I always do a search before starting new inquiries and I couldn't find anything under scorched or burned in regards to the actual puck of spent coffee in my espresso. All the replies that came up referred to either a burned taste to the coffee or made mention of burned/scorched milk....

My espresso doesn't taste burned. But nearly all of my pucks have nearly blackened bands around them, usually on one side. Is this normal? I've not seen it mentioned here, so it makes me curious.

I am brand new to pulling my own espresso, so I am sticking to what general consensus tells me to do. I am 2lbs in to a 5lb bag of Redbird Espresso, with temps set on the Duetto II @ 198 at the brewhead. The temp seems to wander a bit from 196 sometimes up to 200, but I try and pull when it's reading right at 198-199 ( I don't know how precise the temp PID is on this unit). I dont flush the group pre-pull.

I appreciate any input, but specifically what I'm asking is, is this an aberrant phenomena? If the result in the cup tasted burned or off, then my answer would be obvious. But it's not. I've managed to pull some awesome shots rather consistently.

HB wrote:Sound like residual water. Beyond consistently looking the same, I don't worry about puck appearance. Dry puck, wet puck, sandy puck... doesn't matter unless it changes from one extraction to the next.

Good to know. However, they are still black when the puck is bone dry the next day. Maybe fines migration to the bottom of the portafilter then? Either way, if it's not something to concern myself with, I'll turn my attention back to other matters