TIPS FOR BREWING THE PERFECT ESPRESSO
If you are buying pre-ground coffee, try not to buy more than you can
drink in a week. You can stretch this to two weeks by investing in a
good coffee storage container that you keep in a cool, dark place.
• Grind Size Matters
If you've mastered the espresso technique, the time has come to go
from pulling good shots to pulling great shots, which means dialing
in your grind size.
Grind too coarse, and water will gush through, leaving a watery and
astringent shot. Grind too fine, and water will seep through, resulting
in a tiny pool of intensely bitter brew.
• Get the correct dose
Use gram scales to weigh your dose and shots. It's always better to
measure your coffee by weight than by volume. This is the only way
to ensure you're using the exact same amount of coffee every time.
A rough guideline is to use 7 to 9 g for a single shot and 13 to 15 g
for a double shot.
• The extraction time should be 25-30 seconds. Adjust the grind if it
is not.
Espresso is made by forcing hot water (not boiling water) under
pressure through a lipuckll of finely ground coffee. The finer the grind,
the denser the puck, hence the more pressure required to force the
water through it. The most important rule of making perfect espresso
is that the pressure used should push the water through the coffee puck
in 25-30 seconds. If it takes longer than this, the espresso will be bitter.
• Tamp the coffee grind evenly into the filter.
Tamp the coffee in the filter with the tamping tool, using an even motion.
The tamped coffee should be level and compacted. Brush off any loose
grounds.
If you want to guarantee tamping consistency and have the budget,
invest in a calibrated tamper. These ensure you apply the same force
every time.
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