I just got a new machine and tweaking grind size, volume, and of course tamping can be daunting. Let’s not forget the variable of different beans 😅 This was extremely helpful! Thank you for making this video 🙏 Note to self, don’t eat the puck!
Hi Coach Coffee! We had some brief chat on the wet puck situation. Good news! I solved it. Apparently, on the 7th or 8th days when I dial in . I’m now almost getting the same consistency back to back shots. I’m now able to achieve the extraction within 30secs. The last shot was 29secs and the first shot was 27.9secs. It was all done back to back shots. The scale was able to stop all my shots in 36g out which I preset to be. Now the fun part is…. I’m still struggling with steaming the right milk texture to pour latte art. It always turns out foamy. So I always ended up with a big white blob in the middle. Then I doodle it with espresso stencil to make a happy face on it.
This was a good informed video. I just bought a Breville Smart Pro grinder and I’m having trouble picking a good grind size . I’m not used to what an espresso shot should taste like because I’m used to buying drinks at my local coffee place. I’ll still play with the grind.
If you can stick to these guidelines you should be able to find a coffee flavour that's balanced: 18g in 36g of extracted liquid in ~27s. If you only have a single basket then only put in 7-9g but always aim for twice the amount out in liquid and focus on that ~27s to achieve the total extraction.
great video thank you.. I have a stoggy wet puck, coffee tastes fantastic though..so I going back there now to change the grind a bit again. wish me luck!!
Had the dry crumbly puck (shot tasted sour). Did exactly as you said in this video (adjusted grind and actually weighed out 20g) and it worked! 🎉 ❤ I had no idea I was doing it wrong for years!!!
This is really helpful and explains what happened to mine. Just have one question over basket type. If I have beans that have best before date should I use pressurised double wall or single wall?
excellent teaching. simple and straight to the point. the empathy was perfect it was not even necessary to comment on the coffee machine. congratulations
I realize I'm going to be soundly lambasted for even asking this question, but it is something that you did not address in your very good and informative video. What about the age of the beans? I ask this because it seems that whenever I get beans from a certain large box store which I will not mention, even if they've been roasted in the past few weeks I seem to get sloppy pucks no matter what. I change the grind, I weigh the grounds with a gram scale, and I still can't get a very good cup of coffee. My results are much more consistent when I get freshly roasted coffee from a local shop. So two questions: How much does the age of the coffee affect the resultant puck? How old is too old with regard to coffee beans? Thanks for your very helpful video! My next step is to examine my puck!
😂 first TH-camr to use lambasted, love it! 👌 All good, I'm a grown up and can take a lashing if I deserve it. I didn't talk about about stale beans as I honestly don't know enough about how it would affect your puck because I just never use old beans 😂 I can assume though your puck would be dryer because there are less solubles in stale coffee dues to them turning into gases and escaping into the ether, and this means the water wouldn't have enough resistance to stay in the basket, it would run straight through. But if you have a long preinfusion on, this could let the grinds swell and give some resistance when the pressure is applied, and if you have a low dosage in the basket it will mean more headspace between the top of the puck and the showerscreen and that could be causing the sloppy puck. I'll put some coffee aside for a couple of months and see what happens to the puck there, but I would start by adjusting the dosage of your coffee to leave just about 5mm headspace and see if that helps at all. As for the perfect age of coffee I can help there! 💪 I find between 10-30 days after roast is the perfect window. Of course advanced pressure profiling can change this completely but for basic machines, this applies. Another factor that will change this window is winter and humidity. It will make the window start later. 👌 Hope this helps and thank you for using the word lambasted, I'm a word fiend so love when people change up their language.
Fantastic. Thanks m8. Learned a ton. I was under-dosing. New grinder and new espresso machine, unfamiliar portafilter. etc.. This fixed it - just leveling it off at the top and tamping down to the line [the filter has a line for "tamped" level]. Freshly ground to a "12" on my grinder - illy espresso roast.. Mmmmmmmmm. Near perfect. THANKS!!!! [I skipped the puck-eating part, lol]
I think this also applies to the moka pot. I was having a wet puck after brewing after I started grinding finer. Tomorrow I'll grind coarser and see if I get a better result
Good video - very informative and an extra level to look at how the puck looks - I've just made one before watching this video where the puck had water on top so interesting to see how I can fix that, thanks for sharing!
I am using quality fresh beans that are ground immediately before shot is pulled. Ratio of 18:36 in 32 seconds. Puck comes out nicely and is spongy but there is a little coffee on the sides of the portafilter near the ridge. Espresso itself is great. Using a coffee jack for distribution. Any ideas?
Heya! I wouldn't be too worried about the it's of grind, the taste is definitely more important than how it looks. Only worry if your coffee starts tasting bad. I would however recommend a puck screen (depending on your machine) as this will help keep all the grinds from going up into the group head and it makes for a more even extraction too.
Hey what do you think about this. I’ve been using the same coffee beans for the last 12 months and over the last month. The grinding size required has, all of a sudden, needed to be more fine. I am used to grinding the same coffee beans at 12, now all of a sudden I have to grind at 4 to get the same pulled shot (approx weight and same volume). Filter has been changed as instructed 3 monthly, and the coffee beans have not changed as I know the owners of the cafe. I’ve given the grinder a thorough cleaning following the instructions in the manual so it can’t be the grinder either. There’s no issue with the water being pulled as when I pull an empty shot the water is perfectly fine. I’m all out of ideas of what to do next, to get my coffee shots pulled at the desired level of 12 again, as I think it is not doing something right with the quality of the shots being pulled now. Never been descaled after 12 months, as machine hasn’t requested it. Used on average 3-4 times a week for 1 person.
I would like to know how you actually dry out used coffee to the point so it can't grow mold or any other fungi in the dried coffee. I want to be able to reuse the dry coffee?
If it's too wet you shouldn't see an indent. But when you've dosed your coffee too much for the basket it will expand as it extracts and will hit the top of the screen and if there is a screw there, that will cause the indent. It's not a terrible thing though, as long as your coffee tastes good. You could use a puck screen too and this will help but be really careful about not overfilling the basket otherwise your screw will indent the puckscreen and that is not good.
What about if it doesn’t want to knock into the box? I hit the knock box as hard as I can and I have to take a knife and dig out the puck it’s so crammed in.
Hey there! Great question. I think It's over extracted. If you're having to scoop it out you need to use a little less coffee or grind it a tiny bit coarser.
What about the puck taking 3-4 whacks to get it out of the portafilter basket? On my stock basket I don't have that issue but with my IMS it just doesn't want to come out easily. When it does come out, it is usually whole and fairly dry. I tried with my new puck screen, and it helped, a bit, requiring 2 whacks on average but with my stock basket it just pops right out with a tap. The shots taste fine, but it annoys me, lol.
Mate, great video thanks. But I'm a bit of a coffee novice and I have a very basic espresso machine but I do have my own grinder. I have to scrape the used granules out of the basket with a finger, no puck at all. Any advice?? My machine just has an on and off switch basically and just turn it off when the espresso jug is full. Any advice what I can do to get a puck (of any description) ???
Is your puck really sloppy? What happens if you grind it even finer or fill it more? Does it still go sloppy or does your machine not even push the coffee through? Some of the cheaper machines won't have enough pressure to really push coffee through when it gets too fine, in that case you'll just have to live with it until you upgrade your machine. But the grinder is the most important (after the beans, of course!).
