How to Use an Espresso Machine

Let the machine reach temperature with the portafilter locked into the group. On a machine with real thermal mass this takes fifteen to twenty minutes even though the ready light comes on sooner — the light reports the boiler, not the group.

Pull a blank shot of water through the group to flush it and warm the portafilter and cup. Cold metal will strip several degrees out of a 30 ml drink.

1. Grind fresh, directly into the basket. Grind fineness is the main control you have.

2. Dose to the basket's rating — 18 g in an 18 g basket.

3. Distribute the grounds so the bed is level before tamping. Uneven beds channel, and channelling makes a shot simultaneously sour and weak.

4. Tamp level and firm. Consistency matters more than force; the same pressure every time is the goal.

5. Lock in and start immediately. Grounds sitting in a hot group start extracting before the pump does.

6. Watch the pour. It should start dark and syrupy after a few seconds, then lighten. If it gushes immediately, the grind is too coarse; if nothing appears for fifteen seconds, it is too fine.

7. Stop at your target weight. A scale is the single cheapest upgrade to shot consistency.

Sour, thin, fast: under-extracted. Grind finer.

Bitter, harsh, slow: over-extracted. Grind coarser.

Sour and weak at the same time, often with a fast finish: channelling, not grind. Fix distribution and tamping before touching the grinder.

Change one variable at a time, and change grind before you change anything else.

Knock the puck out, wipe the basket, and flush the group briefly. On machines with a three-way solenoid valve, backflush with water regularly and with detergent about monthly.

Purge and wipe the steam wand every single time you use it, not at the end of the day.