Hi all. New here ?
My partner and I are massive coffee lovers and have owned this Barista Express since new for about 6-7 years now. For what it's worth, I have always felt we get great coffee from the machine when compared to most baristas around. However this is when making flat whites where the flavour of the milk helps override the bitterness I'm getting in the espresso.
I want to go next level and I'm trying to work out a fairly budget friendly way to go about it. As I have discovered, good espresso is super nuanced with multiple layers to it. We buy locally roasted whole beans that we grind in the in-built grinder. I have the grinder on the finest setting and I still find I have to overload the portafilter to get a "good" extraction in terms of pressure, though it tastes bitter. I'm definitely not happy with it.
Here are a few questions I have:
Cheers
My partner and I are massive coffee lovers and have owned this Barista Express since new for about 6-7 years now. For what it's worth, I have always felt we get great coffee from the machine when compared to most baristas around. However this is when making flat whites where the flavour of the milk helps override the bitterness I'm getting in the espresso.
I want to go next level and I'm trying to work out a fairly budget friendly way to go about it. As I have discovered, good espresso is super nuanced with multiple layers to it. We buy locally roasted whole beans that we grind in the in-built grinder. I have the grinder on the finest setting and I still find I have to overload the portafilter to get a "good" extraction in terms of pressure, though it tastes bitter. I'm definitely not happy with it.
Here are a few questions I have:
- How much will a better grinder improve the delivery we're getting out of the Barista Express?
- Though we regularly clean the machine, I've never had it serviced. How much does a proper service improve performance?
- With all the variables at play, how can I tell if the quality of the beans are a problem?
- A separate grinder. Happy to buy second hand though commercial stuff would be too big for our meagre kitchen.
- Coffee scale
- A new espresso machine (second hand ok)
Cheers


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