@@Rydecoffeecoach they're kind of dry and "grainy" if that makes sense, but compacted in so they don't all come out when I bang the basket hence needing to scrape them out. As it's basic I guess my only option is to play with the grind size.
I have a question. What's the quantity in vs quantity out for expresso machines? E.g. The machine i use has four settings. The first setting disperses 45ml then, 60, then 90 then 120. Is this 1 shot ristretto, 1 espresso, 2 ristretto, 2 expresso.
What machine do you have? Somewhere between 30-45ml per 7-10g of espresso grinds is on par. So it's probably going to be worth playing with what tastes the best for you.
@@Rydecoffeecoach to clarify, these are the quantities of water entering the puck, not exiting. I am wondering what level of extraction I should expect from each option. (I measured the raw output of water with no puck and I want to know what each one should put out after a puck of 8-9g is introduced to the 45ml and 60ml and what would happen with a 90 & 120ml option with a 18-21g puck)
Another great informative video. I would say once I dial in a new bag of coffee I get very clean puck removal when I knock out and it’s neither too wet or dry. If I am ever way off being dialed in I check the puck and in most cases it’s fairly wet. I few clicks on my 1Zpresso usually fixes the problem. I have found that the few different single origin beans I have tried from CBD need a courser grind then the Il Carmelo which is my go to bean. I did order a blindfold coffee sampler today so I might be up for some trial and error. I’m really looking forward to trying them though 🤤☕️
Oh yeh super interesting about the singles, they are definitely more fussy than Il caramello and require a lot more attention. Oh did you order online or come in? I'll tell the team to look out for you! 👌
Hi, thanks for the video. I have a question not covered :) I have a new gaggia classic evo pro, and I've had a gaggia classic for years before this no problems. I *think* the primary diff between thee machines is the pressure is 9 bar instead of 15 on the old machine. With the evo pro machine, I'm using the same coffee/grind, same tamping procedures etc, but the pucks won't knock out of the basket, and they are a bit wet on top. Thoughts on what the issue is?
Hey Ryde thanks for the video. I'm a bit confused. I just got a Breville Express Impress and expected that getting it dialled in would be fairly straightforward. But following Breville's instructions to make the grind finer if extraction is too fast and coffee tastes watery/bitter, a now wetter puck has resulted in worse result and opposite to what you're suggesting. Original setting in mid range of the machine -16- seemed to produce a pretty good looking puck that only had a bit of a wet section on part of the top. Extraction seemed a bit too quick and taste was off which is why I made the grind finer as per Breville instructions. They suggest that the wetter puck means grind is too coarse. But also the pressure doesn't look right as it's barely within the grey range. Any suggestions ? Thanks.
The main thing you want to focus on is your recipe. Add 18g of grinds in the double basket and aim for 36g of liquid out in approx 30s (add 6s on to your final time if you have the default preinfusion on for the Breville, but I would also recommend turning the preinfusion down to the lowest setting of 1s). If the water rushes through in ~20s you need to fine up the grinds (which is what I think is happening in your case). If it drips through and takes you closer to 40s then you need to adjust your grind coarser. Sticking as close to this recipe will help you achieve good tasting shots. 👌
@@Rydecoffeecoach thanks for the advice, deleted my reply as have moved on from that. It seems machine is dosing at about 17g but producing 56 gm of liquid which is way off what you suggested. And that's with making the grind finer. Not as bitter but tastes bad. And there is clearly a problem with it as it's aggravating my relfux the way a drip/percolated/coff bag type situation would. Normally barista coffee doesn't do that. Not sure what the straight espresso should taste like but took a sip and it's horrible. Beans come from my usual local cafe so I know what a finished late should taste like. Didn't really understand about the preinfusion changes but the total extract time was between 29 -30 secs. I will call Breville for help but any thoughts appreciated. Thanks.
Fwiw… a puck screen can solve many problems. It keeps the group head much cleaner, it prevents the puck from sticking to the group head, it solves the soupy puck problem
Hi. I just purchased a Breville Express Impress. It adjusts how much coffee goes in the portafilter, and has a tamping lever. The pressure seems to be right in the middle, according to the pressure gauge. However, the puc is wet on top, and dry, to the point that it's hard to knock out, on the bottom of the puck. I'm not sure what this means. Also, I'm using a Dual Wall double shot filter.
Hey there! Don't use the Dual Wall basket as that is for pre-ground coffee only. Use the other double basket. If that doesn't fix your issue, just watch my other videos on how to make Espresso and then let me know how you go 👌🙌
I went to Starbucks and had them ground my coffee beans. I told them I am going to use it for Picopresso and they ground my beans super fine .... Now I realized it might be too fine ...is there a way to save this ? Can I possibly mix it with a coarse coffee to make it work? I would feel bad if I had to trash the rest of the bag ..
Yeh you can try dosing lower to give you less resistance and if that doesn't work you can mix your coffee grinds but be aware it will cause inconsistent extractions which might taste a bit murky but at least it won't waste the coffee.
Interesting, thank you for sharing As for bitter or sour coffee, can it n9t be related to buying bad coffee ? (Too dry, overly roasted or cheap Robusta?)
Yes absolutely. I should have clarified that if the coffee is dark roasted or of Robusta species, it will definitely taste bitter. I don't think any of them will provide a sour taste but most certainly contribute to the bitterness.
Robusta is a culprit but under extraction (pouring too fast) will create bitterness as well, over roasting or bagging too quickly before cooling the beans sufficiently would also create a burnt taste and a sour smell when opening a new bag of beans.
Would the machine play a role in if it’s wet or dry? I just got my first ever espresso machine it’s a GEEK CHEF espresso machine 20 bar and i haven’t had a fry puck yet
yeh it could be the machine but I think its more the grinder that you're using. Try and grind finer and finer until you get the drier pucks. if you can't get that fine you may need a better grinder.
I've got an older La Pavoni Domus Bar and just figured out why extraction was so quick and the pressure gauge never moved. So I changed the grind to 1.5 but now it's pouring over the portafilter. I also am using a paper filter on top. The puck has always come out, but leaves a 2cm of grinds around the bottom. Any pointers appreciated!
If it's coming out the sides of the portafilter around the seal, you might need to replace the gasket (o-ring) it's very easy to do but just make sure you order the exact size one for that machine because even a few mm too large or thick and it won't fit. Is the grind left in the basket? It could be that you've made the coffee too fine now and you need to coarsen it just slightly. Remember only do micro adjustments and then run your coffee a few times before adjusting it again.
Thanks, but we just got a new gasket and plate from a pro fix-it place and they gave it an overall check-up as well. The puck is still there but is very wet. We had the grind at 3 before but the pressure never moved and we never got a crema. I've got digital scales coming this afternoon so I hope that may help too.
Have a rancillio grinder but had set it too fine- so water on top of puck, and colouration issues. Solved that but realize that one best proceeds to better coffee by micro steps....
Yes sorry, I must have forgotten or something. But yes if it sticks to the top of the screen it's usually a case of overdosing the basket and this causes the head space to become a vacuum and sucks the puck up to it.
Hi, mine starting to drop the ground coffee on its own, before pressing the grinder button, or after it finishes grinding it starts dropping more ground coffee. I never imagined that a masters degree was necessary for a fresh cup of coffee, would not recommend it. T4s
Yeh probably not as reliable with more advanced machines like the Decent and ones with pressure/flow profiling. But remember it's only if you experience those undesirable flavours that I would look at the puck and assess. For most machines I still keep an eye on the pucks. What isn't as clear is that holes in the top of your puck don't mean your shot channelled, the holes are more likely from the release of pressure when you stop the shot.
