How to brew the perfect espresso shot

[sharpanator]

the tampering force is not so important, more important is the amount of espresso and the grinder, in the video it looks like awful lot of espresso in that porta filter, the crema wasnt so nice for a double shot.

[shrikepriest]

Success again, made a really nice double just now. But, I've got two questions: first, is the steamer really low powered or is there a knack to it? I get barely any frothing, I've got cold milk, cold jug, I'm not putting the nozzle against the bottom of the jar, and when I do get frothing, it mostly disappears before I can pour it. Second: is it a requirement that the coffee after brewing can be knocked out "cleanly" out of the filter? mine tends to break into pieces so now I just rinse it out.

[csgyuricza]

First: I know other 3 people that have this machine. 2 of them have the same problem - weak steamer and I wasn't able to figure out why... but I now realize this is a known problem with this model. I got tired of it and bought myself a new machine altogether.

Second: I don't thing the coffee needs to come out in one piece. I think the important part is for it to come out mostly dry. I usually tap it out in the trash can then rinse it in the sink.

[shrikepriest]

I just got the same machine, and I'm having a little trouble figuring it out. The manual isn't exactly clear on everything, and any tutorials out there seem to forget one thing: how do I know when to "turn it off". Do you use a set time as in "after 15 seconds" or "when I've got enough fluid in the cup", or can you hear some kind of brew-cycle and go by that? Also, does your filter not come with the little black nobs on the bottom? Are those removable?

[csgyuricza]

Some versions of this machine came with the black knobs, some didn't. I am not sure what they do. I don't think it matters a lot.

[shrikepriest]

I'm just worried about applying pressure when packing, since they're plastic I figured they might break.

[csgyuricza]

Maybe the plastic knobs are there for that exact purpose - to support the pressure when you're packing the coffee. Can you hold the filter in one hand and pack the coffee with the other, without putting it down? (I don't use a scale on a daily basis, that was just for the video).

[shrikepriest]

That's what I've been doing so far. and the nobs are actually the spouts themselves, which is why I'm hesitant about the pressure :p Wouldn't want to bend them and obstruct the coffee. guess I'll have learn the 30lb-force using some other method.

[csgyuricza]

You can't really set a fixed brewing time because there are a lot of variables involved in the process. The target is 1 to 1.5 oz. For my machine it usually takes 20 to 30 seconds. If it is taking too long, you're probably packing the beans too tight into the filter or the beans are too fine. If it is taking less then you didn't pack it tight enough, the coffee is too coarse or there's not enough coffee in the filter.

[shrikepriest]

I'm aware of the 20-30 second optimum, but when I turn the knob back, it still takes a couple of seconds for the coffee to drain even after I turned it off. So would you say that if I turned it off after something like 15, wait five seconds and see if I hit the 1 oz mark? Then adjust accordingly? That would make sense based on the "it should take 20 seconds to brew an espresso". Or should I be watching the amount of coffee and stop it like halfway? What's your "queue" to turn it off?

[csgyuricza]

I would probably stop at 1 oz, and remove the cup shortly after. It doesn't matter a little bit still drips into the tray. That is probably very weak anyway...

[shrikepriest]

Thanks, that gives me some direction at least :p So now I can work with it. Just made a double shot and a single right after to try and work it out. First one (double) came out pretty good, nice strong taste, lots of crema. Second one, not so much. Maybe it ran too fast. One thing I'm wondering about is the "filter cake": once I'm done making a shot and pull out the filter, there's often a layer of water (a milimeter or so) on top of the coffee, is that a sign packing too tight? or is it normal?

[csgyuricza]

I also noticed that each Krups machine (even the same model) feels a bit different so that is also a variable... That is the fun part of owning a manual machine, you have to come up with your personalized values for each variable (how fine to grind the coffee, how much to use, how hard to pack, how long to run the machine, etc). Once you figure out your perfect process write down the variable values post another comment here to share it with us.

[csgyuricza]

Brewing an espresso manually is a delicate art because you can easily mess it up.

[csgyuricza]

I was trying to paste a page here but YouTube doesn't allow links in comments. Google this exact text "Since 1936How To Get a Perfect Coffe" then click on the first search result. That is a useful page.

[mandolincreek]

Thats a great shot for a krups! You should consider getting a gagia.

[artisanrox]

I have an XP5000.  Thanks for this ^_^