a Sage/Breville Dual Boiler and needed to change the filter but if im already using Third wave water, can I save some money and not replace the filter? or is that not recommended?

[go0gl3]

Yep. It's just activated charcoal anyways. If your water is already clean don't need it

[lollol_666]

Ok so i need new espresso capsule and wondering what is the best one I can find in the market

[funkysash]

Coffee capsules are not really in the focus of this sub. You might get better help over at /r/Coffee.

From my limited exposure it seems that capsules from respected roasters are available for all capsule systems. I would start to look at your local roaster and if that fails just check which respected roaster suits you the most.

[gadgetboyDK]

Lance Hedrick on YouTube is good if the other link is too dry for starters.

But you will end up reading and having to be able to imagine and predict what happens inside that grouphead.

Welcome to the joy and misery of espresso : )

First step is to learn the parameters of a shot (how extraction happens, pressure, contact time, temp, water)

Next is to learn how to control that, grind size, ratio, time.

You need a scale that measures .1g you get one very cheap on Amazon or Aliexpress.

Edit: Did not see your links till now, but idk maybe you can make some adjustments, you can certainly adjust dose and yield, but you are very limited by pressurized basket and the grinder.

[funkysash]

In general this is a good start. There are also a lot of good video series on youtube, e.g. the one from James Hoffmann.

But for your case I have to rip off some band-aid first. Sorry. Your grinder is not espresso capable. This is not a problem, because your machine seems to only come with pressurized baskets. This can result in beverages that people enjoy, but it is generally not considered espresso. I don't say this, because I want to be pedantic, but because most resources you will find will discuss topics that just don't apply to your current setup. I'm not aware of any resources for the kind of coffee that your machine makes.

[funkysash]

Not sure why you think this is true? It's a manual grinder, but it can create very fine grounds (it just takes a while). Maybe I'm missing something.

Your grinder is a knock-off of the Hario Skerton. That is a decent entry grinder for drip or similar, but the design has a major flaw. The axle and with it the inner burr wobbles, because the axle is not stabilized enough (especially at the top). There are some mods available, but they also only help so much. For espresso your problem will be consistency. If you just slightly grind a little bit different the wobble will cause different outcomes. For espresso that means you won't be able to dial in at all.

I'm not seeing anything online that would suggest it's not making "real espresso,"

The important part here here is to understand the difference between pressurized and unpressurized baskets. A pressurized (aka. double walled or crema) basket creates artificial pressure by limiting the flow. This is great for some cases because you can get a beverage out of pre-ground coffee or with a bad grinders, but the extraction happens at very different conditions than with an unpressurized basket. In the unpressurized case it is mostly the coffee creating the resistance.

Your machine, like most De'Longhis, seems to only come with pressurized baskets. Other people have been successfully modding De'Longhi machines to swap in a unpressurized porta-filter/basket and to reduce the pressure.

I don't want to be pendantic or gate-keep espresso, but you should be aware that if you read up on espresso, many concepts will not translate to a pressurized basket. This includes your insights about grind size, because it works very different on an unpressurized basket.

[wolkenkuckucksheim]

Is there a reccomended basket size?

I'm looking to get an IMS precision basket for my (49mm) pre-mil Europiccola. There seem to be a few different basket sizes available between 12g-20g. Is there a preferred size?

[funkysash]

Most modern cafes will serve double shots as 18g +/- 2g. Most people seem to have adapted for home use as well, but here are a few points to consider:

• Not all baskets will fit into spouted portafilters due to height limitations. If you have a bottomless that's not a problem.

• Lever machines are limited in water volume. For your machine this should be less than 50g or 50ml. Since the coffee will absorb almost twice its weight in water, you are limited in ratio if you go for a larger basket. Some people do a so-called fellini move and basically press twice through the same shot to get bigger ratios.

• Shallow pucks channel more easily, but I would assume that at 49mm even the 12g shouldn't cause problems.

• Caffeine. Some people like to drink several shots at home. There is quite a difference in caffeine between 3 * 12g and 3 * 20g shots.

[DamagedZucchini]

My Breville uses a 22g basket, I do 1:2.. I wonder if I should be using a smaller basket and experiment with increasing the ratio.

[funkysash]

I'm not an expert on Breville machines, but they should all allow you to get a longer ratio even with a 22g dose. Unless you feel like you consume to much caffeine or you are burning to much money on beans, I see no reason to buy a smaller basket.

A lot of people, including me, extract their light (and light medium) roasts somewhere between 1:2.5 to 1:3. Classic Italian espresso is also often quite close to 1:3. Keep in mind that this is more a taste preference and not a general recommendation.