I’ve tried everything and my pick is still super sloppy. Tried finer, less fine grinds, filling the puck more and less, watched your video about tamping and STILL my puck is sloppy 😭 I have the Breville Roma. Nothing I ever do gives me a nice puck. Please help!
I'm getting the dry puck - slicing in half problem, with the wet soupy puck on top. Da fuq am I doing wrong lol. Extraction time and taste is fine, do I even bother changing anything?
I wouldn't change it if you are getting great tasting extractions. It's really for those who are getting bitter/sour coffees. You could use a puck screen and this will help your picks be cleaner but if it ain't broke, don't fix it! 👌👌
Hey Mark! Don't over analyse your puck. It's not always going to be perfectly solid - especially with lots of preinfusion. If your coffee tastes off, then you can analyse the puck, but if its tasting good there's no need. IF you're able to get double the liquid out from the grinds in ~27-32 seconds then it should be fine. If its taking longer and your puck is really sloppy, then make the grind coarser. Another thing you can do is buy a puck screen. These are great and help distribute the water more evenly onto your puck. It eliminates some of the headspace inside the basket and your pucks should be more solid. hope this helps!
Hi, I use pre-grounded coffee and espresso coffee for my machine, but I am finding bits of the coffee in my coffee mug. Almost like when you are finding tea leaves in a cup of tea. It’s really annoying What can I do to stop it from there in this?
your first 1 as you said was sloppy i keep trying to tweek my coffee mass to fine to course alot and its hard to get it right i have a breville barista max with a built in grinder it has alot of dots but no numbers just a diagram from course to medium then to fine i had kept it on medium and always came out sloppy i dont know if its because its to course and that am compacting it to much its kinda hard to figure out what ave just noticed there i had it 1 or 2 setting dots from fine and ground down a full pot full leveled it off them compacted it to the inside line then put it in and it came out thin and very slowwww now when i took my puck back out and checked it the coffee was solid and not sloppy but i may have compacted it to much for the water to have came out quicker so the next time i may not compress it as much cause it is fine
No the 9g single is still there but more often than not, we're doing a double shot of 18-20g and if you have a naked portafilter then you don't split it into two single shots. But the reason most people don't make single shots any more is the difficulty in getting an even tamp due to the single basket design.
What machine do you use? Sometimes the appliance machines don't have enough power to extract coffee when it's too fine, this creates the soupyness above the puck. In your case, since you say there is no pick at all, you might not be putting enough coffee in the basket. I think I need more info to really help, what machine, what basket, how much coffee grinds, how does the coffee look when coming out, how does it taste, is there grinds coming into your cup?
@@Rydecoffeecoach I use the chefman 6 in 1 espresso machine. I put in the directed amount which is one scoop of coffee into the basket that comes with it. Sometimes it will come out fine like espresso and other times it comes out like a mix of some espresso & coffee from a K-cup coffee machine. A few times it’s came out tasting sour and there are no grinds in the cup. I also bought a fresh bag of beans and used a grinder to rule out my previous coffee. I’m assuming the appliance doesn’t have the power as it was only $120. New to this whole espresso process so don’t know too much.
I also just watched a video of someone with the same machine and their puck comes out as a whole. I have tried filling my basket with more coffee and have gotten the same slop/no puck result. I’m starting to think it’s my machine and not something I’m doing. It was working fine the first day I had it. It’s been giving very inconsistent amounts of espresso everytime as well.
@@qo1o4262UYAit sounds like you're not getting enough pressure in that you're leaving a little bit too much space in your basket. Two simple options you can do to try and rectify this. If you haven't already, is try adding more coffee to the basket, or get a Puck screen. I found that even though The science behind the puck screen says the positive distribution of water is negligible, there aren't really any negatives to having it, and I found that I can add less coffee and still maintain around six or seven bars of pressure without having to use more coffee to fill the basket to maintain that pressure. I would also like to recommend, if you get the opportunity, invest in a really good grinder, that will make the difference, regardless of what machine you use. Hope that helps, good luck and brew on!
It wouldn't be grind size. The machine pump is very powerful and that wouldn't cause the issue. It does however auto shut off at 60s exactly no matter the grind or flow. Are you certain it's 48s? Are you measuring that time on a scale, because that timer will only start once the first drop hits. So this could mean if your first drop is at 12s you only have 48s left to get the full extraction and that's your issue, you DO then need to adjust your grind more coarsely so you get your full extraction in ~30s. Hope this helps!
It could be a performance issue on your machine. What machine do you have? Also, check these things: Are you getting a dripping extraction or is it extracting nicely? Is your machine reaching enough pressure to push through the puck (9bars or so?). Is your basket clogged up? Have you tried different baskets? Is your grinder a cheap grinder (it could be producing a lot of fines which would stop water flow a lot). If all is good and you can't see any machine or equipment issues then purchase a puck screen (a Pesado one if you can get it) and see if that helps. They are only about $20usd and are worth it anyway. Let me know
@@Rydecoffeecoach Breville Barista Pro. Definitely not a drip. Doesn’t seem like it’s as slow as it should be. But it’s a steady flow. Which is why the swampy puck confuses me. Basket is brand new. I tried switching to the standard instead of the double wall but similar results. Grinder is built in. I am using Costco’s Espresso beans (the Starbucks ones) so I’m wondering if that could be the cause. I’ll look in to a puck screen. Thank you!
Puck is almost always sticking to the shower screen when I remove the portafilter. Any thoughts ? BTW, I did not have this problem on my previous machine
Yeh this is usually caused by not enough headroom between the top of the puck and the screen. So when the pressure releases, the vacuum created in the space sucks the puck right up onto the screen. What basket size are you using and what dose? I would try reduce the dose a fraction to leave 5mm (~1/4 inch) head room above the puck and see if that stops the sticking. 👌
Great video Ryd! I would like to ask you, I'm using 18.5gr in into the (16-20gr)basket taking 37gr out in about 25", but my puck is veery soft, non compacted and the taste is sour. How do you think I can fix it? Finer grinding or plus coffee (note that I'm using a puck screen also) or both? Thanks in advance
Hey Chris! Definitely start with a finer grind. I'm assuming you're using a preinfusion too? If so, you need to add the time to your total (6 sec preinfusion = +6 sec to total) so you're extraction time should be in the 30s. To slow it down, you need a finer grind. Then you can play with dosage. 👌
Hey there! I m using delonghi sculture But the problem i dont see any residual puck in the basket after i make an espresso or latte like basket i totally empty . I ve seen alot of videos but couldn’t find one on this particular issue . I ve tried different ways of making the basket with different grinds and tamping perfectly after watching TH-cam videos but still the issue is same . I ll be waiting for ur response. TIA
Ok that is the strangest things I've ever heard! So the puck is completely dissolved? Do you see a lot of grind left in your cup? Or is it completely dissolved? I'm going to ask some obvious questions but just in case I missed something so please don't be offended by the questions. Are you using instant coffee by any chance? Are you definitely putting in the basket before you put the coffee in or are you adding the coffee straight into the portafilter. If you're doing both of those things then try grinding the coffee quite coarse and running the shot. You should definitely have coffee left in the basket after that because the holes are not big enough to let the coffee through. If you still have no puck left then the only other thing I can think of is that you have a split in your basket and all the grinds are escaping through there. But if you have no grinds in your cup then you might be using dissolvable coffee like instant coffee.
