Risretto with auto dose grinder

[snedden9485 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close snedden9485]

Morning all,

Interested to hear what people do with electronic doser grinders (ie mini E / Macap M4D etc) to pour ristretto shots. I generally prefer to have a ristretto style shot for a picollo, i find it smoother to drink. I generally dont like to alter my grind between shots, so im thinking of just updosing the ristretto slightly. For example if the double shot is a 9 second grind time, setting the grind for 10 seconds for a ristretto or thereabouts?

Interested to hear what people think.

Cheers

Chris

[DesigningByCoffee Life-long Learner Find all posts View Profile Close DesigningByCoffee]

Hi Chris
I'd normally just pull the shot short ie less volume. 40ml double ristretto from a double basket rather than 60ml double espresso. Will just take a little less time.
Why would you need to alter grind?
Cheers Matt

[UCC Member Find all posts View Profile Close UCC]

Because, officially (which obviously, like most things coffee related, is debated), a ristretto is shot with half the water but the same amount of coffee, at the same time. Ie a double shot is 60ml pulled in 30sec a double ristretto is 30ml pulled in 30sec. To just stop a normal double shot early just makes and very short black, as opposed to a ristretto.

But like everything, do what tastes good to you.

[snedden9485 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close snedden9485]

Hi Chris
I'd normally just pull the shot short ie less volume. 40ml double ristretto from a double basket rather than 60ml double espresso. Will just take a little less time.
Why would you need to alter grind?
Cheers Matt

As UCC said, in a traditional sense the ristretto is 15ml in 30 seconds, not just cut short, as cutting it short may lead to an under extracted shot (not to say I don't do it from time to time).

[DesigningByCoffee Life-long Learner Find all posts View Profile Close DesigningByCoffee]

As UCC said, in a traditional sense the ristretto is 15ml in 30 seconds, not just cut short, as cutting it short may lead to an under extracted shot (not to say I don't do it from time to time).

I don't really want this to end up as one of those standard tirade threads, but all I can do is voice my own ideas and leave it too the obsessives

From my own experience, best extraction comes from the best grind, the best flow rate and the best temp for those particular beans - whether run to a 40ml double ris or 60ml espresso. If your grind is set for a great pour - why muck about with it!

If you manage to set up a 'perfect pour' then pull it short, you get a sublime, sweet, oily, syruppy ristretto from very best bits of the early part of the extraction.
If you run it longer, you do extract more, but from the 'tail end' of what's left in the ground coffee, which is heading towards blonding slowly but surely. Take this to full espresso amounts you get a fuller drink - and a different flavour - but whether it is better flavoured is up to the individual.

Saying that a short ristretto amount shot is underextracted because it hasn't ripped out every last drop of the coffee compounds is technically correct - in the same way that saying that by not drinking the dregs in the bottom of a good bottle of red has wasted good wine! Technically correct - but I'll still leave it to others!

In the DBC book of coffee technique an under-extracted shot is a gusher - whether it is pulled long or short.

But in the end - all we can do is experiment and find what we enjoy. For many people, tightening up the grind for a tighter pour over a longer time for a smaller amount will simply lead to a short, bitter shot. Some might prefer it.

Plus I don't want to adjust grind shot to shot!

Just my 2C …

Cheers Matt



So Snedden - why not try a short shot in your piccolo - I reckon it will taste pretty good!

[snedden9485 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close snedden9485]

Ok sounds like I need to give this a try and see how it goes. Certainly not trying to start a snobbery war in the thread