Building a home espresso bar can be intimidating. Aside from figuring out which machine and grinder to buy, there’s a bevy of other espresso tools that help pull a great shot. And then there’s the technique—good equipment doesn’t automatically make great coffee.
To help you navigate making espresso at home, we put together a 101 guide with helpful things you need to know, like what gear to buy, what some technical-sounding terms mean, answers to typical espresso-related questions, and how to pull a shot step-by-step.
The Best Espresso Machines and Tools
The Best Espresso Machine
Breville Bambino Plus Espresso Machine
PHOTO: Breville
$486 at Amazon
$500 at Williams Sonoma
$500 at Sur La Table
Our favorite espresso machine is compact and makes great coffee. As we said in our review, “The machine uses pre-infusion to saturate the coffee puck at a lower pressure during the first few seconds of brewing.” This helps you, with just a few grind adjustments, get great espresso shots.
The Best Budget Espresso Grinder
Baratza Encore ESP
PHOTO: Amazon
$200 at Amazon
$200 at Williams Sonoma
View on Seattlecoffeegear.com
If you get the Bambino Plus, snag the Baratza Encore ESP to go with it. It’s an excellent espresso grinder with 20 micro-adjustments and a dosing cup.
The Best Espresso Machine with a Built-In Grinder
Breville Barista Express Impress
PHOTO: Amazon
$900
$800 at Amazon
$800 at Williams Sonoma
$800 at Target
This all-in-one machine has a built-in grinder, a tamping arm, and a steam wand. It’s fantastic and one of our favorite espresso machines. It even has a green light and smiley face that illuminates when the correct shot dosage is reached (and tells you when to add more or less coffee if not).
The Best Budget Coffee Scale
OXO BREW Precision Scale with Timer
PHOTO: Amazon
$54 at Amazon
$56 at Williams Sonoma
View on Webstaurant Store
This accurate, sensitive coffee scale easily fits onto an espresso machine’s drip tray and under the portfilter.
A Measuring Cup for Espresso Volume
OXO Mini Angled Measuring Cup
PHOTO: Amazon
View on Amazon
View on Webstaurant Store
$7 at Oxo
Weighing your shots (or at least measuring them) will lend consistency. We like this small measuring cup, which has an angled spout for easily adding espresso to your favorite coffee mug.
The Best Kitchen Timer
ThermoWorks TimeStick Trio
PHOTO: ThermoWorks
View on Thermoworks
Time! Your! Shots! It should take 25 to 30 seconds for espresso to brew. If it doesn’t, adjust your grind setting. While you could certainly use your phone, we love a separate kitchen timer.
A Multi-Purpose Distribution Tool/Tamper
Crema Coffee Products Coffee Distributor-Leveler & Hand Tamper
PHOTO: Amazon
$44 at Amazon
Most tampers that come with espresso machines are flimsy pieces of plastic. This one is heavy-duty and has one side that levels and another side that tamps, creating a uniform puck every time.
The Best Knock Box
homeffect Knock Box
PHOTO: Amazon
$26
$20 at Amazon
Whacking a spent espresso puck into a trashcan is a particularly unpleasant experience.
It’s much better to buy a dedicated knock box. Our favorite from homeffect has a pad at the front that’s nice to thwack the portafilter against.