@@Rydecoffeecoach actually i m using nescafe coffee and I don’t think it’s instant coffee . Coffee is totally dissolved nothing in the basket just like washed . Its not a fine grind also . And the machine is new so no holes in the basket even . And i m really grateful that u are helping me in this matter . Big respect ♥️
Sorry for the late response. It just sounds like it's instant. Coffee grind doesn't fully dissolve normally. You would have a total saturation point but there are always undissolved solids left over.
What is happening is there is a vacuum created in the space above your puck so a good way to stop this is to dose a bit lower to give more head space. Also, buy yourself a puck screen ($20) and you will notice a huge improvement in your coffee extraction and no more stuck pucks!
Sounds like your coffee is still too coarse and you're extracting too much coffee liquid from the grounds. Are you able to weigh it both in and out? ie: 18g in and 36g (ml) out in ~30 seconds. That's what you're aiming for. 👌
@@RydecoffeecoachI got it under 30secs. 28.9secs to be exact. 17.9g in and 35.6g out. But my puck was sloppy and wet. It breaks after knocking it out! The roast date was very fresh. 5 days old.
@@Rydecoffeecoach Linea Mini R. Pairing with Eureka Atom EX65. Should’ve gotten the W65 but it was too late… I have the brew by weight lunar scale. It will stop automatically if it’s extracted properly with the amount of water flow. Otherwise it won’t if the water flow is gushing so fast that the scale can’t keep up with the weight algorithm. Then I will have to push the paddle to stop it.
Yep definitely right, I think I said it but maybe I forgot, but you should always go on taste and if there's nothing wrong with it then you don't need to read your puck, it's only if you're experiencing undesirable flavours.
Hi new to this . I just pulled a shot amd the puck was very soggt but there was also an indentionnof the shower head. Can you help me.please? Thank you😊
You might be filling the basket too much so as the puck expands its stopping the water flow. Does the coffee taste bitter and does it drip slowly? Find out what basket size you are using (usually 18g is the standard) and only does 18g. Also, if your machine is an appliance machine it might have a pressurized basket because these machines don't always have enough pressure to push the water through.
@Rydcoffeecoach yep it's a pressurized basket. It's a 51mm and I can only get like 12 grams in it if I'm using a screen. Thank you I'll keep working on it lol
@@Rydecoffeecoach Puck screen is always required Imo. You should "flush" the water out of the puck to get the dry puck. For example, after you extracted enough from F58 or robot, you can pull the lever up and down again to flush all the water and get the dry puck and repeat until there is no more water. In this context, you simply can't analyze the puck since you took out more water than machines to matter enough.
Mostly when your grind is too fine and packed in and not evenly distributed it causes the coffee bed to choke at certain points and then you burn the coffee. Have you got a WDT tool you can use to help distribute the bed? They only cost about $30 and they are game changers. 👌
Oh, what machine do you have? If it's like a Delonghi Dedica or something then that makes sense. The pressurised basket will make the puck stick to the inside. But if you have a 58mm grouphead machine and you still get a really dry puck, try a slightly coarser grind or don't over pack the basket.
HELP!!! Hi! I just bought a Sage barista express. I like dark roast so i bought some really dark roasted espresso beans (they are high quality and fresh). My impression is that i need to ground a dark roast coarser since the bean more fragile. However, my espresso pulls in such a short time! I weigh my beans (16 g) and pull 32 g of espresso in like 7 (!!) sec haha.... My puck is wet when i'm done and I don't understand how to tackle this issue. The shot comes out really strong and bitter. Pls help! Should I grind the coffee more coarse or fine?
Definitely go finer! Your coffee will taste bitter because the coffee is dark roasted and there are more chlorogenic acids that build up the longer the roast. But you should still be grinding it fine.
My baskets are 21g and I like to overdose it to just get a slightly more intense shot. We also run them in my cafe and it helps with the bigger sized cups we serve there as the ratio isn't weakened. 16-18g is perfectly fine too as long as you use the correct basket.
Should have cut a fudge brownie into a puck-sized disk and placed it in the filter. Then remove from your machine on camera, knock it onto the table and eat it. Savor it making yummy noises. Then tell the truth so people don’t start eating their coffee pucks at home.
I just got a new machine and tweaking grind size, volume, and of course tamping can be daunting. Let’s not forget the variable of different beans 😅 This was extremely helpful! Thank you for making this video 🙏 Note to self, don’t eat the puck!
Hi Coach Coffee! We had some brief chat on the wet puck situation. Good news! I solved it. Apparently, on the 7th or 8th days when I dial in . I’m now almost getting the same consistency back to back shots. I’m now able to achieve the extraction within 30secs. The last shot was 29secs and the first shot was 27.9secs. It was all done back to back shots. The scale was able to stop all my shots in 36g out which I preset to be.
Now the fun part is…. I’m still struggling with steaming the right milk texture to pour latte art. It always turns out foamy. So I always ended up with a big white blob in the middle. Then I doodle it with espresso stencil to make a happy face on it.
I cant believe you actually bit into the puck😂 Great video man, thanks!
This was a good informed video. I just bought a Breville Smart Pro grinder and I’m having trouble picking a good grind size . I’m not used to what an espresso shot should taste like because I’m used to buying drinks at my local coffee place. I’ll still play with the grind.
If you can stick to these guidelines you should be able to find a coffee flavour that's balanced: 18g in 36g of extracted liquid in ~27s. If you only have a single basket then only put in 7-9g but always aim for twice the amount out in liquid and focus on that ~27s to achieve the total extraction.
Great information thank you for taking the time to do this Sir.
When portafilter is removed it's sloppy and wet. Is that caused by overground coffee or not tamping hard enough
great video thank you.. I have a stoggy wet puck, coffee tastes fantastic though..so I going back there now to change the grind a bit again. wish me luck!!
Oh if it tastes good you shouldn't really worry too much. It's more if it tastes horrible then you can troubleshoot.
Wow probably the best tutorial on puck diagnosis on TH-cam. Thanks for the video.
Thank you!
Had the dry crumbly puck (shot tasted sour). Did exactly as you said in this video (adjusted grind and actually weighed out 20g) and it worked! 🎉 ❤ I had no idea I was doing it wrong for years!!!
Thank you. I've been doing my coffee wrong all this time! Good clear instructions.
You're welcome! 👌
This is really helpful and explains what happened to mine. Just have one question over basket type. If I have beans that have best before date should I use pressurised double wall or single wall?
What the PUCK?! I've been doing this all wrong. Thanks for the video!
😅
Thank you for making this. Will implement some changes on the next go. Hoping to hit the sweet spot more frequently now.
excellent teaching. simple and straight to the point. the empathy was perfect it was not even necessary to comment on the coffee machine. congratulations
Thank you! 🙏🙌
Such quality content! Super underrated channel. Keep it up mate ☕
Thank you! 👌🤗
Thanks. Need to practice
I realize I'm going to be soundly lambasted for even asking this question, but it is something that you did not address in your very good and informative video.
What about the age of the beans? I ask this because it seems that whenever I get beans from a certain large box store which I will not mention, even if they've been roasted in the past few weeks I seem to get sloppy pucks no matter what. I change the grind, I weigh the grounds with a gram scale, and I still can't get a very good cup of coffee. My results are much more consistent when I get freshly roasted coffee from a local shop.
