Hi there,

I am quite new to home-brewing espressos but already in love with my machine. So far I've been able to get very good coffee with Lavazza beans. Then I decided to treat my self with some highly recommended coffee beans: Spiller & Tait Signature Blend. Unfortunately, I've been trying for a couple of days (adjusting grinder, amount of coffee, tamping) and can't get a good espresso out of these beans. Sometimes is too bitter, sometimes tastes like burnt or just too strong. I only managed to get a decent (just decent) coffee using the double shot basket - I prefer to do single shots so I can have have more coffees per day. Does anyone have any advice on how to get the best of these beans?

Thank you!
Federico

I think is just strong and I need to poor a bit more water than I do usually (I tend to go for ristretto). Doing that and using the double-shot basket I had two very good espressos today

Federico,

Whenever I try a new coffee, I contact the roaster. I ask for their recipe - dose in grams, yield in grams, group head temperature & shot time. This helps me pull shots that taste as they intended for that coffee. I use those parameters as a starting point then tweak as needed . It saves time & coffee getting it dialed in.