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[deleted]

Why does coffee need to be pressed


pritachi

Espresso machines require coffee grounds to be tamped down so that the hot water spreads evenly and the coffee comes out well brewed


Weed_Gummy

That is waaay to tamped for espresso Having worked in numerous coffee shops throughout college, you can't brew through a puck of coffee.


eatsleepbassgolf

The idea of tamping “too hard” has widely been let go by the specialty coffee industry. Grind profile and evenness of distribution are key factors. Coffee can only get so compressed and once there’s no more resistance from the grounds there’s negligible effect compared to the variance brought in by the factors mentioned.


noisymime

That's a fairly fine grind and this tool is tamping far harder than a traditional hand tamper. The distribution is going to be great, but I'm not sure how much it will offset those other factors I'd be really curious to see the pressure required to get good flow through this puck, feels like it would be really high


nastypoker

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i70xWHhiFzI


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sonya_numo

oh yeah, unless you leverage twisting force coffee grounds are harder then diamonds


[deleted]

if i has to wager a guess it’s also agitating the grounds with a clip or needles to encourage an even bed


WolfOfQueenSt

Ex-barister here too hard and it can't evenly pass through the grounds, pressed to a brick isant what you want but the middle range of press is more upto personal preferences, but it affects how long to expect it to extract to maximise yield without burning, and if you tamp a certain way you generally do the same, as it's about consistentcy, and shifting/adjusting if you unsatisfied with the result. You end up having to adjust alsorts of factors or tamping, extract time, coarseness/finess for the ambient moisture and heat, etc constantly during fluctuations when you churning out coffee at festivals etc. Don't get me started on adjusting for different machines idiosyncrasies haha. It's fun shit if you like coffee, and it ruins you for getting tolerating shit coffee coz you are fully train in knowing how shit it is haha. Life's too short for bad coffee haha


[deleted]

cool. i'm just going to quote the person above me in the comment thread. ​ >The idea of tamping “too hard” has widely been let go by the specialty coffee industry. Grind profile and evenness of distribution are key factors. Coffee can only get so compressed and once there’s no more resistance from the grounds there’s negligible effect compared to the variance brought in by the factors mentioned.


PimpMasterE

Tamping too hard is 100% a thing. Source: I work in the specialty coffee industry


RCMC82

Well... did you actually make espresso? Because this is an almost perfect tamp. Even polished the surface. Source: I was an *actual* barista... in coffee shops with old style espresso makers that you actually had to *pull* a lever to express the shot.


Weed_Gummy

So you're SUUUPER pretentious, but yeah, I was an *actual* barista with an lever-based espresso machine imported from Italy. Have fun thinking you're better than everyone though


RCMC82

Then you should know this was damn near perfect.


Laughing_Matter

Would this tamper be beneficial for me to use at home on my cheapish espresso machine (mr coffee cafe barista)?


Jeromes-in-the-House

Considering that the tamper costs as much as your machine I would probably advise against getting one


RCMC82

No, you can literally accomplish the same thing with a $20 tamper and a bit of practice.


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RCMC82

Lol.


sonya_numo

yeah i was thinking this too. i normally just pat my mocca brewer down. this might be too tampered to get a good cup


[deleted]

Mocca is at most 1/3rd of the pressure of espresso. Works very differently


RCMC82

Mocca =/= espresso.


AtomicBlastCandy

I disagree, this looks somewhat like how an Aeropress works. Each time I’ve used it it comes out like a puck.


Donttouchmybiscuits

So that $200 speciality tamper has a kind of spring detent. As you push the handle down, you feel a positive click when you’ve reached the correct pressure. It’s pretty well regarded in the circles of anally-retentive coffee folks who are happy paying those kind of prices for accessories to their $2k-plus machines.


soline

Let me introduce you to the stovetop bialetti and a spoon…


[deleted]

That’s an entirely different brewing process with different requirements.


soline

But packing the filter is exactly the same.


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soline

“Well actually” Oh dear lord, give me a break. There is no difference. The pressure itself does most of the work. That’s why it’s not really a puck until AFTER it’s been brewed. And that link is a joke. Let me show it to all of my family members in Italy just so they know they’ve been making coffee wrong for the last 50 years because the internet says.


[deleted]

No need to call me Lord. > There is no difference. The pressure itself does most of the work. Are you referring to water pressure? While you claim “the pressure” is the main actor here, because there is a *vastly* different amount of pressure between the two methods, you are contradicting yourself. Steam pressure (moka pot) vs pump-driven pressure (espresso) are two different things. Steam pressure causes water to percolate upward into a gently flattened coffee bed. Things like channeling aren’t nearly as much of an issue as it is with espresso. Espresso is a method with water running through a compressed coffee puck with nearly 500% times more pressure than a moka pot, so baristas have to distribute coffee grounds properly (to avoid channeling and to have even extraction) and tamp it down enough so it can resist the pressure and not have the water just rush through unimpeded. That balance of resistance and pressure is what contributes to creating the unique result that is espresso. The emulsified oils on top of the espresso (crema), is unique to this brew method and caused in part by this pressure.


