Naked Portafilter use

[Sir_Val Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Sir_Val]

Hello all. I have a Rancilio Silvia and have recently bought a naked portafilter for it. I have tried a couple of shots with it - regular basket as supplied with the Rancilio and the deeper basket as supplied with the portafilter. They have been OK but obviously there is something I am not getting right here :-?

Does anyone have any tips for using the naked portafilter?

Thanks & cheerio,

Sir Val.

[cjt10 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close cjt10]

Re: Naked Portafilter use

The naked portafilter will simply highlight issues in technique as you get a better visual of what is going on.

How does the coffee vary/compare to the standard portafilter?
What is happening when you use the naked portafilter?

We will need some more information in order to offer meaningful advice.

[Sir_Val Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Sir_Val]

Re: Naked Portafilter use

Thanks Kaffee. In my standard portafilter the coffee develops the slow mouse tail style pour. Nice and thick, about 20 secs to 25 secs for the pour. Good flavour, no burnt aspects etc.

With the naked portafilter using the standard Rancilio basket, the pour seems to be somewhat quicker, the flavour is less intense which suggests I may need to make my grind finer or tamp firmer?

With the deeper basket the pour is about the same length of time as standard portafilter with standard Rancilio basket but has a slightly burnt taste aspect to it.

[cjt10 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close cjt10]

Re: Naked Portafilter use

If the extraction is running too fast then I agree that you may need to tighten up the grind to find the sweet spot. I dont think that tamping with excessive force will do much to improve the result.

The "burnt" taste may be a result of running the machine too hot. Unless you have a PID you will need to surf for the optimum temperature.

This however doesnt explain why the same basket with differing portafilters is producing a measurable difference in the cup, however try the above and let us know how you get on.

[acoggins Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close acoggins]

Re: Naked Portafilter use

The naked portafilter will simply highlight issues in technique as you get a better visual of what is going on.

Not entirely true. The effect of the coffee hitting the bottom of the spouted portafilter does change the flavour and mouthfeel. Crema is not as bubbly also.

One specialty coffee business I worked at in the past had a policy of dosing more in to the bottomless portafilter than the regular spouted portafilter. We found the shots from a bottomless tasted best with a slower pour. Ive also found that consistent in my own tinkerings at home.

Sir Val, I would recommend using the same basket in each, a deeper basket in the bottomless will mean your grind and dose is incorrect when switching between the two. This comes back to the classic rule of only changing one variable at a time and judging by your comments would explain the disappointing result. Keep up with the bottomless. Theyre a great diagnostic tool and the shots from them can be fantastic.

[cjt10 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close cjt10]

Re: Naked Portafilter use

The effect of the coffee hitting the bottom of the spouted portafilter does change the flavour and mouthfeel. Crema is not as bubbly also.

Perhaps, but not likely to be the cause of issues as described by the OP.

[Sir_Val Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Sir_Val]

Re: Naked Portafilter use

Hello again. Thank you for the advice from you both. I have slightly modified the grind for the deep basket and have made certain all the coffee has collapsed into it completely. Anyhow , results much better. Still adjusting the other basket but it is on the improve also.

Thanks & cheers