I finally stopped dialing in espresso by taste alone after a barista called me out

She watched me pull three shots and said "your numbers are all over the place, you're guessing not tuning" - so I bought a $30 scale that measures output by weight and now I can replicate a good shot in two tries instead of six. Has anyone else had a pro call them out on something they thought they already had down?

3 comments

3 Comments

martinez.kim4d ago

Funny you mention this because I actually read an article last week about how most home baristas rely too much on sight and taste but skip the weight part. It really stuck with me because I used to do the same thing. Getting that little scale changed my whole morning routine, not gonna lie. You can finally trust your first pull instead of burning through a whole bag of beans guessing. The barista who called you out probably saved you a lot of frustration in the long run. What made you finally decide to buy the scale?

the_christopher4d ago

Disagree with @martinez.kim on this one. I bought a scale and used it for three weeks before I realized I was overthinking the whole thing. The coffee tasted exactly the same whether I weighed 18 grams or just eyeballed it from a normal scoop. I think my morning routine got worse honestly because I was standing there fiddling with a scale instead of just making the coffee.

christopher9434d ago

My buddy from a local roastery here in Portland said the same thing you did @the_christopher. He brought a scale to a cupping I did and weighed every single dose, then showed me the morning after that my shots tasted bitter when I was under 17 grams and sour above 19. That made more sense than just worrying about replicating the same shot. Now I actually pay attention to the range where my beans taste best instead of just blindly chasing a specific number every time. It is less about perfection and more about finding your sweet spot with each bag.