The Espresso Machine
Making the perfect coffee in a traditional espresso machine actually has very little to do with the machine. It is down to the Barista who makes the coffee.
If he or she takes pride in their offerings, they will insist that the machine is scrupulously clean. They will ensure it has been cleaned and flushed, using machine cleaning tablets, to clean away the oils, etc, produced from the days coffee production.
They will also ensure that beans, when opened, are stored in a fridge sealed as best as they can.
The grinding machine hopper should only be filled with enough beans to last about an hour.
Why ? Once beans are exposed to oxygen they will begin to lose the flavours that have been enriched during the roasting process.
That’s why all beans are now kept in bags with one way breather valves in them.
The Coffee Grinder
Often overlooked, the coffee grinder is one of the most important things to get right in order to produce the perfect coffee.
Buy the best you can afford, it will produce superior results and last longer.
All grinders have a grind thickness setting and the dispenser hopper can be adjusted so as to give the correct weight of coffee per dose.
The correct weight of coffee per dose should be 7-8g… don’t forget when using a two group holder to double it.
The size of grind is dictated by the amount of time it takes from pressing the button on the machine to the coffee stopping flowing from the spout. (i.e. the smaller or finer the grind the longer it will take to finish flowing out of the machine).
The ideal time is 24 seconds, but anywhere between 20 and 28 seconds and you should be fine.
The amount of water dispensed should be 25-30ml (that’s 1 fl oz in old money), any more or less and your drink will be either bitter or sour.
If your machine dispenses in a shorter period, then adjust your grinder to give you a finer grind, too long and adjust it to a larger grind.
Trust me.
If you get this right you’ve got the basis of a great espresso coffee.
The rest is up to you, a Cappuccino has frothy milk, whereas a Latte should be smooth and silky.
So then it’s just practice, practice, practice.
Enjoy and take pride.
Thanks for reading,
Craig.