Greg,
thank you again for posting that video. The extraction was a thing of beauty!
Out of curiosity, have you ever heard that too much pre-infusion time will actually ruin the shop's taste?
Not sure what I would attribute it to but I've heard another opinion that pre-infusion shouldn't last more than 10 to 12 seconds. This was on a lever machine, BTW.

-Giovanni

Monsterzero wrote:Greg,
thank you again for posting that video. The extraction was a thing of beauty!
Out of curiosity, have you ever heard that too much pre-infusion time will actually ruin the shop's taste?
Not sure what I would attribute it to but I've heard another opinion that pre-infusion shouldn't last more than 10 to 12 seconds. This was on a lever machine, BTW.

-Giovanni

I used a Titus Nautilus with SSP high uniformity burrset. Coffee from that burrset extracts differently than from a burrset with more bi-modal size distribution, taking longer for coffee to appear and running faster during the dilution phase toward the end of the extraction. If you grind so that preinfusion is short, then the high-pressure extraction goes really fast. I don't like the taste of that. I think the entire preinfusion / extraction time for that shot was in the low 40s which is a little short for me, the Leva and that burrset. Illy's Espresso Coffee - the Science of Quality contains a paper claiming extraction times out to 1 minute are perfectly fine. I agree with that and routinely extract for 45 to 50 secs combined preinfusion and high-pressure. It's been a while since i measured extraction yields and I should do so since I've refined my workflow.

pizzaman383 wrote:The preinfusion looks very even! What kind of dispersion block/screen does the Leva X have?

La Marzocco branded filter screen, which is a mesh supported by stainless steel with holes arranged in a pattern, like many other filter screens. It's an unusual shape and I don't know if IMS makes one of their cool filter screens for it, which I rather like. The piston is on the upstream side of the filter screen, so no dispersion block.

I've worked pretty hard to get even preinfusion. IMS convex basket with convex tamper helps. I'm using a single dose grinder, either Titus Nautilus (that particular extraction), or Weber EG-1V2, RDT with either grinder, the Weber blind shaker for dosing the portafilter, careful distribution via karate chop method and OCD device before tamp.

gscace wrote:I used a Titus Nautilus with SSP high uniformity burrset. Coffee from that burrset extracts differently than from a burrset with more bi-modal size distribution, taking longer for coffee to appear and running faster during the dilution phase toward the end of the extraction. If you grind so that preinfusion is short, then the high-pressure extraction goes really fast. I don't like the taste of that. I think the entire preinfusion / extraction time for that shot was in the low 40s which is a little short for me, the Leva and that burrset. Illy's Espresso Coffee - the Science of Quality contains a paper claiming extraction times out to 1 minute are perfectly fine. I agree with that and routinely extract for 45 to 50 secs combined preinfusion and high-pressure. It's been a while since i measured extraction yields and I should do so since I've refined my workflow.

Thanks for that reference, I do similar using my Major with SSP red speed burrs...extraction using the Urania (Zodiaco) taking like 45 sec leaving me with the taste profile I like best.

gscace wrote:La Marzocco branded filter screen, which is a mesh supported by stainless steel with holes arranged in a pattern, like many other filter screens. It's an unusual shape and I don't know if IMS makes one of their cool filter screens for it, which I rather like. The piston is on the upstream side of the filter screen, so no dispersion block.

I've worked pretty hard to get even preinfusion. IMS convex basket with convex tamper helps. I'm using a single dose grinder, either Titus Nautilus (that particular extraction), or Weber EG-1V2, RDT with either grinder, the Weber blind shaker for dosing the portafilter, careful distribution via karate chop method and OCD device before tamp.

Hi Greg,

curious to know, which grinder, paired with the Leva X, do yo find to yield a smoother, tastier shot? I've been using the Monolith Flat Max and have been considering the Weber EG-1. I've seen James Hoffmann's YouTube videos, comparing several grinders and was hoping to get your feedback, please.