Before jumping into this process I would recommend reading this article;
http://coffeeforums.co.uk/content.ph...-(Brew-Ratios)
Again, before you start reading this, lets address what this isn't about so you aren't disappointed.
This isn't about perfect distribution or dosing techniques.
This isn't the only way to weigh, and whatever process you use will be dependant on the grinder, the scales, and the machine you use.
The examples used of a dose and weight of espresso made are simply only examples, based on the coffee, grinder and setting, and the machine I am using
These are not gospel, just examples.
At the end of this article the reader should understand what parts of the espresso making process need weighing, and a couple of suggestions on how.
You will need some scales that measure to 0.1 g accuracy and that will fit whatever cup or cups you want to make your espresso in.
There are plenty of these in eBay for around £5 ish and plenty of threads recommending which ones to use on the forum.
At the end of the process we will have two accurate measurements
- the amount of coffee in the portafilter by weight
- the amount of espresso in the cup by weight
How you grind your coffee, and into what, will be dependant on the grinder you have, and there are lots of different ones
What you need to know is the amount of ground coffee that you are going to use in the espresso making process
Choose what you are going to put your ground coffee into
Here are some examples
- the basket itself
- straight into the portafilter
- a receptacle of your choice
Tare the scales (this zeroes them)
Grind your coffee into that weapon of your choice
Adjust the amount out to the exact dose you want
Distribute and tamp level ready for extraction
Below are a couple of examples
One I have ground the coffee direct into the basket and weighed
http://i1073.photobucket.com/albums/...psltdulww2.jpg
http://i1073.photobucket.com/albums/...pskdzsdevj.jpg
One where the coffee has gone direct into the porta-filter to be weighed ready to be prepared
http://i1073.photobucket.com/albums/...pstdjql2qw.jpg
http://i1073.photobucket.com/albums/...psmkkxpzs7.jpg
As long as you have an accurate weight of coffee being used then whatever method you choose is fine
I would aim to keep it simple, and not have to transfer the coffee ground from a number of receptacles before levelling and tamping though
Next we want to weigh that espresso we make
You should have in your mind an idea of the amount of espresso you want to make (in my example I'm aiming for 36g of espresso)
Choose your cup or shot glass
Put it on the scales , Tare the scales to zero
http://i1073.photobucket.com/albums/...pspfbn2dlf.jpg
Put under your portafilter and start the shot
http://i1073.photobucket.com/albums/...psl9agh5jx.jpg
Watch the weight on the scales
Aim to stop the shot when you hit the required target weight out (depending on your scale, there may be some lag and you will have to stop the shot before your target weight)
Take a note of the time this took if you're using a timer
I was pretty close to my target
As an aside if you are measuring by weight don't get hung up on how big or small in volume your espresso is. Your measurement is weight not volume in this process.
It may look a lot less than a 2 fl ounce shots you have previously prepared
36 g of espresso here looks like this as a volume
http://i1073.photobucket.com/albums/...psmopzirgj.jpg
this is fine, this is normal
At this point what we are interested in is how it tastes, not how much of it there is at this point
Taste it ..
We now have a recipe we can discuss with others
"I dosed 18g of coffee and made 36g of espresso in 27 seconds"
With the some added basic commentary on the taste it allows other people to try and replicate it, or to make suggestions based on how it tastes (sour, bitter, weak, strong)
The white large scales in the photos are Acaia scales .
These posts are in no way original or my own work but merely a summation of the knowledge gained on the forum in my time
Article written by MrBoots2u