Dialing in a new espresso machine, a step by step guide - Page 3

[Fullsack]

Nice job on the art.

I noticed you use the RS bottomless pf for straight shots and the stock pf for cappuccino. Any special reason for that?
If you set the 2 pf's next to each other, upside down, you will see that the distance between the lugs and the top of the pf is greater with the stock pf. Wouldn't that affect the head space and the amount of coffee you use?

A know a lot of people do it that way, but why do the espresso first and the milk second? I think I'd rather have the milk sitting for 30 seconds, (it only drops about 10 degrees), and have the espresso fresher.

[k7qz]

I decided to video this morning's cappuccino before I headed out for church. This also shows the headspace using a Reg tamper and frothing a 'normal' amount of milk.

Nice looking Cappa!

One thing that I noticed which surprised me somewhat was that, as it turned out, my cooling flush did not need to be quite as long as recommended by others using the A3. Thanks to my Scace thermofilter, learning the appropriate "pitch" of the cooling flush hiss which corresponded to a given temperature was a breeze. I have gone back and verified this several times with the Scace and my particular A3 has been very consistent in this "temperature/sound" regard.

If you have access to a Scace or the equivalent, this might be interesting information for you as well-

[cannonfodder]

Nice job on the art.

I noticed you use the RS bottomless pf for straight shots and the stock pf for cappuccino. Any special reason for that?
If you set the 2 pf's next to each other, upside down, you will see that the distance between the lugs and the top of the pf is greater with the stock pf. Wouldn't that affect the head space and the amount of coffee you use?

A know a lot of people do it that way, but why do the espresso first and the milk second? I think I'd rather have the milk sitting for 30 seconds, (it only drops about 10 degrees), and have the espresso fresher.

That bottomless portafilter is actually from my Isomac, I chopped it myself. Under normal circumstances I use the single spout portafilter, not the bottomless. I prefer the finer textured crema the spouted PF produces. I used the bottomless just for the videos, normally I use that single spout for all my shots, espresso or cappa.

As far as headspace, it does not matter what portafilter your use, the basket is what seals against the group gasket. If you change baskets, than yes, your headspace could change, but it would be in fractions of a mm. What would change is your overall dose amount due to the change in basket body geometry.

Once again, under normal circumstances, I start my shot then froth my milk while the shot runs. My milk is normally finished before the shot, by a matter of seconds. I only had one hand to work with while I held the camera with the other so I ran much slower than I normally do and could only do one thing at a time.

I would not call what I did art, more like a pine tree that has been through a forest fire, but it still tastes good.

[cannonfodder]

Nice looking Cappa!

One thing that I noticed which surprised me somewhat was that, as it turned out, my cooling flush did not need to be quite as long as recommended by others using the A3. Thanks to my Scace thermofilter, learning the appropriate "pitch" of the cooling flush hiss which corresponded to a given temperature was a breeze. I have gone back and verified this several times with the Scace and my particular A3 has been very consistent in this "temperature/sound" regard.

If you have access to a Scace or the equivalent, this might be interesting information for you as well-

My flush would normally be slightly shorter than that, but because I was working with one hand I assumed I would take longer than normal, so I flushed a little longer to compensate for the longer rebound. That was the second flush and hence shorter water dance. Under normal circumstances, I would have stopped the flush 3 or 4 seconds earlier, locked in the portafilter and brewed (5-7 seconds after the flush off to brew on depending on target temperature).

I have also adjusted my pstat down. It is just a little lower than Dan's setting in the review, 1.1 bar at the top.

[DC]

Hi cannonfodder,

Thanks for this thread it is proving very helpful indeed. I know it's a bit late in the day, but if you're going to extract your posts from this thread and turn it into a How-To, I wondered whether you could perhaps put brief tasting notes under each video? For example, if your pour shows a particular defect in the video, describe how this translates into what you taste in the cup. This might be particularly useful for people new to espresso or who normally use spouted portafilters and wouldn't necessarily notice the flaw in the extraction but could then say "Ah, that's probably because my extraction is doing xyz"

Just a thought. Thanks again,

Dave

[cannonfodder]

I had thought about that but decided against it because of the vast differences in taste from person to person. Each defect is relatively easy to describe, and unfortunately relatively generic in the description. Bitter, that pretty much sums up the cup. The 'blond gushers' (2oz in say 15 seconds) are week in body and flavor with sour overtones due to even under extraction.

Channeling leads to a bitter cup. Most all of the preceding videos suffer from channeling. That channeling ranges from very minor sprites (sudden appearance of a light spot in the cone but no squirting coffee) to the 'get out the squeegee' channeling jets that squirt from the cone. Those can be best described as bitter. Depending on the severity of the channeling, the degree of bitterness will vary. The jet channeling presents a harsh, bitter cup from the first sip. The more minor the channeling, the less bitter and harsh the cup. Often, the minor 'sprite' channeling starts as a good cup but leaves a bitter after taste in your mouth.

Bitter and sour cups can also be produced by other means. A prime example is temperature. To low and it is sour, to high it is bitter, it really is that simple. A bottomless portafilter really is the best way to learn IMHO.