So two questions: How much does the age of the coffee affect the resultant puck? How old is too old with regard to coffee beans?
Thanks for your very helpful video! My next step is to examine my puck!
😂 first TH-camr to use lambasted, love it! 👌 All good, I'm a grown up and can take a lashing if I deserve it. I didn't talk about about stale beans as I honestly don't know enough about how it would affect your puck because I just never use old beans 😂 I can assume though your puck would be dryer because there are less solubles in stale coffee dues to them turning into gases and escaping into the ether, and this means the water wouldn't have enough resistance to stay in the basket, it would run straight through. But if you have a long preinfusion on, this could let the grinds swell and give some resistance when the pressure is applied, and if you have a low dosage in the basket it will mean more headspace between the top of the puck and the showerscreen and that could be causing the sloppy puck. I'll put some coffee aside for a couple of months and see what happens to the puck there, but I would start by adjusting the dosage of your coffee to leave just about 5mm headspace and see if that helps at all.
As for the perfect age of coffee I can help there! 💪 I find between 10-30 days after roast is the perfect window. Of course advanced pressure profiling can change this completely but for basic machines, this applies. Another factor that will change this window is winter and humidity. It will make the window start later. 👌
Hope this helps and thank you for using the word lambasted, I'm a word fiend so love when people change up their language.
Oh and have a salubrious day! 😂
Fantastic. Thanks m8. Learned a ton. I was under-dosing. New grinder and new espresso machine, unfamiliar portafilter. etc..
This fixed it - just leveling it off at the top and tamping down to the line [the filter has a line for "tamped" level]. Freshly ground to a "12" on my grinder - illy espresso roast.. Mmmmmmmmm. Near perfect. THANKS!!!! [I skipped the puck-eating part, lol]
😅 thanks! yeh, most people skip the puck eating! 🤔 Great to hear you're getting better espresso now! 🙌🙌
Great vid, jam packed with the right info thanks!
Thank you, that means a lot! I often get told I over jam info so thank you. 🤗
I think this also applies to the moka pot. I was having a wet puck after brewing after I started grinding finer. Tomorrow I'll grind coarser and see if I get a better result
Thank you! Yes let me know how you go! 🙌
@@Rydecoffeecoach it improved. No longer a soggy wet puck.
Good video - very informative and an extra level to look at how the puck looks - I've just made one before watching this video where the puck had water on top so interesting to see how I can fix that, thanks for sharing!
Glad I could help! 🙌
Great video, wondered why my puck was so wet.
Glad to help! 👌
I am using quality fresh beans that are ground immediately before shot is pulled. Ratio of 18:36 in 32 seconds.
Puck comes out nicely and is spongy but there is a little coffee on the sides of the portafilter near the ridge. Espresso itself is great. Using a coffee jack for distribution. Any ideas?
Heya! I wouldn't be too worried about the it's of grind, the taste is definitely more important than how it looks. Only worry if your coffee starts tasting bad. I would however recommend a puck screen (depending on your machine) as this will help keep all the grinds from going up into the group head and it makes for a more even extraction too.
Thank you. Before I was gifted my touch machine I thought coffee art was the milk froth. How wrong I was!
Can you share me the grinde size of the last perfect in the video?
Hey what do you think about this. I’ve been using the same coffee beans for the last 12 months and over the last month. The grinding size required has, all of a sudden, needed to be more fine. I am used to grinding the same coffee beans at 12, now all of a sudden I have to grind at 4 to get the same pulled shot (approx weight and same volume). Filter has been changed as instructed 3 monthly, and the coffee beans have not changed as I know the owners of the cafe. I’ve given the grinder a thorough cleaning following the instructions in the manual so it can’t be the grinder either. There’s no issue with the water being pulled as when I pull an empty shot the water is perfectly fine. I’m all out of ideas of what to do next, to get my coffee shots pulled at the desired level of 12 again, as I think it is not doing something right with the quality of the shots being pulled now. Never been descaled after 12 months, as machine hasn’t requested it. Used on average 3-4 times a week for 1 person.
I learnt a lot from this video … including don’t eat the puck!! 🤣🤢
Oh the puck is super nutritious though! It just tastes like you shovelled sand with your mouth! 😂😂
I would like to know how you actually dry out used coffee to the point so it can't grow mold or any other fungi in the dried coffee. I want to be able to reuse the dry coffee?
Thanks this help us solve out problems
You're welcome! Glad I could help. 🤗
Great video has helped a lot, but I seem to be having a wet puck with an indentation, what am I doing wrong?
If it's too wet you shouldn't see an indent. But when you've dosed your coffee too much for the basket it will expand as it extracts and will hit the top of the screen and if there is a screw there, that will cause the indent. It's not a terrible thing though, as long as your coffee tastes good. You could use a puck screen too and this will help but be really careful about not overfilling the basket otherwise your screw will indent the puckscreen and that is not good.
Would love to watch a video on understanding espresso brewing control chart..
Ah yes good idea. I could do that soon.
What about if it doesn’t want to knock into the box? I hit the knock box as hard as I can and I have to take a knife and dig out the puck it’s so crammed in.
Hey there! Great question. I think It's over extracted. If you're having to scoop it out you need to use a little less coffee or grind it a tiny bit coarser.
@@Rydecoffeecoach thank you! I will try to adjust the grind!
What about the puck taking 3-4 whacks to get it out of the portafilter basket? On my stock basket I don't have that issue but with my IMS it just doesn't want to come out easily. When it does come out, it is usually whole and fairly dry. I tried with my new puck screen, and it helped, a bit, requiring 2 whacks on average but with my stock basket it just pops right out with a tap. The shots taste fine, but it annoys me, lol.
Mate, great video thanks. But I'm a bit of a coffee novice and I have a very basic espresso machine but I do have my own grinder.
I have to scrape the used granules out of the basket with a finger, no puck at all. Any advice?? My machine just has an on and off switch basically and just turn it off when the espresso jug is full. Any advice what I can do to get a puck (of any description) ???
Is your puck really sloppy? What happens if you grind it even finer or fill it more? Does it still go sloppy or does your machine not even push the coffee through? Some of the cheaper machines won't have enough pressure to really push coffee through when it gets too fine, in that case you'll just have to live with it until you upgrade your machine. But the grinder is the most important (after the beans, of course!).
@@Rydecoffeecoach they're kind of dry and "grainy" if that makes sense, but compacted in so they don't all come out when I bang the basket hence needing to scrape them out. As it's basic I guess my only option is to play with the grind size.
This was a very good video! 🙌
I have a question. What's the quantity in vs quantity out for expresso machines?
E.g. The machine i use has four settings.
The first setting disperses 45ml then, 60, then 90 then 120. Is this 1 shot ristretto, 1 espresso, 2 ristretto, 2 expresso.
What machine do you have? Somewhere between 30-45ml per 7-10g of espresso grinds is on par. So it's probably going to be worth playing with what tastes the best for you.
@@Rydecoffeecoach to clarify, these are the quantities of water entering the puck, not exiting. I am wondering what level of extraction I should expect from each option. (I measured the raw output of water with no puck and I want to know what each one should put out after a puck of 8-9g is introduced to the 45ml and 60ml and what would happen with a 90 & 120ml option with a 18-21g puck)
Wow… that was a lot of information! That was a great video! Thank you for the information
Love the details!! Great video
Thanks Antonio! 🌟
Another great informative video. I would say once I dial in a new bag of coffee I get very clean puck removal when I knock out and it’s neither too wet or dry. If I am ever way off being dialed in I check the puck and in most cases it’s fairly wet. I few clicks on my 1Zpresso usually fixes the problem.