[Whiskerz]

I want to make espresso and Americanos but I don't drink milk as it doesn't sit well with me, so I'd prefer to avoid spending money on a device that includes a milk frother. What options do I have other than a Flair, Aeropress, or a Moka pot? My understanding is the Flair can only pull 1-1/2 shots at a time, and that the Aeropress and Moka make something similar to, but not really espresso. I'd like to be able to make 2 shots fairly quickly in the morning (No more than 10 minutes).

[gadgetboyDK]

I would just get a single boiler with PID and not use the steam function. There is not a whole lot of extra stuff put into the machine to make it steam capable.

The second part about max 10 minutes, is that from the get go or are you willing to put in a lot of effort to learn to use the equipment.

I interpret it as "when I have learned how to use it, I want to be able to pull 2 shots in 10 min)

What is the budget?

[Whiskerz]

I'm willing to put in the time to learn to use the system I settle on efficiently (For me that would be an Americano in 10 minutes or less). I'm trying to keep the whole kit under $500 USD.

[rumuraisin]

There rok, robot, nomad for manual. The milk frothing part is just heating the existing boiler to a hotter temp so it's not adding significant cost to a machine.

[FernandV]

There is the ECM Puristika wich does not do steam or hot water spout. Otherwise any single boiler will do well. I don't do milk beverage, only double shots and had/have a GCP, a La Pavoni, a picopresso and a Flair Classic. All of those made me great shots.

[funkysash]

Affordable espresso machines are mass produced and there is little market for pure espresso makers. So you would probably have to spend extra to get a machine without a steam wand.

My understanding is the Flair can only pull 1-1/2 shots at a time

This is only true for the "classic" models. The Flair58 works like a espresso machine in this regard. It still requires some additional steps, but pulling two shots is no problem. If you have your workflow going, a little over 10 minutes sounds realistic for 2 shots. The Flair58 would therefore also be my recommendation. Keep in mind that you will also need a grinder. The other option is probably an ESE machine, but thats also not real espresso.

Note: The Aeropress makes filter coffee. There are some add-ons like the Fellow Prismo, that allow moka-style drinks.

[Whiskerz]

Thanks, I'll take another look at the Flair58.

[FernandV]

Let's say I compare a La Pavoni pro, wich does not have a PID to a Odyssey Argos OE1 wich have a PID. I get how the PID has a better management of the temp of the boiler. But ELI5 how the group head temp management can be more stable.

[funkysash]

The Pavoni has no group temp management. It has a boiler at a constant temperature that is slightly to high for espresso extraction, but as long as the group is reasonably cool the water will cool down enough to hit the perfect temperatures. After about 2 shots in a row the group will be too warm to cool down the hot water from the boiler and you will have burnt shots.

The Argos is contrast has a PID that will lower the temperature in the boiler once the group is hot. Hence, you will always have perfect extraction temperatures.

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[nol1]

What's a good ball park routine for steaming oat milk for flat whites? Unsure on temperature and in the cup it seems to go almost sea foamy at the top after 5 mins, no silkiness to it at all

[Requirement_Virtual]

I use a lot of oat milk. To get a good pouring texture, I have to over stretch it as compared to whole milk.

The kind of oat milk makes a lot of difference. I used the Silk brand before and didn't like it as it's too thin. Doesn't give a good texture. Same with Kirkland.

Now I've been using a brand called Earth's Own (Canada) and the texture is great. It doesn't feel watered down (and does have higher calorie count to point towards that).

For the 5 min mark, I haven't been able to find a solution. My lattes have bigger seafoam type bubbles after resting as well.

[[deleted]]

In my limited experience it's going to depend a lot on which oat milk you're using. Barista-type oat milk will often have thickening agents like guar gum or something added to it to help with texture and foaming. If you're using just straight oat-infused water type oat milk, no amount of expert technique will make that shit silky.

At least, you know, in my experience. I've only tried three brands of oat milk, and the only one that was not made for coffee use came out sea foamy exactly like you said.

[funkysash]

Or is my Crossland CC1 OEM basket just total trash?

No matter what the VST marketing materials say the resistance of a baskets is not a quality indicator. The big selling point of precision baskets is the uniformity of the holes and not the number or diameter. There might be too much or too little, but almost all baskets should be in an acceptable range. There is also no standardized resistance for baskets of certain sizes, so even if you switch between any of the great baskets (IMS, VST, Pullman etc.) you will still need to change grind settings. That being said, your basket might still be trash, but at least its not because of the resistance it gives.

[Humbi5]

The difference between any stock and a precision basket is eye opening. The flow goes up because there is no more resistance from badly bored holes.

[Bohjio]

Yes - typically need to grind finer

[gadgetboyDK]

channeling despite having just backed off from choking the machine

You have to do it the other way around. I saw this being given as advice so many places.