For a knock box that fits on your espresso machine’s drip tray, get the one from Dreamfarm. Helpful Cleaning Cloths Cafemasy Barista Micro Cleaning Towels Pack PHOTO: Amazon $14 at Amazon For wiping down steam wands, portafilters, and drip trays, you need a towel (duh). However, these purpose-built ones are darker-hued and will hide coffee stains well. A Great Milk Steaming Pitcher Saiveina Milk Frothing Pitcher PHOTO: Amazon $12 $9 at Amazon If you’re not buying a Breville espresso machine, there’s a good chance your new coffee maker won’t come with a milk steaming pitcher. This one has tall, straight walls and interior measurement markings. A Nice Set of Demitasse Cups notNeutral Lino 3-Ounce Espresso Gift Set PHOTO: Amazon $40 $36 at Amazon View on Seattlecoffeegear.com View on Clivecoffee.com Espresso cups are essential for the serious enthusiast. These lovely cups (and saucers) are ergonomic and stylish. They are also available in various sizes for espresso sippers, latte lovers, or cappuccino connoisseurs. Helpful Espresso Machine Terms Serious Eats / Jesse Raub Espresso machines have a lot of unique parts, and knowing what they are and how they work is extremely helpful when learning how to make espresso. Boiler: The part inside the espresso machine that heats the water for brewing and steaming. Some machines have separate boilers for each task, which allows you to pull shots and steam milk at the same time. PID: Short for “proportional integral derivative,” the PID is a control box that uses an algorithm to maintain precise temperature control. Not every espresso machine has one. Models like the Breville Bambino Plus and Breville Barista Express Impress (a couple of favorites from our espresso machine review) do. Pump: This builds pressure to send water from the boiler through the coffee. Group Head: Where the water exits the machine into the coffee. It houses the dispersion screen (see below) and is where the portafilter locks into. Dispersion Screen: A mesh filter screen that turns the powerful water jet in the group head into a shower that saturates the coffee evenly. Portafilter: Short for “portable filter,” it’s the handle that holds the filter basket; it twists to lock into the group head. Filter Basket: A metal basket with holes that acts as the coffee filter. There are a number of different sizes of filters available—single espresso baskets hold seven grams of coffee, double filter baskets hold anywhere from 14 to 20 grams of coffee, and triple espresso baskets hold 22 to 24 grams of coffee. The most common size in the US is an 18-gram double espresso filter basket. Machines also use different diameters of filter baskets. Be sure to double-check if your machine uses a 54-millimeter basket or a 58-millimeter basket. To Find the 11 Best Home Espresso Machines at Every Price, We Spent Days Pulling Hundreds of Shots Espresso Techniques to Learn Serious Eats / Jesse Raub Aside from specific equipment terms, there is also technical jargon that baristas use to describe the steps of the shot-pulling process.Mastering the Art of Espresso Brewing involves several key steps and understanding the equipment used. Let’s delve into the process:
Dialing In refers to adjusting the fineness of the grinder to achieve the perfect espresso shot time. Dose involves portioning the desired amount of coffee into your filter basket. It can be used as a noun (‘I used an 18-gram dose’) or a verb (‘I dosed 18 grams into the basket’). Distribute is the act of spreading the coffee evenly throughout the filter basket. Tamp is the process of compressing the coffee into a tight puck using a tamper, ensuring the pressurized water moves through it evenly. The ideal tamping pressure is around 30 to 40 pounds of force, with the goal being to fully compact the coffee. Purge involves running water through the dispersion screen to clean it after the previous espresso shot. This prevents old coffee oils and particles from affecting the freshness of the new shot. Pull, derived from the traditional lever action, now means inserting the portafilter with a prepared espresso puck into the group head and pressing the button to start the shot. Steam Milk is the process of using the steam wand to aerate and heat milk, creating milk foam for beverages like cappuccinos or lattes. This is sometimes also referred to as foaming or frothing milk. Understanding How Espresso Machines Work: Espresso is created by using pressurized water to extract a concentrated coffee from fine grounds. The boiler heats the water, and when the start button is pressed, the pump forces water from the boiler to the group head, where it’s turned into a shower by the dispersion screen. This shower then saturates the coffee puck and extracts the espresso shot through the filter basket and into your cup. Do You Need a Separate Grinder for Espresso? You don’t necessarily need a separate espresso grinder, but you need one that can grind fine enough for espresso. Most burr grinders are better at making coarse grinds for drip, pour-over, and French press. A designated espresso grinder is often better at achieving the fine grind levels needed for a good shot. Some models, like the Baratza Encore ESP, can handle both fine espresso and coarser drip ranges. If you prefer not to purchase a separate grinder and machine, consider machines with built-in grinders, such as the Breville Barista Express Impress. It features an automatic dosing system and a built-in assisted tamping lever, simplifying the shot-pulling process. Consider Weighing Your Coffee: Espresso brewing is all about precision. A 0.5-gram difference in the amount of coffee used can significantly impact the flavor and extraction speed of your shot. We recommend a coffee scale that reads 0.1 grams to maintain consistency in your dose. While a double espresso is around two ounces, the volume can also depend on the crema’s thickness: fresher coffee produces a thicker crema, making the espresso shot appear more voluminous.Achieving the perfect espresso requires a precise coffee-to-water ratio. We recommend weighing your espresso shots, adhering to a one part coffee to two parts water guideline. Weight-based ratios ensure accuracy and consistency, allowing you to focus on adjusting the grind size based on extraction time.
If weighing isn’t practical, consider using a shot glass with milliliter markings, such as the OXO Mini Angled Measuring Cup, as a milliliter of liquid is roughly equivalent to a gram.
