Suspicions: Bitter coffee because water too HOT?

#1: Post by **BigBlaze** » October 28th, 2012, 1:38 pm

I think my Ascaso Duo Prof water is too HOT.

Most coffee I tried many blend and grind setting, most often taste is bitter.

How to fix this?

Could it be too hot?

#2: Post by **Italyhound** » October 28th, 2012, 3:51 pm

Taste it as it cools and see if it improves. Easy enough.

October 28th, 2012, 10:27 pm

This comment makes no sense.

It isn't the drinking temperature that matters here. It's the extraction temperature.
If you think it's too hot, lower the temperature.
Doesn't that machine have a temperature gauge?

That said, there could be other issues as well....such as the coffee, grind, cleanliness, etc.

October 28th, 2012, 10:38 pm

no way to change temperature on this Ascaso Duo Prof Tronic.

#5: Post by HB » October 28th, 2012, 10:49 pm

It's a single boiler with a brew thermostat, correct? If so, you can always temperature surf.

October 29th, 2012, 7:14 am

no, dual boiler.

#7: Post by HB » October 29th, 2012, 7:36 am

If you own the Ascaso Steel Duo TRONIC, it's a single boiler with a thermoblock heater for steam. Back to your quest for lower brew temperature... temperature surfing is technique to deal with espresso machines having non-adjustable thermostats. Typically these thermostats have wide on/off cycles ("deadband"); by timing when you start the brew cycle to a point lower in the thermostat's cycle, you have more control of the brew temperature.

But if you're saying your espresso machine has a tight deadband, runs hot, and is non-adjustable, you'll have to stick with coffees that like high brew temperatures.

October 29th, 2012, 9:10 am

what technique should I use if the machine is hot, warming for over 30 minutes?

Flush water until light goes on, wait a little and pull a shot?

Also, is there a way to change anything in the machine to have lower temperature water or should I leave with it and ask Santa a pid machine?

Thank you

#9: Post by **bostonbuzz** » October 29th, 2012, 10:34 am

You want to flush until the temp/pressure is at the lowest point. This is right before the element light goes on. IF the light is when the element is ON, then waiting for it to go on and waiting a few seconds will result in the absolute HOTTEST temp because the boiler will be reaching/reached its peak pressure/temp. You want to brew just before the light goes on. Search the site and you will find many many threads on how to do this.

#10: Post by **mariobarba** » October 29th, 2012, 10:48 am

This machine is actually easier to temp surf than most SBDU machines as it has a hot water tap that draws water from the boiler. So drawing water from the hot water tap causes cool water from the reservoir to enter the boiler, thus lowering the brew temp. You may also want to draw some water from the group to lower the temp before locking in the pf.