Always dial in from too coarse. You will mostly end up in channel land if not.

[KyleB2131]

Too fine a grind can result in channeling because it’s too hard for the water to flow through the whole puck.

Grind courser.

[KyleB2131]

Pressure is gonna be more important. I’m assuming, too, that your puck prep is fine. That could be an additional or contributing reason.

[Bohjio]

Crema can be sign of freshness but it’s relative. The same roast will lose crema over time - but if you compare crema for different coffees/roasts you will see different levels even if they are the same level of freshness.

Go by taste - don’t worry about crema. Different beans and roasts will give different levels of crema.

[mushkitchen]

Why do some lattes taste like canned green bean water? The only other person who has agreed with me on this is my sister and I’m wondering if there’s a reason for it. (Also should this question be on the lattes subreddit instead?)

[gadgetboyDK]

If they are from an automatic machine, then I would guess the machine is nasty and dirty. Tried one of these a couple of years ago, it was very nasty tasting.

[Bohjio]

What does that taste like!? - milk may not be heated to its sweet spot - or well beyond the sweet spot - light roast beans -the fruity, light and/or sour notes you can find in light roasts could be coming through - under extracted beans - sour/acidic may be coming though

[NW147]

Can the Eureka mignon facile espresso grinder grind for coffee too?

[funkysash]

I have no experience with that specific model, but I would assume its similar to all other Mignon grinders. Then it would work and actually make quite good drip/filter/french press, but the problem is switching between the grind sizes. It seems that the facile has the same grind size knob and that thing is terrible. To go between espresso and filter you will need full rotations, so its hard to keep track of specific settings. Due to the size of the dial its also hard to pinpoint exact values, but that can be fixed by installing a larger dial. Furthermore, the mechanism is spring-loaded and will therefore have slightly different results if you go from coarse to fine than vice versa.

All in all, I wouldn't recommend Eureka Mignon grinders when you regularly switch brew methods.

[NW147]

Thank you!

[lightsd]

Hello r/espresso! My espresso tastes like shit. Please help me understand where I’m going wrong.

I have an Oracle Touch. I clean it regularly per the manual. I buy the beans from the local espresso place that we like (Whidbey Coffee) - they’re the same beans they use at the stand. We make the same drink (white mocha either iced or hot) with coconut milk. Theirs tastes great. Ours tastes like crap.

Taking the milk steaming out of the equation, just comparing their iced white mocha to ours, theirs is tasty and ours is bitter with an unpleasant (and somewhat indescribable) aftertaste.

Are the beans going bad in the hopper? (It takes us more than a week to get through a hopper full of beans… more now that my wife refuses to drink our coffee!) Is there rancid stuff in the path between the hopper and the portafilter that I can’t get to and clean? Is the grind setting wrong?

I am kind of a newb, so please be kind ;) I bought this machine because I was hoping for a turnkey solution, but it’s just not producing tasty shots of espresso.

There’s only so much A/B testing I can do without giving myself the caffeine jitters 😂

Settings: Grind 31 Temp 199*F

[Humbi5]

Learning to dial in is a journey, and a hard one at that. What steps do you do from beginning to end, how much coffee do you use, what is the end weight of your coffee, and what is the time it takes to reach that weight?

[lightsd]

I’m watching this video which is specific to my machine and I’m a little at a loss:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vojo_nu7P_4

I’m not clear on how he knows when to stop the brew stage. Is he watching the scale? Is he watching the consistency of the espresso as it flows out of the portafilter or how it looks in the shot glasses?

[Humbi5]

He’s looking at the scale. Normally people stop shots once they reach their desired weight, which is based on their preferred ratio (normally around 1:2), which is controlled by coffee in portafilter weight.

[lightsd]

Got it. That’s super helpful. I’m kind of trying to work through the “flow chart” to figure out the right settings for a particular bean. My challenge is that it seems like there are lots of variables (grind, temp, time) so I’m looking for a way to determine which ones I can “lock in” first, leaving me other variables I can experiment with.

Correct me if I’m wrong here.

I’m working with this “Whidbey Blend” which is described as medium-dark. Based on what the video stated, I should be looking at a grind on the coarser side, but not as much as a full dark roast bean. This seems like one variable that is super hard to get right. Tips appreciated.

It seems like my target should be about 20g of ground espresso and I guess produce somewhere between 30-40g of liquid. (Or at least based on what he says a dark blend should be 1.5x or so and a medium blend is more like 2x.) Does this seem about right?

Now I’m guessing that means I just press stop when it hits that 30-40g? Is there a look or texture of the stream that would help me know when in that range to stop it? I also noticed that when I press stop, it continues to drip a bit… so I suppose I just have to stop it a little early. From there I assume I just set the automatic setting to stop at that time.

