I'm new to home espresso and bought an old "Miss Silvia" (probably the first gen) from someone off Craigslist. I've performed a backflush and descaled it when I first got it, but have been fairly unhappy with the results. Rather than the thick, golden shots I expect at my local coffeehouse, my results usually look like plain old black coffee... Very dark, thin, and without much crema. I'm mixing up the beans starting tomorrow, but I'm wondering if this is a technique problem or a machine problem?

I have noticed that when I let the machine warm up in the morning, and especially if I turn the milk frother heat-up switch on, the unit can get way over-temperature. As soon as my milk is warmed up, when I go to pull a shot (without the portafilter loaded) all I get is steam for about 10 seconds. Is this normal? I was told that if you see steam, it's way too hot. But as soon as the steam is released, the orange light goes back on, indicating the boiler is re-heating.

At the end of about half the shots I pull, I hear a gurgling sound from the Silvia. I believe it's trying to suck the puck dry, but I really have no idea. Is this normal?

Technique-wise, I am selecting a fairly fine grind on the Rocky, and tamping to 30 lbs. Extraction time for a double-shot is usually around 20 seconds to fill my two shot glasses to the line, so I don't think my technique is very bad... But if you disagree, let me know!

Thanks!

Wait, you're turning on the steam switch when you're pulling a shot? That's the wrong thing to do.

You have a SBDU (single boiler, double use) unit, which means only one boiler to heat water for brewing coffee and steaming. But the problem is that those two functions require different temperatures. The steam switch needs to heat the water above boiling point so that it will make steam. That is why when you turn on the coffee switch to pull a shot all you're getting is steam.

Silivia needs 20 minutes or so to warm up, sure, but don't do it with the steam switch on unless you're going to steam something. When you turn the coffee brew switch and got steam, that is called "flushing" the machine. Basically, removing the steam-ready water from the unit. If you still have the steam switch on, which you shouldn't if you want to make coffee, the boiler light will start blinking indicating that it is trying to heat it back to steam temp.

There are some routines people use when using a Silvia. Search around for "temperature surfing". YouTube has a few videos on it, like this one.

Start there.

ryanjg11 wrote:Rather than the thick, golden shots I expect at my local coffeehouse, my results usually look like plain old black coffee... Very dark, thin, and without much crema.

Make sure you use beans that are <14 days post-roasts. It sounds to me that the beans are probably stale. Another thing you could try is to increase the shot time to 25 sec instead of 20. 20 sec is on the very low side, I usually pulled mine for ~35 sec for stronger flavor (ristrettos).

ryanjg11 wrote:I have noticed that when I let the machine warm up in the morning, and especially if I turn the milk frother heat-up switch on, the unit can get way over-temperature. As soon as my milk is warmed up, when I go to pull a shot (without the portafilter loaded) all I get is steam for about 10 seconds. Is this normal? I was told that if you see steam, it's way too hot. But as soon as the steam is released, the orange light goes back on, indicating the boiler is re-heating.

Being a single-boiler-dual-use machine, the boiler heats up to ~300F to make steam. Way too high for pulling shots. So it's perfectly normal for you to see the steam at ~300F. The best thing to do is to pull the shot, then only steam the milk. You could still pour great latte art with cremaless shot, but a shot pulled at too high temp is gonna make your capp/latte too bitter.

You need to be methodical with Miss Silvia and work with her moods.

I suggest limiting your variables to grind as you learn. Get 2 pounds of fresh espresso blend beans from a reputable local roaster. I dunno who's good in Seattle now. Look around the Coffee forum here for some tips.

For simplicity, let's leave steaming out of the discussion for now. The rest of what I write here assumes you're not touching the Steam button. So turn Silvia on, put some beans in the grinder (set at what you think is a reasonable starting grind), get out your portafilter and a double basket, make sure the tank is full of water and go away for 20 minutes.

OK, it's 20 minutes later. Let's just watch Miss Silvia for a few minutes. She really only does two things on her own: turn on the heater to warm up the boiler or sit there and cool off. When the big amber light next to the power switch is lit, she's heating up. Otherwise, she's cooling off and the heater element is off. At the moment the big light switches from on to off, you're theoretically ready to brew. If you press the brew switch right then or a few seconds afterward, you'll get 5-10 seconds of steam and splutter. This is normal. Don't worry. You don't really want this, but it's how Silvia does her thing, and we can work around it.

So, let's make some coffee. My technique is to reduce everything to one variable: grind. Until you get close to the cup you want, timing, dosing and extraction all remain as consistent as possible. Here's what I do:

1. Grind and dose so you have a bit more than fits in the basket. Use something flat (knife, edge of coffee scoop) to level the grounds evenly to the top of the basket. Tamp it down. (OK, this is probably not Elite Barista Procedure, but it's easy to be consistent without getting into the weeds. You can freak out about gram-perfect dosing later. In practice this technique, done consistently, will get you within half a gram of the same dose every time. Let's move on...)

2. Press the brew switch and let the water run until the heater light comes on. Turn the brew switch off. Wait.

3. When the heater light goes out, press the brew switch. You should get steam and spluttering. Wait a few seconds or when the steam subsides slightly, then turn the brew switch off. If there's still a little steam and spluttering, that's OK. None at all means you've gone too far: run the water until the heater light comes on and try again. It's just water.

You just want to take the edge off here. Tip: use a cup or bowl to catch the steam and water so you don't make a mess everywhere.

4. Lock the portafilter in, put your cup underneath, press the brew switch, start counting and watch what comes out. At 25 seconds, turn the brew switch off.

Did it gush out dark black coffee with no crema? Did the heater light come on before you reached 25 seconds? Set your grinder a click (or more, if it was really gushing) tighter and try again.

Did almost nothing come out, and you thought Miss Silvia would bust a gasket while you counted? Set your grinder a click looser and try again. With fresh beans from a good roaster you'll slowly sneak up on the right grind.

Note that, if you have a Rocky grinder, the optimal grind might be in between clicks. At that point you can tweak extraction time to something between 25 and 30 seconds. Expect that you will go through a pound (or 5) dialing in your grind and getting your technique consistent. Throw out the bad cups and try, try again. You'll get there. I did.

All of this is in the temp surfing videos and many other helpful threads here. I'm just repeating what I learned from the many helpful folks on the forums here. This site is a great resource and I cannot overstate how much it has taught me.

Just remember that Miss Silvia is a temperamental gal. Be kind and consistent in how you treat her and she will make good cups in return.

And please check the water level in the tank after 4 pulls, especially if you're steaming milk.