I have found that the few different single origin beans I have tried from CBD need a courser grind then the Il Carmelo which is my go to bean.
I did order a blindfold coffee sampler today so I might be up for some trial and error. I’m really looking forward to trying them though 🤤☕️
Oh yeh super interesting about the singles, they are definitely more fussy than Il caramello and require a lot more attention. Oh did you order online or come in? I'll tell the team to look out for you! 👌
@@Rydecoffeecoach I ordered online this time.
Hi, thanks for the video. I have a question not covered :) I have a new gaggia classic evo pro, and I've had a gaggia classic for years before this no problems. I *think* the primary diff between thee machines is the pressure is 9 bar instead of 15 on the old machine. With the evo pro machine, I'm using the same coffee/grind, same tamping procedures etc, but the pucks won't knock out of the basket, and they are a bit wet on top. Thoughts on what the issue is?
Hey Ryde thanks for the video. I'm a bit confused. I just got a Breville Express Impress and expected that getting it dialled in would be fairly straightforward. But following Breville's instructions to make the grind finer if extraction is too fast and coffee tastes watery/bitter, a now wetter puck has resulted in worse result and opposite to what you're suggesting. Original setting in mid range of the machine -16- seemed to produce a pretty good looking puck that only had a bit of a wet section on part of the top. Extraction seemed a bit too quick and taste was off which is why I made the grind finer as per Breville instructions. They suggest that the wetter puck means grind is too coarse. But also the pressure doesn't look right as it's barely within the grey range. Any suggestions ? Thanks.
The main thing you want to focus on is your recipe. Add 18g of grinds in the double basket and aim for 36g of liquid out in approx 30s (add 6s on to your final time if you have the default preinfusion on for the Breville, but I would also recommend turning the preinfusion down to the lowest setting of 1s). If the water rushes through in ~20s you need to fine up the grinds (which is what I think is happening in your case). If it drips through and takes you closer to 40s then you need to adjust your grind coarser.
Sticking as close to this recipe will help you achieve good tasting shots. 👌
@@Rydecoffeecoach thanks for the advice, deleted my reply as have moved on from that. It seems machine is dosing at about 17g but producing 56 gm of liquid which is way off what you suggested. And that's with making the grind finer. Not as bitter but tastes bad. And there is clearly a problem with it as it's aggravating my relfux the way a drip/percolated/coff bag type situation would. Normally barista coffee doesn't do that. Not sure what the straight espresso should taste like but took a sip and it's horrible. Beans come from my usual local cafe so I know what a finished late should taste like. Didn't really understand about the preinfusion changes but the total extract time was between 29 -30 secs. I will call Breville for help but any thoughts appreciated. Thanks.
For a wet puck, you suggest to add more coffee to the basket AND increase dose size? Aren't they the same, or what am I misunderstanding?
Maybe I said it incorrectly, you should increase the coarseness of the grind.
@@Rydecoffeecoach thanks!
Fwiw… a puck screen can solve many problems. It keeps the group head much cleaner, it prevents the puck from sticking to the group head, it solves the soupy puck problem
Hi. I just purchased a Breville Express Impress. It adjusts how much coffee goes in the portafilter, and has a tamping lever. The pressure seems to be right in the middle, according to the pressure gauge. However, the puc is wet on top, and dry, to the point that it's hard to knock out, on the bottom of the puck. I'm not sure what this means. Also, I'm using a Dual Wall double shot filter.
Hey there! Don't use the Dual Wall basket as that is for pre-ground coffee only. Use the other double basket. If that doesn't fix your issue, just watch my other videos on how to make Espresso and then let me know how you go 👌🙌
I also used the duel walled basket. I had to dig the puck out with a spoon lol😂
I went to Starbucks and had them ground my coffee beans. I told them I am going to use it for Picopresso and they ground my beans super fine .... Now I realized it might be too fine ...is there a way to save this ? Can I possibly mix it with a coarse coffee to make it work? I would feel bad if I had to trash the rest of the bag ..
Yeh you can try dosing lower to give you less resistance and if that doesn't work you can mix your coffee grinds but be aware it will cause inconsistent extractions which might taste a bit murky but at least it won't waste the coffee.
Interesting, thank you for sharing
As for bitter or sour coffee, can it n9t be related to buying bad coffee ? (Too dry, overly roasted or cheap Robusta?)
Yes absolutely. I should have clarified that if the coffee is dark roasted or of Robusta species, it will definitely taste bitter. I don't think any of them will provide a sour taste but most certainly contribute to the bitterness.
Robusta is a culprit but under extraction (pouring too fast) will create bitterness as well, over roasting or bagging too quickly before cooling the beans sufficiently would also create a burnt taste and a sour smell when opening a new bag of beans.
Would the machine play a role in if it’s wet or dry? I just got my first ever espresso machine it’s a GEEK CHEF espresso machine 20 bar and i haven’t had a fry puck yet
yeh it could be the machine but I think its more the grinder that you're using. Try and grind finer and finer until you get the drier pucks. if you can't get that fine you may need a better grinder.
This was really helpful, thank you.
You're so welcome! Glad I could help. 🤗🙏🙌
I've got an older La Pavoni Domus Bar and just figured out why extraction was so quick and the pressure gauge never moved. So I changed the grind to 1.5 but now it's pouring over the portafilter. I also am using a paper filter on top. The puck has always come out, but leaves a 2cm of grinds around the bottom. Any pointers appreciated!
If it's coming out the sides of the portafilter around the seal, you might need to replace the gasket (o-ring) it's very easy to do but just make sure you order the exact size one for that machine because even a few mm too large or thick and it won't fit.
Is the grind left in the basket? It could be that you've made the coffee too fine now and you need to coarsen it just slightly. Remember only do micro adjustments and then run your coffee a few times before adjusting it again.
Thanks, but we just got a new gasket and plate from a pro fix-it place and they gave it an overall check-up as well. The puck is still there but is very wet. We had the grind at 3 before but the pressure never moved and we never got a crema. I've got digital scales coming this afternoon so I hope that may help too.
Have a rancillio grinder but had set it too fine- so water on top of puck, and colouration issues. Solved that but realize that one best proceeds to better coffee by micro steps....
Thank you Ryd, great video.
Thanks Simon! Kind words. 🤗🙌
well done, thanks for this
Really helpful thanks Ryd.
You're welcome! 👌
You mentioned in the beginning of the video about puck stuck up in the head groove but didn’t explain it in the video. Does it mean it’s overdosed?
Yes sorry, I must have forgotten or something. But yes if it sticks to the top of the screen it's usually a case of overdosing the basket and this causes the head space to become a vacuum and sucks the puck up to it.
Very useful, thank you!
Any time! 🙌
Hi, mine starting to drop the ground coffee on its own, before pressing the grinder button, or after it finishes grinding it starts dropping more ground coffee. I never imagined that a masters degree was necessary for a fresh cup of coffee, would not recommend it. T4s
Is puckology really still a reliable way of telling puck prep quality? I've heard varying opinions on this
Yeh probably not as reliable with more advanced machines like the Decent and ones with pressure/flow profiling. But remember it's only if you experience those undesirable flavours that I would look at the puck and assess. For most machines I still keep an eye on the pucks. What isn't as clear is that holes in the top of your puck don't mean your shot channelled, the holes are more likely from the release of pressure when you stop the shot.
