I received a Breville Barista Express for Christmas! I enjoyed every minute of dialing it in. (As you can tell by the messy station 😂) Followed the dialing in instructions from the sub and bought freshly roasted beans from a local roaster as suggested. Was able to reach the ratio and taste I wanted. This sub is a godsend. Happy New Year everyone!
by Madness7066
15 Comments
Congrats! I’m glad you’re enjoying it. It looks like it was a tough battle, but the good thing is you won and didn’t give up. From here on out, it’s going to be nothing but excellent shots. And most importantly, keep having fun—this is an excellent hobby.
I got one too a month or so back – it’s a good machine – now starts the slippery slope of accessories!
Beginner here. Would you be so kind to link the instructions post you are referring to? I have just used the search function but I have not found a pinned post or similar
Now you need a wifi tamper and portafilter made out of titanium for max temp stability
Hey dude, I think you can adjust the grind setting from inside the hopper too.
Enjoy!!!
Please weight the input and output manually with a good scale .0 Gramm or better
I’ve had mine for 8 years and going strong 💪 the hardest part becomes fighting the urge to upgrade
I got mine for Christmas last year and it gets used multiple times per week. Love it! Like others said, it’s easier with a scale. I typically use the same beans and have a triple basket with open portafilter, so I programmed the 2 shot button to match it after dialing it in and it’s consistently good as long as I tamp and wdt the same way each time. Also always measure the beans.
I just upgraded from this amazing machine this year. It gave me some good years of use. Some tips for maximum enjoyment:
1. Adjust the inner grinder to a finer setting, you will invariably need it for some roasts. I had it set to like 1-2.
2. Upgrade your tamper immediately to a self-leveling, spring loaded tamper for consistency. Normcore makes a good one. Breville’s is infamously regarded as the worst included tamper in the industry.
3. Make sure your brew temperature is set correctly to the type of bean you’re using. There are videos on how to adjust this and you have 3-4 options for brew temperature. Use the machine after about 15 min for maximum temp consistency.
4. Do not leave your beans in the hopper. They get rancid if not stored properly and these oils will stick to your hoper and make sure every brew tastes like fish. Beans should only live in hoppers in commercial applications where they get used quickly. Most importantly, you should be measuring out your daily dose with a coffee scale for consistency instead of using a random inconsistent dose from the grinder. Wacaco makes an affordable scale which is pretty good.
5. Look into the Crema Steam Lever (optional). Great aesthetic and better ease of use.
Enjoy your new machine to its maximum potential!
My mum gave my wife (who doesn’t drink coffee) and I one of these for Christmas this year. It was genuinely the most excited I’ve been in opening a present since I was 8 years old.
https://preview.redd.it/ox6uglu29tag1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6dd0946015ab372096b7bba1769d1c8bf5b3e189
Weigh your shots
I started on that exact machine and switched to rocket cinquantotto
I’m at a house rn and working an old machine that is same setup as the one u got and I’m struggling bc the coffee is dispensing too much coffee in portafilter (same as breville does)
Weigh everything and time shots
So u can make sure it’s perfect
Got one and love it but I am struggling to dial it in. The grind, the temp, and the time in the right zone. Will a better tamper be a good start?
I remember dialling mine in. I drank so much espresso that I had heart palpitations.
Welcome to the madness that is espresso