Breville Oracle Owners Thread BES980XL

[ozinoz]

Hoping for some help here... I have had my Oracle for 12 months and on a whole have been fairly happy, although none of my extractions have been anything like Phil's videos. I get my beans in reasonably small lots from a roaster in Melbourne. I have just opened a batch of Sumatran Blue Batak which is about 3 weeks old and my coffee making has fallen off a cliff. I am not familiar with this variety and have just been working through the available menu. It is very burnt smelling and I cant get the grind fine enough (under 1) to get an extraction that lasts longer than about 23 seconds for 30 mls (and it tastes bitter and burnt)

I cleaned the machine within an inch of its life and just swapped with some generic store bought beans as a trial and the result is not a whole lot better - grind is on 4 and I am just chewing through beans. Just don't know where to turn. Is anybody familiar with this bean variety - what is the characteristics? I don't fancy shelling out $20-30 for beans and postage if I don't know what the issue might be.

Any pointers gratefully accepted.

Thanks,

Grant

[Javaphile]

If the beans are 3 weeks old it's likely they're past their prime and that's the cause of your problems.


Java "Freshness matters!" phile

[bowser]

My milk frothing issues are sorted. soaked the wand in a milk cleaning solution over night. Previously I had it on full foam and was getting stuff all. Now I have it in the middle and it's still too frothy.

Love this machine

[Coffeeismylifeblood]

Have you tried calling the 1300 number under the water flap? They have been very helpful to me

[Libertyrx1]

This has to be a scam. $750 for a new Oracle???

eBay link removed per Site Posting Policy

[Amalgam]

FYI - It is possible to buy this machine for $1699 right now combining the current $150 Breville cashback with a current eBay promotion at The Good Guys eBay store. I don't have one but am rather tempted as looking through this thread seems that an average good price is anything under $2000.

Frequent sales are one advantage of an appliance machine!

[Barry O'Speedwagon]

Frequent sales are one advantage of an appliance machine!

Depends how you look at it I guess. Frequent sales or default price premia? Anyway, there's no doubt that they meet a need in the market.

[DamianB]

Hoping for some help here... I have had my Oracle for 12 months and on a whole have been fairly happy, although none of my extractions have been anything like Phil's videos. I get my beans in reasonably small lots from a roaster in Melbourne. I have just opened a batch of Sumatran Blue Batak which is about 3 weeks old and my coffee making has fallen off a cliff. I am not familiar with this variety and have just been working through the available menu. It is very burnt smelling and I cant get the grind fine enough (under 1) to get an extraction that lasts longer than about 23 seconds for 30 mls (and it tastes bitter and burnt)

I cleaned the machine within an inch of its life and just swapped with some generic store bought beans as a trial and the result is not a whole lot better - grind is on 4 and I am just chewing through beans. Just don't know where to turn. Is anybody familiar with this bean variety - what is the characteristics? I don't fancy shelling out $20-30 for beans and postage if I don't know what the issue might be.

Any pointers gratefully accepted.

Thanks,

Grant

try increasing the tamp pressure, maybe from 5 to 8
this wil increase the amount of beans used slightly, as the tamp is fixed hight, the grind turns off when the filter gets to the set pressure. Therefor tamp pressure equals more mass and pressure.
this will allow you to increase the grind size a little also, and you should be able to find a pour time to suit a nice extraction. FWIW, the particular beans I'm using, I find tamp reassure of 8, 4 second polish, 7 grind, 27 second extraction, starts at 10s, works well. The weight of bean used is 22g

i have just received a VST 18g filter, with same tamp pressure it fills 20g of beans. Only had a quick play today, for a double shot 30s grind 17, is getting pretty close. But my beans are also getting on to 3 weeks post toast, so will dial in with fresh roast later. Also waiting on a TDS meter, to check my shot.

a couple tips, grind a little and toss out before first use, to clear old ground beans in the grinder, you can simply remove the porter filter to stop the grind. I like to set a fine grind while the grinder is running, so not to try and reduce it with beans stuck between the blades. Then work my way up.

its a fantastic machine

[chaeha]

I've had an Oracle for about a year now. I love it. Noticed recently that my shot volume seems to be less despite all other variables being the same. Same bean, same grind. Haven't changed from the default settings. My shot volume is around 30cc or 1 ounce (with an additional 0.5 ounces of cream) after pressing the 2 shot button. Anybody have thoughts or a similar experience?

