Just a question on early blonding if anyone has a comment. I am using a grind setting of 7 on my EM0480 and getting the desired 30ml in 30 seconds for espresso in most cases. Sometimes the shot starts to blond very early though- around 12-15 seconds- with a lack of sweetness and richness in the taste not to mention very light coloured crema. Could this indicate too coarse a grind and too heavy a tamp? I have read threads on here no comments seem to address this specifically. Beans are from a local roaster and up to 1 week since roasting according to them. Btw the machine is a Saeco Via Venezia with np group handle. Thanks.
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Re: Early blonding
If the beans from the roaster are kept out in baskets and buckets then they might not be fresh enough anyway.
It sounds like you might be getting some channeling. There are a few things that might cause this.
-Clumping/static in the grinds, try breaking them up in the basket, see if it helps.
-Wet baskets. Make sure your filter baskets are dry before you put the coffee in. Otherwise it can cause channeling down the side.
-Down dosing. Leading to soggy pucks. (If your machine doesnt have a 3 way valve then you will get soggy pucks regardless and it will be harder to tell if its dose thats the problem.) Have as much coffee in the basket as will fit. A good technique is to overfill the basket and use your index finger to distribute it and level it off.
-Poor tamping. 1 firm tamp is enough. More then that can have the effect of putting fractures in the puck. Try and get it even the first time.
To see if channeling is a problem check your pucks when they finished before knocking them out. If you can see holes in them, gaps down the side etc then this may be your problem.
I hope some of this can be of help.
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Re: Early blonding
Yep.. the Via is a quick starter. No way to change the brew temp unfortunately, just hit brew when the green light comes onOriginally posted by 09262C31480 link=1251593755/4#4 date=1251612393Too low a temp on your machine (including group, group handle) will cause blonde shots too.
Maybe waiting a little while after the green light might help.
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Re: Early blonding
Group handle in situ etc etc.Originally posted by 143335323F460 link=1251593755/5#5 date=1251612830Yep.. the Via is a quick starter. No way to change the brew temp unfortunately, just hit brew when the green light comes onOriginally posted by 09262C31480 link=1251593755/4#4 date=1251612393Too low a temp on your machine (including group, group handle) will cause blonde shots too.
Maybe waiting a little while after the green light might help.
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Re: Early blonding
Ok thanks gentlemen. The beans are kept in a display counter at the roasters shop, apparently put away at night so I guess that is not ideal storage. There is some clumping and I will read the baristaexchange thread. If I updose do I adjust the grind to finer or coarser setting? Yes I do tend to run the machine just after the brew light comes on sometimes only 10 minute warm up. The pucks are usually dry but there is an indentation about 10mm diameter in the centre. When I flush the shower screen without the group handle attached water is not dispersed evenly across the screen it is concentrated in a few streams from the centre of the screen about where the indentation in the puck occurs, strangely enough! So should water disperse evenly across the screen? If yes that would explain channelling I guess.
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Re: Early blonding
The extra volume in the basket will add resistance to the water flow, so normally you would grind a little coarser to compensate - but that assumes your grind was correct before updosingOriginally posted by 474657230 link=1251593755/7#7 date=1251614083If I updose do I adjust the grind to finer or coarser setting?
A bit of experimenting is called for, but change only ONE variable at a time otherwise you wont know which one did what 8-)
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Re: Early blonding
I thought Id heard that too high a temp can cause early blonding.. is that right?Originally posted by 7F505A473E0 link=1251593755/4#4 date=1251612393
Another variable is heat.
Too low a temp on your machine (including group, group handle) will cause blonde shots too.
What are the effects of a too low and too high temp?
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Re: Early blonding
Higher temperature would likely mean that coffee is extracted faster. The 30 second rule is just a guide. You can get acceptable coffee in 15 seconds or 40 seconds, as long as the extraction is even and you cut it off at the right point. Milk/sugar based coffee is of course more forgiving than an Espresso though.Originally posted by 272C20283E3D2F282C3E2128344D0 link=1251593755/9#9 date=1305357798
I thought Id heard that too high a temp can cause early blonding.. is that right?
What are the effects of a too low and too high temp?
Do not worry about the water not dispersing evenly out of the shower head - this is just water surface tension at work, its a completely different story up against your puck. Id give it a flush after heat up though, as that little bit in the boiler could easily be above 92 degrees if it has been on a bit.
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