pauljolly65 wrote:No, the donut extraction doesn't mean that the puck looks like a donut when you're done. It means that the water (when brewing) finds an easier way out around the edges of the puck rather than distributing equally throughout...

I'd echo Dave's advice: grind tighter, tamp lighter, do the nutating tamp. In fact, I'd say read his review of the machine completely. It was tremendously useful when I started out with the Vibiemme.

truly stated like a newbie huh! Funny!

I will go back and re-read the review and advice...I know I am on the right path. Improvements are happening so that is exciting....

Great advice! Thanks!

Don't know where you are in WA, but you should consider dropping by Olympia if you're anywhere close. You can go to Batdorf & Bronson as well as Olympia Coffee Roasting to check out their espresso offerings and then stop by the Espresso Parts location to talk about bottomless portafilters, tampers and whatever you can get those guys going on! Terry and Dave were great to talk to when I was there. Good luck!

Justin

jgriff wrote:You can go to Batdorf & Bronson as well as Olympia Coffee Roasting to check out their espresso offerings

Yes, I LOVE Batdorf & Bronson.....my favorite so far! Curious, what do you think of their Dancing Goats blend enjoyed as espresso as opposed to a latte or cappuccino?

I don't live far from there and have visited B & B many times. Espresso Parts NW is just down the road a bit also, was just there this last week to pick up my machine...very helpful.

pauljolly65 wrote:Far and away the most important thing to get is a good grinder...so important, in fact, that I'm sure Ian's taking a good one as a given (hardly an 'accessory'). Upgrading to a Super Jolly made the most dramatic improvement in my shots--more than the upgrade from the Solis to the Silvia, more than the upgrade from Silvia to the Domobar.

Are you new 'round here?

The espresso machine is a grinder accessory

Hahaha, yes, certainly new around here I am sure I will be saying things for a bit longer that will make you laugh or roll your eyes
I have been reading from this site for 3 days straight and have learned a ton, although a lot more to go
Honestly, I didn't MEAN the grinder was an accessory....I meant the tamp, knock box, pitchers, scale, etc that I purchased. I really wanted to get a better grinder, but tried to purchase one that had fairly good reviews, but was in a price range I could afford right now...whew!
I have been reading up on clumping and the different techniques to avoid and deal with that issue as my grinder has a horrible habit of clumping the grounds which are causing a lot of channeling. Working on fixing this.

duodelaney wrote:I have been reading up on clumping and the different techniques to avoid and deal with that issue as my grinder has a horrible habit of clumping the grounds which are causing a lot of channeling. Working on fixing this.

Clumping may turn out to be the topic of 2009. I've read mountains on how clumping causes channeling, but never found one single technical proof. Try to pick up a clump. It collapses into nothing.

FWIW, clumping seems worse at the cusp of too coarse a grind. Try grinding finer, don't overdose, ensure the distribution is relativley even and your tamp is level.

The stock shower screen on the Vibiemme is pretty intolerant of overdosing due to its shape. If you have an imprint in the puck, grind finer and dose less. If you are partial to the tastes of coarser grind and more coffee, try this shower screen, along with a RegBarber American Curve.

thanks.....I am still trying to dial in my machine and fine tune everything. Things are looking better, but now I am waiting for my next shipment of espresso as I have burned through what I had calibrating and adjusting
It should be here tomorrow and then I can get back to it all......so many variables.....it is amazing.

duodelaney wrote:......so many variables.....

3 of the 4 big variables, listed in order, are out of the way :
Coffee, Grinder, Machine. Now it's just the mano or handle end of the PF. Concentrate on a reasonably evenly distributed consistent dose. Too many neophytes get lost in the minutia. It doesn't have to be perfect. And forget about tapping, twirling, etc. until you can pull repeated shots with abandon. THEN futz with the 'entertainment'

FWIW, I chuck the first single (7g) from the grinder in the bin.
Yesterday's stale, dried out detritus does nothing to improve today's consistency.
In the long run, you'll save coffee.

I have been playing around with the brew and boiler pressure on my machine a bit and it did help very much on the espresso taste...it was so bitter (due at least in part to too high temp), so dropping the brew pressure down as well as a little flushing helped a lot as the taste started to mellow and even went slightly sour. I raised the brew pressure some and lowered the boiler pressure from 10 bars to 8. I think tomorrow I will elevate the boiler up to 9 bars though because I have heard the Vibiemme works well there. I have been consistently dosing at 16g and seem to be distributing and tamping evenly and well. The extractions look good up until about 15 seconds and then get watery (also extraction doesn't start until about 10 seconds into pull) but it doesn't seem too slow once it starts to pour. Then the puck is watery too and falls apart. Can see channeling. So, thus my thoughts on clumping (my grinder is quite bad with this issue), or perhaps it is also because my boiler pressure is too low. I will be tweaking some more tomorrow when my coffee arrives.

Also, honestly I am embarrassed to admit, I have never experienced a straight shot of espresso that was good. I have been pulling shots that are wonderful in milk, but either a bit sour or slightly bitter to the naked taste. I am closer though, at first they were rancid and now are much, much better. I can ALMOST taste some flavors in there

Don't feel too bad! I haven't either, not even from a synesso! I don't know if the problem was on the portafilter side of things, or my taste buds. I get great cappuccinos though!

So...tell me, during your extraction, does it last 15 seconds after it starts pouring out of the portafilter? Or does it only last 5 seconds, as in you press the brew button, and then you have 10 seconds of nothing, then 5 seconds of brew before it blonds? If it is the former, then timing is bang on. However, from what I've been reading, that is only a guideline. It is a good indicator that you have the tamp and grind right. But it doesn't mean it is in the cup.

Cheers!