If your Barista Express makes a great shot one morning and a sour one the next with the same beans, the machine usually isn't the problem. The puck is. Here's the routine that makes it the same every time. It takes about a minute.
1. Grind into the basket without spilling
Why: coffee that lands on the counter changes your dose, and the grinder tends to pile it on one side.
Free way: grind slowly and rotate the portafilter a little as it fills.
Faster way: a 54mm dosing funnel sits on the basket rim and catches everything.
2. Stir for 10 to 15 seconds
Why: the Barista Express grinder makes clumps at espresso settings. Clumps are where channels start.
Free way: a straightened paperclip, stirred in small circles all the way to the bottom.
Faster way: a WDT tool with several fine needles does it in half the time.
3. Level it
Why: a flat bed means the same depth of coffee everywhere, so water has no easy route.
Tap the side of the portafilter twice. Finish with a light circular stir on the surface.
4. Tamp straight, with the right size
Why: a tilted tamp makes one side thinner than the other.
The Barista Express portafilter is 54mm, but the basket is about 53mm across, so it takes a 53mm tamper. Press firmly and evenly. Harder doesn't help. Straight does.
Easier way: an adjustable depth tamper has a collar that rests on the basket rim, so it stops at the same depth, level, every time.
5. Check the dose
Aim for about 18g in the double basket. No scale? Run the Razor tool that came with your machine across the top after tamping. The goal is the same amount every morning.
6. Lock in and brew right away
Don't leave the portafilter sitting in the hot group head before you start the shot. Aim for 25 to 30 seconds and about 2 oz (36g) in the cup. If the time is off, adjust the grind.
If you'd rather not piece it together
Our Puck Prep Kit for Breville 54mm is the four tools for this routine, in the right sizes for the Barista Express: WDT tool with stand, 54mm magnetic dosing funnel, 53mm adjustable depth tamper and a silicone tamping mat. It's $79.99, against $93.96 for the four bought separately.
Tell us your machine. If it doesn't fit, we'll make it right. Every tool is covered by 30-day returns and a 12-month limited warranty.
Everything else that fits your machine: Everything for your Barista Express.