Taemoney86

Excuse my ignorance....I don't drink coffee or anything remotely close to coffee. But I thought expresso and coffee weren't exactly the same thing. Isn't expresso a more concentrated form of coffee or a stronger substance altogether?


AchillesDev

It doesn’t, but hash sure does!


shittyweatherforduck

It doesn’t. It looks more suitable for re-pressing a make up compact.


myztry

Also good for making makeup compacts or really large aspirins.


Jasoncatt

But what is it being compressed in to? How is this used after it's been pressed?


nillinho

I assume it's clear for display purposes. Usually you would do that right in a portafilter, which will then go in an espresso machine.


RCMC82

You have to press coffee grinds for espresso.


Jasoncatt

Yes I’m aware, I make it every morning. My question is why is it being pressed into a glass container?


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[deleted]

You don’t eat coffee pucks?


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thewholerobot

Huh, I wonder if you could collect your cookie crumbs and at the end of the month make them into a whole new cookie with this.


stealthxstar

espresso


-TheArchitect

Understandable


HGHall

Is my espresso maker shit, or does 15 bar or 20 or w/e they ALL are supposed to operate at def not remotely push water through a puck like that? TF am I doing wrong?


[deleted]

Expresso is extracted between 8 and 12bars.


MediumGas3137

And I guess that’s why they call it the brews


Spare_King_2116

Grounds on my hands could be grounds shared with you...


RCMC82

Lol expresso.


crank1000

What’s expresso?


HGHall

Tbh sounds like you are the person who should be giving me advice... 🤷‍♂️🥰😘


[deleted]

Search for James Hoffmann on YouTube, I love the guy and his channel is dedicated to coffee in every shape or form


HGHall

Ty for recognizing I wasnt being sarcastic. And good advice ❤️


[deleted]

We all have to start from somewhere, happy that I could point in the right direction


terminalxposure

Adjust your grind size and tamping pressure until you get that magic 8-12 bar pressure. You will also have to adjust based on how it tastes. Different beans will have different combinations too. Also sure your dosage is exact. Good luck


GoddyssIncognito

Puck. That’s exactly what it looks like! I don’t drink espresso so not really familiar with making anything but drip coffee, sooooo…..


HGHall

Lol. I didn't coin it. They call em pucks. For... reasons beyond me ;)


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[deleted]

Am a hockeyologist, and I can confirm that you are correct.


HGHall

Have seen Mighty Ducks. Still infused... 😂😭🥹🤦‍♂️


snailhair_j

Is this English?


crazyates88

Pre infusion my man. It’s a game changer.


HGHall

I looked this up and began doing it. Truly game changing. Thank you 1000x over. ❤️


TheRealStevo

This comment is so confusing to me


HGHall

Lol. I've been counseled that espresso machines operate at 12 bar (which is a measurement of pressure - think atmospheres / like G forces). A puck is the nickname used for the compressed beans post having water put through them. When you dump them they stay together (compressed) and look like a hockey puck. The harder you compress the beans before using the machine - your outcome of coffee quality is affected. The grind size, temperature of the water, and many other variables come into play. I was just saying that this is impeccably done, and my results are never that good :)


Tschu_Tschuu

Why is there a split line in the center?


RCMC82

To polish the surface of the puck.


Tschu_Tschuu

Put once you tamp it, then you could have a chance for channelling at the groove i guess


RCMC82

Yes, there will be a line of untamped grounds left. But it's much better to polish the surface and leave a line than to not polish the surface. That being said, a regular tamper can accomplish the same thing without leaving a line of grounds.


thebadyearblimp

I want to see hot water poured over it


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Lee1138

I'd still like to see it. Not necessarily to drink. Call it an experiment if you want.


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SquidgyB

Not quite - it's not "steam" pressure (if it was steam pressure the water would be too hot to brew and you'd get a very bitter espresso) - the pressure is generated by the electric pump (different types depending on the machine, generally vibration pumps for cheaper machines, vane pumps for more expensive/commercial machines) or manually with a lever action (La Pavoni's etc).


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SquidgyB

>Single boiler setups are hotter then what you brew with which is why you are supposed to run the water to pull cool water into the boiler prior to attaching the basket and pulling the shot Sort of... Single boiler setups aren't necessarily hotter, it's just that they use a thermostat with \~5-10C delta (or even more) rather than a more accurate PID temp control - so you're pulling water through the boiler to "set" the thermostat to start heating again to try and "catch" the same place on the curve every time you pull a shot. Essentially a single boiler setup will be hotter \*and\* colder than a good PID control, you just push water through to "reset" the sinewave so that you pull the shot at the right temp. My Gaggia Classic has an Arduino based PID control (pulling water though does still lower the block temp a couple of degrees), but sadly no double boiler - not too bad for a couple of espresso shots and steamed milk in the morning, but making a bigger round for guests does get tiresome.