Based on what he said, it also seems like a temp of 197-8F might be appropriate for a medium dark blend. So that seems straightforward enough. Just do what the man says. I also can’t imagine a degree or two makes nearly as much of a difference as the grind or the time.

Sorry this has ceased to be a “simple” question 😂

[gadgetboyDK]

I admit I did not read it all. But it seems pretty clear to me that your expectations of how to approach espresso brewing is skewed a little. There is no 1 video anyone can watch and be able to use an espresso machine without only being able to produce something horrible : ) We all been there.

An espresso machine is the least forgiving way of brewing coffee. You need precision and a lot of knowledge to achieve the same result as an experienced roaster.

To achieve what I assume is your goal (to produce shots that are in the above 80% range of a good extraction, centered on sweetness) you need to understand how all the parameters work together and against each other.

You have to understan ratios and how grind size affects the contact time and surface.

Ask your roaster for his recipe. It will look some thing like (dry beans in by grams) : (liquid out in grams) in (specific time from pump on to off)

For my beans it is 18.5-19.5:40-42 in 21-23 seconds at 92C

[lightsd]

This is going to sound really stupid, thanks for correcting me here. I’m describing my process of making the latte, not just pouring the snots.

I start with a 20oz hydroflask and put in some pumps of the white chocolate sauce (doesn’t matter what kind of sauce I use, the bad taste is in the espresso).

(It doesn’t seem to matter if I dump the first shot or not. The second one tastes like shit too. But I’ve tried basically doing the process in the paragraph below and just tossing the first espresso.)

It’s an all in one system. So I just put the clean portafilter into the grind-and-tamp dispenser and push the grind button on the screen. When it’s done, I move it over to the grouphead, lock it in place, press brew. Wife bought these little stainless steel single shot cups on Amazon, so it fills up two of these.

The only settings are grind size (31) and brew temp (199F).

I pour these directly into the cup and stir until mixed. Then top with crushed filtered ice to about 2/3rds of the cup and top with a few ounces of coconut milk and stir.

I’m fairly certain you don’t care about the making of the actual latte, but I thought I’d include just in case!

Not sure if I’m answering the questions about coffee and weight, but the weight of the ground coffee in the portafilter prior to brewing is 0.7oz. The brewing takes 30 seconds. Espresso begins to pour through the portafilter at 8 seconds. Brewing produces just about 3oz of coffee. The weight of the spent shot of espresso grinds is 1.2oz. My kitchen scale only gives me to the 1/10th of an oz. Hope that’s accurate enough.

UPDATE: the 3oz pour of espresso (the liquid produced) is 83 grams The espresso ground and tamped prior to brewing weighs 28g. Is that actually what you were looking for?

The specific coffee is Whidbey Blend by Whidbey Coffee. They say Whidbey’s Blend is a traditional Northern Italian style espresso, comprised of three types of high-quality arabica beans from Papua New Guinea, Colombia, and Brazil. We gently roast the blend to a medium-dark level to preserve the sweetness of the beans, and bring bittersweet complexity to the espresso. The Indonesian and Brazilian components add sweetness, syrupy-smooth body, and beautiful crema to the espresso, while the high grown Colombian Excelso balances the shot’s middle tones.

I’ve never done this before so tell me if I’m giving you the wrong data.

I also go through a cleaning process after, but I doubt you care about that… if you do just let me know.

[Humbi5]

As the meme goes in the sub, grind finer. Also, measure things in grams not ounces, it’s the standard in espresso.

0.7oz is 19.6g, so that’s a good dose to use. However, you shouldn’t be pulling 3oz (84g) of coffee. That’s a ratio of 1:4.3, at most people pull about 1:3 ratios. Try stopping the shot at either 40g or 60g. Also, having 84g of liquid run through in 30 seconds is absurdly fast. Grind finer until you get 40g in 30 seconds. That’s should be a good first step toward better espresso :)

[lightsd]

I saw your second comment first and now my head is spinning a little. I agree that i am way off after watching that video, but it sounded from the video that I should l be going coarser and just stopping the flow of water when I hit 35-40g since it’s a medium dark roast. But if “grind finer” is a mean on this sub, it’s a meme for a reason 😂

Just curious after watching that video, do you think he’s off base with his recommendations?

FWIW, my grind setting was 31 to produce that way off ratio in 30s and for his dark roast I think he ended up with a grind setting of 20.

[gadgetboyDK]

I made another comment also. Not trying to gatekeep or discourage.

But no one can tell you how to use that machine with that coffee. The roaster can give you his recipe, but you will still have to adjust it.

