Search This Blog

Tuesday 22 March 2011

How to Make an Espresso Coffee

How to Make an Espresso (Espresso Machine Coffee)

Espresso is a single shot of coffee from an espresso machine. Making "good" espresso is an art form, and needs much research and practice to develop the best results. This is only a very basic starting place.

Steps

  1. Research the different roasts and find what you like the best. Espresso can be made from a variety of roast levels. Roast preferences tend to vary by region. Northern Italy prefers a medium roast and Southern Italy prefers a darker roast. In America, espresso roast is assumed to be dark because the major companies that brought espresso (Starbucks) were influenced by cafés in southern Italy.
  2. Get it fresh, it's better. Freshness is supremely important. The closer it is to the roast date, the better. Ideally not over three weeks max since the roast date.
  3. It is best to grind your own beans; but not with a cheap, electric, blade coffee grinder. These can "burn" the coffee, and it is hard to get a consistent grind. Either use a good espresso grinder, or buy fresh ground/roasted beans from a good source espresso shop. Ask how fresh the beans are, and have them ground while you are there. A good espresso grind should be about the consistency of sugar. Too coarse, and the water runs through too quickly to pick up the proper elements. Too fine (like powder), and it packs too densely and brewing takes too long, making the coffee bitter. Good espresso, brewed right, should not be bitter.
  4. Use purified water, without minerals or pollutants, heated to about 200F or 90C degrees. Never use boiling water. Boiling water stops the process of creating good coffee dead. Not enough heat, and important components are not extracted from the coffee grind.
  5. Use the right amount of ground coffee. This is about 7 grams (1/4 ounce dry volume) for a single shot (one ounce serving of espresso), or 14 grams for a double.
  6. It is about the grind and the pressure used with the tamper (assuming water temp is good) (the water is the easy part) you can compensate for too loose a grind with more pressure and too fine a grind with less.
  7. Pack the grinds into the portafilter or group (handle) of the espresso machine using a tamper. A tamper is a flat object, approximately the size of the inside of the portafilter, used to compress the grounds to a density that will create just the right amount of resistance for the water being forced through the grind. Usually that is around 30 pounds of pressure. Again, too little resistance and the water flows through without picking up the needed elements from the coffee. Too much pressure and the brew takes too long and the brew will be bitter and without crema.
  8. If everything above is right, it should take 5-10 seconds for the first 'reluctant hone' drops to appear & 20 to 25 seconds to create one or two ounces respectively. Grind & tamp to achieve these parameters. Place your cup's under the group/brew basket (making sure this is seated securely). Turned on your espresso machine. You should see a hazel brown cream, called crema or foam, appear at the surface of the coffee when its finished.





Tips

  • Serve immediately.
  • Patience and practice is needed because getting this wonderful and flavorful, illusive brew we call espresso is an art form. There is a learning process to be enjoyed, not fussed over. It's the process of learning that makes mastery a sweeter accomplishment.
  • Use fresh roasted espresso beans.
  • Grind the coffee beans to a sugar texture, depending on the type of machine used. Home 'thermoblock' ones seem to require an even finer "icing sugar" grind in order to achieve the 25-30 second 'pour'.
  • Use the Espresso quickly, as it can go stale very quickly. Or mix it with milk or flavoring to stop this.
  • Always start with cold water.
  • Find out more about espresso at the links below, and use Google.
  • Every machine is different. It is a matter of learning your machine and how to work with it. Also, practice good maintenance with it.
  • If you have a machine with a pressurized portafilter, sometimes called a crema enhancer, tamping could clog up the machine. Check the instructions of your machine to see if it can be tamped.



Related wikiHows


Sources and Citations


How to Make a Ristretto (Espresso Coffee)

A ristretto is half a single shot (0.5oz or 15mL) of espresso. It is also known as a "short black" in other parts of the world and a "corto" in Italy. Because it is not a full espresso it is usually a more dense syrupy coffee.




Steps

  1. Get hold of some freshly roasted espresso beans. Crema comes from trapped CO2 gases that fade as coffee beans stale. Traditional northern Italian style is a medium roast, while southern Italians tradition dictates a darker bean that looks slightly oily. Darker roasts will emphasize the roast flavors, while medium and lighter roasts allow for sweeter, floral tones to come to the fore. The flavors of a lighter roasts will fade faster, so it's easier to get a consistent result from a darker roast. Experiment!
  2. There are three options for actually creating the ristretto.
  3. The Lazy Way
  4. Grind your coffee beans as normal, and don't change the tamp.
  5. Start the brew pump and stop it after the group has delivered 0.5oz (~15mL) of coffee (approximately 15 seconds).
  6. The Better Way
  7. Grind your coffee beans as normal and tamp much harder than usual
  8. Start the brew pump and stop it after the group has delivered 0.5oz (~15mL) of coffee (approximately 20 - 25 seconds).
  9. The Best Way
  10. Grind your coffee beans finer than normal, but do leave the tamp the same as usual.
  11. Start the brew pump and stop it after the group has delivered 0.5oz (~15mL) of coffee (25 seconds).



Tips

  • The Lazy Way is only useful for those who are unable to vary the grind.
  • The Better Way will give you richer tasting coffee than basic espresso, and will make you feel like you've done a better job at achieving a real ristretto.
  • Only The Best Way is a true ristretto.

Warnings

    1. Watch out for sourness when you do it The Best Way - your machine needs to be right up to temperature before pouring a fine-grind ristretto!

Related wikiHows


Sources and Citations

Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)