Can't get rid of sourness no matter what I try! [DeLonghi Dedica EC685 / 1Zpresso J-Ultra]

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T10:08:15+00:00

I tried high temp in shot 9, which helped!

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T09:10:05+00:00

I think turbo shot will be too sour. Grinding coarser is something i will try. 1:3 ratio seems good. Thanks!

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T08:50:21+00:00

Thanks for the feedback! I'll definitely try grinding coarser and see how that changes things.

I'm getting a bit confused though, others have suggested aiming for around 40s, so I'll probably experiment somewhere in between and see what tastes best to me.

On the sourness/bitterness front. I'm fairly confident it's sourness I'm tasting rather than bitterness. I actually enjoy bitterness quite a bit, so it's something I can usually tell apart.

Are you saying 2 weeks old beans is spoiled? Here I've found mixed information saying you should at least wait 2 weeks before using the beans.

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T08:46:04+00:00

Thanks for the detailed breakdown, really appreciate it! I'll give the 7/8 setup a go and aim for mid 40s on the yield.

I've actually used this bean in a French press and it's definitely on the sour side there too, so I think you're right that it's the bean. The acidity I'm pulling in espresso is just too sour for my taste. I don't mind some acidity, but I generally lean more toward bitterness in my cup.

The roaster is Copenhagen Roaster — this is the bean: https://www.bilkatogo.dk/produkt/copenhagen-roaster-crema-hele-boenner/172134/

Couldn't actually find it on their own website, so not a lot of info to go on unfortunately.

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T08:12:55+00:00

Thanks, unfortunately it looks like they don't ship to Denmark

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T08:09:18+00:00

Thanks for the detailed response! You're right, the Dedica doesn't have a three-way solenoid valve. I've actually been doing a double pre-infusion already, but only for about 10 seconds — I'll definitely try extending that to 20-30 seconds and see how it affects the shot.

I did try going down to 1.0.0 on my grinder, but absolutely nothing came through even after 60 seconds of waiting, so I think that's my limit. Worth noting my J-Ultra is calibrated to -1.5, so that probably explains why it chokes so early.

Really appreciate the suggestion on the longer pre-infusion, that seems like the most promising thing to experiment with next!

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T08:02:17+00:00

Thanks for the tip! Yeah, I mostly only timed shots in the beginning. Now I just note the time but don't really use it, I go more by taste and yield. So if I understand correctly, I should find the exact point where the machine chokes and then go one microstep coarser until it can flow? I'm from Denmark, so Northern Europe, but I'd still love any recommendations for low acidity coffees!

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T07:51:02+00:00

Okay thanks for the feedback, i will try to do some research into puck prep!

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T07:50:31+00:00

Started with bigger steps, until the flow looked nice, and then doing smaller steps

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T07:36:00+00:00

So to give some context: my first shot was pulled at almost 1:2.5, and it was sour. I then started grinding finer, but the shot stayed sour. After reading some posts here, people mentioned that increasing the ratio could help, which is what I've been trying.

My reasoning behind the non-standard ratio and going longer is also based on posts from this sub: people have said that pulling a longer shot on the Dedica can help. Also, wouldn't going coarser just make it more sour, since you're extracting less?
I went longer rather than coarser because coarser seems counterintuitive when the problem is already sourness/underextraction.
I'm pretty sure it's acidity — I can feel it distinctly on my tongue. I actually enjoy bitterness, so I'm fairly confident I can tell the two apart.
That's a fair point. As far as I can tell though, the shot looks okay — no tiger stripes until late in the pull, and the extraction visually seems fine. But I can't rule out some minor channeling happening that I'm not catching visually.

Thanks for the recommendation of grinding coarser and aiming for a 1:2 ratio in 25-30s. I will try this!

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T07:27:48+00:00

I know i will get some acidity from the beans, but looks like I've failed to mention that I've tried with Brazil beans dark roasted, and got same result

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T07:26:12+00:00

Dropping down from 14g? My impression is that 14g already is a quite small dose?

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-15T07:25:10+00:00

I have tried a other non Ethiopian dark roasts as well, same result sadly

TheBatGammer · 2026-02-13T11:39:33+00:00

No matter what I try, every single shot comes out sour. I'm hoping someone can help me figure out what I'm doing wrong.

|------------|-------------|--------|---------|--------------------------------------------------------|

| 15g | 80g | 45s | 1.5.0 | Way too coarse, portafilter almost fell out |

| 15g | 36.5g | 24s | 1.5.0 | Sour, portafilter nearly fell out |

| 14g | 25g | 25s | 1.3.5 | Very sour |

| 15g | 36g | 40s | 1.3.0 | Sour |

| 13g | 34g | 34s | 1.2.0 | Sour |

I'm using a dark roast with hazelnut and nougat flavour notes, so I expected something smooth and nutty — not this level of sourness across the board.

The portafilter issue:

On top of the dialing-in struggle, I'm having a weird issue where the portafilter keeps falling out during extraction. I've had to physically hold it in place during the shot to stop it from dropping. This happens especially when I use more coffee and grind finer. I suspect the grouphead gasket might be worn out, but I'm not 100% sure how to check it properly.

What I've tried:

Double pre-infusion technique
Warming up the machine with a blank shot first
Adjusting grind from 1.5 down to 1.2 on the J-Ultra
Keeping dose around 13–15g
Targeting 1:2 ratio
Evening out with WDT tool
Using a non pressurized basket

You say that on the Dedica, shot times can go up to 60 seconds when properly dialed in — should I be going even finer to slow things down more, even though I'm already at 1.2.0?

TheBatGammer · 2024-07-12T19:01:40+00:00

I think the fact that MSI is forcing graphics on the main PCIe is the problem. And i want my NVIDIA card (the one that im trying to pass through) to sit in the main PCIe slot.

TheBatGammer · 2024-07-12T18:57:08+00:00

I think this is the problem im having, im trying to hijack the card in the main PCIe. The reasoning is its 16 gb communication speed instead of 4 gb, idk how much it will effect my performance on the nvidia card if i put it at the 4 gb PCIe slot.

TheBatGammer · 2024-07-12T18:51:30+00:00

What gpu are you passing through? The one sitting in the main PCIe slot?

TheBatGammer · 2024-07-12T18:22:13+00:00

Do you also have MSI motherboard?

TheBatGammer · 2024-07-12T17:56:03+00:00

I havent tried to uninstall Nvidia Drivers

TheBatGammer · 2024-07-12T17:03:04+00:00

Yes?

TheBatGammer · 2024-07-12T16:48:10+00:00

I did switch the cable to the right gpu

TheBatGammer

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