It's been over two years since John wrote the article Banish Uneven Extractions with the Weiss Distribution Technique. Arguably it's become a defacto "sure fix" for distribution problems, whether due to the grinder or issues of barista skill. The Titan Grinder Project underscored the grinder's contribution (or culpability?) to an even extraction, prompting me to wonder how many home baristas continue to use this distribution technique today. Are you a current or former WDT devotee? Or does it depend on the grinder in use?

Despite roasting my own beans, having a pretty good grinder (Macap M4), and machine (ECM Giotto Premium), and putting as much into my shot prep as I can imagine anyone doing, I still wasn't getting near-God shots. Until I started doing the WDT. Not only have my shots markedly improved, but so has my consistency.

Nope, never used it. My dosing is about as rudimentary as it gets. I grind while thwacking the doser to fill the portafilter, level the peak off with the back of a finger, give the portafilter three thumps onto the tamping stand to settle and level the grinds and smash it with the fancy coffee hammer.

I used to perform the WDT. I switched to a nutating move when starting to tamp with excellent results. Much faster than WDT with better results, IMHO.

When I had Rocky: Yes, I had been using it for some time. It not only dealt well with the clumping issue that this grinder creates, but fluffed up the grounds. After WDT'ing, if I leveled off across the PF gave the proper dose (leveling off caused overdosing without WDT'ing).

With Kony: No. I have found that there is no need to WDT. The grind is quite clumpless (at least when thwack-thwacking) and much fluffier than Rocky creates.

I still use the WDT even after upgrading from a Rocky doserless to a Macap M4 with a doser. Although the Macap is less clumpy than the Rocky, I still seem to get better results with the WDT. I think if I upgraded to a conical grinder or hybrid conical/flat burr grinder, I might ditch the WDT. But for now, it seems to help so I continue to use it.

Randy G. wrote:When I had Rocky: Yes, I had been using it for some time. It not only dealt well with the clumping issue that this grinder creates, but fluffed up the grounds. After WDT'ing, if I leveled off across the PF gave the proper dose (leveling off caused overdosing without WDT'ing).

Completely agree with this. I still only have a Rocky but have been playing around with sieving the coffee after grinding. To me, this seems to give a deeper, richer flavour. I still flit back to the WDT and believe that with a Rocky you cannot do without one or other, and I have tried

No. Never did. I spend a lot of time at espresso bars watching the experts grind, level and tamp. Never saw one yogurt cup. Don't expect to see one, either.

I try to encourage people to simplify their espresso making, instead of fetishizing it.

[EDIT] I know "fetish" is a provocative word, but I used it because I see the technique as one of many symptoms of a tendency of web forums to encourage ever more elaborate espresso-making rituals, most of which are useless, and some of which are even counter-productive. I am thinking of things such as weighing every shot on a gram scale, loading the hopper one shot at a time, removing and replacing the basket for each shot, cleaning out the burrs after each change of blend. Someone posted on alt.coffee this week about using a dental vibrator to redistribute the grounds in the basket.

I recognize some great espresso advances have been developed or encouraged on the Internet, and I'm not really a Luddite. I wouldn't have a PID in my machine or a Cimbali Max Hybrid on my counter, if it weren't for on-line discussions. But, I really think we let some of this stuff get out of hand.

Yes, but a professional would presumably have a good enough grinder not to need the WDT wouldn't they? It's not about fetishising it at all, it's about overcoming a flaw in a grinder. We can't all afford top-of-the-line.

I'm one of those doserless Rocky (Clumpy) users, so the WDT is second-nature. I do it w/o the yogurt cup funnel, by placing a little plastic tray beneath the PF to catch stray grounds. But by itself the WDT is not the solution to extraction problems. The Staub tamp (NSEW) is just as important in my case, because the tamper is slightly smaller than the basket.