[JPesch]

Good Morning All,

New to the forum. My wonderful wife delivered a new oracle for my birthday just recently and I am absolutely stoked with it (and her)! Still working my way around its quirks and booking myself in for the white glove service to hopefully get a little more intimate with it.

My only question is I wouldn't mind a second group handle and basket for it. Breville don't seem to list a replacement on their website, for consistency I wouldn't mind keeping the second one identical to the original. Any help with this would be greatly appreciated. TIA

[chedog]

Good Morning All,

New to the forum. My wonderful wife delivered a new oracle for my birthday just recently and I am absolutely stoked with it (and her)! Still working my way around its quirks and booking myself in for the white glove service to hopefully get a little more intimate with it.

My only question is I wouldn't mind a second group handle and basket for it. Breville don't seem to list a replacement on their website, for consistency I wouldn't mind keeping the second one identical to the original. Any help with this would be greatly appreciated. TIA

I presume you are looking at a website different than the US website from which i just got one? The portafilter (BES980XL/07) and the "two-cup single wall filter" (BES980XL/18.7) are sold separately, so you'd need both for a full replacement set up.

You are wise to have a spare on hand. Two weeks ago, after 1.5 years of daily use, the handle on my portafilter snapped off (and I don't think I apply Herculean strength when I put it on/off the head). Your wife did you right, though: I've loved my Oracle. If I can help with the replacement search, PM me, and enjoy your great coffee. As you'll soon discover, this is a great forum for us aficionados.

[traceyimo]

I got the Breville Oracle for Christmas and cannot get a decent cup of coffee😩 I am considering returning the machine. I believe I have read every suggestion on how to remedy the sour taste my machine is producing. This morning I brewed multiple shots and none were drinkable. I switched beans, adjusted the grind from one extreme to the other, and experimented with the over & under extraction. I feel like I have it dialed in--looks good, all the times are right--but it just tastes bad. Any other suggestions I haven't read? I really WANT this machine to work! Thank you

[Javaphile]

What coffee are you using?


Java "If it's not fresh it's not drinkable!" phile

[ozinoz]

I got the Breville Oracle for Christmas and cannot get a decent cup of coffee I am considering returning the machine. I believe I have read every suggestion on how to remedy the sour taste my machine is producing. This morning I brewed multiple shots and none were drinkable. I switched beans, adjusted the grind from one extreme to the other, and experimented with the over & under extraction. I feel like I have it dialed in--looks good, all the times are right--but it just tastes bad. Any other suggestions I haven't read? I really WANT this machine to work! Thank you

Hi Tracey,
I feel your pain. I have been there and done that. The secret is that your beans need to be no more than about 2 weeks since roasting. You cant just dump supermarket beans in there are get an anywhere decent extraction. There is a post just above this in asnwer to an issue I had late last year (and I have had my Oracle a year now) about adjusting the tamp pressure and polish, which may help along with grind to get a better brew. I invested in a couple of small measuring glasses too to help dial in the variables so you can see exactly how much you are getting in how much time.
Good luck - please persevere. You wont regret it in the long run. I am not sure where you are, but maybe the "White Glove" service might help (is not available where I am in Australia unfortunately, which I think unreasonable as I paid as much as those in the Eastern States for my machine and then ignored by Breville, but that is another story). As Javaphile noted above - "Fresh is not only best, it is the ONLY way to go"

Grant

[JohnF]

Hello all,
I have made a few posts on here when I was trying to source a machine for work. We ended up getting an Oracle, and have been using it for a little over a week now, so I thought I'd share two of my findings with you, that I haven't found online.

a) Store bought coffee (while not ideal) can still get you a reasonable extraction if you go to the finest setting (or very close to - we're running on 3 as we speak) and max out the tamp pressure. We're using Vittoria Organic beans, and the results are definitely drinkable; and

b) You can get a single basket that works with the Oracle. I have (this morning to be exact) successfully fitted a standard, Rancilio 9g basket. The tamper fan does not contact any part of it (the sound is identical), the coffee is still tamped properly, there is a little bit of untamped coffee sprinkled on the top, but it's a very small amount, and (most of all) the extractions are VERY drinkable. With (once again) Vittoria Organic, the change of basket (without any other changes) has increased the extraction (less volume over same time) - a definite improvement over what it was.

Hopefully you'll find it useful,

JF