Hello all (大家好）,

I have a quick question that I hope isn't a repeat. Does anyone have a grind setting for moka pot brewing using the OE Lido E grinder? My first attempt at 33 ticks from 0 appeared a bit coarse but still yielded over-extracted coffee (I will chalk this up to my going overboard with finger tamping today).

I have reset the lido at around 19 ticks in preparation for the next brew, but this is still an experiment very much in the trial and error phases. I'll post further results here along with a more detailed methodology for moka brewing when I'm not typing from a phone.

Thanks in advance for any responses!

Kind regards,
Benjamin

I have always ground my moka pot coffee at just a bit coarser than espresso, in aeropress range: on the Lido E that's somewhere around 10 to 12 marks from zero. I also do no sort of tamp whatsoever and I fill straight to the top of the grounds chamber but do not overfill at all. If you tamp or leave a mound you may have to grind coarser.

The manufacturers of the mocha pots I have say don't tamp.

I grind about two clicks coarser than espresso on my Preciso.

Thank you for the responses.

It seems a finer* grind with less finger tamping is all that was called for: fragrant beyond what I'd seen previously from these beans and more Moka crema than ever (still not much since I'm using the express, but crema has never been a huge concern for me with Moka brewing).

A word on finger tamping: I've followed several discussions and know that finger tamping a moka pot puts me in a minority. The reason I tamp though is because when leaving the typical mound and letting the moka pot itself tamp/level the grounds, I found that it quite frequently led to grounds in the threads of the pot and affected the seal between the o ring...which led to some slight leaks. If I added less coffee to begin with, the resultant brew was watery to my taste.

Finger tamping seems the lesser of two evils (the best description I've read is to tamp "no harder than you would tap the head of a baby").

Next experiment will be to work on the grind fineness and finger tamping ratio to where I get the "motor oil" mouthfeel effect.

*I will also need to examine the inside of the moka filter for fines. Which is one of the reasons I previously haven't ventured into grinding very fine in the past.

The precision of the Lido E here is fantastic and I couldn't be more pleased with its performance these two days.

I tried 17 clicks yesterday. Either beans not fresh enough (doubtful, well-sealed and under a month old) or over-tamped (controversial but I say still not this as I do it very lightly) for the grind setting. Result was bitter to both wife's and my palates.

Today, 23 clicks (I like prime numbers). ~63.5g of Hong Kong Coffee Academics JWF Blend (Peaberry, roasted 22/11/15). Light tamping, pre-heated boiling water. Cut off gas slightly over halfway through the brewing, when the flow became a relative flood instead of the trickle it was during the first half of brewing.

Best extraction to date, bar none. All the right flavors (toasted buttered bread, vanilla, spices, floral notes, aftertaste lingering for miles) and none of the wrong ones.

Will repeat with different beans tomorrow to confirm, but again, 23 clicks could well be the magic number for an OE Lido E grinding for a 12-cup moka pot if you do some light pre-brew puck-shaping.

The size of the moka pot probably has something to do with it as well. My experience is based on a 3 cup moka pot. Your 12 cup pot's "puck" is bigger than that of my 3 cup pot so it stands to reason that your ideal grind will be coarser.

Reviving this thread a bit. I have a 3 cup Brikka. To those who have both, do you grind the same for both?

Thanks and a Happy Caffeinated Holidays to all!