Quick MILL Alexia Instructions For Use Manual - page 3
Alexia
everything must be hot
, the group, the portafilter, and the cup you are brewing into. This can
take as long as 30 minutes for optimal brewing temperature.
7
You are now ready to brew your first shot of espresso coffee
.
Tips For Making Great Espresso
Golden rules according to Dr. Illy
Each 30ml espresso requires seven grams of finely ground coffee, tightly compacted
(approximately 30 pounds of pressure) and should take between 18 and 23 seconds to extract.
Great espresso made easy according to Chris
Let me begin by explaining the three main variables of preparing great espresso.
1. Quantity of ground coffee,
2. Tamp firmness, and
3. The grind.
Quantity of ground coffee.
Inside your portafilter insert basket, there is a ridge about 1/4" down
from the top. That is where the retainer clip that holds the insert basket in place is located. This
ridge is not meant to be a tamp line; however, it serves very nicely as a reference for beginners.
Loosely fill the basket to the top or slightly mounding over the top. You will then compress (tamp)
the grounds to approximately the height of the ridge. Your first compression of the ground coffee
should be very gentle, just enough to slightly compact the coffee. Then gently tap the side of the
portafilter to knock grounds that are up on the inside wall of your insert basket loose. Now you
make your 30 pound tamp. Next with less than 5 pounds of pressure, twist the tamper 360
degrees to polish the surface of the ground coffee. If you have done it right the tamper should sit
inside the basket and be level, not higher on one side than the other. You are trying to prepare the
ground coffee to be hit with 125 PSI of water pressure. At 125 PSI the water will take the path of
least resistance. Your objective is to be sure there is NO PATH OF LEAST RESISTANCE. If not
done properly, you get channeling and squirters. Our FAQ section is a wealth of information with
links to some of the best articles I have ever read or seen and they also have pictures to guide
your lesson.
Tamp firmness.
The only thing you need to remember about tamping is consistency. Don't press
with five pounds of pressure in the morning and fifty pounds of pressure when you come home
from a tough day at work. If I apply twenty pounds of tamp pressure and you apply thirty pounds,
my grind will be slightly finer than yours will be, but we can both achieve the same result – great
espresso.
The grind.
Before discussing the grind, allow me to share a tip to make this even easier. Take
your double filter basket out of your double-spouted portafilter and put it into the single-spouted