conrad_vanl wrote:Moved the machine up to read 205 (its max) and WOW, I can't believe the difference two degrees made. The first shot poured 30g right at 30s, but with a full cup. 2:3 ratio, so a bit ristretto, but tasted great. Like I said, the cup was as full as it was last night, but I was getting 40g in 30s last night, 30g today. Same initial ground weight (20g), same end volume, time, grind, etc, but different shot weight after the temp change. Much nicer color out of the portafilter, more pronounced striping and for longer too.

Pulled a second shot this afternoon and let it run for just a touch longer...maybe 32-33s and the weight was up to around 39g. I cut it with milk for a cappuccino and it might've been too caramel-ly! I'm really surprised the difference 2 degrees made...

Part may have been caused by the increase in temperature and part may have been caused by the beans simply being an extra day older. Yes, even a day can make a difference you can see and taste in the cup. Also, try to get the parameters the roaster you get the beans from uses. Don't expect to replicate the same exact flavor with their parameters since that is rarely the case, but that serves as a starting point. Keep experimenting and stick to one coffee for now.

One thing I noticed in the video was your tamping. It looked like you were really tamping the bejeezus out of it! You can actually work against yourself if you tamp too hard and the water will avoid more densely packed areas leaving flavor and body behind. Also think of it this way: If you tamp lighter the espresso will run out faster meaning you can grind finer exposing more surface area to the water so it can grab even more flavor and body. So then your 20g-40g shot would be even better. Just something to try/consider. Grab yourself a perfectly flat tamper if you can!

That's great news. Enjoy!

conrad_vanl wrote:Moved the machine up to read 205 (its max) and WOW, I can't believe the difference two degrees made. The first shot poured 30g right at 30s, but with a full cup. 2:3 ratio, so a bit ristretto, but tasted great. Like I said, the cup was as full as it was last night, but I was getting 40g in 30s last night, 30g today. Same initial ground weight (20g), same end volume, time, grind, etc, but different shot weight after the temp change. Much nicer color out of the portafilter, more pronounced striping and for longer too.

Pulled a second shot this afternoon and let it run for just a touch longer...maybe 32-33s and the weight was up to around 39g. I cut it with milk for a cappuccino and it might've been too caramel-ly! I'm really surprised the difference 2 degrees made...

I'd wager the change in taste is more a result of the change in your brew ratio than temp. Try pulling the same ratio at 203 and see how that tastes.

h3yn0w wrote:I'd wager the change in taste is more a result of the change in your brew ratio than temp. Try pulling the same ratio at 203 and see how that tastes.

That's kind of what I thought initially too, so I switched to a different bean to experiment with and I do think the (slight) bump in temp has made a difference. Kind of makes me want to go bug someone I know to borrow their thermofilter and see what my machine is really putting out. With only the change in temp, my pulls are coming out consistently darker and blonding later. If I have time I'll try and post a comparison video to see if it's just all in my head

I could argue that the burrs on my grinder are now "broken in" and that's attributed to it some....but I had a precisio grinder before the sette, which I am convinced uses the same burr set (the inner burr is identical between the two, so just depends on how different the outer burr is) and my shots are some of the best they've ever been right now.

EDIT: Oh, all of the beans I'm using is stuff I'm really familiar with - so I might be more sensitive to change in taste on them. My local roaster has two different espresso blends which are both really good. I've been pursuing home espresso for a few years now but feel like I finally have developed the taste to be able to get nerdy about it and experiment more.

CorvusDoug wrote:One thing I noticed in the video was your tamping. It looked like you were really tamping the bejeezus out of it! You can actually work against yourself if you tamp too hard and the water will avoid more densely packed areas leaving flavor and body behind. Also think of it this way: If you tamp lighter the espresso will run out faster meaning you can grind finer exposing more surface area to the water so it can grab even more flavor and body. So then your 20g-40g shot would be even better. Just something to try/consider. Grab yourself a perfectly flat tamper if you can!

Yeah, I've always wondered about my tamping strength. I watched the video and thought the same...but I don't feel like I'm tamping very strongly at all. Is there an easy way to measure / quantify that other then pushing down on an old-school mechanical scale (which I don't have)?

I have the BDB and 270. I get better results when I turn off preinfusion. Optionally what you can do is adjust the OPV to 11 and use the preinfusion to set to 9 bar and/or open up the water valve a bit to do pressure profiling.

I see both the Vario and Sette in your specs. Which one do you like better? I have the Vario now and it works pretty good, but I get some pressure drop through my shot and the OPs pressure held very steady through the entire shot. Mine goes up to about 9 bar and creeps down to about 7 bar usually.

Maybe I have some channeling causing this...the Vario produces a nice grind without clumps so the WDT doesn't really change anything for me.

Jared wrote:but I get some pressure drop through my shot and the OPs pressure held very steady through the entire shot. Mine goes up to about 9 bar and creeps down to about 7 bar usually.

Do you know what pressure you get with a blind portafilter? And regarding the pressure drop - that could very well just the coffee itself causing it. What kind of coffee, how old, etc. I notice that especially when the coffee isn't in the "sweet spot" of how old it is. For example, the beans i'm using has a sweet spot right around 7-10 days post roast. Before that I get interesting pressure profiles and after about 20 days.

clyq wrote:I get better results when I turn off preinfusion. Optionally what you can do is adjust the OPV to 11 and use the preinfusion to set to 9 bar and/or open up the water valve a bit to do pressure profiling.

Interesting. I've adjusted the OPV to go about to right around 10...I've found that works best for me on most coffee I put through it. I have the preinfusion pressure adjusted pretty high though ... I notice the roaster I buy from has their preinfusion max at around 3 bar so I set the preinfusion pressure to mimic that, which is around 75-80% I believe.

conrad_vanl wrote:Do you know what pressure you get with a blind portafilter? And regarding the pressure drop - that could very well just the coffee itself causing it. What kind of coffee, how old, etc. I notice that especially when the coffee isn't in the "sweet spot" of how old it is. For example, the beans i'm using has a sweet spot right around 7-10 days post brew. Before that I get interesting pressure profiles and after about 20 days.

Interesting. I've adjusted the OPV to go about to right around 10...I've found that works best for me on most coffee I put through it. I have the preinfusion pressure adjusted pretty high though ... I notice the roaster I buy from has their preinfusion max at around 3 bar so I set the preinfusion pressure to mimic that, which is around 75-80% I believe.

Pressure with a blind basket is 9.5. It sounds like you're right since I have noticed some coffees are more stable with pressure and maybe the aging is the cause. I'm using some Intelligentsia Analog right now. Thank you for the info!