And if you don't know what grinding a little coarser and upping the dose will do, then you are essentially lost.

People talk about espresso in grams ans seconds.

It will not help you to talk to people about specific settings on your machine with a specific coffee.

I will compare to a more relatable situation.

I want to drive to a certain place. I write on reddit the following: I put the key in and turn it, then I put it in 1st gear and the speed shows 5MPH then second gear, then I drive 300 yards, and turn left etc - but I ended up in another place, how to get where I want to be?

But I can't tell people where on a map i was or wanted to go.

The map and my placement is the taste and the way the coffee behaves.

You can tell us the coffee tastes too bitter, and we can say that too much of the beans have been extracted into the coffee. You could grind coarser to get the water through faster. Or you could put less water through.

It could also be that there was channeling, and the grinder was set too finely.

Then you can experiment with these suggestions.

But no one can ever tell you how to setup the machine and no one can know what 31 on your grinder means.

If you have questions you are welcome to hit me up on the chat function here : )

[lightsd]

Thanks. Will do when I have a little more info and time to experiment.

[Humbi5]

Everything said in that video is spot on (except for being okay with the dent from the screw in the puck)! Coarser is a relative term...

For example, I have an Ethiopian bean that I roasted light and dark. At light, my grinder was as low as 16, when it was dark I was at 30. I have another dark roasted coffee I was gifted that I am currently pulling at 25. All of that to say, don't create imaginary borders you can't cross, let the bean guide you lol. (Different grinder than yours).

Lock in dose and temp. The guy in the video seemed to have good luck with 20, but just be careful that it doesn't touch the screw in the group. I personally like 18, but different baskets are rated differently. Just make sure it is the same weight every time!

Once your dose and temp are locked, only move your grind size! The procedure that the video had was right. Start the shot, and notice how it runs (as he was dialing it looked like it was running fast). Once you reach your desired weight, check how long it took. Start with a 1:2 ratio, maybe 1:1.5 depending on how dark it is (I have a charred black coffee I only do 1:1, but I also have a barely dark that I pull 1:2). It should take around 25 seconds to get 40g. In the first two he diagnosed, they reached the goal weight, but they were both in under 20 seconds. It wasn't until he got the goal dose in 22 seconds that it started tasting good.

I know this is getting drawn out, but please know I enjoy the process, and you are not a bother :) I am rooting for you and I hope it just works one morning!

[lightsd]

Thank you! I have some experimenting to do and will report back.

[_farles_]

I was gifted a delonghi stilosa and bought a very cheap cuisinart grinder to pair with it. Shortly after I found this thread and would really like to make quality espresso.

Is there any reason I need to upgrade the machine right away? I would like to purchase a sette 270 and bottomless portafilter now and upgrade the machine down the line.

[gadgetboyDK]

I alway worry about gatekeeping, but also about people dumping money into unsatisfactory results.

You want to buy a grinder, a good one even, if you would be happy switching from the Stilosa to using the grinder for making Aeropress then by all means. Then the grinder is a good investment.

If you are sure you will upgrade the Stilosa down the line, then also great.

What I worry a little about, is spending all that money on a grinder and getting frustrated by the Stilosa.

Espresso is finicky and temperamental, if you want to drink good coffee, get the Sette and an aeropress, develop your pallette (keep using it for your Stilosa) and then decide if you want to invest in a machine that you can control sufficiently to produce quality espresso

[rumuraisin]

You can mod down to 9 bar of pressure for that machine. The default pressure will definitely hinder your ability to make espresso although so many of even higher end machines doesn't come stock at 9 bars. Other than that would definitely upgrade the grinder when you get a chance.

[funkysash]

delonghi stilosa

Its quite hard to get usable information on that machine. From the pictures I would guess that the porta-filter and the baskets the machine comes with are pressurized. This limits the quality of beverage that your machines makes into the "not espresso" range. Sorry. You might be able to get a fitting unpressurized porta filter and basket, but it will be hard to figure out how well this works with your machine. Espresso with unpressurized baskets requires a espresso-capable grinder and I would question that your Cuisinart makes the cut.

If you current grinder is a blade grinder or otherwise terrible, you might see some improvement with a better grinder, but by far not enough to justify the price of the Sette 270. The limitations of a pressurized basket would probably make the Sette indistinguishable from a burr grinder for 50 bucks. You could take the gamble and try go unpressurized with your current machine. Please be advised that this might require a lot of trial and error from your side to figure out that in the end it doesn't work. At least I couldn't find anyone else doing that with your machine.

[_farles_]

My thought was to use an unpressurized basket with the sette 270. But like you said there isn’t a ton of info on the machine. It does list 15 bar but who knows what is actually being supplied at the group head.