Dosing your coffee correctly is crucial and depends on the size of your espresso filter basket. We suggest using a precision model with an 18-gram capacity for better calibration. Different machines have different filter basket diameters; Breville uses a 54-millimeter portafilter, while the Gaggia Classic Pro uses a 58-millimeter portafilter. For 54-millimeter portafilters, the IMS Precision 18g Espresso Filter Basket is ideal, and for 58-millimeter portafilters, the VST 18-gram Ridged Espresso Filter Basket is recommended.
Timing your espresso shots is essential. A consistent brew ratio is followed by calibrating your grinder. Espresso requires a fine grind, and using a timer is the best way to dial in your grinder. Shots that run too fast will be watery and sour, while those that take too long will be bitter and oily. Adjust the grind size until your shot pulls between 25 to 30 seconds, which is optimal for a sweet and balanced espresso.
When pulling an espresso shot, follow these steps for a consistent and high-quality result:
– Leave your portafilter in the grouphead while the machine heats up to maintain water temperature.
– Remove the portafilter, clean, and dry it to prevent clumping of freshly ground coffee.
– Weigh out your coffee and dose it into the filter basket.
– Distribute the coffee evenly to avoid mounds.
– Tamp the coffee to ensure even water flow.
– Purge water from the group head to rinse away any old coffee.
Making espresso involves several precise steps. First, insert the portafilter and start pulling the shot immediately while setting a timer. It’s crucial not to leave a tamped coffee puck in the machine for more than three seconds to avoid overcooking the coffee due to heat and moisture in the group head.
Stop the espresso shot when you’ve reached your desired volume. After that, remove the portafilter, knock out the spent espresso puck into the knock box, and rinse the filter basket before reinserting the portafilter. Enjoy your freshly made espresso! You’ve earned it! Serious Eats / Jesse Raub shares some valuable milk steaming advice. Steaming milk involves adding air to create foam while also heating the milk to make it taste sweeter. The steam wand’s position relative to the milk surface affects the foam creation. Ideally, start with your steam wand just off-center to create a vortex. A good milk pitcher with tall, straight walls helps the milk swirl evenly. For different drinks, the foam volume and size guidance vary: – Macchiato: 3 ounces, 0.5 centimeters foam, 20-30% volume increase while steaming – Cappuccino: 5.5 ounces, 1.5 centimeters foam, 30-40% volume increase while steaming – Latte: 8 to 12 ounces, 0.5 centimeters foam, 15% volume increase while steaming Remember, the longer the tip is at the surface of the milk, the more foam the steam wand will create. For a cappuccino, let the milk aerate until it grows about 30-40% in size before submerging the tip. For a latte, only 15% volume growth is needed. Contrary to popular belief, expensive equipment doesn’t automatically make better espresso. High-end home espresso setups can cost up to $10,000, but they don’t guarantee amazing espresso. The general rule is that pricier coffee gear can streamline the process, but for most, a Breville Bambino Plus and a Baratza Encore ESP are sufficient. Making espresso is a process that requires practice to achieve the desired results. Here are some FAQs to consider: What tools do you need to make an espresso? Pulling a shot of espresso requires an espresso machine, an espresso grinder, a tamper, and a cup or shot glass. A scale and a timer are recommended for precise measurements. Optional tools include a knock box, a dosing cup, and barista cloths for cleanliness, and a precision filter basket for better tasting espresso. Can you tamp espresso too hard? The answer is no; you can’t tamp too hard. Loose coffee compacts fully around 35 pounds of pressure, and beyond that, it can’t compact much further. It’s better to tamp with consistent body weight to maintain a consistent espresso puck.Discovering the best grind size for espresso is crucial for achieving the perfect shot. Espresso necessitates an extremely fine grind, and the only way to discern the ideal size is by pulling a shot. A finer grind will decelerate the flow, while a coarser grind will accelerate it. The optimal grind size is indicated by an espresso shot that completes between 25 and 30 seconds.
Achieving the perfect tamp is essential for even water pressure distribution in espresso. A push-style tamper is recommended for level tamping. It aligns itself with the filter basket’s edge, simplifying the process to a simple downward push with your palm. For a regular tamper, invert your elbow to a 90-degree angle, allowing the tamper’s weight to settle the coffee, then lean in from your shoulder with a straight wrist to ensure a level espresso puck. Espresso distribution tools are indispensable for evening out the puck’s surface pre-tamping. They efficiently distribute coffee to the basket’s corners, resulting in an even-density espresso puck upon tamping. Our expertise is backed by Jesse Raub, a Serious Eats writer with over 15 years in specialty coffee, and Ridley Gemperlein-Schirm, the senior editor at Serious Eats, with prior experience at America’s Test Kitchen and Food52. We have tested 8 espresso grinders, with 4 consistently delivering excellent results.
