A course in the operation of espresso; a detailed explanation of the techniques of coffee pressing, filling and powder thickness.

1. Powder thickness

What is the scale of the XX bean grinder?

The scale is just a reference, different brands have different grinding scales, and the performance of the same model bean grinder of the same brand under the same scale is not exactly the same. it is better to understand it this way: the scale just tells you which direction is thick and which is fine. when you find a suitable powder thickness, the role of the scale will show a little bit. The premise is that only your bean grinder, and can not change the beans, the amount of powder does not change, the strength of the powder can not be changed.

Remember a little trick: when you find the right powder thickness, twist it with your hand from time to time, pinch it, feel it with your body and write it down as much as possible, so that even if you change the bean grinder, you don't have to rely solely on the scale to judge. If you pinch it with your hand, it will be significantly thicker, which can greatly improve your efficiency.

two。 Powder loading capacity

How many grams of powder are used to make a single double?

I can tell you how many grams of powder I use, but that's for my beans, my grinder, my powder thickness, my powder strength, these links are closely linked and can have a direct impact, when you change one of them, the rest have to be changed. In principle, we install more coarse powder and less fine powder, of course, you can fix what you think is the ideal amount of powder, because the powder quantity and scale are relatively controllable (compare the numerical value, the scale is how much, the amount of powder is a few grams), for example, I am used to using 9g for a single serving and 16g for a double.

3. Powder pressing strength

This is the biggest variable, because our body is not an instrument, the strength of pressing powder is based on the feel, there is no feel for the novice, only powerful and small, even for the veteran on the bar, the first or second cup every day is to find the feeling of strength, because we may directly affect the exertion of strength because of our physical state and even mood on that day.

But it is also this point, I think it can increase the stability most. When you use the same kind of beans, find the scale, determine the amount of powder, and use a force that you think is more comfortable to press the powder, if you can make a decent cup of esp, you will basically be done. The reason why it is said that the powder pressing strength adjustment can increase stability, because the scale and powder loading, as well as the beans themselves will have a certain small error due to the environment. In most cases, this error can be improved by the weight of pressing powder to achieve a stable extraction effect.

4. The influence of beans

Why is it different when you change beans? Is it bad for beans?

The overall composition and density of different varieties of beans in different producing areas are different, and different baking degrees will also cause differences in hardness, resulting in changes in grinding speed and particle size, so that before the bean powder thickness scale, powder quantity, powder pressing strength appears to be a little weak, just like you can't put your wife's shoes on your feet. Therefore, many foreign restaurants will use a fixed bean grinder for fixed beans in order to ensure the stability of their grinding effect as far as possible.

So the final suggestion is, in the case of fixed beans, first set the amount of powder, and then find the powder thickness, and then use a more stable strength to find the feel, the efficiency should be the highest.

Source: Pt Coffee