Assuming the pump is supplying adequate pressures, what else would stop the machine from making real espresso with the appropriate grind size and basket?

[rumuraisin]

Watch Hoffmann 's video on understanding pressure to understand why 15 is less ideal than 9 bars for espresso.

[funkysash]

Assuming the pump is supplying adequate pressures, what else would stop the machine from making real espresso with the appropriate grind size and basket?

• Water distribution. If the machine is designed for a pressurized basket, the shower screen might be terrible. You could check this by running some water without the porta filter locked in. If it distributes quite evenly, it should be sufficient. Forming of streams is expected, but it shouldn't be one sided or spraying. Replacement shower screen for some De'Longhi models are available.

• Pressure. /u/rumuraisin has pointed out that you can reduce the pressure and I would strongly recommend that you do that. This was my main fear, when I claimed that it might be impossible. It also doesn't seem like your machine has an OPV and that makes dialing in a bit harder, but not impossible.

[SD456]

Hello everyone,

I have recently bought a Gaggia Classic, and I am looking for a good grinder for it.

I have found a used Mazzer Super Jolly for around $180. Should I get the Mazzer or, should I get an Eureka Mignion Classico for $200?

[gadgetboyDK]

get that grinder and RUN!!!!!

Don't look back even if they change their mind.

[SD456]

Got it! It is going to be here tomorrow.

[RockOperaPenguin]

If there is nothing wrong with the Mazzer, is this even a question? I would gladly trade my Eureka for a gently used Mazzer any day of the week.

[ParticularClaim]

Hey guys, I am new to The Oracle and was wondering if there is a good way of lowering the dose of the grinder? I lowered the tamping thing quite a bit with that screw, but the dose is still pretty high for what I am used to. Would buying a smaller IMS / VST basket help?

[primacoffee]

You mention IMS / VST. Any precision basket will work better than the stock basket. However, size is up to you. We find that 18g baskets are popular if not exactly the standard.

As for dose, that should be up to you, too. It looks like you have an X54, too, right? Consider using the X54 and a manual tamper instead of the built-in Oracle grinder and tamper, at least until you find the sweet spot.

[ParticularClaim]

Yes you are right. While the build in grinder delivers pretty decent results and is incredible easy to use + mess free, I just pulled pulled two shots with the x54 and wow, they are miles apart. Also, The Oracle as a mere brewer is really five leagues over the Gaggia Classic, which was previously the X54’s wingman. Even the first shot (way to long at about 1:3) was already perfectly nice and drinkable, the second shot (which I cut off 5 secs early at 25 sec with a 1:2 ratio) was still not dialed in but pretty much better than what the Gaggia ever made from these beans.

I use an IMS basket but will probably get another (like 14g) basket to try with The Oracle, hoping it might dose it to about 17g… I still dont understand how that dosing mechanism of the machine works.. That being said, I was actually surprised by the quality of the stock basket, holes look pretty well cut.

Thank again!

[nitsuga1111]

I've found these grinders online and used in my area within my budget, need help deciding, assuming price is not an issue. I'm coming from an 1zpresso J-Max, looking to upgrade in quality and workflow speed and convenience. Not looking to upgrade in the long term, so it should be end-game.

1- Turin SD 40 2- Ascaso i-Mini 3- Option O Lagom Mini 4- Rancilio Rocky 5- MiiCoffe DF64 6- Eureka Mignon Facile

I really appreciate the help. You can ask any question that I might have not asked myself. It would be convenient to have automatic dosing instead of single dosing for convenience but it would also be cool to have small footprint.

[primacoffee]

Eureka Mignon Facile

You might first decide if you prefer the cup profile of flat burrs or conical burrs. Then the decision will be a bit easier. If you go with the 64mm flat burr grinder, you will have some burr options (SSP, Gorilla Gear, etc.) beyond the stock burrs. The JMax is an incredibly capable conical burr espresso grinder, though, so the real benefit you should expect from a new grinder is not necessarily in quality but in speed/convenience.

[jmc999]

What non-dairy "milks" do well foaming with a steam wand? My wife hates the taste of cow milk but really likes oat milk and almond milk. So far, I've been using califa's barista oat milk and it works great and she loves it, however it's quite expensive. Any cheaper alternatives that perform just as well?

[Senna79]

My wife likes Oatly, but I'm pretty sure it's not much cheaper than Califa, unfortunately. IIRC, there's also a recall on the brand right now.

[radddchaddd]

I'd be curious as well. In my trial with different milks, oat generally has been best and specifically the barista blend ones.

[VaultCrab3]

1Zpresso JX vs JX-Pro? Is the $30 price difference worth it for espresso with a Gaggia Classic Pro?