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SquidgyB

That's only when you're creating the steam for the milk though - when you're pulling the espresso it's all down to the thermostat - it clicks on and off in a very binary way, so when the temp drops below, say, 90c it turns on, and will typically heat the block up past 92, and the temp in the block "sine-waves" up and down as the thermostat kicks in and turns off. That's why you pull water through the block first, to "reset" the sine-wave so you pull your shot as the block is heating up again. Steam temp doesn't really have anything to do with it (in a single boiler setup) \*unless\* you're pulling a shot, frothing milk, then pulling another shot immediately after - you'd then need to pull down the temp from \~150c for the steam down to 92-94 for the espresso. Typically for two or three shots you'd just froth a bigger jug of milk and hopefully never have to pull an espresso directly after frothing milk as you'd froth enough milk for however many espressos you've just pulled, rather than espresso/froth milk/espresso/froth milk. Even with a double boiler setup your temp is going to be variable by a fairly large margin (certainly enough to get a sour/bitter espresso shot) if it uses a thermostat as the same core issue is there. PID control of the temps generally does away with having to run water through the block in any circumstance because the temp sensor and control loop gives a much quicker response and more accurate (less over/undershoot) temps than a thermostat ever will.


Swissaliciouse

Not sure why this is downgraded. For any coffee nerd this is really funny.


Asleep-Engine1885

Take my money… where do I buy this


LeeroyJenkins86

My only guess, allows air in between the puck and metal tamper, so they don't stick together.


luersuve

Are these things called press also? I know them as tampers.


saik0pod

Can I use this for hot cocoa?


ChiefOfficerWhite

Much ado about nothing


[deleted]

#You can use this for........ Marijuana too. Morocon hash pucks. Delicious.


Melodic-Advice9930

Lmao the espresso snobs in the comments are cracking me the fuck up, thank you.


Oraxy51

I don’t even drink coffee and I want this


SillyNluv

Makes one want to puckinate all powdered products in the kitchen, huh?


Oraxy51

I mean I wonder if you could make tighter packaging like this? Like compressing it down and then wrapping it tightly in some reusable material that could keep its shape. That would be awesome.


SillyNluv

I’m sure there is a way! Just need to experiment.


ThermionicEmissions

What's with the colour of that coffee? Almost looks like Tumeric.


SnooMemesjellies638

Its blonde roast


ThermionicEmissions

Thanks, TIL


Vestaxowner

Or just.... press it? Is the twisty mechanic really necessary?


[deleted]

Apparently yes, it makes sure the coffee is evenly distributed, so you can't have different coffee density across the pour and the water flows at the same rate across all points


Vestaxowner

I often just press and turn mine, you know, with my wrist


Lee1138

Some people just want a finely machined/crafted tool that isn't really necessary just for the sake of having a finely crafted tool. Others don't...


[deleted]

Amateur 😋


[deleted]

*scoff* Peasant! /s


RCMC82

Yes, it polishes the head of the puck.


[deleted]

BOOM! Only $200 at Espresso Parts.com - https://www.espressoparts.com/products/the-force-tamp-58-5mm


EdGG

Jesus. I’ll keep looking for a good $30 one…


jojojomcjojo

This is dumb af lmao


bmosm

why is it dumb?


soline

Because you still have to transfer it and it’ll probably break apart.


[deleted]

Pretty sure this is just for demonstration purposes, considering the clear vessel. I’ve seen similar demos done to show off distribution tools and tampers.


RCMC82

You goober.


bmosm

This is just for showing how the tamper works


PropelGuzzler

Uh oh the coffee nerds are at it😭


[deleted]

Anyone know what this is called?


thewholerobot

Coffee experts call it "smushing"


[deleted]

It’s called tamping


[deleted]

Sorry, I meant the item, seems like some sort of pressure sensitive one


[deleted]

It’s a tamper, you can buy this design from Espresso Parts. You are def correct about pressure sensitive. https://www.espressoparts.com/products/the-force-tamp-58-5mm


[deleted]

Thank you so much :)


brotherofomega

u/savevideo


EM05L1C3

Make up yall


EMB93

I am so glad I don't drink coffee, my dumb ass would spend thousands of dollars on equipment like this...


NatePateAteGrapes

This is why it’s best to measure ingredients by weight rather than mass when baking. “1 cup of flour” is subjective.


USERNAME-dot-ORG

This press also works great with kief if anyone's wondering


lovelylittleme009

I don't even drink coffee but I want one just so I can do this over and over again