Sink that First Shot
- cafeIKE
From Poll : One Shot Grind Remnants
For the last while, I've been collecting up the grinder purges through the day and pulling tomorrow's 1st shot with them. Directly into the tray! Let the group sit for a bit to allow the coffee to 'work'.
For the non-purging Pollyanna / miser, a few grams in the blind basket works as well.
Not quite a quantum leap, but the delta between 1st and 2nd consumable has diminished considerably.
Same improvement on the HX and DB.
andcafeIKE wrote:2nd shot's almost always tasted better that the first. No amount of grinder tweaking, shot volume or temperature adjustment could ameliorate the problem.
thenanother_jim wrote:I almost always get a a better 2nd shot even when I clear the grinder or switch grinders. I've driven myself crazy with flushing regimes, to no avail. Even semi-commercial machines need a few shots at espresso flow rates to find their groove. Someone needs to invent an inexpensive reusable puck or restricted-basket to make pulling blank shots convenient.
cannonfodder wrote:Oil will dissolve oil, water does nothing to it. from Backflushing - How far is not far enough?



For the last while, I've been collecting up the grinder purges through the day and pulling tomorrow's 1st shot with them. Directly into the tray! Let the group sit for a bit to allow the coffee to 'work'.
For the non-purging Pollyanna / miser, a few grams in the blind basket works as well.
Not quite a quantum leap, but the delta between 1st and 2nd consumable has diminished considerably.
Same improvement on the HX and DB.
Ian's Coffee Stuff
http://www.ieLogical.com/coffee
http://www.ieLogical.com/coffee
- michaelbenis
Oh yes!
Oh yes!
I love these "now why didn't I think of that?" moments.....
Thank you!

Oh yes!

I love these "now why didn't I think of that?" moments.....
Thank you!
LMWDP No. 237
- Psyd
"Paging Mr. Scace, Mr. Scace, call for you on line two!"Someone needs to invent an inexpensive reusable puck or restricted-basket to make pulling blank shots convenient.
D'ya suppose that my great huge commercial machine would benefit from that as well? I mean, the first thing I tend to do when I go to make a shot is to dab the doppio semi button and turn to the grinder. Would I benefit more from locking in the Scace Device to do that, or does it actually have to have ground coffee in it?
Espresso Sniper
One Shot, One Kill
LMWDP #175
One Shot, One Kill
LMWDP #175
- Stuggi
I think what you're doing here is dissolving old oils with new oils, thus removing any rancid coffee oils from the machine. These rancid oil impart a lot of bad taste in the cup, but the oils from the stale coffee you use for the priming shot does not impart taste to the same extent. Fresh coffee would probably still be the best, since then the "machine oils" would then be fresh, and lower the "taste delta" between consumed shots one and two even more, but as long as #1 is good enough I don't really see the benefit from this.
Sebastian "Stuggi" Storholm
LMWDP #136
LMWDP #136
- another_jim
- Team HB
So it's not the temperature, it's the oils; and a coffee backflush will do the trick? Never even suspected of that.
Jim Schulman
- Psyd
I guess that's why I do the PF wiggle after each shot, and the water backflush after each session.Stuggi wrote:I think what you're doing here is dissolving old oils with new oils, thus removing any rancid coffee oils from the machine. These rancid oil impart a lot of bad taste in the cup,
Espresso Sniper
One Shot, One Kill
LMWDP #175
One Shot, One Kill
LMWDP #175
- cafeIKE (original poster)
Uh huh. BTDT. IMO, the residue 'rots' over night. I did try a test of leaving a shot of a few coffees in a cup over night. The aroma was not too bad, but the taste. YECHH!
One thing I didn't try was leaving the machine on 24/7.
Waste a few grams and let us know.
One thing I didn't try was leaving the machine on 24/7.
Waste a few grams and let us know.
Ian's Coffee Stuff
http://www.ieLogical.com/coffee
http://www.ieLogical.com/coffee
- Psyd
Er, of course that part of the equation always slips my mind. I turned my machine off last Friday morning for the third time this year. Once was for maintenance.cafeIKE wrote: One thing I didn't try was leaving the machine on 24/7.
I was curious as to what the water in the HX might be like after three days cool, so that first shot went into a clear glass. I drank it after it cooled, and it tasted pretty good. Didn't seem to have any grounds or coffee flavoring, any metallic taste, or anything. And I do not like tap water here, so...
I'm feeling pretty good about cleaning the group after each use, and the brew path after each session.
And I've made two shots in a row before, and tasted each, and I haven't seen anything remarkable between the two.
It still could be that I don't have that sensitive a palate.
Espresso Sniper
One Shot, One Kill
LMWDP #175
One Shot, One Kill
LMWDP #175
- cafeIKE (original poster)
Speaking of HX, a couple of days, I didn't sink the 1st shot and flushed the HX from hot to cold. No help.
Didn't bother with big flush test on the DB.
Didn't bother with big flush test on the DB.
Ian's Coffee Stuff
http://www.ieLogical.com/coffee
http://www.ieLogical.com/coffee
- hbuchtel
How about keeping your last puck in the machine and pulling your 'send a thief to catch a thief' shot through that?
Regards, Henry
Regards, Henry
LMWDP #53