got my self the simple pavoni lever machine (Europiccola) and I was hoping to get some insights for the best techniques to get a shot with nice and sustainable crema.

BTW do I use the double portafilter or the single ?

The baskets on a Pavoni run a bit small regarding the grams of coffee they can hold. Most owners use the double basket only. Slightly overfill with a good tamp (and fresh, just ground coffee, of course). Raise the lever slowly so the incoming air doesn't crack the puck. A single pull of the pump gets you a nice ristretto. That should get you started.

You won't want to hear this just yet, $$$$$, but if you don't have a decent grinder- your shots will be never taste very good no matter how hard your work. So.... what do you have?

Decent could be as simple as a old hand crank KYM or Zazzenhaus grinder- ebay= $60 or a Mazzer mini= $400+

No whirly jobs, no Krups flat burr grinder etc- consistent and an ability to produce a grind fine enough to slow your shot down to a 25-30 second effort for a 3/4 -1 oz of results. The grinder in many / most equipment groups is the most important piece.

Your turn....

a good burr grinder - now i'm trying to do the tradeoff between fine/coarse grinding and the temping i found out that the best crema comes when it's very hard to lower the lever - but i'm afraid that it's not so good for the machine

This procedure worked well for me. A single basket, single shot gives you more shots per day before reaching your caffeine limit.

Great shot-Europiccola, 51mm, revised

alsk wrote:a good burr grinder - now i'm trying to do the tradeoff between fine/coarse grinding and the temping i found out that the best crema comes when it's very hard to lower the lever - but i'm afraid that it's not so good for the machine

Forty pounds of pressure is ideal. I've pulled one with a lot more pressure than that and only bent the lever a little.

Yep, What he said.................... Levers are meant to be pulled- don't be scared! The only ones you don't force are they ones that no espresso comes out of your PF spouts- Read: CHOKED! Then if you really lean on the lever you can cause some damage.....

btw

what about double shot?

Pull the shot, with the double basket, until you see the first drop of coffee, raise the lever all the way back up and hold for 4 seconds. Pull down until you see the beginning of blonding then pull the cup away before anymore coffee falls.

Some H-Bers do a double with a single pull. See what works best for you.

Using the WDT method of stirring the grind before tamping, with a cut-off yogurt pot as a sort of funnel in the filter basket and a thin spike (eg frothing jug thermometer) to stir, I got instantly 200% better, smoother espresso out of a Europiccola, which wasn't too bad to start with . Pass it on!