I’ve tried everything and my pick is still super sloppy. Tried finer, less fine grinds, filling the puck more and less, watched your video about tamping and STILL my puck is sloppy 😭 I have the Breville Roma. Nothing I ever do gives me a nice puck. Please help!
I'm getting the dry puck - slicing in half problem, with the wet soupy puck on top. Da fuq am I doing wrong lol. Extraction time and taste is fine, do I even bother changing anything?
I wouldn't change it if you are getting great tasting extractions. It's really for those who are getting bitter/sour coffees. You could use a puck screen and this will help your picks be cleaner but if it ain't broke, don't fix it! 👌👌
Hi hi I would like to know if you can help.puk is sloppy I've made my grane but it's still wait
Hey Mark! Don't over analyse your puck. It's not always going to be perfectly solid - especially with lots of preinfusion. If your coffee tastes off, then you can analyse the puck, but if its tasting good there's no need. IF you're able to get double the liquid out from the grinds in ~27-32 seconds then it should be fine. If its taking longer and your puck is really sloppy, then make the grind coarser.
Another thing you can do is buy a puck screen. These are great and help distribute the water more evenly onto your puck. It eliminates some of the headspace inside the basket and your pucks should be more solid.
hope this helps!
Hi, I use pre-grounded coffee and espresso coffee for my machine, but I am finding bits of the coffee in my coffee mug. Almost like when you are finding tea leaves in a cup of tea. It’s really annoying What can I do to stop it from there in this?
your first 1 as you said was sloppy i keep trying to tweek my coffee mass to fine to course alot and its hard to get it right i have a breville barista max with a built in grinder it has alot of dots but no numbers just a diagram from course to medium then to fine i had kept it on medium and always came out sloppy i dont know if its because its to course and that am compacting it to much its kinda hard to figure out what ave just noticed there i had it 1 or 2 setting dots from fine and ground down a full pot full leveled it off them compacted it to the inside line then put it in and it came out thin and very slowwww now when i took my puck back out and checked it the coffee was solid and not sloppy but i may have compacted it to much for the water to have came out quicker so the next time i may not compress it as much cause it is fine
What happened with the 7-9g dose for espresso.
Every video I look at is between 15-20g for a single shot!?
No the 9g single is still there but more often than not, we're doing a double shot of 18-20g and if you have a naked portafilter then you don't split it into two single shots. But the reason most people don't make single shots any more is the difficulty in getting an even tamp due to the single basket design.
Not sure what I’m doing wrong. My machine doesn’t even leave a puck. I just have a complete slop and a pool of water on top of the slop.
What machine do you use? Sometimes the appliance machines don't have enough power to extract coffee when it's too fine, this creates the soupyness above the puck. In your case, since you say there is no pick at all, you might not be putting enough coffee in the basket.
I think I need more info to really help, what machine, what basket, how much coffee grinds, how does the coffee look when coming out, how does it taste, is there grinds coming into your cup?
@@Rydecoffeecoach I use the chefman 6 in 1 espresso machine. I put in the directed amount which is one scoop of coffee into the basket that comes with it. Sometimes it will come out fine like espresso and other times it comes out like a mix of some espresso & coffee from a K-cup coffee machine. A few times it’s came out tasting sour and there are no grinds in the cup. I also bought a fresh bag of beans and used a grinder to rule out my previous coffee. I’m assuming the appliance doesn’t have the power as it was only $120. New to this whole espresso process so don’t know too much.
I also just watched a video of someone with the same machine and their puck comes out as a whole. I have tried filling my basket with more coffee and have gotten the same slop/no puck result. I’m starting to think it’s my machine and not something I’m doing. It was working fine the first day I had it. It’s been giving very inconsistent amounts of espresso everytime as well.
@@qo1o4262UYAit sounds like you're not getting enough pressure in that you're leaving a little bit too much space in your basket.
Two simple options you can do to try and rectify this. If you haven't already, is try adding more coffee to the basket, or get a Puck screen. I found that even though The science behind the puck screen says the positive distribution of water is negligible, there aren't really any negatives to having it, and I found that I can add less coffee and still maintain around six or seven bars of pressure without having to use more coffee to fill the basket to maintain that pressure.
I would also like to recommend, if you get the opportunity, invest in a really good grinder, that will make the difference, regardless of what machine you use. Hope that helps, good luck and brew on!
20 or 30 grams retention? Is that correct?
I feel bad for the basket and porta filter haha 🙈 hope it’s not scratched with the knocking 👍🏾
Hello
How much coffee is needed for a non-pressurized pertafilter size 51
For a double basket standard is 18g so even going to a 19g dose is quite good.
trying to figure out why my la marzocco linea stops after 38 or so seconds
could it be my grind size? the taste is someone fine.
It wouldn't be grind size. The machine pump is very powerful and that wouldn't cause the issue. It does however auto shut off at 60s exactly no matter the grind or flow. Are you certain it's 48s? Are you measuring that time on a scale, because that timer will only start once the first drop hits. So this could mean if your first drop is at 12s you only have 48s left to get the full extraction and that's your issue, you DO then need to adjust your grind more coarsely so you get your full extraction in ~30s.
Hope this helps!
Very helpful :) Thx!
Great video
Very interesting!!!
My puck is soggy no matter what I do. Under dose, over dose, too fine, too coarse. Not once have I had a “too dry” situation. What am I doing wrong? 😢
It could be a performance issue on your machine. What machine do you have? Also, check these things: Are you getting a dripping extraction or is it extracting nicely? Is your machine reaching enough pressure to push through the puck (9bars or so?). Is your basket clogged up? Have you tried different baskets? Is your grinder a cheap grinder (it could be producing a lot of fines which would stop water flow a lot).
If all is good and you can't see any machine or equipment issues then purchase a puck screen (a Pesado one if you can get it) and see if that helps. They are only about $20usd and are worth it anyway.
Let me know
@@Rydecoffeecoach Breville Barista Pro.
Definitely not a drip. Doesn’t seem like it’s as slow as it should be. But it’s a steady flow. Which is why the swampy puck confuses me. Basket is brand new. I tried switching to the standard instead of the double wall but similar results. Grinder is built in. I am using Costco’s Espresso beans (the Starbucks ones) so I’m wondering if that could be the cause.
I’ll look in to a puck screen. Thank you!
Puck is almost always sticking to the shower screen when I remove the portafilter. Any thoughts ? BTW, I did not have this problem on my previous machine
Yeh this is usually caused by not enough headroom between the top of the puck and the screen. So when the pressure releases, the vacuum created in the space sucks the puck right up onto the screen. What basket size are you using and what dose? I would try reduce the dose a fraction to leave 5mm (~1/4 inch) head room above the puck and see if that stops the sticking. 👌
Great video Ryd!
I would like to ask you, I'm using 18.5gr in into the (16-20gr)basket taking 37gr out in about 25", but my puck is veery soft, non compacted and the taste is sour. How do you think I can fix it? Finer grinding or plus coffee (note that I'm using a puck screen also) or both?
