Dialing in espresso on a Sage or Breville Barista Touch home espresso machine
Key tips for home baristas
If you’re struggling to get your espresso right on your Sage or Breville Barista Touch home espresso machine, then keep an eye on:
grind size (adjustable from the side dial/wheel)
brew time (adjustable via the touch screen)
Using a coffee scale will help too.
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Adjust the grind size and brew time
To keep things simple, let’s say you’re aiming to extract a ratio of 1:2. This means that for every gram of dry coffee, you’ll extract two grams of liquid espresso.
When you grind finer, you want to increase the brew time – if not, you may end up with a short and under-extracted espresso (finer grinds will have more resistance to the flow of water, so the espresso extraction will take longer)
When you grind coarser, you want to shorten the brew time – otherwise, you may end up with a long and watery espresso (coarser grinds will allow for a faster flow of water, so the espresso extraction will take a shorter amount of time)
Use the Manual mode
I find the Manual mode to be a more efficient way to dial in espresso on a Sage or Breville Barista Touch home espresso machine. During this process, the only adjustment to keep in mind is the grind size (as mentioned above, adjustable from the side dial/wheel). I recommend using a scale for precision and less waste. This is how it works:
By pressing and holding down the Brew button on the touch screen, you activate the Manual mode.
You then press the touchscreen to start the brewing and again to stop it, once the desired amount of espresso has been extracted in the cup.
For a dose of 17 to 18 grams of ground coffee, I would recommend extracting between 35 and 40 grams of espresso. I also encourage you to taste and make further adjustments from here, depending on your taste preference. Of course, in addition to the above, you may also consult the manual of your home espresso machine.
I hope you find these tips helpful and, if you’d like to dive deeper, you may consider our espresso and latte art home barista workshops. Happy brewing!
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And, if you enjoyed reading this article, you might find the one here interesting too – 5 mistakes home baristas make with their Sage or Breville home espresso machines