[cannonfodder]

Have I mentioned how much I love my Elektra? Picture perfect espresso every time.


But when you wake her up, it goes from a sweet princess to fire breathing dragon.

[oofnik]

Excellent guide, really. I learned a lot. I'll make sure to follow this once I get my Wega Mininova up and running. Thanks for putting so much effort into explaining your process in such great detail!

[k7qz]

It may be parallax error but from this angle in your last pic it looks like you're pulling your shots at 8 bar on the brew pressure side of the gauge?

[Genesis]

8 bar is about right on the brew pressure side.....

[k7qz]

8 bar is about right on the brew pressure side.....

Personal preference I suppose- Admittedly, I'm a (nearly) dedicated ristretto guy. My A3 seems to prefer 9 bar when serving up syrupy sweet double ristrettos. I played with 8 bar up to about 11 bar brew p. on mine.

I guess what I was asking Cannonfodder indirectly was: have you dialed in this brew pressure based upon a particular blend? OTOH, I also agree with the observations of my A3 bretheren that it's difficult to pull anything but a great shot with this Elektra.

[cannonfodder]

I have drifted up and the scale and have settled on 9 bar, or 8.9 bar with 2 bar mains pressure for preinfusion. The up angle of the photo makes the gauge needle look like it is riding at just over 8 bar, it is more like 8.9.

[Genesis]

Yeah, I run at like 8.5ish..... of course there's an error of measurement on the gauge and then parallax.... I haven't gone to the trouble of putting a low-error-limit pressure gauge on a portafilter

[cannonfodder]

I made a portafilter mounted gauge a few months ago. I use both when dialing in the pressure. The machine gauge jumps to full pressure immediately, the PF mounted gauge ramps up slower so I have an idea of my preinfusion/ramp up speed and in the basket pressure. It helps to level out the gauge error with two points of reference.

[cannonfodder]

So I am sitting in the living room scanning through the channels bored. I glance over at the machine and think hmmm. So out come the screwdrivers and I pull the covers off and insulate the boiler.

It still pumps out enough heat to keep the cups on the warmer nice and toasty but it made a very big impact on the idle boiler cycling. I left the boiler ends open for now.

[k7qz]

So out come the screwdrivers and I pull the covers off and insulate the boiler.

One of those tasks I have yet to do... Not a lot of incentive during these winter months as it's a nice feeling to stand in front of a warm machine during the chilly morning hours- ( And if truth be told I've been using my few spare "wrenching" minutes to get the Ducati and Aprillia machines ready for spring riding. Couldn't resist Cannonfodder, I thought I'd rub that in a little... )

Did you use ceramic blanket or somthing else? I'd like to see a pic of your insulating handiwork if you have a minute-

[cannonfodder]

I still have to run my winter maintenance on my GoldWind and Ninja yet. Where does the time go.

I used the same insulation that I used on the Faema two group. I had just enough left over to do the Elektra. It is a fiberglass/ceramic insulation made for water heaters. I got it at the local hardware store. I used ceramic mat on my Isomac. I got a couple of large scraps from the fireplace/chimney store. Both appear to work just as good. After an hour of on time I can put my hand on the insulation around the Elektra's boiler, it is warm but not burning. I would say it cut my idle cycle time in half.

I was going to leave it for a summer job as the extra heat in the cold winter months is not a problem. Once it hits 60F my spare time will shift to motorcycles so I figured I better do it now. Taking a page from another A3 owner, I took some newspaper and cut a template to fit the boiler. Then cut the insulation to match and worked it around the boiler. I stuck a strip of duct tape across the seam to hold everything snug and buttoned it up. It is not pretty, but very functional. I did not take any photos as others have done the same thing and documented the process.

[ronpistolero]

Have I mentioned how much I love my Elektra? Picture perfect espresso every time.
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But when you wake her up, it goes from a sweet princess to fire breathing dragon.
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Sir,

That was really a very interesting and well written article. What is so great about it is, among other things, its not just pictures but actual videos that are included to help the average mind's imagination. However, I would like to ask if it would be safe to assume that a physically perfect shot (as what the pictures and videos show) would always be equal to the best tasting shot? I mean, it all boils down to the individual's preference, or even moods, right?

Regards,

Ron

[miKe mcKoffee]

Sir,

That was really a very interesting and well written article. What is so great about it is, among other things, its not just pictures but actual videos that are included to help the average mind's imagination. However, I would like to ask if it would be safe to assume that a physically perfect shot (as what the pictures and videos show) would always be equal to the best tasting shot? I mean, it all boils down to the individual's preference, or even moods, right?

Regards,

Ron

Taste preferences are taste preferences. Yet I've never had a shot that made me swoon from the smell and taste and linger that wasn't also knock dead gorgeous.

[HB]

However, I would like to ask if it would be safe to assume that a physically perfect shot (as what the pictures and videos show) would always be equal to the best tasting shot?

No, I've sampled espressos that looked nearly perfect but tasted ordinary. "Eye cupping" using a bottomless portafilter or assessing the crema in-cup reveals gross errors or lack thereof, but diagnosing most taste defects require... well, tasting.