Using a bottomless portafilter good or bad?

by **cai42** on Sun Nov 07, 2010 9:42 pm

Greetings,

I noticed the following on HB Tweets,

Espresso tip: Bottomless portafilters are great diagnostic tools, but can lead to "eye cupping". Keep it in the drawer until needed. 2:20 PM Oct 19th

I only use a bottomless. I find it easier to keep clean and it has better stability when tamping.

Are bottomless just a diagnostic tool?

Cliff

by **another_jim** on Sun Nov 07, 2010 11:00 pm

Reasons for not using a naked PF:

Making two singles
The spouts agitate the espresso, so you don't need to swirl the cup like on a naked pour

Reasons for using a naked PF:

You can tell if the shot is channeling or in trouble in some other way
More crema, so you may have longer to drink the shot

My feeling is if you are confident in your packing and distribution skills, and if you know the machine, grinder and coffee; it's not a big deal one way or other. If you are new to espresso, or are using a new grinder, machine, or coffee, the risk of channeling inclines me towards using a naked.

... And I guess, if you are extremely suggestible, you should use a spouted or wear a blindfold :wink:

by **shadowfax** on Mon Nov 08, 2010 5:21 am

another_jim wrote:... And I guess, if you are extremely suggestible, you should use a spouted or wear a blindfold

Hear hear. The bottomless isn't just a diagnostic tool, it's easier to keep clean in between shots and sessions, easier to tamp with... 'eye cupping' strikes me as a newbie mistake to begin with, and honestly I'd be pretty wary suggesting that a newbie avoid a naked portafilter 'except for diagnostic purposes' (isn't that pretty much all your shots when you're learning?). My newbie tip would be, man up and taste all your shots. Look at the pours and then taste them honestly. Even if you are quite suggestible, if you read home-barista (I'd hope this is where you get your suggestions!), you've probably had it suggested to you (as above) that shots don't have to look perfect to taste really nice. So, if you're going into tasting a shot with a suggestion, take that one rather than the silly one that shots have to have perfect, air-brushed-looking cones.

by **cannonfodder** on Mon Nov 08, 2010 9:53 am

While they are easier to clean, I actually prefer the shots from a spouted portafilter. There is a difference in the crema texture. When you find yourself bent over staring at the bottom of the portafilter or on your knees looking up at the grouphead looking like you are praying to the idol of the espresso gods you may want to put the bottomless away. Dont get obsessed with the look of the shot beyond the obvious appearance of defects. If you are a triple basket hound, then you may have no other option than a bottomless. My stock PF's will not take a triple basket.

by **tekomino** on Mon Nov 08, 2010 10:20 am

I use bottomless portafilter exclusively but rarely do I look now at how shot is extracting. It is easier to clean, easier to tamp and you can see if there is a channeling on the sides of your cup

No need to pray to espresso gods, I stuffed those bastards into sarcophagus! :mrgreen:

by **woodchuck** on Mon Nov 08, 2010 12:55 pm

I pretty much use the bottomless all the time. I find it much easier to get a well distributed dose by sliding the portafilter around the grinder tines. More often then not these days I just dose, tamp and pull. I do find I get more crema with the bottomless so the tastes do change a bit.

Cheers

Ian

by **jasonmolinari** on Mon Nov 08, 2010 5:07 pm

i use bottomless most of the time b/c it's keeps the espresso path cleaner.....i don't like having to stir before drinking though.

by **Bob_McBob** on Mon Nov 08, 2010 6:13 pm

I agree that eye cupping is bad, but I have a really hard time giving up the instant feedback I get from a bottomless portafilter. I like to watch :twisted:

by **mitch236** on Mon Nov 08, 2010 8:49 pm

I switched to bottomless and haven't looked back. The most important advantage is ease of cleaning as you said. Unless you pull the basket out of your pf after every shot pulling session and scrub out the bottom and path of the spouts, you won't have as clean a path for your espresso.

I don't really look anymore but for learning, it is a great tool.

I don't mind stirring my drink since I use sugar anyway.


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