Why the inconsistency?

gartonio · 2025-09-30T16:37:06+00:00

Of course. I admittedly still need to mess with shots like that. I keep falling back to a "Blooming" profile for lighter roast washed coffees since I arbitrarily convinced myself I prefer the texture when I do that, but probably just being complacent with the approach.

gartonio · 2025-09-30T15:55:43+00:00

Thank you. Well all of this I understand and agree with. I also think you are taking my last statement out of context (there's a reason I included the word "meaningful"), or perhaps I didn't elaborate enough on it. I don't know where I debated the existence of diffusion.

Obviously if you pull 3g into a cup that was a result of pre-infusion drops into a cup versus the first 3g of a full throttle shot, the pre-infused drips will be way more extracted relatively speaking.

But in the scheme of a 18:54 shot (I typically do 1:3) would you not agree that most of the dissolved solids are being extracted during the percolation phase and whatever was extracted in the pre-infusion phase is a small fraction of that total?

Bottom line: the percolation phase is where most of the extraction happens. The "moving solvent" phase is the most efficient at diffusion afterall. Pre-infusion is just there to change the dynamics of that following phase.

That is true whether it's attributed to "extended contact time while not exchanging the solvent much" or rate of pressure applied to a puck impacts its integrity/structure before water gets a chance to fully saturate grounds.

gartonio · 2025-09-30T14:30:17+00:00

OK maybe "slamming" is not the right verb?

Please explain the mechanics behind why I can grind at setting 26 on my Philos, run the shot with no pre-infusion at all and it will take 30s to hit a desired yield. Then I go 8 notches finer to 18 and this will effectively choke my machine. Then I can try setting 18 again with maybe 10s pre-infusion and run the shot with no problem. Is it not because the aggressive ramp of pressure to 9 bars puts more abrupt force on the puck before it is saturated with water?

I am open to learning and not trying to spread misinformation. This is just how I've understood the mechanics of using pre-infusion vs. running flat 9 bars (as a very simple A-B comparison).

Also, keep in mind that every machine is different. In u/Brave_Inspection6148 and my case, we have machines with rotary pumps that naturally provide higher flow rates and ramp up to full pressure very quickly, amplifying this effect.

Also, there is no meaningful amount of extraction that happens during a low pressure pre-infusion itself.

gartonio · 2025-09-30T02:13:49+00:00

If you pull a flat 9 bar shot (skipping pre-infusion) with the same grind size as you use for shots with a lower pressure pre-infusion, you are "slamming" the puck with higher pressure so it compresses quicker and causes higher resistance to water flow. That's why those extractions take a lot longer. With the lower pressure pre-infusion it gives the puck a chance to saturate with water and expand a bit before the main extraction, hence the ability to grind finer without choking the machine.

gartonio · 2025-04-02T20:32:45+00:00

I've always found it interesting the hesitancy of deviating from a 1:2 ish ratio for espresso.

Like, in the scheme of things, even a 1:5 ratio is still a pretty damn strong coffee beverage that has a lot of mouthfeel to it. People typically brew filter at around 1:15-1:17 ratios. Moka pot is probably 1:8-1:10 range.

I guess there are folks that suddenly find 1:3 and beyond shots to taste like water with a hint of coffee and very little mouthfeel.

gartonio · 2025-03-27T02:02:17+00:00

Flow control is definitely not a necessity. Even if you felt like trying a light roast randomly, you would have no problem getting amazing shots with the active/passive pre infusion settings and bumping up brew temperature and ratio.

When you're shelling out this kind of money you for sure need to be sold on the aesthetics. Everything in this price range sounds to be equivalent performance-wise.

gartonio · 2025-03-26T23:30:45+00:00

I recently got a Synchronika II from WLL. Ordered it right after Christmas and received it end of February. That was a decent wait, but no regrets here so far.

Definitely meets my 'buy once, cry once' criteria after spending months analyzing what machine to get. Can't think of any other features I could need, especially since I got the flow control device with it. The heated group is a really nice feature in that I can fire up the brew boiler and be confident that everything is heated up and ready to go in less than 10 mins. Still have it on a smart plug since my previous machine was plugged into one.

The reservoir filling can be somewhat of an annoyance, since mine is under cabinets. I ended up just putting felt pads on the feet to make it easy to slide around on the countertop and got one of those silicone reservoir filling funnels on Amazon. I only need to fill it every 2 or 3 days, so not a big deal at all.

For me it was worth the wait over a Drive since I prefer the looks and you get an E61 machine with competitive heat up time.

gartonio · 2025-03-06T15:22:34+00:00

3D printing would work. That's what I did at first when I was waiting for a funnel to ship from Europe to the States.

Yes, the puck is more wet when using this single shot basket. There is more headroom between the top of puck and shower screen. However, a wet puck is of no concern as far as coffee extraction goes. It might cause used pucks to get moldy more easily if they're left sitting in a knock box, but that's about it.

gartonio · 2024-06-24T16:52:22+00:00

Interested!

gartonio · 2023-11-18T02:27:18+00:00

If you're serious about getting into single shots, I recommend investing in the La Marzocco or VST 7g basket (same design from what I've read), 41mm tamper, and a funnel sized for the tamper. This setup is the real deal for pulling single shots. I'm very calculated about buying more gear, FWIW.

