i always use "shot glass and pour". this mixes three layers together and helps me to get the wholeness of the espresso in first sip.

I tried it again at another coffee shop using their house blend. I also tried it with an Americano. The blend this time was, obviously, different from the one at the previous coffee shop that I tried. This blend was also a lighter roast than the other coffee shop from before. I followed the same pattern as before: double shot into two cups, scoop the crema off of one and drink it first, drink the one with crema second, both were mixed before drinking.

1. Crema is bitter.
2. I liked the espresso with the crema better this time.
3. I liked the Americano without the crema better.

I have no clue if it is a blend thing or a roast thing, but the results were opposite from before.

Does anyone else have a better method for doing this experiment?

I wonder if the skimming test might give a preview of how a coffee might age? Obviously oxidation will change other things besides crema and CO2 volume, but just thinking aloud (so to speak) about how one might generalize the use of such a test in practice to determine coffee specific qualities (other than the obvious taste and mouthfeel effects of the crema of a particular bean at a particular age with a particular pour style)... Hmmmm....

You know, reading over some the tasting notes a lot of the descriptors look like the flavours you get from a Micro Casa Leva. A low pressure shot with a thin crema but with a clean and clear flavor profile. No real point other than a general observation. The spring lever pulls shots well below 9 bar and produces a thin crema but the drink itself has a very unique flavor. Less body than your typical espresso but with a flavor that is more along the lines of a very vivid cup of coffee having the middle and high notes accentuated while the deeper notes are muted. Some coffees simply dont work while others pull wonderful shots. I wonder what the comparison between a shot from the Leva (or other spring lever) and a skimmed shot from a traditional pump machine would be like.

I think that's a good point; there definitely is a family resemblence between the two styles of shot. But if one can get both the big and the "cupping" espresso from the same machine and coffee just by skimming the crema, that's a good thing to know.

I wonder if turning the pressure down to 6 bar would yield a similar cup in a pump machine. It would be to much work to do on a whim but would be interesting to try. Skimming the crema off is a lot cheaper than a Micro Casa leva.

I have found the thread very interesting but simply have been so busy I have not had time to try it out in a controlled environment myself. I need to set some time aside and try this out.

I think you guys are skirting an area I've often wondered about especially since this discussion began:

Should espresso be homogeneous? If brewing at lower pressures provides this is that in of itself "better"?

Clearly some blends pull best at higher pressures where the drink can be enjoyed in a series of levels as one descends the cup (each level or part being high quality and desirable). Is this a case of the coffee being tailored to the machine? Should we be tailoring our machines to the coffees? I would think the blends that throw bad crema are ones that need lower pressures?

In short is bad crema an indication that the shot pressure is too high (assuming other variables are on target)? Perhaps the era of standard 10-bar ristrettos and typical 9 bar shots should be reevaluated. Myself personally I don't like shots off my Anita anymore than 7-bar (per gauge blind basket). And less than 6.25-bar the crema is non-existent and the coffee under extracted (not to mention the shot volume tanking).

Perhaps pressure or what we consider "ideal pressure" isn't so ideal after all certainly not in every instance, that is if crema is any indication. Clearly the advice of "set to 9-bar and forget it" should be reconsidered. I did and my espresso is tenfold better (to me). In my experience Anita at 7-bar creates a shot of good volume (1.5 to 2-ounce) espresso where the crema is more incorporated into the shot rather than a stiff foam on top. Remarkable body and still full flavor balance and presence. I've done this with many blends and they all seem better, again to me. One thing I noticed is that the shot at lower pressures in a 58-mm basket takes longer, but the extra time doesn't create over extraction, it just takes longer to push the water through. My normales run at least 30-35 seconds, but they are sweet delicate normales, not a ristretto like shot some would suspect from a 35 second shot.

Lower your pressures and see what you find. Perhaps you won't have to skim or stir, I don't. And the espresso is even more amazing.

TimEggers wrote:Lower your pressures and see what you find.

Sounds interesting and simple enough to try

A quick note to anyone who does try a lower pressure, in a 58mm basket I noticed 2 things, first if using a bottomless a normale looks like a ristretto in appearance (tight cone, slow flow) but in taste nothing like a ristretto and second the shot will take longer as well. My normales now are closer to the 35-second mark. That seems to work really well for me judging by taste, YMMV.

Should espresso be homogeneous? If brewing at lower pressures provides this is that in of itself "better"?

Clearly some blends pull best at higher pressures where the drink can be enjoyed in a series of levels as one descends the cup (each level or part being high quality and desirable). Is this a case of the coffee being tailored to the machine? Should we be tailoring our machines to the coffees? I would think the blends that throw bad crema are ones that need lower pressures?

Isn't this what these conversations almost always come down to though? Different coffees respond differently to different things, some do better young, some with more rest, some at higher temps, some lower, some at finer grinds, some coarser, some at higher extraction volumes, some at less complete extraction, and now, some with more pressure, some with less?

Not to say that it isn't notable that most machines come at a fixed pressure and some coffees do better with less (or more) - it just doesn't seem all that surprising, and perhaps an advance in forthcoming machines will be pump pressure adjustable without opening up the box (not to speak of programmable pressure profiles that adjust during the shot).

EDIT/ADDITION #1: One thing that jumps out at me is that the skimming test might be a reasonable part of testing for the best extraction volume. Consider: the taste of the isolated crema on a ristretto extraction might be very different for a normale extraction, in a way that you might not get the full effect of if drunk with the rest of the espresso. So this could be a useful tool in figuring out quickly how much to pull out of a given bean. (The crema for the first half of the shot might taste great, and much less so for the second half, or vice versa, in a way that might be exaggerated as compared to the shot as a whole, helping to zero in on the preferred overall extraction.)

EDIT/ADDITION #2: Another question that comes to mind is whether it's really the crema that's the problem in coffees that are tasting better skimmed. I know it's sacrilege, but anyone tried letting them sit for half an hour after grinding to reduce crema and compared the flavor with the skimmed coffee? It could be that some unfavorable elements (to some people, for some extractions of some coffees) are in the crema, but could it also be that the way they are suspended in the crema for those shots is itself the unfavorable part, and that this could be reduced by simply letting the beans wait more than a minute from grind to pull? Or letting the beans rest a few more days before use and comparing that? Or {gasp} letting the shot sit for a minute, allowing the crema to dissipate before drinking? I'm certain I've had a shot that tasted much better after sitting for a moment, so it seems to beg the question...