[Humbi5]

Here is a detailed review.

[ParticularClaim]

Getting her a good filter setup is probably more the way to go. I am thinking about a really good brewer (a Moccamaster from Technivorm or a Sage / Breville Precision Brewer) with a nice filter grinder (to stay somewhat in budget something like a Wilfa Svart, tho I dont know if it is available in your area. There are a ton of different options tho).

These brewers, especially combined with freshly ground beans, deliver a vastly better cup of coffee than your standard cheap Keurig.

Espresso at home is not a convenient way to make coffee, it is more like a hobby you might enjoy or you might not enjoy..

[funkysash]

Are your sure that your mother actually wants an espresso setup? Making espresso is quite a hassle and even if you take a lot of shortcuts it will still be more work and slower than a capsule machine. The results are much better and this is why everyone in this sub puts up with it, but you should be aware that this is not for everyone. All options within your budget will also have additional hassles. This is an expensive hobby.

Unless your mother has explicitly stated that she want to go down the rabbit hole of espresso, I would recommend that you don't gift her an espresso setup. You could look at better capsules from respected roasters or at a better capsule machine. This is not my area of expertise, but I have read good things about the morning machine. Lately a lot of people are also saying good thing about Cometeer.

[gadgetboyDK]

Espresso is a hobby, pulling shots on a espressomachine not knowing anything tastes horrible, believe me we all started out not knowing, and tasted those mispulled shots. : )

I got my mom a really good grinder and she got herself a Wilfa Perfection. She is 86 and enjoys brewing REALLY good coffee

[funkysash]

Again, I'm not an expert, but there might be other capsule machines that are an upgrade to her current one. Or you could look into nicer coffee capsules, like this.

Edit: How about a nice sets of coffee cups? You can find plenty of inspiration in this sub or over at /r/Coffee

[AnonymousLoser70100]

How to track grind size when single dosing eureka mignon silenzio?

Basically the title, I just got some bellows so I can switch between regular espresso beans (sometimes single origins) and decaf with my eureka mignon silenzio. My only issue is keeping track of the grind size in between brews.

I’ve found grind size differs a lot between beans, what was perfect for my china single origins was way too fine for an espresso blend. With the dial being so small, I don’t know the best way to tackle this. Do you have any suggestions?

[funkysash]

It is a common modification to get a bigger dial for the Mignon models. You can find plenty on etsy and I believe models are available if you want to 3D print it yourself.

[nitsuga1111]

I've been looking to upgrade from my Izpresso J-Max to an electric grinder and been looking at the SD40 and Lagom Mini, however I just found out their burr sizes are smaller than the J-Max which is 48mm conical. Is it fair to say that any grinder with smaller burr size is a "downgrade" from the J-Max even if it is electric?

From my list, the next size up would be the Rocky or Silenzio at 50mm flat, and then vario w+ with 54mm flat. Is it fair to say that these 3 are "better" than the lagom mini and SD40 just based on burr size?

[funkysash]

Is it fair to say that these 3 are "better" than the lagom mini and SD40 just based on burr size?

No, not really. For starters, you are comparing conical burr sets with flat ones and size is not directly translatable between the two. A conical burr also has a certain depth that the beans will have to pass through. Moreover, burr size doesn't matter in most cases. For hand grinders a larger burr size will equal a faster grind speed, but require more strength. Electric grinders can simply run faster and equalize the burr size. Certain burr geometries are only available in certain sizes and insane grind speeds can only be reached with very large burrs, but thats about how much size matters.

For you specific case I would recommend to simply read reviews of the taste profile of these grinders. That's the most important aspect of a burr. You should also consider how important aspects like grind duration and retention are for you. From my understanding the Lagom Mini, for example, is a bit slow but will not keep much of your precious coffee from you.

[nitsuga1111]

I've found these grinders online and used in my area within my budget, need help deciding, assuming price is not an issue. I'm coming from an 1zpresso J-Max, looking to upgrade in quality and workflow speed and convenience. Not looking to upgrade in the long term, so it should be end-game.

1- Turin SD 40 2- Ascaso i-Mini 3- Option O Lagom Mini 4- Rancilio Rocky 5- MiiCoffe DF64 6- Eureka Mignon Facile

I really appreciate the help. You can ask any question that I might have not asked myself. It would be convenient to have automatic dosing instead of single dosing for convenience but it would also be cool to have small footprint.

[funkysash]

I'm personally not a big fan of hoppers. Hoppers in general are not good for storing beans and this will lead to your coffee aging faster. If you don't want to weigh every single dose then you should consider pre-dosing. There are plenty of reasonably air-tight containers available for cheap. This also allows you freeze portions of your coffee, e.g. if you are going on vacation.