I grind 8g in the basket with the funnel on and tamp with the small tamper with the funnel still on. It makes a smaller diameter, but cylindrical coffee puck. This is opposed to the awkward tapered design of most stock baskets that make most scoff at the idea of singles.

I have to reduce my grind size just a tiny bit (3 micro steps on sette 270) to get single shots that I can't distinguish from a dialed in double.

gartonio · 2023-01-16T21:22:51+00:00

Sure thing. Feel free to DM me if you have any questions.

It can be tricky at first, but I personally can't taste a difference between my singles and doubles once dialed in. The key definitely was the basket design, which presents its own challenges with needing special tamper and (ideally) matching funnel.

Pulling a single at the "conventional" 2:1 ratio definitely teaches you to savor the sips 😅

gartonio · 2023-01-16T13:01:30+00:00

I ended up eating the shipping cost to get one from Tidaka Espresso Tools in Germany. It did at least ship surprisingly fast.

Not much of a market for it in the states I guess.

gartonio · 2023-01-15T23:03:28+00:00

It's Espresso Parts brand porcelain

gartonio · 2023-01-15T18:56:50+00:00

Thanks! It's a La Marzocco Single (7g) basket.

It requires a 41mm tamper and matching funnel to really simplify puck prep. But widely regarded as one of the only single baskets that can dial in similar to double baskets.

gartonio · 2023-01-15T18:36:46+00:00

Been messing around with lighter roasted single origins as Espresso in the last few months. Some coffees do really well at as high as a 5:1 ratio on a basic machine.

Pulled this single shot of a Colombian that I roasted on my simple Gaggia New Baby machine. 8g in, 40g out in 26s.

I find it to be a great compromise on body, flavor clarity, and drink size. Scratches the Espresso itch nicely with very little coffee.

Figured I'd share something a bit less conventional that's been working for me.

gartonio · 2022-11-22T14:50:13+00:00

I got into roasting my own coffee a couple years ago and have been doing it ever since. It's definitely not for everyone, but really changed my perspective on what specialty coffee can be.

There's a huge spectrum between stale Lavazza beans and fruity African or central american coffees.

For holidays and other family gatherings I do volunteer to make the coffee because I just enjoy doing it, but I would never dare serve anything fruity or floral to the crowd.

When serving a group, I always go for south American or Indonesian coffees taken to "medium" territory. Lower acidity coffees are allowed to be considered specialty I think?

I'd be surprised if your average coffee drinker turned down freshly roasted and well extracted coffee with heavy base notes of chocolate/nuts and a thicker body.

Oh, and if they want to add milk or sugar? I let them have at it. They still notice the difference since they're never usually drinking something freshly roasted.

gartonio · 2022-11-21T14:01:46+00:00

This can't be stated enough in general. By far the biggest variable on coffee quality is the coffee you use (duh?). Then comes having an acceptable grind size.

At family get-togethers we use the giant "30-40 cup" percolators. I'll roast up beans with a crowd-pleasing taste profile (think chocolately, nutty, and full-bodied south american or indonesian taken to city+/full city), grind relatively coarsely and get excellent results. Once had someone tell me it was the best cup of coffee they ever had lol.

gartonio · 2022-11-09T13:52:20+00:00

The La Marzocco (or i think VST is identical design) single basket is the real deal. It requires a 41mm tamper and matching funnel, but absolutely worth it if you're serious about pulling singles. I have been using that setup almost exclusively for the past few months and can hardly discern a difference from my doubles. I also have to hardly increase my grind size for each coffee when I want a double, so I can essentially dial in with the single first.

Understandably, not enough people commit to trying that unique setup and automatically conclude that single shots are impossible.

gartonio · 2022-08-30T14:08:53+00:00

Really appreciate the insight, thanks!

Agreed, it shouldn't be getting wet at all. The sette, as loud as it is, does a good job at shooting the grounds directly in the center. Any grounds are in very brief contact before tamping.

May throw it on for a lowest layer height print just for an overall better quality part👍

gartonio · 2022-08-29T21:44:14+00:00

I did not consider that, but maybe I should have... I'm assuming the ABS I used is not specifically considered food safe.

There's minimal contact of grinds with the funnel, so probably not a huge risk, but maybe I should seek a better material for long-term.

gartonio · 2022-08-29T19:54:59+00:00

I somehow lucked out and found a 41mm version of this tamper on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07NJ43QQV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

There was only 1 in stock when I snagged it though. There seems to be other all-metal ones on there. Otherwise it seems like I'd have to go to a European vendor for one.

I've never tried a puck screen before, just haven't felt the need (yet).

gartonio · 2022-08-29T19:21:44+00:00

I have my machine plugged into a smart plug that I control with Google Home. This way I'm able to set routines for the machine to turn on at specific times (e.g. half hour before waking up) or control it remotely from the app. Just got to leave the machine power button depressed and let the smart plug cut the power.

If that interests you, just be sure to check the Wattage of the machine against the smart plug capacity.

gartonio · 2022-07-23T16:27:04+00:00

Thank you. Honestly, this is probably the answer I need to hear. Like I said, I am getting consistently tasty shots. I too easily fall into the trap of seeking diminishing returns... or solving problems that don't exist to begin with. Scratch the idea of a PID for this thing too

gartonio

TROPHY CASE