Thanks in advance
Hey Chris! Definitely start with a finer grind. I'm assuming you're using a preinfusion too? If so, you need to add the time to your total (6 sec preinfusion = +6 sec to total) so you're extraction time should be in the 30s. To slow it down, you need a finer grind. Then you can play with dosage. 👌
Hi Ryd and thanks for responding. There is not preinfusion its automatic (La pavoni casabar pid) get 4 sec. to reach 9 bars.
Hey there! I m using delonghi sculture
But the problem i dont see any residual puck in the basket after i make an espresso or latte like basket i totally empty . I ve seen alot of videos but couldn’t find one on this particular issue . I ve tried different ways of making the basket with different grinds and tamping perfectly after watching TH-cam videos but still the issue is same . I ll be waiting for ur response. TIA
Ok that is the strangest things I've ever heard! So the puck is completely dissolved? Do you see a lot of grind left in your cup? Or is it completely dissolved?
I'm going to ask some obvious questions but just in case I missed something so please don't be offended by the questions. Are you using instant coffee by any chance? Are you definitely putting in the basket before you put the coffee in or are you adding the coffee straight into the portafilter. If you're doing both of those things then try grinding the coffee quite coarse and running the shot. You should definitely have coffee left in the basket after that because the holes are not big enough to let the coffee through. If you still have no puck left then the only other thing I can think of is that you have a split in your basket and all the grinds are escaping through there. But if you have no grinds in your cup then you might be using dissolvable coffee like instant coffee.
@@Rydecoffeecoach actually i m using nescafe coffee and I don’t think it’s instant coffee . Coffee is totally dissolved nothing in the basket just like washed . Its not a fine grind also . And the machine is new so no holes in the basket even . And i m really grateful that u are helping me in this matter . Big respect ♥️
Sorry for the late response. It just sounds like it's instant. Coffee grind doesn't fully dissolve normally. You would have a total saturation point but there are always undissolved solids left over.
10:55 “…eating the pucks” 😂😂
Yeh wasn't my best idea! 😂
But, but 😢snacc
Thanks!
Thank you! 🙌🙌
Useful content, thank you +++++
My puck got stuck in the portafilter everytime, what's wrong ?
What is happening is there is a vacuum created in the space above your puck so a good way to stop this is to dose a bit lower to give more head space. Also, buy yourself a puck screen ($20) and you will notice a huge improvement in your coffee extraction and no more stuck pucks!
@@Rydecoffeecoach After trying it for a couple of days, you're right. Reducing the coffee amount helped a lot. Thanks a lot 🙏🙏🌹
My espresso is coming out not only bitter, but watery. It has a awful taste. Not sure what to do. And the puck is dry
Sounds like your coffee is still too coarse and you're extracting too much coffee liquid from the grounds. Are you able to weigh it both in and out? ie: 18g in and 36g (ml) out in ~30 seconds. That's what you're aiming for. 👌
@@RydecoffeecoachI got it under 30secs. 28.9secs to be exact. 17.9g in and 35.6g out. But my puck was sloppy and wet. It breaks after knocking it out! The roast date was very fresh. 5 days old.
@@3rd-Wave_Rebel what machine do you have?
@@Rydecoffeecoach Linea Mini R. Pairing with Eureka Atom EX65. Should’ve gotten the W65 but it was too late…
I have the brew by weight lunar scale. It will stop automatically if it’s extracted properly with the amount of water flow. Otherwise it won’t if the water flow is gushing so fast that the scale can’t keep up with the weight algorithm. Then I will have to push the paddle to stop it.
Sounds like you're doing everything right. Does it taste good? Are you using a puckscreen, that can make it more watery.
Wet or dry puck depends on headroom. Wet puck doesn't necessary indicate bad espresso
Yep definitely right, I think I said it but maybe I forgot, but you should always go on taste and if there's nothing wrong with it then you don't need to read your puck, it's only if you're experiencing undesirable flavours.
Hi new to this . I just pulled a shot amd the puck was very soggt but there was also an indentionnof the shower head. Can you help me.please? Thank you😊
You might be filling the basket too much so as the puck expands its stopping the water flow. Does the coffee taste bitter and does it drip slowly? Find out what basket size you are using (usually 18g is the standard) and only does 18g.
Also, if your machine is an appliance machine it might have a pressurized basket because these machines don't always have enough pressure to push the water through.
@Rydcoffeecoach yep it's a pressurized basket. It's a 51mm and I can only get like 12 grams in it if I'm using a screen. Thank you I'll keep working on it lol
October 4, 2024 Eating the pucks 😂😂😂😂😂
Too bad! My manual lever's puck doesn't mean a lot since it brings out more water than it takes and brings out all the water inside.
So you always get dry pucks? That's interesting, I use a lever profile mainly and my pucks seem more soupy more often. Do you use a puck screen?
@@Rydecoffeecoach Puck screen is always required Imo.
You should "flush" the water out of the puck to get the dry puck. For example, after you extracted enough from F58 or robot, you can pull the lever up and down again to flush all the water and get the dry puck and repeat until there is no more water.
In this context, you simply can't analyze the puck since you took out more water than machines to matter enough.
@@Rydecoffeecoach have you tried flushing yet?
The key to dry espresso is flushing it instead of the puckscreen despite still necessary.
What causes my puck to come out burnt
Mostly when your grind is too fine and packed in and not evenly distributed it causes the coffee bed to choke at certain points and then you burn the coffee. Have you got a WDT tool you can use to help distribute the bed? They only cost about $30 and they are game changers. 👌
I’ve had to remove every shot I’ve ever made with a spoon 😂
Oh, what machine do you have? If it's like a Delonghi Dedica or something then that makes sense. The pressurised basket will make the puck stick to the inside.
But if you have a 58mm grouphead machine and you still get a really dry puck, try a slightly coarser grind or don't over pack the basket.
@@Rydecoffeecoach I have the Cafe Bellissimo w/ 58mm. Tried one of the coarsest settings and same thing. I’ll play around in the grind time settings.
Now I know why hockey players don't have teeth. "Eat the puck!"
Lol!
HELP!!!
Hi! I just bought a Sage barista express. I like dark roast so i bought some really dark roasted espresso beans (they are high quality and fresh). My impression is that i need to ground a dark roast coarser since the bean more fragile. However, my espresso pulls in such a short time! I weigh my beans (16 g) and pull 32 g of espresso in like 7 (!!) sec haha.... My puck is wet when i'm done and I don't understand how to tackle this issue. The shot comes out really strong and bitter. Pls help! Should I grind the coffee more coarse or fine?
Definitely go finer! Your coffee will taste bitter because the coffee is dark roasted and there are more chlorogenic acids that build up the longer the roast. But you should still be grinding it fine.
+1 subscriber! :)
I manually grind my coffee in the mornings, takes me about 4 minutes and 20 seconds for 21 grams of beans. 420.... ayooooooooooo
22 grams in a puck!?
Why deviate from the 16-18 grams?
My baskets are 21g and I like to overdose it to just get a slightly more intense shot. We also run them in my cafe and it helps with the bigger sized cups we serve there as the ratio isn't weakened. 16-18g is perfectly fine too as long as you use the correct basket.
Should have cut a fudge brownie into a puck-sized disk and placed it in the filter. Then remove from your machine on camera, knock it onto the table and eat it. Savor it making yummy noises.
Then tell the truth so people don’t start eating their coffee pucks at home.
🤣 I did it so others don't have to! 😅
Me too I have a wet punk I don't what iam doing wrong
I can not get the coffee out of my puck with out using a spoon?
Cursed brownies
🤣
funny
Great video, thanks