Hi

Not sure if this is new, old or what. I prepare the portafilter with a percolator and a brush. Basically, I put the ground coffee inside the percolator and stir the grounds with the brush. The grounds fall evenly inside the portafilter. Then I flatten the grounds by tapping the portafilter on the table.

I get very good results. I posted this on the CG forums and everybody got quiet, so don't know what to think, too much caffeine?



Any feedback is appreciated.

Thanks

TX HB

It does. It has a big impact on flavor. The upcoming was that I had to measure the weight. If I used the grinds straight from the grinder I got better results than if I measure them, cup them, and load them into the portafilter. So now I get even better than from the grinder straight.

I would like for someone to give it a try and see if it works, just to have a second opinion or it just me. You don't need a funnel just to try and see.

Thanks

HB wrote:enhancing chocolates and base notes... Does this sound familiar?

Bingo. I am waiting for new terroir beans and happen to have an old bag of lavazza stale beans. I get now a lot of chocolate flavor where as before it come out OK but not like this.

I have no easy way of proving it, but I suspect the "why" is because the sifting/agitation encourages fines separation, resulting in more fines at the bottom of the basket than the top. This enhances the impact of fines migration that is normally under the exclusive influence of incoming water. Of course, this is pure and absolute speculation on my part and I'm unwilling to dry, slice, and weigh enough pucks to prove it.

Well, a theory is better than nothing Interesting. Thanks a lot!

Dan once suggested attaching a flour-sifter to the bottom of the doser. That would be very effective in breaking up clumps and dosing/distributing evenly in the basket, with no more hassle than the doser thwacking that is currently in vogue. I've been waiting with bated breath for Mazzer et al to implement his idea.

Arpi wrote:I am waiting for new terroir beans and happen to have an old bag of lavazza stale beans.

It was a similar comment on CG that made me hold my tongue, so to speak. Let Nespresso and Lavazza work on making palatable shots from stale beans. Me, I'm interested in pulling great shots from great beans.

I think it would work great to have something like this on the grinder built on Actually, I was crossed by the memories of this video of a mazzer mini

If anybody actually tries it. I got the funnel at HomeDepot. It can be cut easily with a boxcutter because it made of soft plastic (like an orange peel). The colander is available in any supermarket but try to get one with medium-big holes. When you brush, lift the colander with one hand and brush with the other. That way, you can see where the grounds go and make an even better distribution. The frame can be built with a hanger by bending it.

Cheers

This is quite similar to the technique I use, which I never mentioned because I felt it was a bit finicky, but then again this is Home Barista, huh?

I grind my coffee into a small bowl then sift it incrementally through a small wire mesh hand sifter into my baskets, which I have sitting on a tray to catch stray grounds. It takes a little while longer to do this. I don't use a funnel to guide the grounds into the basket because I feel it re-creates clumps and defeats the purpose.

Once the baskets are filled, I even out the top with a toothpick, tamp and voila! Perfect extractions every time. Never any channeling.

There may be an issue as mentioned with fines. I avoid this by filling the small hand sifter with only a few grams of coffee at a time and repeating 2-3 times to fill the basket entirely.

The coffee flavor is greatly improved with clarity, richness, and definition. This eliminates the need for any distribution techniques and maneuvers, tapping, etc. It also eliminates the need to select a grinder based on distribution into the portafilter, since it is done separately.

It may be more than a lot of people are willing to do, since it takes more time than any other step in making the espresso, but it absolutely pays off in the cup.

Adrian