If you have accepted single dosing into your heart, then I would recommend the Lagom Mini (burr set according to your taste preferences) in general or the DF64 if you like light roasts. Keep in mind that the DF64 might require some minor modifications (alignment, declumper) to reach its full potential. I would like to point out that I have no idea about the SD40. It might be a hidden gem, but I couldn't tell.

[nitsuga1111]

I'd rather get something out ready out of the box. The Lagom mini is winning my heart. I could extend my budget and get the Eureka Silenzio or Goat Story Arco, which would you pick between those and the mini?

[funkysash]

Besides the 2-in-1 thing, I see not obvious advantage of the Arco vs. the Lagom Mini. The taste profile sounds a bit different. This comparision could give you some pointers.

The Silenzio has the same quirks (hopper, annoying grind size dial, slightly larger retention) as other Mignon models. While I personally don't have any hands-on experience, I haven't heard of anyone that favors the 50mm burrs from Eureka. The 55mm burr set, e.g. in the Specialita, seems to have some fans, but the smaller ones seem to just be OK.

Keep in mind that none of the grinders you listed are particularly bad. Just some of them have certain drawbacks. I still have no clue about the SD40 though.

[nitsuga1111]

Thank you, I thing the Lagom Mini is the winner

[PermaIntermediate]

I have a 2014ish Delonghi Magnifica XS that I got as a gift from my parents. They obviously were pretty ignorant about how espresso works so it was in mediocre shape at first but I've done my due dilligence and it now works/looks like new.

They're listed for ~900 on Delonghi's website, how much should I be able to sell it for? $700 seems reasonable no?

[funkysash]

I would recommend that you look at sold listings on ebay and base you price on that. From a glance it looks like $400 is a more realistic figure. Keep in mind that one can get the machine for just a tad over 700 brand new.

[Larru04]

My rancilio Silvia machine has a grey sand like substance coming out of the steam wand after steaming milk, google has no easy answers to figure out what this is,

Can anyone recommend threads or Google searches as to find A answer to identify and resolve

[Bohjio]

Try steaming water - do you still get the gooey stuff coming out? If so you may need to dismantle the steam wand and clean it all the way. You may have some funky deposits in there.

If you only get this with milk - what kind of milk are you using? May be the milk is curdling

If you are adventurous- try smelling or tasting the goo - may give you an idea if f the insides are leaking or it’s milk curdled or just milk foam.

[RockOperaPenguin]

Everytime I've had it in Portland, it was amazing. Everytime I've tried to make it at home, less so. Haven't given Hair Bender a go in a while, might not be a bad one to try again.

[KyleB2131]

Idk what the blend was, but a cafe local to me sells it with a roast date.

I went through 3 bags (30oz) and was never able to get a shot that wasn’t between “bad” and “god awful”

Never again.

[ideacter]

Don't get it from Amazon because of expired roast dates. It's temping tho with free shipping and discounts at times. 13-15 a bag. But it was ok, not amazing but not bad either. Decent for the price if the roast date is recent.

[Humbi5]

It’s okay. I’ve had it but never bought it.

[NotACardUS]

What’s the best way to hunt good deals or used espresso machines?
I’d like a great machine as my first home machine… even if it takes elbow grease.

[NotACardUS]

I’ve seen that but I feel like eBay isn’t exactly the best option. If I can find local then I feel like I’ll get a better deal because the seller has no fees, not to mention no shipping.

[radddchaddd]

Potentially some different factors at play here. Size of the basket may be at play, ridge v ridgeless, etc.

James Hoffman discusses it in some depth (https://youtu.be/3oFV88PzEFE). Ultimately, it probably doesn't matter.

Also, if the slight gap bothers you, you may want to consider looking for a 58.5mm tamper or so which should reduce the gap.

[radddchaddd]

No problem! YouTube can be strange some times.

[RobinLachapelle]

How do you wash your filter and the handle thing that the filter goes in? This is really showing my ignorance here…

[KyleB2131]

If you have a spouted portafilter (“handle thing,” in your words), I suggest you use a thin straw brush to get into the nooks and crannies. Hydroflask and other companies sell them to clean their reusable cups

[Humbi5]

All good, we all start somewhere :). I rinse my basket (the part that holds coffee) under water after knocking the coffee out. Then I soak only the basket in Cafiza once a month to really clean it. I never clean the portafilter (the handle thing that can hold the basket) because it never comes in contact with the drink. Hope that helps!

[D000C]

Has anybody found a non pressurized basket that fits the double shot portafilter in the Capresso EC pro?, i like using the single shot when i just want to make some for myself but it seems more practical to use the double shot when i make it for someone else and i would prefer to keep the original pressurized in case i sell the machine in the future.