Starting out in your espresso journey can be intimidating as there are many variables at play that require particular attention and skill to make a good shot of espresso. I will explain the 4 most important variables on how to make the perfect espresso.

I’m going to keep this brief and to the point. I advise beginner’s to pay attention to these 4 basics to obtaining the perfect espresso.

1. Good coffee beans
2. Espresso grinder
3. Espresso machine
4. Barista skill

FRESH COFFEE BEANS

Coffee beans post 1 week from roast date and not more than 2 months old. Beans which are too fresh contain too much Co2 which translates to difficult extractions and shots being more acidic. Beans older than 2 months old start to loose their vibrancy, crema and ability to restrict water flow. When coffee beans are no longer good, it is impossible to dial in a shot no matter how fine you adjust your grinder.

ESPRESSO GRINDER

Set aside your blade grinder and invest in a conical or flat burr grinder. Blade grinders produce too many fine particles which will lead to a bitter espresso and inconsistent pours. You’ll want to set the grinds to somewhere between table salt and slightly finer where there is a combination of granules and some finer grinds. You’ll know you have achieved this when your pours are between 25-30 seconds depending on the roast colour. 25 seconds ball park for med/dark and 30 seconds thereabouts for light to medium roasts. A scale that reads to 0.1 accuracy is a great way to keep the dosage (ground beans) consistent to eliminate varying dosages which can slow or increase the flow rate. Coffee in vs coffee out is also a good habit to learn in conjunction with a scale. A good starting point with a 14 gram basket and medium/dark roast would be to dose 14 grams of coffee in and stop the pour when 28 grams of coffee is in the cup. This is a 1:2 ratio and is a general starting point in which one has to make adjustments to obtain the desired profile the coffee was intended for. Let taste be the deciding factor, not numbers and ratios. Ratios are a starting point from which a Barista will dial in his or her recipe.

Espresso Machine

An espresso machine that allows one to be within espresso range (91C-96C). I say range as most less expensive machine have a wide temperature variance and tend to overheat if left at idle. If you are aware that your machine produces super-heated water at the onset of the pour then one can do a flush to alleviate this water and then proceed with the shot. I’m not convinced on ultra accuracy when it comes to brew temps. I don’t believe brew temps need to be within 0.5C as I know that I can obtain an amazing shot on my lever espresso machine and they tend to start low and end high depending on the way it was engineered. Lever espresso machines are anything but linear BUT make the BEST espresso around. Ask yourself this: why are companies trying to replicate characteristics of lever espresso machines?

BARISTA

First step after reading this should be to remove the shower screen, portafilter basket (PF) and have a look for built up coffee oils. First basic skill as a Barista is to have a clean machine and accessories. How can I expect clarity in the cup if I have coffee oil residue making its way into every shot? You can’t! Buy coffee detergent and a blind portafilter basket (your coffee machine will need to have a 3way valve to use a blind basket/back flush basket).

Every Barista needs to learn how to dial in a shot as the coffee ages, throughout the day, fresh roasts and with different roasts.

A Barista needs to be able to distinguish between acidic and bitters. This is a starting point of course but one must be able to discern between the two and dial the grinder/coffee machine accordingly to obtain what the bean was intended for. The finer one grinds the longer the shot = more extracted = more bitterness, vise versa. Note, you can’t pull what isn’t there in the coffee bean. Example, if you have a light roasted Ethiopian, don’t expect to get notes similar to med/dark roast. With light/medium roasts expect acidity to be the dominant profile, whereas, med/dark will highlight the bold coffee notes one associates with coffee.

Tamping! Tamp hard and tamp well. Your espresso machine producing 9 bars of pressure and will find the weakest point every time. Don’t rely on light tamping as you are more likely to experience channeling. You can put this to the test with a bottomless portafilter. Looking at the bottom of the PF one should see the basket start extracting coffee evenly at nearly at the same time forming a nice even cone in the middle void of offshoot spraying. If you witnessed squirting this is channeling.

If you have any questions or additional info you think I should add to this article, please email myself at laurence@tanzilloespressogear.com.