How to Make The Perfect Espresso
Sep 06, 2022
For some people, coffee is more than just a hot drink. It's something that should be appreciated and admired. Join us today in learning how to make the perfect espresso.
1. Clean Your Portafilter
Before doing anything, you will need to prep your portafilter by making sure it is 1) coffee free, 2) clean & 3) dry! If you don't carry out these first crucial steps there's a high chance your next espresso will be contaminated with either old coffee, moisture, or any other form of dirt which will most certainly ruin your drink.
2. Choose The Correct Coffee Dosage
To some, this may seem like a pretty obvious step, but you'd be surprised at how wrong this can go! When filling your portafilter it's imperative that you get the correct dose of coffee. Most of the time this can be done by pressing a button on the machine, but for the more adventurous baristas out there that want to take things to the next level, accurately measure out your dose on a scale. Even the slightest change in dose can cause your espresso to be either too strong or too weak.
3. Distribute Your Coffee Grounds
Once your coffee grounds are sitting in a pile in your portafilter, it's time to distribute them evenly across the portafilter basket by either using a tool or by tapping gently on the side. But why do we do this? Before tamping the grounds it's important to get an even distribution of coffee across the basket in order to prevent channeling further down the line.
4. Tamp Tamp Tamp
Time to tamp! When it comes to tamping, there are many different methods and myths about the correct way to tamp. These can include all the different types of tools you're supposed to use or the amount of pressure you have to apply. But we want to strip it back to basics and in doing so, we need to understand what the reasons for tamping are. It's simple really, we want to accurately spread the coffee across the portafilter in a condensed manner to remove air pockets in order to avoid channeling, as well as any over or under extraction.
So simply get your tamping tool of choice, and apply firm but even pressure to create a horizontal flatbed of coffee grounds.
5. Insert The Portafilter & Brew
Now the real fun begins, start by ensuring your espresso cup is in the correct place on the coffee tray, place your portafilter into the group head (rinse group head beforehand if necessary) and begin brewing instantly. It is vital that you begin brewing the coffee instantly to ensure the group head does not burn the surface of your coffee.
6. Serve Your Espresso
Now, if you have followed all these steps correctly, you should have a freshly made espresso smelling and looking beautiful ready for one happy customer (or yourself) to enjoy, served on a small saucer of choice.
7. Clean, Rinse & Repeat
The final step is a simple one, always ensure you leave your coffee station as you found it! Correctly rinse and clean all equipment used. Finish by reinserting the portafilter into the group head and you will be ready for the next time you make a perfect espresso.
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Source: https://www.baristainstitute.com/blog/jori-korhonen/february-2020/9-steps-how-make-perfect-espresso